Re:SearchGraduate Studies & Research at Salisbury University

2017 Edition

NAVIGATINGCOMMUNITY

CONNECTIONS

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Leveraging Research for Maryland Consumers....................................................3Professors Aim to ‘Energize College Hopefuls’ .....................................................6Pandey Earns Language Acquisition Grant..........................................................7The SU-Downtown Connection...........................................................................9A Home for Regional Research: Nabb Research Center....................................11Meeting Critical Needs in Education..................................................................15The Evolution of AmeriCorps............................................................................16A ‘Mission’ of Nursing in Nicaragua ..................................................................17SU Student Interns at The Hague ......................................................................18Research Day 2016 .............................................................................................19Faculty Learning Communities...........................................................................19The Brain-Nerve-Zebrafish Connection.............................................................21Faculty Mini-Grant Program ..............................................................................23Graduate Research and Presentation (RAP) Grant Program .............................25Faculty Books.......................................................................................................28Salisbury University Student Research Conference............................................29

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TABLE OF CONTENTSVolume 07 • 2017

PRESIDENTDr. Janet Dudley-Eshbach

PROVOST & SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRSDr. Diane D. Allen

DEAN OF GRADUATE STUDIES & RESEARCHDr. Clifton Griffin

ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING & PUBLIC RELATIONSSusan Maxwell Eagle

GRADUATE STUDIES & RESEARCH OFFICE STAFFVanessa Collins, Research Accounting & Compliance SpecialistLacie Doyle, Graduate Enrollment Management Specialist Teri Herberger, Director of Sponsored ProgramsDonna Knopf, Administrative Assistant IIHaleigh LaChance, Contract & Grants SpecialistJessica Scott ’08, Graduate Program Manager Beth Walsh, Grants Specialist

COPY EDITORChristine B. Smith M’02

VISUAL IMAGES COORDINATOR/PHOTOGRAPHERKathy D. Pusey ’86

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

SU has a strong institutional commitment to diversity and nondiscrimination in all programs, events, and services. To that end, the University prohibits discriminationon the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, religion, sexual orientation, genderidentity or expression, veteran status or other legally protected characteristics. Direct all inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policy to the Office of InstitutionalEquity/Title IX Coordinator, Holloway Hall 100, 410-543-6426.

The Brain-Nerve-Zebrafish Connection • page 21

Re:Search is published annually for friends of Salisbury University by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research in conjunction with the Office of Publications, with the generous support of Salisbury University. Please send comments, news and address changes to: Office of Graduate Studies & Research, Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801-6860

Dr. Diane D. AllenKayelynn AyresDr. Chris BriandDr. Claudia BurgessWilliam BurkeDr. Jessica ClarkDr. Randall ConeKatie CurtinLauren DeLongDr. Mary DiBartoloDr. Janet Dudley-Eshbach

On the Cover: This surveyor’s compass, found in SU’s Nabb Research Center, was made by Goldsmith Chandlee, a clock and instrument maker who was born in1751 in Nottingham, MD. Chandlee moved to Winchester, VA, in 1783 where he built a brass foundry and a shop. Although most Chandlee compasses have thename of the person for which it was made, this compass is only engraved with “G Chandlee Winchester.” The Nabb Center collection includes another GoldsmithChandlee compass, which is engraved with the name “Darby Ensor,” a deputy surveyor who surveyed lots around the inner harbor of Baltimore City from 1808 to1823. Read more about SU’s Nabb Center on page 11.

Dr. Alexander PopeDr. Deborah MathewsKristen Murphy Jason RhodesAmanda RockerJessica ScottChristine B. SmithDr. Brandy TerrillDr. Marvin TosseyDr. Gail WelshDr. Kathie Wright

Susan EagleDr. Elizabeth EmmertHannah EnnerfeltAlison Farmer Brittany Foutz Dr. Samuel Geleta Dr. Clifton GriffinTeri HerbergerJulia HowellDr. Creston LongDr. Anjali Pandey

Salisbury University is a proud member of the University System of Maryland.

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Welcome to the spring 2017 edition of Re:Search! Amazingly, this is our seventh issue ofSU’s magazine devoted to the research and scholarly activities of our faculty, staff andstudents. As I retire from the University, I take pride in this publication and the workthat has been highlighted over the last seven years. Salisbury University does not aspireto become a Research I institution, but the level of research and scholarly activitytaking place here rivals any such activity at more research-focused institutions. A reviewof past issues reminded me of our wonderful Fulbright record, of research across alldisciplines, much of it funded through external grants, and of faculty-supportedstudent research, funded through agencies such as the EPA and the National ScienceFoundation. Curriculum at SU supports student engagement and civic responsibility,and research by SU faculty has extended the classroom by focusing on the largercommunity, as demonstrated in the work related to breast health, to assessment ofstorm damage from Hurricane Sandy, and to work force development andentrepreneurship. This issue of Re:Search continues this legacy by highlighting andproviding insight on the magnificent positive impact that research and scholarship arehaving on our community, local and beyond.Just as Salisbury University continues to expand, there has been a recent improved

presence for the City of Salisbury through the invigorating downtown revitalizationefforts. You can read all about the University/city partnership and SU engagement inlocal economic development efforts lead by one of our faculty members, Bill Burke. Other faculty of SU also are engaged directly with local business partnerships

through grants and support from the State of Maryland. The Maryland IndustrialPartnerships (MIPS) program is dedicated to providing resources for the developmentof new business ideas and products across the state. In this edition of Re:Search, you canread about four different partnerships between SU faculty and local businesses. To celebrate the long-standing dedication that SU has to supporting volunteerism

and student engagement “on the front lines,” this issue provides an update to ourrefreshed AmeriCorps program, which continues to serve area at-risk young peopleand seniors. Additionally, we are highlighting some of our nursing students along withthe tremendous efforts of local physicians and other health care professionals toprovide desperately needed healthcare in Central America. Of course, much of our focus in every issue of Re:Search is on the outstanding efforts

of faculty as researchers and scholars. This issue is no different! One of SU’s mostsuccessful faculty members, Dr. Anjali Pandey, has received another prestigious multi-year grant from the Department of Education. By receiving this award, Dr. Pandey hassuccessfully earned over $7.5 million in external funding for her efforts. We are proudto showcase details of Dr. Pandey’s successful scholarly activities. Aside from these stories, there many other examples of our faculty, staff and

students continuing to expand the reach of our University. While we continue to bededicated to our core values and providing the best educational experience for ourstudents, Re:Search serves as a reminder that the role of research and scholarly activity iskey to student success.Thank you for your interest in Salisbury University!

Sincerely,

LETTER FROM THE PROVOST

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“... the level of research and scholarly activity taking place hererivals any such activity at more research-focused institutions.”

Diane D. Allen, Ed.D. Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs • Salisbury University

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Most recently, Dr. Kathie Wright of SU’sInformation and Decision SciencesDepartment, in partnership withOperational Precision Systems in Salisbury,received $59,470 for the development ofWaterOPS, a cloud-based service for moreeffective water supply sampling andmonitoring. The project continues in 2017with an additional $72,632.

OPS aims to improve the managementof environmental inspections by developingsolutions for testing agencies that oftendon’t have resources to properly maintaincompliance with mandates and regulations.OPS notes that for the 150,000 drinkingwater systems in the U.S., nearly 40 percentof reported violations of the EnvironmentalProtection Agency’s (EPA) Clean DrinkingWater Act were not from contaminants, butrather monitoring and reporting failures.

The firm’s automated, user-friendlysoftware application would help. Eventually,it plans to expand such services for air/landquality and waste management.

“The purpose is to improve the testingprocess so the focus can be on true waterquality issues,” Wright said.

Last year, she selected four studentsfrom SU’s Perdue School of Business tocodify over 1,400 complex state and EPAregulations, mapping how they weave

together and developing use cases. Now,they are building the “water complianceengine.” Expected benefits include betterand less costly reporting and more accuratetesting, fostering safer drinking water.

OPS is a two-time winner of SU’sRatcliffe Shore Hatchery entrepreneurshipcompetition. Subsequent support from theSmall Business Development Center at SUled them to Wright and the students.

“The project has given me invaluableexperience,” said alumnus Tai Nguyen ’16(B.S. Management/Information Systems). AnOPS intern turned employee, he is now anSU M.B.A. graduate assistant leading fiveundergraduates on the project.

“Working with SU through the MIPSprogram has been a perfect fit for a youngstartup like OPS,” said Lee Beachamp, co-founder. “It not only gives us opportunitiesto work with students who think outside thebox, it also helps students understand thedynamics of getting a project off theground in a team environment. The SUstudents have worked on everything fromflow charting the basic concepts of thesystem to the end-user graphic interfacewith great success. OPS has been veryimpressed with the caliber of students at SU.”

Leveraging Research forMaryland ConsumersFor three decades, the Maryland IndustrialPartnerships (MIPS) program has connected theacademic resources of the state’s public universities tothe business sector. MIPS provides competitivefunding, matched by participating companies, foruniversity-based research projects that may help the firms develop and commercialize new productsand processes.

In recent years, Salisbury University faculty havebeen involved with several of these public-privatepartnerships, receiving nearly $1 million for effortsrelated to the environment and human services.

Monitoring Water

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REGIONAL SUPPORT

Past SU MIPS recipients include Dr. MarvinTossey, co-chair of SU’s Social WorkDepartment, who received two awardstotaling half a million dollars. The first, for$250,054 in 2013, allowed Tossey to workwith Salisbury-based Eastern ShorePsychological Services to test and evaluatethe predictive validity of its CARE-2 (Child &Adolescent Risk Evaluation) instrument inaccurately identifying youth who are at riskfor violent behavior. “We were looking atthe confidence in the reliability of a scorefrom it,” Tossey said. In 2015, he receivedan additional $250,271 to makerecommendations on how to improve thetool based on the data collected.

“In recent years you have a lot ofexamples of extreme violence, soeverybody is trying to figure out if a kidthey are working with has the potential todo something,” Tossey said. The tool, heexplained, is not geared toward severesingle events like a school shooting, butrather chronic violence and predictingjuveniles who may continue that behavior.Practitioners, he said, also can use the toolto determine specific interventions andtreatments to reduce or prevent futureaggressions.

“What’s noteworthy is that, when we gotthe grant, the MIPS folks had never funded aproject that had to do with human subjects,”Tossey said. “Proposals always had beenabout technology, biology, engineering andthe like. I was told the MIPS director at thetime said, ‘Wow, this is really a different kindof proposal; why not?’”

He called five SU graduate students“worker bees” for the effort. As paidsummer research assistants, they combed

and analyzed some 800 files from theDepartment of Juvenile Services. AlumnaKelly McIntyre (B.A. Psychology ’12; M.S.W.’16) said: “It really helped put into practicewhat we learned in our research classes.”

For Tossey, the project also fosteredinter-campus collaboration: Drs. VictoriaVenable, Social Work Department, andLarence Becker, Psychology Department,were partners, providing expertise and dataanalysis skills. In addition, an ongoingconnection with Eastern ShorePsychological Services has led to otherresearch and consulting for Tossey.

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Predicting Violence

Sharing ResultsThe MIPS grants also led toprofessional developmentopportunities for faculty andstudents: Tossey’s teampresented at the 2016 JointWorld Conference on SocialWork, Education and SocialDevelopment in Seoul, Korea,while Geleta’s group sharedtheir work at national andinternational soil science andmicrobiology conferences inCalifornia, Minnesota andMassachusetts.

According to MIPS, the U.S. Small Business Administration

recognizes it as a “model program” that contributes significantly

to job creation and product development in the state.

Drs. Larence Becker, Marvin Tossey and Victoria Venable,with Kelly McIntyre

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Three faculty from SU’s Biological SciencesDepartment – Drs. Samuel Geleta(agronomy), Elizabeth Emmert(microbiology) and Chris Briand (economicbotany) – also received two MIPS grants,totaling over $300,000. In 2013, a $149,365award allowed them to work withGreatGrow Maryland to determine if thesoil amendment it was developing couldincrease crop yields and enhance soil quality(reducing nitrogen, phosphorous andchemical pollution in the Chesapeake Baywatershed). In 2014, testing continued withan additional $153,575.

“Our job was to evaluate theeffectiveness of the proposed soilamendment,” said Geleta, project lead. Itwas thought to improve the water-holdingcapacity of soil and increase nutrients viamicrobial activities, eventually reducingfertilizer use.

The team grew field corn for two yearsunder dry land and irrigated conditions,utilizing the Salisbury and Poplar Hillfacilities of the University of MarylandCollege Park’s Lower Eastern ShoreResearch and Education Center (LESREC).

“We took different samples for yield andquality,” Geleta said. “We also checked fornitrogen, phosphorous and other elements.”In addition, alumna Chelsi Rose ’14 (M.S.Applied Biology), then a fully fundedgraduate student, investigated effects onsoil microbial activity.

While their research ultimately showedthat the product did not work as intended,

Geleta said the project was a win forMaryland consumers, especially farmers. Ifthey had spent money applying it tothousands of acres, they would not havegotten the economic and environmentalbenefits they hoped, he said.

“MIPS is really a gatekeeper for thepublic,” he added. “It prevents productsand services that are not verified from beingon the market.”

In addition to connecting entrepreneurswith researchers, Geleta agreed that thegrants foster faculty and universitycollaboration.

“We could not have done this withoutCollege Park,” he said, noting Dr. BobKratochvil and field management expertDavid Armentrout, as well as LESREC, which provided land and harvesters. Fourundergraduates also assisted. Hands-onMIPS research helps students withemployment and graduate school, Geleta said. v

Testing Soil

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Two Salisbury University facultyreceived nearly $150,000 to helpeducate local students about attendingcollege.

Dr. Brandy Terrill of SU’s TeacherEducation Department and Dr. RandallCone of the Mathematics andComputer Science Department earnedthe one-year grant from the MarylandHigher Education Commission’s(MHEC) College PreparationIntervention Program. Working withWicomico County, their project isfocused on “Energizing New CollegeHopefuls through the Arts, NumericalSciences and Technology” (ENCHANT).Dr. Nancy Michelson is the projectmanager for the program. The MHECgrant supports the Maryland GainingEarly Awareness and Readiness forUndergraduate Programs (GEAR UP)initiative.

As part of the grant, they hosted 30incoming ninth-graders and 12 middleand high school teachers from areaschools for a week-long summeracademic experience.

“These are kids who normally wouldnot have college on their horizons,”Cone said. “They have the talent andaptitude for success, but they facesocial, economic or otherdisadvantages. We want to show themthat college can be a very positive andworthwhile experience.”

Terrill and Cone also want to helpthe students do better on standardizedtesting in high school by showing themhow their reading, writing andmathematics skills are connected to theworld around them.

The camp, which is led by some 10SU faculty, included such sessions as artand arithmetic; baseball and math;

poetry; supercomputers; argument,debate and opinion; personalnarratives; math and money; and more.

Throughout the academic year,Terrill and Cone also are hostingweekend workshops and activities. InOctober, about two dozen studentsand their teachers attended morningworkshops and then enjoyed a footballgame in Sea Gull Stadium. Theywelcomed 12 students to Learn at SUDay in November, where theparticipants were paired with SUstudents who escorted them to collegeclasses taught by University English andmath faculty. Beyond the on-campusactivities, five SU students tutoredGEAR UP students after school atParkside High School.

Activities continue into the springwith more workshops and a Collegeand Career Night. v

COLLEGE READINESS

Professors Aim to ‘Energize College Hopefuls’

Summer 2016 ENCHANT Project graduates

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Dr. Anjali Pandey, SU professor of appliedlinguistics and teaching English as a secondlanguage (TESOL), is the author of a newlyfunded $2.73 million national professionaldevelopment project sponsored by the U.S.Office of English Language Acquisition(OELA), the federal agency charged withtraining educators on effective immigranteducational access.

This linguistics training program, Trainingand Retaining Grades K-12 English LearnerTeaching Professionals (TARGET-Phase III),consists of a comprehensive triple cohort-program aimed at educators, administratorsand parents. It was the No. 1-ratedapplication out of 337 eligible proposalssubmitted nationwide for OELA’s 2016 grantcompetition and the only one funded in

Maryland. It is the largest singlediscretionary funded project awarded to SUto date.

TARGET-Phase III serves 10 independent,high-need school districts spanning 42percent of Maryland’s school districts,including Anne Arundel, Caroline, Cecil,Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset,Talbot, Wicomico and Worcester counties – atotal of 251 schools enrolling over 5,000English learners (ELs). The project aims torecruit both gate keepers and decisionmakers – key stakeholders in the learningtrajectories and parity of educational accessof newcomer students.

Structured interview data collected fromover 160 teachers in target schools provideevidence for the need for culturally relevant

models of professional development (PD)inclusive of parental input, said Pandey.Initial needs assessment data point tocultural incongruities in the schoolingexperiences of newcomer ELs particularly.TARGET-Phase III is a PD model duallydesigned to promote the retention ofexperienced educators while improving the21st-century college-readiness of at-risk ELstudents in rural schools.

Maryland remains a front-runner indemographic trends in schooling toward aminority-majority makeup at 59 percent,Pandey said. In contrast, in some districts,the teacher workforce is 95 percentCaucasian and 81 percent female. TARGET-Phase III will utilize emergingsociolinguistics-based frameworks ofenhanced pedagogical efficacy whoseoutcomes on overall EL student achievementwill be assessed via rigorous, evidence-based experimental study.

Grassroots, community-orientedlanguage-retention paradigms in a nation inwhich approximately 300 languages enter

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Pandey EarnsLanguageAcquisitionGrant

Prior projects Pandey has authored and directed have totaled

over $7.5 million and have provided linguistic training to

hundreds of teachers in Maryland.

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IMPACT ON MARYLAND

annually form core design features of theproject, Pandey said. Training, botheducator- and parent-oriented, is premisedon heritage language maintenance. This is incontrast to increasingly defunct models ofschooling based on linguistic assimilationand deletion – the subject of Pandey’s mostrecent book, Monolingualism and LinguisticExhibitionism (see Faculty Books page 28).

Aiming to train 500 participants over thelife of the project, models of such linguisticsustainability are particularly timely when alanguage dies approximately every twoweeks, Pandey said. Via innovative, culturallyembedded linguistic strategies leveragingthe potency of emerging mobile devicesdesigned to instigate long-term meaningfulnewcomer parental involvement andadvocacy, the project provides next-generation educators with replicablestrategies for enhanced EL social integrationand educational success.

Pandey noted that the TARGET-Phase IIIproposal was successful as a consequence of

support from countless individuals across theEastern Shore, including assistance providedby University personnel such as RobertHoffman, administrative coordinator, and

Beth Walsh, SU grants specialist. Reviewer comments noted that the

project was, “exceptionally well grounded intheory”; “a highly ambitious, yet realisticallyfeasible initiative” and presented a designstructure inclusive of “authentic space fororal linguistic cultures.”

Invited to share comments at the 2016OELA Project Directors Convention inWashington, D.C., in October, Pandey’sclosing remarks on shifting paradigms ineducator linguistic training and the need formeasures of casual efficacy in 21st centuryPD inclusive of both experimental andqualitative evidence-based outcomes wasmet with standing ovation.

TARGET-Phase III is the fourthconsecutive, successfully funded multi-yearproject authored by Pandey. Prior projectsshe has authored and directed have totaledover $7.5 million and have providedlinguistic training to hundreds of teachers in Maryland. v

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TARGET-Phase III serves:

10 independent, high-need school districts

42 percent of Maryland’s schooldistricts, including thefollowing counties:• Anne Arundel • Caroline • Cecil • Dorchester • Kent

• Queen Anne’s • Somerset • Talbot• Wicomico • Worcester

251schools

5,000MORE THAN

English learners (ELs)enrolled

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COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

What is the history of SU’sengagement is downtownSalisbury?

Salisbury University has a longhistory of engaging with thedowntown Salisbury community

with many of its members serving on theSalisbury Chamber and the Greater SalisburyCommittee. In addition, SU faculty, staff andstudents are frequent attendees ofdowntown events such as 3rd Friday andNew Year’s Eve festivities. Our Business andEntrepreneurship Living and LearningCommunity (LLC) students have participatedin tours of downtown where they have metwith local business owners. The SU ArtGallery has been downtown since the 2015donation of the Gallery Building and Annexto the SU Foundation by Palmer Gillis andTony Gilkerson. This facility also will be thehome of the SU DowntownEntrepreneurship Center. With theexpansion of Shore Transit Services to theSU campus, SU students, faculty and staffnow have easy access to downtown byshowing their Gull Card for a quick trip onthe Downtown Trolley.

Q:A:

William Burke, SU executive director for economicdevelopment, received the 2016 Salisbury AreaChamber of Commerce Entrepreneurial SpiritAward, recognizing his support of entrepreneurshipin the Salisbury area. Burke also is the director of thePerdue School’s entrepreneurship competitions.

What resources have beenacquired to support the SUengagement with downtown Salisbury?

Recently, we applied for andreceived an U.S. Department ofAgriculture grant to support an SU

Economic Development Listening Tour. Thetour features a stop in downtown Salisburyand surrounding communities and countiesto listen to the economic developmentneeds from the voices of the community inorder to gather the necessary input for thedevelopment of a Salisbury UniversityEconomic Development Plan.

Q:A:

Why is it important for SU to beinvolved in downtown economicdevelopment?

The most important reason is weare part of the community – notonly as a university but also as

residents and visitors. The recent ImpactReport conducted by BEACON highlightsthe facts that students spend $90 millionlocally and that visitors to campus spend anadditional $4.4 million dollars. Working withthe city, county and downtown businesscommunity, we can help develop andsupport a vibrant and exciting downtownexperience.

Q:A:

Why is it important to Salisbury,Wicomico County and thesurrounding counties for SU tohelp lead these efforts?

Salisbury University is a communityof 10,500 students, faculty andstaff who contribute $80 million

each year to local, state and federal budgetsvia taxes paid and $130 million over the past10 years to the area economy with increasesin the student population, creation of newfaculty and staff positions, and significantconstruction projects. We have aresponsibility to step up and partner withthe leaders in the community to collaborateand lead efforts for the improved economicvitality of the local community, region andstate. Leveraging our resources whilecombining them with our partners willimprove and enhance the economy and allwill benefit.

Q:A:

The SU-DowntownConnection

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What is your role in theseefforts?

Since my start in the PerdueSchool of Business as faculty at SUin 1999, I have been activelyengaging with the local business

community with projects at Perdue Farms,meeting employers through our ABLEinternship program and 15 years of activelyworking with our entrepreneurshipcompetitions. We have the second longestrunning business plan competition inacademia today with the BernsteinAchievement Award, which started in 1987.With the addition of the expanded studentcompetitions in 2012 and addition of theRatcliffe Foundation Shore Hatchery in 2013,we have distributed over $1.1 million toentrepreneurs in the region. Through myroles as director of entrepreneurial activitiesand director of the Shore Hatchery, we havebeen able to immerse and engage thecommunity in our competitions with theirsponsorships, judging and mentoringsupport.

Through the creation of my new positionas executive director of economicdevelopment, the President’s Office haselevated the importance and awareness ofour responsibility to coordinate and supporteconomic development in the communityand the region. With this new role comesthe responsibility of building an Innovation,Entrepreneurship and EconomicDevelopment Hub on campus in PerdueHall, the home of the Perdue School ofBusiness, in order to provide visibility andresources to our students campus wide in all disciplines.

As I mentioned previously, the Universityrecently announced the conceptual designand planned opening of a downtownSalisbury regional Center for

Q:A:

Entrepreneurship in the Gallery Building.While supporting the revitalization of thedowntown Salisbury economy, theenvisioned center will include shared co-working space, small offices and “garages”for startups and winners of the PerdueSchool Entrepreneurship competitions; a“makerspace” for robotics, small productassembly and technology-enhancedproducts with 3D prototyping, including atextile workshop for fashion and theatreproductions; and a retail “University Spirit”store front for products developed throughthe center and Salisbury University gear.Open to the community, this facility willbring together the entrepreneurship“ecosystem” – business, city, county,regional and state communities – to launchthe entrepreneurs from the center into thelocal economy.

Where do we go from here?

We have been engaging with ourUniversity System of Maryland(USM) partners in economicdevelopment to share anunderstanding of the programs

and engagements at each USM institution.The SU Economic Development ListeningTour commences this spring by visiting allthe local and regional economicdevelopment groups and organizations. Theon-campus Innovation, Entrepreneurshipand Economic Development Hub also opensthis spring in Perdue Hall and the Universityplans to co-host a TEDCO event, “What IsIP.” The community can join SU’s ongoingcommitment to our regional businesscommunity, downtown revitalization andentrepreneurship by supporting thecampaign to raise funds for the downtownCenter of Entrepreneurship. We are excitedto actively engage the University’s strengthsto support the economic, health and socialdevelopment of the region. v

Q:A:

Creating an entrepreneurship“ecosystem”

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ExhibitsOne of the most important roles of the NabbCenter involves interpreting the area’s historyand culture for the campus and the greatercommunity. The new exhibit space allows thecenter to carry out this portion of its missionin new and innovative ways. In the entranceto the Nabb Center, the Niemann Galleryhouses the permanent Nabb Center exhibit“Delmarva: People, Place and Time.” Thisexhibit gives a brief history of the region,focusing on how Delmarva residents havelived and worked on the land and water fromthe 17th through the 20th centuries. Tellingthe story of our region with photographs,documents and artifacts often requires hoursof research for each item in the exhibit. JanieKreines, the Nabb Center’s exhibits andartifacts curator, arranges the photographs,artifacts and other materials to create aninteresting narrative about the central themeof the exhibit. In addition to the permanentexhibit space, the Nabb Center also creates

By Dr. Creston Long, Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture Director

A Home for Regional Research: Nabb Research Center

REGIONAL CONNECTIONS

The Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History andCulture has been devoted to the study of the region since itsfounding in 1982. In the Nabb Center’s new facility in the PatriciaR. Guerierri Academic Commons, students, communityresearchers and visiting scholars have the opportunity to advancetheir study of the region for the next generation. The Carey FamilyResearch Room houses the center’s general book collection and itsmicrofilm holdings and has seating for 50 researchers. On anygiven day, someone visiting the Research Room might findstudents working on class research assignments, scholarssearching archival collections for evidence connected to theirresearch pursuits or family researchers from as far away as Oregonmaking connections in their family histories. At its core, the NabbCenter is a place where people come to study the past.

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and maintains exhibits in the ThompsonGallery on the fourth floor and the space near the first floor east entrance of theGuerrieri Academic Commons. Exhibits inthese spaces emphasize specific themes androtate every semester.

For instance, in spring 2017, an exhibittitled “When Communities Come Together:African American Education on the EasternShore” greets visitors as they enter. It tellsthe story of the growth of educationalinstitutions for African American communitiesin the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It isbased largely on research conducted byArtura Jackson, a December 2016 graduatefrom the SU history graduate program, andMatthew Lewis, SU Public HumanitiesProgram graduate assistant. Throughout fall2016, they researched the establishment ofseveral African American educationalinstitutions, including the school that wouldlater become the University of Maryland

Eastern Shore and a number of Rosenwaldschools on the lower Eastern Shore. Theseschools were built with support from JuliusRosenwald, a Chicago-based philanthropistwho worked with Booker T. Washington topromote educational opportunities forAfrican Americans throughout the South.Jackson’s documentary research, along withher efforts to reach out to local residents whohave researched area Rosenwald schools,provided the basis for most of this exhibit’snarrative content. As the Nabb Center movesforward, the exhibits will be a central featureof our efforts to connect the strength of ourresearch collections with public presentationsof our past.

“Processing a collection involvesa painstaking sequence of stepsto arrange or re-arrangematerials to put them in anorder that is most consistentwith their natural or originalcreation.”

Margaret Long, SU historygraduate student, re-digitizedissues of SU’s Holly Leafstudent newspaper

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Local History CollectionsFrom the start of the Nabb Center, the localhistory collections have been at the heart ofits mission to promote the study of theregion’s past. As the center moved into anew space in the 1990s, its collectionscontinued to grow and diversify. In additionto the thousands of microfilmed publicrecords – including land, probate and judicialrecords that date to the 1600s – the LocalHistory Archives makes the Nabb Center aunique regional history repository. Featuringcollections from Delaware, Maryland andVirginia, the Local History Archives standsout as the premier manuscript collectionfeaturing materials from all of Delmarva’sconstituent states. Leslie Van VeenMcRoberts, the local history archivist,maintains the collection and supervises theprocessing of new collections.

As community members and communityorganizations donate collections to thecenter, the archivist begins processing thecollection to make it accessible forresearchers. Processing a collection involvesa painstaking sequence of steps to arrangematerials in an order that is most consistentwith their natural or original order. Theultimate goal is to enable researchers to get

the most out of the collections. Studentsinterested in work in public history find greatopportunities to work in the Nabb Centerarchives through internships and studentassistant positions. Jennifer Piegolls, aDecember 2016 graduate with a doublemajor in history and English, worked in anarchival internship in fall 2016. In thatexperience, she learned and practicedvarious preservation techniques and studied

the arrangement of metadata (informationabout each source) and collectionsdescriptions. Interns gain valuable workexperience from this training, especially ifthey decide to pursue careers in archival orother information management work; andthey also become better, more mindfulresearchers.

13 • GS&R • 2017

REGIONAL CONNECTIONS

Graduate student Joel Henry is currentlyin his last semester of the history

graduate program. He has workedextensively on multiple archival processprojects. According to Joel: “The EdwardH. Nabb Center has been instrumental to

honing my abilities as a historian. In aconstructive and challenging

environment, I have developed skills thathave prepared me to enter the

workforce. My Nabb Center experiencehas been rewarding in many ways, but Iespecially have enjoyed giving back tothe Delmarva historical community.”

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2017 • GS&R • 14

University Archives &Special CollectionsFor the first time, the Nabb Center is alsohome to the University Archives and SpecialCollections. The University Archives includesdocuments, photographs, films and artifactsconnected to Salisbury University’s past.With items dating to the founding of theschool in the 1920s as Maryland StateNormal School, the University Archives is aresource for campus offices, students,alumni groups and the surroundingcommunity. University Archivist and SpecialCollections Librarian Ian Post supervises thissection of the Nabb Center’s holdings. He isestablishing connections with facultymembers to promote student use of theSpecial Collections.

This past fall, Post supervised the workof Margaret Long, SU history graduatestudent, as she inventoried, re-housed andassessed the quality of the 649 copies of theEvergreen yearbook that are spreadthroughout the University Archivescollections, the Nabb Center stacks and thegeneral library stacks in preparation for theirdigitization. She also re-digitized severalissues of the Holly Leaf newspaper and

uploaded all 329 historical editions in fileswith their associated metadata into SU’sinstitutional repository. These images of SU’sfirst student newspaper richly illuminatestudent life at the University from its earliestdays and reveal the interesting story ofchanges through 1970. They are now freelyavailable online.

Public RecordsWith the unique combination of publicrecords such as land and judicial records andthe diverse, and ever growing, manuscriptsarchives, students, community researchersand visiting scholars can pursue answers toan almost limitless set of questions aboutthe region’s history and culture. Forinstance, the Center has recently beencompiling data about the appearance ofarea Native Americans in the colonial countycourts. In the early volumes of the SomersetCounty court proceedings, it was commonfor Indians, usually unnamed, to appear incourt accused of minor crimes. As thecentury neared its end, however, Indiansmore often went to court as plaintiffs askingfor relief from white settler encroachmenton Indian lands. During this same period,area Indian tribes were being confined more

and more to reservation lands, the closest ofwhich was the Tundotank reservation, a milesouth of SU’s campus today, on Tony TankLake. This information reveals a part of thearea’s history that is mostly left out ofpopular memory. Our hope is that this sortof research will in time bring some forgottenevents back to life.

In another example of the Center’sefforts to promote research on the region,Aaron Horner, the center’s full-time researchassistant, is supervising an ongoing projectaimed at understanding the evolution ofDelmarva’s transportation network. Fromthe earliest days of colonial settlement,when the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaryrivers and creeks served as the mainthoroughfares of the area, through the mid-19th-century when efforts to extendrailroad lines across the Peninsula came tocompletion, the story of how people in theregion have traveled and transported goodsis vital for understanding the area’s history.

As the Nabb Center moves forward, itremains steadfast to its mission ofpromoting the study of Delmarva. v

Janie Kreines, Exhibits and Artifacts Curator

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Improving Math Teaching and LearningBy Dr. Claudia Burgess

The Sustained Collaboration to Actuate Learner Excellence (SCALE) grant is providing acollaborative opportunity for Salisbury University faculty Drs. Chin-Hsiu Chen, RandallGroth, Jennifer Bergner, Jathan Austin, Bonnie Ennis and me to partner with two ofMaryland’s high-need local education agencies in Wicomico and Somerset counties.

Ten teachers each from Wicomico and Somerset counties havebecome part of a community of learners dedicated to initiatingeducational change in order to improve the mathematical teachingand learning process and student achievement. The 20 teachers whoare participating in this grant teach kindergarten through fourth

grade. Currently, these teachers are in the middle of a 14-monthexperience designed to foster collaboration among all stakeholders (faculty, teachers,school districts, local school administration, students, etc.). The grant’s focus is improvingstudent achievement in the area of mathematics, and all grant goals have been developedin order to achieve this end. School-based collaboration, improving teachers’ mathematicalcontent knowledge, aggregating data to inform instruction, initiating collaborative reflectiveteaching cycles and implementing high-leverage pedagogical practices are the keycomponents that have and continue to ground all grant activities.

With a critical eye toward improving mathematics instruction in local schools, theSCALE grant embeds professional development into authentic settings that includeclassroom demonstrations, observations and an afterschool math camp designed for local children. By addressing content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge and teacherknowledge in collaborative, authentic, instructional settings, these grant participants aremaking meaningful, research-grounded, instructional changes designed to foster theirstudents’ success. v

15 • GS&R • 2017

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

With Salisbury University’s origins in teacher education, it is nosurprise that SU faculty are leading the way in supporting regionaland national educational efforts in areas of critical need through tworecent grants. Dr. Claudia Burgess, Teacher Education, earned aMaryland Higher Education Commission Improving Teacher Quality(ITQ) grant for $115,000 to increase academic achievement byimproving teacher quality; her project is focusing on mathematicsinstruction. Drs. Gail Welsh, Physics, and Starlin Weaver, EducationSpecialties, are co-principal investigators on a Physics TeacherEducation Coalition (PhysTEC) Recruiting Grant for $29,889 for aproject running September 2014-August 2017; their project aims toimprove and promote the education of physics teachers.

Recruiting Physics TeachersBy Dr. Gail Welsh

The goal of the PhysTEC Recruiting Grant is to increase the numberof students becoming physics teachers to meet national and localneeds for highly qualified physics teachers in the schools. Starlin Weaverand I applied for the PhysTEC Recruiting Grant because we have relatively few students inthe Physics Secondary Education Program at Salisbury University. Unlike some of the otheruniversities applying for PhysTEC grants, we already have a strong program in physicssecondary education and do not need to develop the curriculum or program of study. Ourrecruitment plan consists of three inter-linked parts: marketing, a part-time teacher inresidence (PT-TIR) and early teaching experiences, such as our Teaching ExplorationProgram (TEP).

Initially our main efforts were to recruit from within the current physics and undecidedmajors at SU. For example, we hosted a panel discussion as part of the Physics/ChemistrySeminar Series. The panelists were current teachers, a future teacher and a retired teacherwho discussed teaching physics and chemistry as a STEM (science, technology, engineeringand math) career. The TEP offers placements in local schools to provide SU students withexperiences working with middle/high school students in a physical science or physicsclassroom. Our PT-TIR, Brenda Cox, a retired physics teacher, meets the TEP participants atthe schools and provides them with orientation to the school and teacher. The SU studentshave the opportunity to discuss teaching with a physics teacher as they evaluate a potentialcareer in teaching physics. Although none of the students who have participated in the TEPthus far have chosen to pursue a physics teaching career, we are raising the awareness ofteaching as a career among our physics majors.

In the final year of the grant, our focus has shifted toward more external recruitment.Our marketing efforts have included website development, creation of a tri-fold displayboard for use at University recruiting events and a brochure – “Why Teach Physics?” –highlighting various aspects of teaching physics and the programs at SU. These brochureshave been distributed to local schools by Cox. We hope that we will be able to attractstudents to SU who have an interest in physics and physics teaching. v

Meeting Critical Needs in Education

$29,889GRANT

PhysTEC

$115,000GRANT

ITQ

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2017 • GS&R • 16

The AmeriCorps program at SU is fundedthrough a competitive grant from theCorporation for National and CommunityService. AmeriCorps is designed to leveragethe efforts of citizens interested in improvingtheir communities through service. Theprogram at SU, called ShoreCorps/PALS,recruits students and community membersto serve at various nonprofits across theEastern Shore. Members receive a stipendfor their service, college credit through twointerdisciplinary studies (IDIS) trainingcourses and an education award (scholarship)at the end of their service.

An Exciting New StructureAs the new project director, I am pleased

to report on changes to ShoreCorps/PALS.Founded by Dr. George Whitehead in 1994,ShoreCorps/PALS has consistently served asa hub for community outreach and service,recruiting and training AmeriCorps membersfrom the University and city. The 2016-2017service year has seen the beginnings ofsubstantial revisions in the organization,integration, capacity and evaluation of ourprogram.

Organizationally, we will bringShoreCorps/PALS under the umbrella ofPACE, SU’s Institute for Public Affairs andCivic Engagement. AmeriCorps and PACEboth focus on community awareness andengagement. The restructuring will allowbetter information and resource sharing.

The New NonprofitLeadership Alliance

We will integrate AmeriCorps with thenew Nonprofit Leadership Alliance (NLA)program that begins in fall 2017. Studentsenrolled in the NLA program can use theirAmeriCorps service and training course tocomplete a nonprofit leadership certificate.Students will still be eligible for theeducation award and other benefits ofAmeriCorps service.

As part of the NLA integration,AmeriCorps will see its greatest growth sincethe program began. We anticipate adding 20service slots to the current 17. This increasewill mean more SU students can experiencethe benefits of structured community servicewhile developing the habits of engageddemocratic citizens.

Introducing CollaborativeProcess Mapping

Evaluation is shifting as well. AmeriCorpsmembers build capacity through regularvolunteer recruitment and management,program development and delivery, andassistance with important tasks such ascreating policy and procedure handbooks. Ina novel process called Collaborative ProcessMapping, the AmeriCorps member(s) and arepresentative from the nonprofit worktogether to map the nonprofit’s variousactivities and goals. The map is representedas a web labeled “current activities,” “short-term goals” and “long-term goals.”The map serves as a strategic tool forevaluating the nonprofit’s current activitiesand needs and the contributions of theAmeriCorps member(s).

I am excited at the potential for thesechanges to expand our reach across theEastern Shore while holding to our mission.Our members will continue to serve at-riskyouth and senior citizens in public andprivate non-profit agencies. We will promotelasting change through collaborative work with area partners and the citizens they serve.

For more information, visitwww.salisbury.edu/americorps v

INNOVATION

The Evolution of AmeriCorpsBy Dr. Alexander Pope, AmeriCorps Project Director and PACE Co-Director

Member Sandra Handy was honored to meetRosalyn Carter at a training event

Rebekah Barczak (right) served at an Alzheimer’s Associationmeeting to reach out to caregivers in the community

The first ShoreCorps/PALS event ofthe year was Stand Down,providing support to over 50veterans in the area

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Two Salisbury University nursing studentswent south in January, joining local surgeonsfor a La Merced medical mission trip toNicaragua.

Juniors Alison Farmer and KristenMurphy spent four days assisting Drs. VincentPerrotta of Peninsula Plastic Surgery andFlorian Huber of Peninsula OrthopaedicAssociates, gaining valuable clinicalexperience as the doctors treated patientswith severe health conditions and injuries.

“The students got a front-row seat in theoperating room,” said Dr. Mary DiBartolo ofSU’s Nursing Department, who accompaniedthem. “We were in two public hospitals, wherethe poorest of the poor are treated, and theywere all very appreciative.” Their healthproblems, she explained, are not typically seenin the U.S., such as very advanced breastcancer and untreated fractures, which requiredextensive procedures.

“Being able to ‘scrub in’ on the surgerieswas amazing,” said Farmer, who assisted theplastic surgeon with breast reconstructionand the orthopedic surgeon with repairingmalunions of tibia and femur bones. “Not

many students get these opportunities and itwas eye-opening.” Murphy assisted with twomastectomies. Both also observed childbirthby Caesarian section.

“I am thankful to work so closely withsome amazing doctors,” Murphy said. “Thiswas a good way for me to get experience inthe operating room while also being able tomake a difference in the lives of people inNicaragua.”

The SU contingent also spent time at achurch-based medical clinic. The studentsassisted Salisbury dentist Dr. Kraig Stetzerwith procedures, including extractions andfillings, while DiBartolo, with translation helpfrom a Nicaraguan medical student,presented to nursing staff about Alzheimer’sdisease as part of her Fulton EndowedProfessorship in Geriatric Nursing.

The La Merced medical mission wasfounded 10 years ago by St. Francis de SalesCatholic Church in Salisbury, in conjunctionwith a sister parish in Nicaragua. Now, it’s anindependent nonprofit. The travel teamusually includes area surgeons and healthprofessionals, interpreters, students andother volunteers; 22 joined this time.

“The presence of students and theopportunity to teach them invigorates thephysicians,” said Perrotta, board president.He said they “provide critical support,”including handling medical supplies andequipment, processing clinic patients andeven helping overcome language barriers.

The SU students were exposed tomethods of care in “an environment lackingstate-of-the-art technology and adequatefunding” and saw “first-hand the weaknessesin healthcare in a third-world nation,”Perrotta said.

“Salisbury nursing students who attend aLa Merced medical mission enjoyopportunities not readily available in othernursing programs,” he added. “They learnoperating room etiquette and becomecomfortable functioning in thatenvironment.”

Farmer knew she wanted to be a surgicalnurse after a major surgery in high school.She said, “I realized the impact thatcompassionate nurses can have on a patient’ssurgical experience and, since then, havedreamed of becoming one.”

She enjoyed helping the less fortunate,seeing how medicine is viewed in othercountries and hearing patients’ stories. “This type of trip is all about giving back toothers, which is exactly what nursing is tome,” she said.

The one-credit independent study wasn’tall work, however; the group took a break togo zip-lining and visit the Masaya volcano.

“The mission would be a greatopportunity to continue for other students inthe future,” Murphy said; Perrotta andDiBartolo agree. v

G L O B A L N E E D S

A ‘Mission’ of Nursing in Nicaragua

Alison Farmer, Dr. Mary DiBartolo and Kristen Murphy

17 • GS&R • 2017

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Unsolicited emails are a part of most people’s daily lives. Few,however, are as poignant as the one SU student Brittany Foutzreceived last spring.

Instead of announcing the latest sale at Macy’s or an item shemay be interested in on Amazon, this email explained that she hadbeen nominated – she’s still not sure by whom – for a summerinternship at the International Peace and Security Institute (IPSI) atThe Hague in the Netherlands.

The second-year graduate student pursuing an M.A. in conflictanalysis and dispute resolution responded. Following an interviewprocess, she found an even more intriguing message in her inboxseveral weeks later.

“I received an email one day asking if I could leave in two weeksfor Europe,” she said.

She could. The only issue was, she could not afford the airfare.Turning to SU for help, she received grants from the offices of the deans of Graduate Study and Research and the Fulton School of Liberal Arts. A scholarship from IPSI covered the remainder of the cost.

Learning About Diplomacy and Peacemaking During her month at The Hague, she met other IPSI nominees

from around the world – students selected to learn about diplomacyand peacemaking through the program, overseen by the UnitedNations and its International Institute for Peace.

During the day, they studied together at Clingendael Academy,taking classes in a house once used as a headquarters for Nazi forcesduring Germany’s occupation of the Netherlands. There, they heardfrom representatives of the United Nations, U.S. State Departmentand U.S. Foreign Aid, among others.

In the evenings, they sat in on trials at the International CriminalCourt, as accused heads of state and military leaders were broughtbefore the court to answer for war crimes.

Listening In On Global DiscussionsThey also followed legal proceedings at The Hague’s Peace

Palace. These included a dispute over the ownership of the SpratlyIslands. (Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam and China all havelaid claim to the group of islands in the South China Sea. Foutz heardarguments in China’s favor.)

She and others also worked to establish plans for a transitionaljustice mechanism to redress the human rights issues that led to theSyrian revolution. Toward the end of their session, they werecoached by a diplomat from Afghanistan, who critiqued their ideas.

Since returning, Foutz said she has paid more attention to newsfrom Syria because of her involvement. She also has near-dailycommunication with Syrian students from her cohort, along withmany others.

“I have friends from all over the world now.”

Of course, there also was time for fun. One evening, allparticipants were asked to make a dish from their native countriesfor an international dinner. Foutz contemplated representing the U.S.with cheeseburger sliders, but ultimately opted to join students fromColombia in preparing her favorite dish, chicken and rice. Sheformed a connection to South America while studying abroad thereon a U.S. State Department scholarship through SU’s Center forInternational Education in 2010.

The overall experience helped Foutz realize she was on the righttrack with her career choice, which is to become a professor ofinternational conflict analysis and dispute resolution. After earningher master’s from SU, she plans to pursue her doctorate.

Though the impact of the experience has been immense, the SUgraduate student summed it up in five succinct words: “It haschanged my life.” v

2017 • GS&R • 18

SU Student Interns at The Hague

I N T E R N AT I O N A L I N T E R N

Brittany Foutz atEuropean UnionHeadquarters,Brussels, Belgium

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19 • GS&R • 2017

Faculty LearningCommunities

Research Day

Dr. Elsie WalkerDepartment of English

“Soundtracks and Humanity – The Beauty, Violence and Politics of Hearing Films”

Watch online:www.salisbury.edu/research2016/walker

Bill BurkeDepartment of Information and Decisions Sciences

“Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development”

Watch online:www.salisbury.edu/research2016/burke

Dr. Katherine HindererDepartment of Nursing

““Bridging the Gap: Inter-professional Partnerships to Support Practice-ready Healthcare Graduates”

Watch online:www.salisbury.edu/research2016/hinderer

Dr. Timothy WernerDepartment of Health and Sports Sciences

“Arterial Stiffness: Its Influence on Cardiovascular Disease and Therapeutic Interventions”

Watch online:www.salisbury.edu/research2016/werner

Four faculty members showcased their expertise to the campus communityduring Salisbury University’s fourth Research Day and Innovation Showcase,held in the new Patricia R. Guerrieri Academic Commons Assembly Hall.Attendees were applauded by SU Provost Diane Allen for coming to learnwhat their colleagues and professors across campus are doing. An excitingcomponent of the day was the introduction of a new concept to supportfaculty in the scholarship of teaching and learning called Faculty LearningCommunities.

The idea of a Faculty LearningCommunity (FLC) is to support a groupof trans-disciplinary faculty to engage inan active, collaborative, yearlongprocess that ultimately will increasefaculty interest in teaching and learningand provide support for faculty toinvestigate, attempt, assess and adoptnew teaching methods. The literatureshows that students who learn in auniversity supported by LFCs ultimatelyfare better academically, socially andpersonality than those who do not.

Faculty were invited to submit FLCproposals last spring and 10 wereultimately accepted. The communitieslisted here represent faculty from allfour of the schools and are wide-ranging in type.

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RESEARCH IN FOCUS

2017 • GS&R • 20

n Cognitive Science: Promotes courses andprograms related to cognitive scienceacross the University with the hope ofultimately creating a Cognitive ScienceInstitute.

n Sustainability in the Curriculum:Facilitates curriculum across disciplines toaddress the complex relationship amongenvironmental, economic and socialsustainability.

n Entrepreneurship: Teaches the principlesof entrepreneurship and innovation in anapplied process of learning.

n Teaching Diversity in the Classroom:Provides space for faculty to discuss thecomplex nature of teaching diversity andto design course materials that best helpstudents learn about diversity.

n Professional Development forDepartment Chairs: Develops supportiveinformation for the orientation ofincoming department chairs.

n Benchmarking Digital and OtherCollege-Level Literacies: Establishesbenchmark criteria and assignments thatfacilitate the development oftechnological/digital literacy.

n Developing Student Resilience Insideand Outside of the Classroom: Developsa handbook of activities that can be usedto increase student resilience.

n Beginning Backward Design Within theBiology Department: Creates anopportunity for instructors to use‘backward design’ to revise curriculumand to address challenges outlined usingalignment with Vision and Change as astructural framework.

n Women’s Mentor and Network Circle:Unites academic women across campusand in the professional community toward

the common goal of enhancing mentoringand networking experiences.

n Building Interdisciplinary GeneralEducation Courses: Develops exemplarinterdisciplinary General Educationcourses that align with specific learningoutcomes for first and second yearstudents.

To learn more about FLCs, contact Dr. Deborah Mathews, director of the SU Office of Innovation in Teaching andLearning, at damathews@salisbury.edu.

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21 • GS&R • 2017

Exploring how your brain responds toexternal stimuli and zebrafish may not seemlike a logical pair, but for Dr. Jessica Clark,an assistant professor in SU’s Department ofBiological Sciences, they are a natural fit.She is currently working with a small groupof students using zebrafish to researchperipheral nerves, more specifically thedevelopment and health of these nerves.

The peripheral nerves inform the brainabout the environment and then allow thebrain to respond to what is happening. Forexample, Clark simplified: “When you touchan object with your finger, the endings ofthe peripheral nerves in your fingertips areactivated and an electrical impulse is sentthrough these peripheral nerves, throughthe spinal cord and up to the brain. Thebrain then determines what that object is, ifit is dangerous and, if so, sends a messagethrough the motor nerves, causing yourfinger to move away from that object.”According to Clark, researching this topic isimportant because peripheral nerves “arevital to our everyday functioning; damageto these nerves can be devastating to aperson’s wellbeing.”

A type of damage that is common tothe peripheral nerves is caused byhyperglycemia, commonly known as highblood sugar, which is associated withdiabetes. Scientists do not know how thisdamage occurs, so Clark feels thatresearching this “is a necessary first step tounderstanding how to help people who

suffer from it.” To seek ways to reverse thisdamage, Clark and her students induce highblood sugar in zebrafish that havefluorescently labeled peripheral nerves.With their nearly transparent skins,zebrafish are ideal test subjects, as theyallow researchers to easily see obvious signsof damage. Once the damage has occurred,the next step is treating the zebrafish withdifferent molecular compounds to see if thedamage can be undone. Clark hopes “thatthis may lead to therapeutic approaches inhumans in the future.”

Another important part of Clark’sresearch is the involvement of studentresearchers Amanda Rocker, HannahEnnerfelt and Julia Howell. For Clark, theirinvolvement is personally importantbecause she herself participated in studentresearch as an undergraduate. Because ofthis experience, she shared, “it is imperativeto me that students in my lab get as manyopportunities as possible to run their ownexperiments from start to finish.” She allowsthe students to breed their own zebrafish,to raise the fish and to experiment untilthey reach their own conclusions. Clarkshared that “having my undergraduates sodeeply involved has been equally beneficialto me, as they have thought of interestinghypotheses that I had not yet considered”and that she has “really been impressedwith the caliber of our students here andtheir ability to do good science.”

Amanda, a sophomore honors biologymajor, specifically researches “a potentiallink between a connexin41.8 mutation andperipheral neuropathy.” She explained that“the peripheral nerves … are made of axonscarrying the messages to the brain and backby electrical impulses. Axons are protectedby a blood-nerve barrier made up ofperineurial cells. This is potentially whereconnexin41.8 comes in; this gene is involvedin forming channels (gap junctions) betweencells to send important electrical andmolecular signals from cell-to-cell as a sortof communication.”

STUDENT PROFILES

The Brain-Nerve-Zebrafish ConnectionBy Kayelynn Ayres

Hannah Ennerfelt , Julia Howell and Amanda Rocker

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Her hypothesis is that the zebrafish sheis observing have the connexin41.8mutation. Because of the mutation of thegene “channels are not functioning orproperly formed, resulting in a non-functioning blood-nerve barrier. If the axonis not being protected it may be exposed toharm and become damaged, resulting inperipheral neuropathy.” If her hypothesis iscorrect, it could be possible that “thecondition by a connexin mutation may relateto humans as well as the zebrafish model.”

Hannah is a senior working toward adual degree in honors psychology andbiology. Her project in Clark’s lab is“looking at hyperglycemic induction inzebrafish and their sensory nerves inresponse to this.” Her research could help“shed light on the cellular effectscharacteristic in diabetic peripheralneuropathy, where diabetic patients beginto lose sensation, have tingling and endurepain in their extremities.” She believes thather research can have “a real impacttherapeutically for patients suffering fromdiabetic peripheral neuropathy.” Sherevealed “I am a complete ‘nerd’ as well, sogetting to do experiments and visualize thenerves in transgenic zebrafish is enjoyableand interesting to me.”

Julia is a senior honors biology majorwho has minors in chemistry andpsychology. She chose to participate inClark’s lab “because of [her] innate curiosityto answer the countless questions left blankin the field of biology.” Her research “hasbeen pivotal in my academic experience,exposing me to the reality of life as aresearch scientist,” she reflected. “I had alot of missteps in the beginning stages, butit was well worth it for the positive data that

eventually followed. I am thankful for thesetbacks that I experienced early onbecause it proved to me that the researchsetting is where I belong.”

Beyond her role as researcher, Julia isalso a student leader at the University.Elected president of SU’s StudentGovernment Association, Julia saw the skillsshe gained in the lab translate to her role incampus government and help her juggle hernumerous responsibilities: “Research forcedme to become more organized andintentional with everything that I do.”

And, these students do a lot! Clarkshared that research is time-consuming forundergraduate students, but that it is agreatly beneficial experience for them in theend. Through research, students gain “themost realistic glimpse into pursuingresearch in graduate school.” Amanda,Hannah and Julia were not daunted by that glimpse; all three plan to pursuedoctoral degrees. v

2017 • GS&R • 22

Amanda, Hannah and Julia are students inSU’s Honors College, which sponsoredtheir attendance at national conferences toshare their research. In the most recentissue of the Honors College magazine, The Saunterer, Hannah was featured in astudent profile, excerpted here to providea closer look at just one of theseexceptional student researchers.

Hannah Ennerfelt is passionate about herresearch: to date, she has presented atannual conferences of the EasternPsychology Association, the Society forNeuroscience and the Northeast RegionalHonors Council. In December of her junioryear, she submitted her Honors thesis – anextension of work on peripheralneuropathy that she conducted in Dr. Clark’s research lab. In recognition forher outstanding work, Ennerfelt receivedthe Roth Thesis Prize from the HonorsCollege. She is the first Honors student toreceive the award as a junior.

For those who know her, Hannah’sdrive to jump-start her education is notsurprising. She has long adopted aBenjamin Franklin quote as her life mantra:“Never leave that till tomorrow which youcan do today.” Although very muchaccomplished at her age, she wishes shecould tell the freshman version of herself,“it’s not too early to ask for opportunities,pursue experiences, seek mentorship andapply for internships.” Heraccomplishments at SU have influenced awhole generation of student researchers inthe Honors College. Thanks to Hannah’ssuccesses, Dr. Clark’s lab has become agateway for Honors biology majors whowant to conduct research as early as theirfreshman and sophomore years.

Ennerfelt’s accolades extend wellbeyond the SU campus. In March 2016,she was named an Honorable Mention forthe prestigious Barry M. GoldwaterScholarship. The scholarship recognizescollege students who are engaged inscientific research and demonstrate thepotential to become scientists whocontribute to their field. Ennerfelt plans topursue a Ph.D. in neuroscience andeventually return to a university setting tomentor students such as herself.

Kayelynn Ayres is an English major who served as the editorial internfor the Publications Office in fall 2016. Lauren Delong is an honorsbiology major with minors in math and chemistry. She does biologicalresearch with Dr. Les Erickson.

Student Researcher: A Closer LookBy Lauren DeLong

Figure 1: Motor axons appear defasciculated and lackperineurial cells in hyperglycemic zebrafish. Zebrafishwere placed in 40 mM glucose solution 4dpf. Peripheral nervesappear defasciculated by 7dpf. The green transgene,Tg(nkx2.2a:megfp) indicates the perineurium of the motornerve. This blood-nerve-barrier is not wrapping properly in thehyperglycemic fish (B) but appears normal in the control fish (A). The red transgene, Tg(olig2:dsred) indicates themotoraxons,which appear healthy in the control fish (A), but are defasciculated (asterisk) and blebbing, (white arrow) an indicator of axonal death in the treated group (B).

Control 40 mM glucose

Tg (n

kx2.a

:meg

fp);Tg

(olig2

:dsred

)

Figure 2: Sensory neurons in hyperglycemic zebrafishappear unhealthy and migrate away fromthe dorsal root ganglia. Fish were placed on glucose 4dpf. By 8dpf sensory neurons can be seen migrating away from theDRG of hyperglycemic zebrafish The green transgene,Tg(J1748:megfp) indicates the sensory neurons, which areclustered appropriately around the spinal cord on me controlzebrafish (A) but have migrated along an axon (TUB; blue;arrowhead) in the hyperglycemic fish on (B).

Control 40 mM glucose

Tg (n

kx2.a

:meg

fp);Tg

(olig2

:dsred

)

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23 • GS&R • 2017

INTERNAL GRANT FUNDING

The SU Faculty Mini-Grant Program provides awards up to $2,500 to encourage faculty to develop research, scholarly or creative programs that provide the potential for sustained professional development and “seed funds” to secure additional extramural support. The following is an overview of this year’s awardees.

Exhibition of “The Tower” and“Lakshmi Planum” at HEREArts Center in New York CityDavid GladdenAssistant Professor, New Media Art

The prestigious HERE Arts Center in New YorkCity is a multi-disciplinary space thatspecializes in hybrid performance, dance,theatre and multi-media works. HERE ArtsCenter has a permanent space with twostages for performances and an art gallery forcontemporary 2D, 3D and time-based works.Gladden exhibited a multi-media sculpture aswell as six large-scale photographs in the artgallery. The multi-media sculpture, called “TheTower,” is a welded steel box with threeembedded video screens and a devotedcomputer. “The Tower” is a rumination on achanging American landscape, going from ahorizontal orientation to a vertical one; alandscape of cell towers, windmills,skyscrapers, water towers and surveillancecameras. This new landscape is invisible,composed of powerful winds and waves ofelectromagnetic radiation, and bits ofinformation flying imperceptibly through the air.

The photographs are part of a series ofphotographs titled “Lakshmi Planum.” Thephotographs explore scale by creatingminiature worlds that translate as alienlandscapes in long shot focus. The LakshmiPlanum of the planet Venus possesses themost spectacular topography on the planet. Itis a high plateau that, in configuration,resembles the Plateau of Tibet on Earth.

Exhibiting at the HERE Arts Center willraise Salisbury University’s profile in the artworld and could help in attracting students.

Faculty Mini-Grant Program

Tracing the Activism of EarlyBlack U.S. Artists in London,1840-1860Aston GonzalezAssistant Professor, History

In 1840, a free black man from Philadelphianamed Robert Douglass Jr. left the port of hishome city on a ship bound for London. There,he met with and took classes from some ofthe most distinguished painters at theNational Gallery and the British Museum, bothin London. It was there that he married hislove for artistry with his multiple campaigns tobring equal rights to people of African descentin the U.S. Douglass and other members ofhis family nurtured networks of pro-blackactivists in Philadelphia and in London. Duringhis trip to Europe, he met with not onlypainters, but also activists who instructed himon how to use his artistic skill in service of theabolition of slavery. Both before and after histrip to London, he created images thatdepicted the horrors of slavery and the moralfortitude of antislavery leaders.

Just a few years after Douglass left, theinflux of escaped slaves to London from theU.S., including Maryland’s own FrederickDouglass, hinted at the strong trans-Atlanticlinks between antislavery advocates. In 1855,the escaped slave Henry Box Brown made thesame trip to England to raise money so thathe could purchase his wife and children fromslavery. He brought with him a movingpanorama – a 10-foot fall, 200-foot longcanvas painting, rolled on two uprightcylinders and backlit by a fire – of hisexperiences of slavery. He chargedsympathetic audiences admission to hear himrecount and perform his life as an enslavedman. Two years later, the famous blackphotographer James Presley Ball fromCincinnati made the same trip to England topromote antislavery activism and solicited

Soil Carbon Sequestration in the Salisbury UniversityArboretumChris BriandProfessor, Biology

Increasing CO2 concentration in theatmosphere is leading to global warming.Along with the ocean, plants and soil serve asmajor carbon sinks. Urban areas can play arole in reducing atmospheric CO2 if managedcorrectly by increasing and maintaining greenspaces. The role of the Salisbury UniversityArboretum in storing carbon in the soil will bedetermined.

An urban forest has been defined as the“sum of all urban trees, shrubs, lawns, andpervius soils …” (Escobedo et al. 2011).Urban forests such as the Salisbury UniversityArboretum provide ecosystem services such asthe provision of aesthetics, shade, windreduction, reduction of storm water runoff andcarbon sequestration. Briand plans to quantifythe ecosystem services provided by the soil asit relates to soil carbon storage on thecampus of Salisbury University. This is acollaborative project with the Horticulture/Grounds Department and the Geography andGeosciences Department and is part of alarger study that also will determine the role played by the trees of the campus incarbon storage.

The landscape management of the SUArboretum and its impact on soil carbonsequestration is unknown. In this study, majorcampus arboretum and landscapemanagement practices will be identified andsoil carbon storage will be determined byanalyzing soil physical and chemicalproperties.

Developing Inclusive, DiverseLeadership: Cross-culturalStudies in America and New ZealandChrys EganAssociate Professor, Communication Arts

Egan continues her research on diversity inleadership by partnering with MasseyUniversity in New Zealand and examiningmentor circles. Participants in mentor circleshave been shown to motivate each other,improve morale, increase output andencourage each other to take greater careerresponsibilities. Egan and Massey colleagueDr. Marianne Tremaine have beencollaborating since 2012 on internationalleadership work with the InternationalLeadership Association (ILA), the ILA’s Womenand Leadership Affinity Group and Gender inManagement: An International Journal.

The research team recruits male andfemale professionals who would like to meeta few times per month in small groups towork on advancement, productivity andleadership. In addition, Egan travels to New Zealand to receive expert training fromthe Massey University vice provost and otherfaculty on how to host mentor circles,participate in successful circles, meet withmembers of the national Ministry for Women,speak with representatives in the U.S.Embassy and visit with nine SU educationmajors who are student teaching in New Zealand.

This project allows for a cross-culturalcomparison on leadership diversity byexamining the published findings from NewZealand, a nation known for its leadershipscholarship, and applying these results to anemerging project in the U.S., where peermentor circles are gaining momentum.

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The Chromanauts - A SoloExhibition and CollaborativeProject by John MosherJohn MosherAssistant Professor, Art

The Chromanauts is a solo exhibition that wasselected by Street Studio Arts in Elgin, IL,located just outside Chicago. Mosherpresented multi-disciplinary works of art in themain gallery, including collages on paper,photography and video works. The theme ofthe solo exhibition, The Chromanauts, is anarrative thread that is found throughout hiswork. The narrative deals with fictionalcharacters and their travels in variousimagined universes.

Mosher was asked to collaborate andcreate a dance production based on TheChromanauts by the associate artistic directorof Core Project – a dance-based,interdisciplinary arts company in Chicago. Thedance involves four dancers taking on theroles of The Chromanauts. Mosher contributedto the writing of the production, costumedesign, choreography, as well as creatingvideo and sound.

Because The Chromanauts is multi-disciplinary, and involves a collaboration witha dance choreographer, it transcends the ArtDepartment and has a wider reach to thedisciplines of dance and theatre. Collaborationbetween different departments and disciplinesis a growing trend in academia and in the arts.

Research at the HarvardUniversity Phillips ReadingRoom, Script Repository,Cambridge, MADarrell NewtonProfessor, Communication Arts

Newton’s interests in media histories and thequalitative effects of certain narratives uponaudiences takes him to the Phillips ReadingRoom and the Script Repository at HarvardUniversity. To follow his book, Paving theEmpire Road: BBC Television and BlackBritons, Newton now proposes a series ofessays on an anthology dealing with 1960stelevision and social issues. The essays,introduction and eight other works will dealwith how American programming during thisera provided multiple platforms for the criticalanalyses of social ills (i.e., sexism, racism,

donations there to end slavery in the U.S. Hetraveled with his wife and son, and hecaptured a photograph of Queen Victoriabetween meetings with abolitionists.

Gonzalez’s project seeks to discover theextent to which these three black men usedtheir artistry to advance the causes of blackrights by appealing to powerful politicians andleaders abroad. Questions to be researchedinclude: What exactly did Douglass, Brownand Ball learn in England? How did their timeabroad affect their strategies to end slavery inthe U.S. through their artistic production?Scholars are increasingly realizing that theantislavery movement in the U.S. drewmyriad lessons from strategies adopted acrossthe Atlantic Ocean. It is only in unearthing andunderstanding these connections that we canmore fully understand the history of the U.S.and how black people were central to thedestruction of slavery.

Restoring African AmericanWomen’s Intellectual HistoryApril LoganAssistant Professor, English

Logan attended the American LiteratureAssociation’s (ALA) 26th Annual Conference inSan Francisco to present her paper “Anna JuliaCooper, Lynching, and Modern Social Justice”in a roundtable discussion organized by theAnna Julia Cooper Society. Logan alsopresented a second paper, “Pauline Hopkins’sHagar’s Daughter, the Colored AmericanMagazine, and (Re)Public Stages” on theWoman Thinking: Public Intellectualism in U.S.Periodical Culture Panel. The panel andpresentation offered wonderful opportunitiesto advance research on understudied topicsrelated to women writers, in particular, theircontributions as public intellectuals throughtheir journalism and editorship, and authorssuch as Anna Julia Cooper.

By attending the ALA Conference andpresenting her papers, Logan avails herself toinvaluable advice regarding how to furtherdevelop ideas and other avenues of researchthat may increase understanding of turn-of-the-20th century periodical culture and thelegacies of African American women writers’activism and engagement with issues ofpublic concern. The input received also will aidLogan in her design of a graduate-level courseon African American women writers.

Working with the Dying andTheir Families in Long-termCare: A CommunicationEducation Training for NursingHome ProvidersKimberly van VulpenAssistant Professor, Social Work

In 2014, van Vulpen and colleague KatherineHinderer conducted a study exploring thebarriers of providing quality end-of-life (EOL)care in a small nursing home on the EasternShore of Maryland. Findings from thisexploratory study identified that staff feltunprepared in talking with and supporting thedying residents and their families. Priorresearch has recognized a gap in EOL careeducation for nursing home staff, including theneed for knowledge and skills development(Hill, Ginsburg, Citko & Cadogan).

The project is to develop an onlineeducation training focusing on strategies ofcommunicating with the dying. The trainingwill be offered to the staff at a small, long-term care facility on the Eastern Shore ofMaryland. van Vulpen hopes to answer thefollowing questions: Does the online trainingmodule improve staff comfort in providingcommunication to the dying? Does the onlinetraining module increase staff ability toprovide bereavement support to families ofresidents who have died? What are the staffperceptions of the impact of the trainingprogram on their abilities to interact with thedying patient and their family?

After evaluation of this project, the goalis to make this training available to othernursing homes on the Eastern Shore whosestaff may face the same barriers to receivingcontinuing education trainings.

Eating Attitudes of MiddleSchool Athletes and Non-AthletesJessica WalterAdjunct II Professor, Health and Sport Sciences

Previous research indicates that abnormaleating attitudes and behaviors are commonamong preadolescents. The purpose of thisstudy is to assess eating attitudes of allmiddle school students in Somerset, Worcesterand Wicomico counties in Maryland utilizing

Cold War politics, etc.) and provided fodderfor the evolution of televisual narratives.

The Phillips Reading Room at Harvardcontains a variety of scripts written by AfricanAmericans that address social conditionsduring the era. Newton examined narrativesfrom the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s that holdstorylines in common, particularly racialprejudice and its effects upon the principlecharacters. The specific questions to answerare: How have television scripts writtenspecifically by or about African Americansduring the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s addresscommon themes such as racism and othersocial ills? When considering notions such asgender and social class, how did these scriptshelp to identify the formation of contemporaryidentities? Perhaps more importantly, Newtonhoped to analyze linear notes and otherrelated annotations, changes to the originaldialogue in the scripts and why.

Charlotte Brontë’s Silver-ForkNovellas of the 1830sJudith PikeProfessor, English

The mature novels that Brontë wrote and thatscholarship addresses are from the 1840s to1850s. Researchers do not address her lesserwell-known works from the 1830s. Pike’spaper “Charlotte’s Novellas of the 1830s” ispart of a new book project Charlotte Brontë’sSilver-Fork Novellas of the 1830s. This projectcharts new terrain by looking at the influenceof silver-fork novelists (1820-1830) onBrontë’s early writings from the 1830s. Bytraveling to the Chawton House Library, Pikegains access to original, though rare, editionsof novels and periodicals from this era by suchfigures as Lady Charlotte Bury and LadyBlessington, and accompanying early 19th-century periodicals archived in its library.This project looks at how Charlotte Brontë’searly novellas from the 1830s, such as “TheHigh Life in Verdopolis,” fit within the genre ofthe “silver-fork novel.” This project will openup a very new area of scholarship onCharlotte Brontë.

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the Children’s Eating Attitudes Test (ChEAT).The ChEAT contains 26 items rated on a six-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (always) to6 (never). The ChEAT measures dietingbehaviors, food preoccupation, bulimia andconcerns about being overweight. Total ChEATscores may range from 0 to 78, with a scoreof 20 or greater considered to be associatedwith anorexia nervosa. Participantcharacteristics will also be recorded using ademographic questionnaire. Descriptive andinferential statistics will be utilized to examinethe difference between males and femalesand athletes versus non-athletes. The potentialrelationship between ChEAT scores and bodymass index also will be examined. The studywill explore whether any of the demographicsare predictors of high ChEAT scores.

Arterial Stiffness andResistance TrainingTim WernerAssistant Professor, Health and Sport Sciences

Arterial stiffness has long been regarded as anindicator of disease and is an independentpredictor of cardiovascular events. Thus,identification and characterization of behaviorspromoting the development of arterial stiffnessare necessary. Additionally, there is a void inour knowledge on the impact of exercise, inparticular resistance training, on the stiffeningprocess in the major elastic arteries. Severalresearch groups have found positivecorrelations, while others have reported nocorrelations. The current controversies aregenerally based on methodological issues. Thisstudy will seek to clarify some of thediscrepancies through the investigation of tworesistance training models: high-intensityresistance and high-volume resistance.Repeated measures will be used to examinethe effects on arterial stiffness.

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Graduate Research and Presentation (RAP)Grant Program (Spring 2016 & Fall 2016)The Office of Graduate Studies and Research provides research grants, up to $500, to help graduate studentsdevelop research and scholarly projects with faculty supervisors and present their projects at various conferencesand meetings. The program enables students to receive recognition for their work and provides networkingopportunities and professional development in their field of study.

A New Compact: Exploring theRange of Possibilities forCommunity-Engaged PedagogyGeralyn Adams, EnglishAdams attended the 30th Annual CampusCompact Conference, the premier conferencefor community-engaged pedagogy, to researchcurrent service-learning initiatives andscholarship. Community-engagementpedagogy helps to bridge the university andthe community, and meets community needwhile fostering the growth of students tobecome active citizens in a democraticsociety. In composition courses, community-engagement pedagogy often results in moremeaningful writing experiences for students:the importance of their curriculum and classrequirements transcends requirements and hasapplicability in the context in which they liveand work. Adams is particularly interested inthe rhetoric and discourse of writing in thecivic sphere, community-engaged writingcurriculum for freshman composition courses,and the importance of writing and educationprograms in correctional facilities.

GIS Modeling with Natural andHuman Systems Data toDetermine the Suitability ofAquaculture in Lake Victoriaand Implications for Wild Fisheries and FishCommodity MarketsMatthew Caddenhead, GeographyInformation Systems ManagementFor millennia, natives of the shores of LakeVictoria have been dependent on the bountyof freshwater fish as both a source fornutrition, as well as for economic sustainment.In recent years, this seemingly inexhaustiblefishery has begun to languish. In addition tothe deteriorating fishery, the humanpopulation surrounding Lake Victoria continuesto grow, further straining the ecosystem.

Should the human population continue togrow, and the fishery continue to stagnate,the ecological and socio-economicconsequences could be severe. A potentialremedy to this immense problem could be theincreased adoption of aquaculture-related fishproduction within Lake Victoria. Out of thiscomplex problem, a multidisciplinary team ofscientists aims to answer the followingquestion, as posed in the National ScienceFoundation parent grant: “What is thepotential for aquaculture around Lake Victoriaand what are the implications for wildfisheries, global and local supplies offish, andregional economic development?” To addressthis question, the determination of the areasof suitability for wild fish habitat and foraquaculture will be determined through aseries of GIS suitability analyses. The outputof these analyses will later be utilized asinputs into a larger futures prediction modeltitled Multi-scale Integrated Model ofEcosystem Services (MIMES).

Understanding the SpatialEcology of the Tungara FrogUsing Automated and ManualRadio Telemetry SystemsAndrew Cronin, Applied BiologySpatial ecology plays a vital component inmany facets of an organism’s ecology,impacting predation risks, matingopportunities, foraging ecology and even thegenetic structure of a population. The tungarafrog (Physalaemus pustulosus) is a tropicalanuran that has been studied extensively withregard to mate choice and multisensorysignaling. However, there have been fewstudies examining this species’ spatialecology. This study will use both anautomated and manual tracking system inorder to determine male site fidelity, habitatuse and diurnal behavior. This study willdrastically expand our knowledge of thisspecies’ ecology and behavior, as most of our

current knowledge is derived from matingbehavior at breeding sites. Cronin also willexamine the efficacy of a novel automatedsystem derived from radio frequency phaseangle differences in a complex tropicalenvironment. Tropical anurans are currentlyone of the most threatened vertebrate taxadue to habitat fragmentation, habitatdegradation and the fungus Batrachochytriumdendrobatidis. A crucial step in designingproper conservation plans and determining therates at which chytrid spreads is to monitorthe movement patterns of these anurans. Thissystem could therefore provide an importantfirst step in the understanding the ecology andconservation of this taxa.

Interview Investors inWashington, D.C. - QuonaCapital, Accion VentureLab, IFC Fintech Team, OmidyarNetworkAdebola Daramola, Business AdministrationInclusive financial technology startups areleveraging emerging technologies – smartphonesand cloud computing, mobile money andbranchless banking, social media and machinelearning – to deliver financial services to the poorand underserved markets cheaply and easily.They are rapidly disrupting and finding new waysto partner with conventional financial servicesecosystem. Conventional financial servicesproviders (such as banks and insurance) have notfound serving the underserved market attractiveto yield a high rate of return by economicmeasures. The financially underserved marketremains neglected and left to the mercies ofinformal players. In America for instance, it iscommon with unbanked populations to patronizecheck-cashing centers: A recent CFSI report(2015) reveals that these unbanked consumersspend $138 billion in fees and interest revenuein 2014, and generated a volume of $1.6 trillionin financial activity.

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The Influence of Self-Assessment on the Completionand Accuracy of DifferentiatedHomework with Eighth GradersMelissa Dennis, Education (Ed.D.)The purpose of this study is to discover if self-assessment of middle schoolers after learningnew concepts will increase their capability tochoose appropriate leveled homework. Theresearch will help to show any correlationbetween student self-assessment and eitherthe completion of the differentiatedhomework assignments, the accuracy of thosecompleted assignments or a combination ofboth. Students also will be interviewed aboutspecific questions on the self-assessmentmethod and the differentiated homeworkoptions, as well as why or why not they wereable to complete each assignment. Theresearch will include 22 eighth gradestudents, depending on parental approval. Theclass chosen is made up of 13 students withan Individualized Education Program (IEP)and nine general-education students, who allhave different math needs. This class waschosen as it already requires differentiatedinstruction so differentiated homeworkassignments are a compatible and normalnext step to assist these students withsuccess.

Internship with United Nationsat the Hague SymposiumBrittany Foutz, Conflict Analysis and Dispute ResolutionFunding allowed travel to the InternationalPeace and Security Institute to serve in aninternship to during their 2016 symposium onPost-Conflict Transitions and InternationalJustice at the Hague Palace. This internshippartnered with The Netherland Institute ofInternational Relations to work with the field’stop experts in academia to focus onexperimental learning and learn fromrepresentatives from the first world,developing world, and conflict and post-conflict countries. The academics at theinternship focused on restorative andretributive justice, post-conflict security,reconciliation and reparations, peace vs.justice tensions, international vs. nationalmechanisms, truth seeking and investigations,transitional governance, economicdevelopment in transitions, localizedstabilization, and the media and transitions.

Through formal lectures, studying withinternational tribunals and courts, andinteractive simulations and workshops, thisinternship was beneficial in gaining the skillsnecessary to provide for security, justice anddevelopment and break cycles of violence –skills that are necessary in ensuring long-termstability worldwide.

Changes in Gene Expression inResponse to Rapid TemperatureChange in the Atlantic Killifish,Fundulus heteroclitusWilliam Gough, Applied BiologyAtlantic Killifish, Fundulus heteroclitus, aredistributed along the Atlantic coast of NorthAmerica from Canada to Florida, one of thelargest thermal gradients in the world. Killifishrespond to long-term temperature change byundergoing well-documented changes inphysiology. Unknown is the temporalsequence of these changes. The hypothesis isthat different mechanisms of thermalacclimation occur at different rates. Bystudying these differences, it might bepossible to identify mechanisms that represent“emergency” responses versus more long-term mechanisms. The researchers propose tomonitor the changes that occur in theexpression of key metabolic genes during andafter killifish are exposed to rapid (ninehours) changes in temperature. The results ofthis work will provide insights into predictingwhich species may be more or less sensitiveto climate change.

From High School to College:Supporting Students’ Self-Advocacy of Literacy SkillsCourtney Harned, Education (Ed.D.)Heather Porter, Education (Ed.D.)The transition from secondary topostsecondary reading expectations ischallenging for many college students,requiring students to adapt and developstrategic reading comprehension skills.Secondary teachers face enormousexpectations in preparing students for collegereadiness. What does college readiness reallylook like? Research shows that 85 percent ofcollege learning comes from reading andstudying, yet only 20-30 percent of collegestudents complete the assigned readingbefore class. Students often struggle with thedemands of college reading in multiple ways

as they negotiate volume, density and ageneral absence of guidance. What do highschool and college educators know about theirrespective educational contexts that can helpmitigate these struggles? How can sharedknowledge be leveraged to provide studentswith strategic reading comprehension skillsand self-regulatory habits for a seamlesstransition to college literacy expectations?This panel invited audience members toexplore with the presenters how advocacyturns to action in supporting students’transition from high school to college.

Constructing Literacy Capital in Rural ContextsCourtney Harned, Education (Ed.D.)Heather Porter, Education (Ed.D.)Christine Taylor, Education (Ed.D.)The purpose of this study was to deepen theunderstanding of the discursive practices inrural literacies. Using critical discourse analysisand Gee’s (2011) concept of figured worlds,the research team examined eight ruralteachers’ notions of what is natural in theirteaching contexts. Three themes emergedfrom the findings: the reification ofinterpersonal relationships, an eclipse of ruralliteracy capital, and an adherence to nationaland state curricular norms. The findings led toan understanding that rural teachers viewedthemselves as fulfilling communityexpectations and maintaining their end of avaluable relationship through their conformityto hegemonic educational practices.Implications include the need for teachereducation programs to develop candidates’capacities for responsively and respectfullypartnering with community literacy resources-starting with building teacher awareness toinspire place-consciousness in their pedagogy.

Multiple Way to AdvocateHolistic and Authentic LiteracyPracticesNicole Justice, Education (Ed.D.)Susan Olsen, Education (Ed.D.)This project examined and explored socio-culturally relevant authentic literacy education.Miscue research has significantly informed usthat reading is a dynamic and multi-directionalprocess. Numerous studies have documentedthe impact of miscue analysis and EMMA onhow readers read. The research team shared

multiple ways to work with diverse childrenand their families, focusing on what makessense to children and their families. Bysharing and discussing their stories as holisticliteracy educators and advocates, they couldreflect on a theory of reading that explainedthe many cues and experiences that readersuse to construct meaning. Specifically,including how we miscue analysis, EyeMovement and Miscue Analysis (EMMA), andauthentic and socio-culturally relevantchildren’s literature are used. Presentersshared various vignettes and invitedparticipants to explore their assumptionsabout readers, teaching and learning. Theyshared how using miscue analysis, eyemovement data, and culturally relevant andauthentic teaching can provide a venue forpreservice and in-service teachers,opportunities to explore how readers makemeaning when transacting with various textsand develop literacy strategies that helpedsupport the needs of various readers.Following the presentations of various holisticteaching and learning vignettes, the sessionencouraged reflection on the participants’observations to suggest implications for theirteaching practices.

Population Size, HabitatPreferences and GeneticDiversity of the Spotted Turtle(Clemmys guttata) on theDelmarva PeninsulaStephanie Lamb, Applied BiologyHabitat loss, habitat fragmentation and thepet trade have led to the decline of manyreptilian populations, including spotted turtles(Clemmys guttata). Clemmys guttata is listedas an S2 species (on the verge of becomingthreatened or extinct) in Maryland. However,little is known about the populations’ geneticstructure of C. guttata on the DelmarvaPeninsula (Maryland and Delaware). Lambplans to study the genetic structure andgenetic connectivity of four populations of C. guttata on the Delmarva Peninsula. If thepopulations are small, lack of genetic diversitycan negatively affect population size.Inbreeding and genetic drift are prevalentcauses of greater population declines in smallpopulations. Therefore, it is of vital importanceto determine if genetic signatures of a low

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genetic diversity, such as a paucity of allelesor low heterozygosity are present in these C. guttata populations, as well as whethergene flow is occurring between populations,which can rescue genetic diversity. This studywill determine the effect of populationdeclines on genetic diversity of this speciesand determine the necessity of conservationaction for spotted turtles in this area.

The Metamodern Paradigm and MisinterpretedRepresentation: The MarxianSymptom of ContemporaryRevolutionary DesireJoshua Losoya, EnglishThe rise and demise of postmodernism arewell documented within academic discourses.Consensus regarding what has inherited thesovereignty formerly held by postmodernismseems less concrete. However, Vermeulen andvan den Akker’s theorization of thecontemporary epoch as that of the“metamodern” seems to be the besthypothesis available regarding today’s popularcounterculture. This “metamodernism” is oneof postmodern irony that reengages with thesincerity and enthusiasm of morecharacteristically modernist methodologies.This attitude within artistic practice appearsacross places of countercultural influence fromPortland, OR, and the aesthetic nature ofUrban Outfitters’ products, to contemporaryart galleries. This is the milieu that envelopesmovements such as Occupy Wall Street and#BlackLivesMatter – movements wheresomething traditionally considered immatureand naive, such as social media, was used toorganize significant political action. However,the researcher uses strands of contemporaryMarxist thought from Slavoj Zizek, GuyDebord, Theodore Adorno, Jacques Lacan andothers to exemplify how this newlydominating aesthetic, while representing itselfas revolutionary and morally/politicallyprogressive, is, in fact, the commodification ofpopular, revolutionary/anti-capitalist desires.His work outlines how the true irony of“metamodernism” is in its unconsciousexistence as an epoch of “conservativeprogress,” desiring revolutionary restructuringswithout the necessary systematic change.

Leaf Litter Ant Biodiversity andRichness on the Eastern ShoreHunter Mann, Applied BiologyAnts (Hymenoptera: Fonnicidae) are acritically important indicator taxon inhabiting avast variety of ecosystems and climates. Theirecological importance as scavengers andpredators, ability to aerate the soil, and role inseed dispersal, all combined with theirincredible biomass, suggest that they are tooimportant to be overlooked. However, inmany cases, data pertaining to theirbiodiversity is lacking and the records of whatspecies inhabit which areas are incomplete.This research aims to determine the richnessand diversity of leaf litter ants in E.A. VaughnWildlife Management Area (Worcester County,MD). Collections of leaf litter occurred duringMay, July and September 2015, and antswere sorted through Berlese funnels beforecuration and identification. Preliminary resultssuggest that the leaf litter is dominated by ahandful of species, with Nylanderiafaisonensis (Forel, 1922) making up 57 percent of the total individuals collected.Leaf litter samples from May and Julycaptured 18 species (3,157 individuals).Richness estimates suggest there are maybeas high as 24 species present in E.A. VaughnWMA. Further data will provide more accurateestimates of ant species richness andbiodiversity.

Your Lips Move (But I Can'tHear What You're Saying):Cognitive Load ImpactsMultimodal Mate ChoiceMatthew Murphy, Applied BiologyMultimodality – the transmission of a signalthrough multiple sensory channels – iscommon in the animal kingdom. Onehypothesized origin of multimodality is anadaptation to noisy environments. Manyspecies appear to use visual cues to improveacoustic discrimination in noisy environments,allowing them to focus on an individualsignaler. Acoustic communication has beenextensively studied in green treefrogs (Hylacinerea). Male acoustic signals arephysiologically coupled to the inflation of thefrogs’ vocal sac, and females prefer maleacoustic signals that are accompanied by thevisual cue of an inflating vocal sac (robofrog).

Murphy hypothesized that multimodal signalevaluation enhances females’ ability to detectan attractive mate under acoustically complexconditions. He exposed female green treefrogs(GTFs) to a combination of three unattractivesignals: an attractive signal, and either arobofrog, band-filtered noise, or both therobofrog and the noise. He found that femaleGTFs were able to detect the attractivespeaker in the presence of either maskingnoise or the robofrog. However, when boththe robofrog and the background maskingnoise were present, females chose the correctspeaker no more often than would occur byrandom chance. The results suggestmultimodal cues may increase cognitiveloading and reduce discrimination in noisyenvironments.

Investigating Reading Capital in Rural Literacy LearningContexts: Students Speak UpHannah Poist, Education (Ed.D.)The purpose of this study was to investigatestudents’ language-in-use as it relates to theirliteracy practices both in and out of school inrural contexts. This study is the second phaseof an ongoing critical discourse researchendeavor; the first phase of which featuredinterviews with English Language Arts (ELA)teachers in rural schools to uncover teachers’beliefs regarding their students’ literacycapital. Eight students from a rural schoolwere interviewed three times each. Everyinterview was followed by an ELA classroomobservation. The results show that students’figured world of literacy practices are stronglyinfluenced by school sponsorship and personalrelationships. Students’ language-in-use alsorevealed many instances of voluntarysponsorship of their own literacy practices anda transcendence of literacy spaces andpractices across digital, social, community andacademic contexts. Students’ language-in-usepresents an interconnected figured world of arural context which cannot be confined to aromanticized, nor deficit-based, perspective.Research points to the pivotal role teachersmay play in the classroom by using theirinfluential position to discover and value thestudents' voluntary and transcendent practicesin the figured world of their rural context andbeyond.

Denitrification Rates, Potentialand Limitations in a NewlyCreated WetlandJordan J. Roose, Applied BiologyIncreases in agricultural and urbandevelopment have elevated the amount ofnutrients entering aquatic ecosystems,diminishing habitat, biodiversity and waterquality. Therefore, it is important tounderstand the consequences of nutrientloading and to mitigate any negative effectsthrough restoration efforts. This study focuseson the St. Martin River in eastern Marylandthat has experienced eutrophication,contributing to poor water quality locally andthe coastal bays downstream. To counter theeffects of nutrient loading in this system, theBishopville Dam was modified and Lizard Hillwetland was created at an abandoned sandmine site upstream. The researchers proposesto study the ecosystem function of nitrogenremoval within these wetland habitats bymeasuring denitrification rates and potential.The abundance of denitrifying genes will bequantified by QPCR. In addition to nitrate,insufficient labile carbon also may limitdenitrification. Labile carbon will be measuredby analyzing the carbon and nitrogen isotopicratios. The benthic algae community alsoplays a role in the nutrient dynamics;therefore, chlorophyll a will be measuredthrough fluorometric analysis. Restoring thebalance of nutrients entering an exciting anaquatic ecosystem is important for waterquality and biodiversity, especially in the St. Martin River.

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Extra-ordinary Rock StarsBy Dr. Mara ChenProfessor, Geography and GeosciencesIn this beautiful, full-color book of photo stories, the author’simagination will fly to meet yours and walk you through someseemingly ordinary, but actually extra-ordinary and majestic spotsand moments. You will be able to feel the awe of the rock starsand the theatrical power of nature across space and time.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2016

Laboratory Safety: A Self-Assessment WorkbookBy Dr. Diane Davis • Professor, Health SciencesDavis, an educator and hands-on practitioner with decades ofexperience, knows what you need to know when you're readyto institute new safety protocols or a new safety trainingprogram – or just need a comprehensive reference resource. Getinsight and advice on everything from the most routine safetyprocedures to handling biohazards and radioactive materials.Laboratory Safety makes it easy to choose the areas in whichyou want to ramp up your knowledge. It takes the user, step bystep, through critical principles and practical tips, with a uniquelyinformed perspective on what practicing laboratory technologistsneed to know to be proficient and compliant in today'slaboratory environment. Organized by topic and comprehensivein scope, Laboratory Safety provides engaging and informative

overviews of fire and chemical safety, biological hazards,compressed gases, radioactive materials, waste and wastemanagement, identifying hazards, safety equipment and safework practices, locating safety equipment and documents,accidents and accident prevention, and accident situations.Individual users benefit from the self-study exercises inLaboratory Safety by using pre- and post-tests to assess theirknowledge. An abundance of charts, diagrams and photographsenhance the information. The Appendix offers a wealth ofresources and opportunities to learn more.American Society of Clinical Pathologists Press, 2016

Monolingualism and LinguisticExhibitionism in Fictionby Dr. Anjali Pandey • Professor, EnglishHow are linguistic wars for global prominence literarily andlinguistically inscribed in literature? This book focuses on theincreasing presence of cosmetic multilingualism in prize-winningfiction, making a case for an emerging transparent-turn in whichmomentary multilingualism works in the service of long-termmonolingualism.Palgrave Macmillan, 2016

Freedom in the Anthropocene: Twentieth-Century Helplessness in the Face of Climate ChangeCo-authored by Dr. Alexander StonerAssistant Professor, SociologyFreedom in the Anthropocene illuminates the Anthropocenefrom the perspective of critical theory. The authors contextualizeour current ecological predicament by focusing on the issues ofhistory and freedom and how they relate to our present inabilityto render environmental threats and degradation recognizableand surmountable.Palgrave Macmillan, 2015

The Bloomsbury Research Handbook onIndian Epistemology and MetaphysicsEdited by Dr. Joerg TuskeAssociate Professor, PhilosophyConcentrating on topics such as perception, inference,skepticism, consciousness, self, mind and universals, some ofthe most notable scholars working in classical Indian philosophytoday examine core epistemological and metaphysical issues.Philosophical theories and arguments from a comprehensiverange of Indian philosophical traditions (including the Nyaya,Saiva, Jain, Buddhist, materialist and skeptical traditions, as wellas some 20th century thought) are covered. The contributors tothis volume approach the topics from both a philosophical and ahistorical perspective. They demonstrate the importance of thesubject matter for an understanding of Indian thought in generaland they highlight its wider philosophical significance. Bydeveloping an appreciation of classical Indian philosophy in itsown terms, set against the background of its uniqueassumptions and historical and cultural development, TheBloomsbury Research Handbook of Indian Epistemology andMetaphysics is an invaluable guide to the current state ofscholarship on Indian philosophy. It is a timely and much-needed reference resource, the first of its kind.Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016

FACULTY BOOKS

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Salisbury University students presented their research on topics ranging from the liberal arts andsciences to business and education during the 15th SU Student Research Conference. In all, some 170students shared their scholarship.

Highlights included the presentation of this year’s Faculty Mentor Award to Dr. Scott Mazzetti of theHealth and Sports Sciences Department. In addition to teaching classes, Mazzetti guides students asdirector of SU’s Laboratory for Human Performance (LHP), which he founded in 2007. The primarymission of the LHP follows the “learning by conducting research” concept, which was derived from theAssociation of American Colleges & Universities Project Kaleidoscope. Other principles of the LHP includeliving life with a constant research mentality and taking leadership of lab activates. Students have theopportunity to lead various components of the research process, teaching them independence andproblem-solving skills.

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Salisbury University Student Research Conference • 2016

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2017 • GS&R • 30

SAVE THE DATE!

SU Student Research

Conference

Friday, April 28, 2017

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MASTER’S PROGRAMSn Applied Biology (M.S.)n Applied Health Physiology (M.S.)n Athletic Training (M.S.A.T.)n Business Administration (M.B.A.)n Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution (M.A.)n Education (M.Ed.)n Educational Leadership (M.Ed.)n English (M.A.)n Geographic Information SystemsManagement (M.S.)

n History (M.A.)n Mathematics Education (M.S.M.E.)n Nursing (M.S.)n Reading Specialist (M.Ed.)n Social Work (M.S.W.)n Teaching (M.A.T.)

POST-BACCALAUREATE CERTIFICATESn Advanced Technology for Enterprise Systemsn Higher Educationn Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

POST-MASTER CERTIFICATESn Advanced Study in Educational Leadershipn Literacy Educatorn Successful Completion in Educational Leadership

DOCTORAL PROGRAMSn Education - Contemporary Curriculum Theory and Instruction: Literacy (Ed.D.)

n Nursing Practice (D.N.P.)

Office of Graduate Studies and Research

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