Biology Department
Professors: Drew Ferrier, Craig Laufer (co-chair), Oney P. Smith (co-chair)
Professor Emerita: Ann L. Boyd, Laura Betsy Estilow, Ricky Hirschhorn
Associate Professors: Eric Annis, April Boulton, Eric Kindahl
Associate Professor Emeritus: Kathy Falkenstein,Jeffrey L. Rossio
Assistant Professors: James Cherry, Robert Kambic, Daehwan Kim, Yulu Cherry Liu, Jeffrey Lombardo, Meredith Yeager
The Department of Biology offers three programs of study leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree and two programs leading to a Master of Science degree. A biology minor, a coastal studies minor and an environmental science minor are also offered.
The undergraduate major in biology leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree. Biology majors also may earn secondary teaching certification.
The environmental science and policy major is an interdisciplinary major leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree, administered by the departments of biology; chemistry and physics; economics and management; and political science. Students who choose this major take a common core of environmental studies, natural sciences and social sciences courses, then concentrate in environmental biology, environmental chemistry, environmental policy or coastal and watershed studies.
The sustainability studies major leads to a Bachelor of Arts degree and prepares students for a wide variety of careers in government, business or with non-profit organizations. Students receive holistic training in the areas of sustainable watersheds, food, and alternate energy development. The program emphasizes hands-on experiences, civic engagement, and service learning.
The Master of Science degree is offered in biomedical science and in environmental biology.
Facilities: The department is housed in the Hodson Science and Technology Center. All laboratory facilities are either completely new or newly renovated. Lecture and lab classrooms have the latest in multimedia classroom presentation hardware. Specially designed and equipped labs for molecular biology, microbiology, physiology and animal behavior are available for course work and student and faculty research. Additional facilities such as dark room, cold room, cell culture facilities, fluorescence microscopy and an environmental analysis lab are all available for teaching and faculty and student research. Students can conduct environmental analyses using high performance liquid chromatography, ion chromatography, gas chromatography, and other analytical instruments. Four greenhouses, environmental chambers and an aquatic laboratory are available to grow and study plants and animals. Other major instrumentation includes a scanning electron microscope, ultracentrifuge and real-time thermal cyclers. Along with the teaching labs and classrooms, specially designed laboratories for student and faculty research enhance the opportunities for students to join with the faculty in pursuing work from the biochemical to the ecological.
Undergraduate Programs Offered:
Graduate Programs Offered: