Science Mathematicsand COLLEGE OF FALL NEWSLETTER 0222
MESSAGE FROM THE College Dean
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The College of Science and Mathematics (COSM) has two new degree programs starting this fall – B.S. Biotechnology and B.S. Statistics. These are two of six new degrees launched at Tarleton this academic year. COSM continues to grow in enrollment as well as faculty. We added a number of new faculty across the college to help us continue to provide high quality education experiences to our majors as majors across the campus. In collaboration with the Mayfield College of Engineering, we held our 2nd STEM Basecamp for incoming freshman students in STEM. This year’s program had 46 student participants who engaged in the 5-day experience to provide them a smooth transition to Tarleton and enhanced knowledge for academic success. There were more than 20 faculty and staff from the two colleges involved in the program to help make it a huge success.
In May, COSM hosted a second grant writing workshop (a writing retreat) where nine teams of faculty worked on grant proposals. COSM faculty have submitted 20 grant proposals so far this year requesting more than $2.3 million in funding, with a few additional proposals expected as we close out the fiscal year. Overall, 16 COSM faculty have been involved in the submission of grants proposals this year as either the primary investigator (PI) or coprimary investigators (coPI). It’s great to see our team work to help Tarleton expand its research efforts!!
Message from the Dean 1 COSM Leadership Team 2 Summer Research Showcase 3 TimberLake Field Station 5 New STEM Scholars Program 6 TSA Annual Meeting 7 Math Professor Elected MAA Chair 7 Math Day Celebration 9 COSM Piper Professor Award 10 Giving Back 11 Giving Back 11 TABLE OF CONTENTS
As we start another fall semester, there are many things to celebrate at Tarleton State University. We start the new academic year with a new academic structure involving several significant changes. The College of Science and Technology has officially split to form the College of Science and Mathematics and the Mayfield College of Engineering. This has been in the works for many years and demonstrates the growth and success of the engineering programs due to the dedication and hard work of the entire COST team, especially the faculty and staff in the new Mayfield College of Engineering. Tarleton has also welcomed a new Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs – Dr. Diane Stearns. As the Chief Academic Officer, her experience and leadership will be critical in helping us meet the ambitious goals outlined in the Tarleton Forward strategic plan.
Sincerely,
The College of Science and Mathematics has launched a new website - https://web.tarleton.edu/cosm. Tarleton is in the final stages of transition to a new website management system that allows us greater flexibility on the website design and content, but also provides the site visitors a better experience. We’re excited about the new page and the enhanced ability it will provide us as a modern communication tool for a variety of important audiences.
Dr. Philip Sudman Associate Dean & Timberlake Director
Dr. Michael Huggins Dean
Dr. Ryan Morgan Dept Head Chemistry, Geoscience, & Physics
Dr. Eileen Faulkenberry Associate Dean
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COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS
Leadership Team
Dr. Kathy Horak Smith Dept Head Mathematics
Dr. Kristin Herrmann Dept Head Biological Sciences
Summer Research Showcase
COSM
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COSM student’s present posters to faculty, fellow students, and alumni who attended the event.
The first annual College of Science and Mathematics Summer Research Showcase was held on August 11, 2022 to highlight the hard work of our faculty and students on research conducted primarily during the summer term. It provided an opportunity for College and University colleagues to celebrate our research efforts as well as providing students an opportunity to build and hone their communication skills.
FIRST ANNUAL
Undergraduate: Alyssa Kohler Title: Efficacy of a PlantDerived Polymeric Drug Delivery System Used to Deliver Antibiotics to Produce Cytotoxic Effects on Bacteria; Faculty Adviser: Dr. Rajani Srinivasan
The presentation winners are:
The Summer Research Showcase included two sessions – a 1-hour oral presentation session with six oral presentations and a poster session with 29 presenters. In addition, there was a welcome back reception held after the showcase to kick-off the start of the 2022-2023 academic year. The festivities were held in the 1st floor of the Science CongratulationsBuilding.toall of the presenters for a job well done!!
Graduate: Adriana Perrucci Title: Parasites of freshwater mussels of Texas; Faculty mentor: Dr. Kristin Herrmann
Oral Presentation Winners:
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Undergraduate: Derek Martin Title: Planet Hunting in Open Cluster; Faculty mentor: Dr. Shaukat Goderya.
Poster Presentation Winners: Graduate: Kelly Carroll Title: Comparing the microbiomes of a native and invasive Texas grass to determine potential biocontrol methods Faculty mentor: Drs. Janice Speshock and Jeff Brady
The 46 incoming Tarleton students participating in the 2022 STEM Basecamp program also joined the festivities to learn about research opportunities available to them during their studies at Tarleton.
TIMBER NEWS
In other news, we had such a great time at the Farley Education Building dedication/fish fry in 2021 that we decided to make it an annual event! So, on May 21st, 2022 approximately 90 faculty, staff, alumni, community members and “friends of Tarleton” came together around the field station pavilion and enjoyed good food (thank you Pepperbelly’s for a fantastic catering job!), great conversation, and endured a short program by Dr. Sudman highlighting the development of a master plan related to the further development of the field station.
In spite of the unusually hot and dry late May weather, the event was an overwhelming success with lots of positive feedback. Dr. Lamar and Marilynn Johanson held court throughout much of the day. Tours were offered to those interested in a hot and dusty ride in one of our UTVs. Wayne Davenport brought along
Our aim is to become a model field station focused on education, outreach, and research associated with the ecological integrity of the Colorado River and the diverse flora and fauna of the Cross Timbers and Edwards Plateau ecoregions of Texas. Because of the generosity of the Johansons, this vision is becoming a reality as the entire 790 acre Timberlake Ranch in southern Mills County has been transferred to Tarelton.
Mesonet network associated with Texas Tech’s National Wind Institute. More spaces and more tools means more opportunity for research, education and outreach!
Timberlake Biological Field Station
The buildout of the field station continues to be a work in progress - the addition of a bathhouse and the Farley Education Building along with the acquisition of the Green Cabin and the Mobile Discovery Lab have expanded our capacity for hosting students and researchers. We have also added internet
Timberlake Biological Field Station was established to advance environmental research, engage students in scientific discovery, and promote stewardship of the natural world.
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“We gave a presentation on what they are, how they’re used, and we gave students a template to work with,” Dr. Edwards said. “The students all worked together, compared their work, tweaked them for their own style and then submitted them to the Thementors.”mentorsprovided instant feedback and responded to questions.
Biology Associate Professor Dr. Dustin Edwards is a faculty mentor in the program that focuses on practical career development exercises.
Creation of STEM Scholars Program
He credits the STEM Scholars program with boosting his knowledge about getting into graduate school as well as how to properly present himself.
Membership in STEM Scholars is open to students in any science, technology, engineering or math major. For more information regarding this program, please contact Drs. Eileen Faulkenberry, Lynal Albert, Dustin Edwards, Chris Mitchell, Zahra Pournorouz, or Rajani Srinivasan.
“We meet in the evenings in one big group,” he said. “We have all the faculty advisors there, someone from each department, and we have an activity we do together.”
If you are interested in supporting the STEM Scholars Program, contact Wayne Davenport at 254-968-1744 or wdavenport@tarleton.edu.
At a recent meeting, students prepared a curriculum vitae.
Some 40 Tarleton State University students enrolled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs are part of a unique program funded by the President’s Fund for Excellence. The STEM Scholars Program was created in 2021 to improve diversity, equity and inclusion of underrepresented, first-generation and economically disadvantaged students in Tarleton’s STEM fields.
He was one of several invited speakers to present about the benefits of participating in student organizations for the first STEM Scholars meeting.
“I knew a lot of the professors, and they explained the idea of giving resources to students in STEM programs,” he said. “I really loved the idea of getting more real-world experience and knowing what my career is going to look like after I get my Auroddegree.”was a biomedical major before switching to math. He plans to get his PhD in biomedical informatics and wants to work for Pfizer or the Centers for Disease Control as a lab instructor using mathematical modeling to mitigate the spread of arthropod-borne viruses.
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Member students from within the College of Science and Technology meet monthly in workshops with faculty mentors, alumni and peer-mentors who provide resources and direct professional development activities.
electrical engineering major, earned top honors for “A Mathematical Model for Onchocerciasis and Resistance in Treatment.” Ounsinegad, a senior mathematics major, presented “Dynamics of Eastern Equine Encephalitis Infection Rates: A Mathematical Approach.”
Dr. Mitchell is the faculty advisor for both.
Dr. Chris Mitchell chaired the Mathematics and Computer Science Section of the conference, and Dr. Bryant Wyatt was selected to chair the Physics and Engineering Section for the 2022-2024 biennium.
A Tarleton student also earned top honors in poster awards. Gavin McIntosh, a junior mathematics major, took first place with his poster presentation, “Supraventricular Tachycardia Study Using a Dynamic Computer-Generated Atrium.” Dr. Wyatt is his faculty
Senioradvisor.math
In 2019 she received the Ron Barnes Distinguished Service to Students Award, which recognizes faculty for exemplary service and support of undergraduate students in the Texas Section.
a professor of mathematics education at Tarleton since 2013.
Both also served as judges for the Physics and Engineering Section, and Dr. Wyatt was a featured faculty oral presenter with “Silicon Building Silicon: Dynamic Modeling of Dust Crystal Formations in a Complex Plasma using NVIDIA GPUs.”
A pair of Tarleton State University math professors and half a dozen of their students achieved recognition and rewards at the Texas Academy of Science 2022 Annual Meeting last month at the University of Houston-Clear Lake.
has been an MAA member since 1997, joining the Texas Section in 2003. She served as Arrangements Chair in 2017-19 when Tarleton hosted the annual Section Meeting.
Senior electrical engineering major Avery Campbell, advised by Dr. Wyatt, brought the oral presentation “Supraventricular Tachycardia Study Using a Dynamic Computer-Generated Atrium,” and graduate math student Brandon Amerine, advised by Dr. Jesse Crawford, presented “Understanding Social Determinants of Health using Machine Learning Algorithm.”
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Senior math major Cody Drolet took the Amir Moaz Award for Mathematics and Computer Science Oral Section for his presentation, “Improving Recombination MCMC for Texas Political Redistricting.” His faculty advisor is Dr, Scott Cook.
Science Faculty and Students Shine at TAS Annual Meeting
Dashon Mitchell and Aurod Ounsinegad captured first and third place, respectively, in the Biomedical Oral Section. Mitchell, a senior mathematics and
MATHEMATICS PROFESSOR DR. EILEEN FAULKENBERRY, ASSOCIATE DEAN OF THE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS HAS BEEN ELECTED CHAIR OF THE TEXAS SECTION OF THE MATHEMATICAL ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA (MAA). The MAA, established in 1915, seeks to advance the understanding of mathematics and its impact on our world. The Texas Section began in Dr.1920.Faulkenberry
major Vianey Rangel, advised by Dr. Cook, finished second in the category with “Making Unbiased Maps to Pass the Eyeball Test via MCMC Redistricting.”
She also serves on the board of the Conference for the Advancement of Mathematics Teaching (CAMT), an annual meet co-sponsored by the Texas Section of the MAA, designed to improve the knowledge and skills of K-16 mathematics teachers and supervisors
MATHEMATICS PROFESSOR ELECTED MAA CHAIR
COSM
Shestatewide.hasbeen
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Left to right: Gavin McIntosh, Aurod Ounsinegad, Dashon Mitchell, Vianey Rangel, Cody Drolet
• Third-place - Trace Patterson for Hiding in Plain Sight – Finding USDA’s Multiply Marginal Producers;
Julia Biberdorf - Spring 2022 Outstanding Undergraduate Student
Ms. Janice Groseclose - 2022 Timothy L. Flinn Faculty Excellence Award (This award is voted on by faculty to recognize a faculty member for their excellence in the classroom).
✦ Research Mentor: Dr. Bryant Wyatt
Jordan McCain - Pam Littleton Graduate Teaching Assistant of the Year
Student Awards
Faculty Award
• Second-place - Vianey Rangel and Cody Drolet for Making Unbiased Voting Districts to Pass the “Eyeball Test” Via MCMC Redistricting;
A total of 48 content judges graded the students’ research abstracts. This judging panel was predominantly Tarleton Alumni, and faculty connected with Tarleton, Baylor, and SMU. Scores from their abstracts, poster presentations, people’s choice, and Lightning Talks were used to determine the winners. This year’s winners
Place - Avery Campbell and Gavin McIntosh for N-Body Modeling of Supraventricular Tachycardias;
At the end of each academic year, the Department of Mathematics celebrates mathematics and faculty and student research at Math Day. For the event, students present their research in a lightning round format with three-minutes oral presentations. In addition, there is a poster session that launches the day prior to the oral talks. On May 4, 2022, the annual event had 10 poster presentations and 14 undergraduate and graduate students presented 13 research projects during the oral presentation session. Students must submit a research abstract for review prior to the Math Day presentations. A panel of VIP judges evaluated the oral presentations to aid in the selection of the presentation winners. The panel consisted of a variety of Tarleton administrators, alumni, and friends.
Each student won a monetary award that is made possible from the Bill & Winnie Wyatt Foundation. Math Day also celebrated other contributions of math students and faculty by presented the following awards:
Kaylee Terrell - Fall 2021 Outstanding Undergraduate Student
It was an exciting day and a great way to end the 2021-2022 school year!
2022 Math Day Celebration
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Elpida Cervantes - Rose Ann Jackson First-Year Teacher Award
•were:First
✦ Research Mentor: Dr. Scott Cook
✦ Research Mentor: Dr. Scott Cook
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COSM Faculty Awarded Piper Professor
Dr. Daniel Marble, Regents Professor
“I tell my students that they need to pursue a career that they are passionate about and pursue excellence in that career. While doing physics is fun, I discovered that my real passion was in the teaching of physics. I was fortunate to have been taught by a nationally recognized physics teacher in college. He spent time with me and cared about my success in and out of the classroom. It was obvious that he enjoyed what he did for a living and was making a difference in the lives of his students. I decided that I wanted to follow his path and switched from going to medical school to pursuing a PhD and a teaching career.”
Dr.profession.Marble
Tarleton State University’s Dr. Daniel Marble has been recognized as a Piper Professor, arguably the most prestigious award for teaching excellence in the state. The award, begun by the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation in 1958, annually honors 10 outstanding full-time teachers. It recognizes educators for academic, scientific and scholarly achievement and for dedication to the teaching
Prior to Tarleton, Dr. Marble was a physics Assistant Professor at the United States Military Academy at West Point and a“Teaching is about sharing, If you are passionate about your profession then you want to share that passion with others.”Dr.DanielMarble
visiting scientist at Materials and Physical Science Directorates of the Army Research Lab.
He earned a bachelor’s in electrical engineering from the University of Houston and both his master’s and PhD degrees in physics and accelerator-based atomic physics from the University of North Texas.
He is the Texas Section Representative for the American Association of Physics Teachers. He earned the Tarleton Community of Scholars Award and the Mary Todd Monroe Distinguished Service Award from the Texas Section of the American Association of Physics Teachers in 2019.
joined the Tarleton faculty in 1998 and has given more than 150 presentations and produced 50 publications in peer-reviewed journals, including Nuclear Instruments and Methods and Physical Review, relating to ion-atom collisions, ion beam characterization of materials, accelerator technology, and science education using accelerators.
He also has been honored with the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal by the U.S. Army, Tarleton College of Science and Technology Faculty Award for Student Success, Tarleton’s inaugural Faculty Excellence in Scholarship Award, and the Jack and Louise Arthur Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. He was named a Texas A&M University System Regents Professor for the 2020-21 academic year.
“Teaching is about sharing,” he said in the award nomination packet. “If you are passionate about your profession then you want to share that passion with others.
A founding member of The Texas A&M University System, Tarleton transforms generations by inspiring discovery, leadership and inclusion through teaching and research. Degree programs for more than 14,000 students in Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Midlothian, at RELLIS Academic Alliance in Bryan, and online emphasize real-world learning that addresses regional needs while sustaining the values of excellence, integrity and respect.
• Sue Carlson Memorial Endowed Scholarship
Scholarship Awards
• Dick Smith Scholarship
• Joe &Teresa Long Scholarship
If you would like to support the College of Science and Mathematics or your favorite academic department; gifts can be made online at: GiveToTheCollegeOfScienceAndMathematics
• Farley Family Scholarship
The College of Science and Mathematics Dean’s Office has recently completed scholarship awards for the 2022-2023 academic year with awards to 111 students pursuing a degree in the College. The students received 120 scholarship awards totaling $337,650 in value. Many of these scholarships are supported by the generous donations of alumni and friends of COSM. The departments in COSM make additional scholarship awards to support students in specific degree programs. All of them make a tremendous impact on the lives of our students and their ability to pursue an advanced degree.
• Robert C & Patricia A Fain Math & Chemistry Teaching Scholarship
• Edwin & Wilba Dorsey Scholarship
• COSM Dean’s Academic Scholarship
• James Mack Foust Endowed Scholarship
• Swan & Gaynelle Richardson Endowed Scholarship
• Spirit of Tarleton Scholarship
• Jimmy J. McCoy Scholarship
• David & Debbie Stanphill Scholarship
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The scholarships include:
COSM
If you have any questions or would like more information about giving to the College of Science and Mathematics or establishing an endowment, please contact the College’s Director of Development, Wayne Davenport at wdavenport@tarleton.edu or call 254-968-1744.
A gift that impacts the entire College can be made by joining the College of Science and Mathematics’ Dean’s Circle, join today at: COSM Dean’s Circle .
• Tarleton Flame Scholarship
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Giving Back
Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Davenport
Mrs. April Brickey
From January 2022 to August 2022, the College of Science and Mathematics benefited from the generous support of many alumni and friends of the College. Gifts like this allow for the support of activities such as student research, conference travel, equipment purchases, student scholarships, and much more. On behalf of the faculty, staff, and students in the College of Science and Mathematics, we would like to recognize these supporters and thank them for helping us improve the quality of the education and provide enhanced academic experiences for the students in our programs!
Mrs. Jami K. Lovelady
Drs. Stan and Linda Carpenter Ms. Antrelle D. Clark
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Mr.XSEDEand Mrs. James E. Young
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0222 1333 W. Stephenville,WashingtonTX76402254.968.9781 tarleton.edu/cosm
