Monday, August 27, 2007
Student scholars submerge selves in summer studies
In-depth stories about several of these projects:
Maple Scholars is an eight-week program that allows students to participate in independent research alongside Goshen College faculty of various disciplines. Each scholar is paired with a faculty member who serves as both colleague and supervisor.
The 2007 Maple Scholars:
Janie Beck (Jr., Archbold, Ohio), a Bible and religion
major, worked on a project titled “The Axes of the Cross are
Love and Justice: The Religious and Political Thought of Reinhold
Niebuhr and Martin Luther King, Jr.” with Visiting Assistant
Professor of Religion Malinda Berry. Beck researched the theories
of Niebuhr and King and assisted Berry with her dissertation on
the same topic as well as preparation for the classes she will be
teaching this coming year.
Elizabeth Buschert (Sr., Goshen) and Rachel
Versluis (Soph., Ann Arbor, Mich.), both environmental science
majors, spent the summer at Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center
of Goshen College monitoring grassland birds in prairie systems of
varying age while studying the efficiency of a constructed wetland
for wastewater treatment with Merry Lea Volunteer Coordinator Lisa
Zinn.
Sami Fulton (Jr., Shreve, Ohio), a molecular biology and
chemistry double major, ran tests on an enzyme and worked with
Professor of Chemistry Doug Schirch. She gathered data about
differences from a mutant form of the enzyme to the regular form in
order to possibly determine its structure. The ramifications could
potentially affect research on cancer chemotherapy and vitamin B6
deficient diseases.
Anita Hooley (2007 graduate, Canton, Ohio), an English
major, created an anthology of contemporary Mennonite creative
writing with Professor of English Ann Hostetler. Along with
collecting and reviewing new work from established Mennonite
writers, she contacted newly discovered writers to gather their
work. Another part of her work was to update and edit a Web site
Hostetler started on Mennonite poets.
Luke Kreider (Sr., Harrisonburg, Va.), a peace, justice
and conflict studies and Bible and religion double major, and
Kayla Kauffman (2007 graduate, Middlebury, Ind.) a Bible and
religion major, spent their summers working on “The
Vengeance, Vindication and Justice Project” with Professor of
Bible and Religion Paul Keim and Associate Professor of Peace,
Justice and Conflict Studies Joe Liechty. In part, they hoped to
gain a broader knowledge of revenge, conflict and violence
“so that we might eventually know better how to advocate
alternatives in ways that make sense or are appealing to an
audience who may not share our convictions about
nonviolence,” Kreider said.
Aaron Leichty (Sr., Mount Pleasant, Iowa), a molecular
biology major, researched color genetics in domestic pigeons with
Dan Smith, professor of chemistry. They studied one gene known to
be partially responsible for coloring in Rock Pigeons. “In
the long term, we hope to expand beyond a single gene to multiple
genes in order to acquire a more complete picture of the genetics
controlling color,” Leichty said.
Anna Mast (Sr., Scottdale, Pa.), an art major, spent her
summer on a jewelry-enameling project with Associate Professor of
Art Judy Wenig-Horswell. She tried various techniques including
Cloisonné, Plique-à-jour and Champlevé, and
researching which processes are preferable. The goal was to
determine which enamels will work best for the jewelry class
Wenig-Horswell will teach in the academic year.
Jonathan Nafziger (Jr., Goshen), a physics and art double
major spent the summer on a research project concerning handbell
resonators with Professor of Physics John Buschert. With audio and
visual recording equipment, Nafziger was able to measure the
frequencies of handbell vibrations as they correlate to places on
the bell where the clapper hits. He also spent part of his time
building an anechoic chamber where sound can be measured as it
comes off of the bells.
Paul Shetler (Jr., Goshen), a history major, researched
the history of Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Vietnam with
Professor of Economics Del Good. He researched in the Archives of
the Mennonite Church (located on campus) and conducting oral
interviews. Shetler said, “I hope that this story of MCC in
Vietnam can serve as a model for the development community about
how best to work across cultural, ideological and political lines
successfully.”
Jesse Shirk-Byler (Jr., Goshen), a psychology and
mathematics double major, worked with David Housman, professor of
mathematics and computer science, to research fair allocation. This
deals with dividing a set of goods among two or more people. One
part of this was to create algorithms that satisfy chosen ideas of
fairness.
Kathy Steiner (Soph., Geneva, Ind.) a physics major,
researched the effect of membrane microstructures on ion channel
dynamics with Professor of Physics Carl Helrich and Assistant
Professor of Physics at Bethel College (Mishawaka, Ind.) Erwin
Scipto. Steiner studied the flow of electric current through
channels made in artificial membranes she builds when an antibiotic
called nystatin interacts with them.
Claire Swora (2007 graduate, Shoreview, Minn.), an
English major, and Ben Jacobs (Jr., Goshen), an English and
Bible and religion double major, worked on Assistant Professor of
English Bobby Meyer-Lee’s research project called,
“Individuation: Masculinity and Authorial Identity in
Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.” Swora
studied the theory of closure and, in particular, how it relates to
one of the Canterbury Tales, “The Merchant’s
Tale.” Jacobs surveyed the critical work surrounding
“The Franklin's Tale,” focusing on how the tale and its
teller reflect the class and social structure of late medieval
Britain.
Jonathan Yoder (2007 graduate, Manheim, Pa.), a molecular
biology major, spent the summer researching under Stan Grove,
professor of biology, as part of a new collaboration between Goshen
College and the Center for Cancer Care at Goshen General Hospital.
Yoder examined tissue taken from cancer patients at the hospital
and compared the samples to help determine the radius of damage
from a new radiation treatment they have been given. This will aid
the research of Dr. Seza Gulec, a surgical oncologist who hopes to
find out the effectiveness of this new treatment for liver
cancer.
Matthew Yoder (Jr., Lancaster, Pa.), a communication
major, assisted Assistant Professor of English Kyle Schlabach in
creating a Web-based center for Mennonite literary study at Goshen
College. The site will eventually be a resource to scholars,
writers and the general public.
Professor of Physics Carl Helrich, who has been heading Maple Scholars since it began in 1998, said of the current program, “It is unusual for a small liberal arts college to commit this level of support to an in-house [research] program like this.” Goshen ranks in the top 17 percent of U.S. colleges for graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees
Maple Scholars provides excellent experience for students interested in graduate school, with opportunities for specific, in depth research and potential. “I believe this program, which is growing and changing, represents the best of the undergraduate experience in the arts, humanities and the sciences,” Helrich said.
– by Kelli Yoder
Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.
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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.