Despite the pandemic it’s been an exciting and eventful year for the lab!
TEACHING:
While I had to substantially modify my course materials for online instruction, it did provide an opportunity to critically evaluate many of my assignments and approaches to teaching. I’m certainly looking forward to being back in the classroom this fall, but I can say that my courses have been improved as a result of the reflection that online teaching necessitated.
This summer I did have the opportunity to teach two courses at the Chincoteague Bay Field Station in Virginia. It was great to be teaching in person again, and to teach field courses!
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS:
Haley Beck (2021) and Leilani Smith (2022) both presented at the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Biologists (CPUB) meeting held remotely on April 10, 2021. Leilani was awarded 2nd place best student mini-presentation in her session for her presentation.
Haley Beck (2021), Leilani Smith (2022), and Trinity Young (2022) each presented at the Made In Millersville meeting held remotely on April 13th, 2021.
Haley Beck (2021) and Briana Harkins (2021) graduated!
Trinity Young (2022) was awarded a Mentored Undergraduate Summer Experience (MUSE) grant to support the research she has carried out this summer on social network structure in a captive population of African Painted Dogs, Lycaon pictus in collaboration with The Wilds in Cumberland, OH.
Leilani Smith (2022) was awarded a Student Grant for Research and Creative Activity (SGRCA) to support her honors thesis project focused on how endocrine disrupting pollutants influence social behavior in eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki.
OTHER EXCITING RESEARCH NEWS:
I was awarded a Faculty Professional Development Council (FDPC) award by PASSHE to support future student-led research on the impacts of endocrine-disrupting pollutants on social, reproductive, and antipredator behavior.
I was awarded the Robertson Junior Faculty Instructorship Award from Millersville University which will provide me release time from teaching during spring semester 2022 to focus on research activities taking place in the lab.
Several manuscripts associated with ongoing projects have been submitted for peer-review. Culbert et al. (2021) was accepted for publication in the journal Hormones and Behavior.
The Ligocki Lab 