Misericordia
Misericordia University, Dallas, Luzerne County, recently sponsored the annual Student Research Poster Presentation Day in Sandy and Marlene Insalaco Hall on campus.
Nora Chan, Auburn, a senior medical imaging student, presented her research, “Closure of Atrial and Ventricular Septal Defects,” a study that assessed the benefits of using transcatheter closure for septal defects, more commonly known as a hole in the heart. Echocardiography, including ultrasound and X-ray, is used during the process.
Chan concluded transcatheter closures provide patients with a safe alternative that is less invasive than surgical closure, with less discomfort, and shorter hospital stays required.
The presentations were the culmination of research and work on a variety of topics by more than 180 students in the Colleges of Health Sciences, Arts and Sciences, and Professional Studies and Social Sciences.
Allison McIntyre, Ashland, was recently presented with the Mercy Charism Award at the 33rd Annual Leadership Awards Dinner in Sandy and Marlene Insalaco Hall at Misericordia University.
The award is presented in recognition of student leadership that represents the core values — mercy, service, justice and hospitality – of the Religious Sisters of Mercy, the founders of Misericordia.
Zachary Sabaday, Saint Clair, was presented with the Kitty Rooney ’50 Memorial Award for Outstanding Service.
The annual award is presented to a Misericordia University student who has been an asset to both the campus and regional communities by offering their service while enrolled at Misericordia.
Penn State
Gerardo “Jerry” Talamantes Jr., Saint Clair, a mechanical engineering major and Zachary Adams, Frackville, a political science and international affairs major at the Capital College Honors Program at Penn State University Harrisburg Campus, did a spring break service trip to Peru.
The trip included a rain forest expedition to the Ecotourism Lodge Posada Amazonas, where they studied the various species of Amazonian trees, specifically the Ceiba, one of the world’s largest trees. They explored the oxbow lake, Chimbados, to collect data on the river otters in support of the Frankfort Zoological Society Project.
In Puerto Maldonado, as part of a joint educational and environmental project, they worked alongside local students at the mouth of the Amazon Rainforest at the site where the new Transoceanic Highway passes through the region. Using their academic disciplines they provided data to the National Geographic database in an effort to enhance the project with new technologies.
As part of a cross-cultural skills training they visited a local community in Centro Nape and Ese’Eja to study the daily life of a small Amazon town and toured the local Macaw Project. Their service learning projects included the development of a new source of power generation for the local ecotourism lodge and the implementation of new policies regarding microfinance loans to stimulate the ecotourism industry to further the preservation of the rainforest.
To refine and test their service learning project they spent a day with key professors and students from Pontifical Catholic University of Peru in Lima. The project was a unique opportunity to engage with experts within the culturally and ecologically diverse Peru.
Gerardo is a son of Diane Bender and Gerardo Talamantes Sr., Saint Clair.
Zackary is a son of Dr. Richard and Michelle Adams, Frackville.
Wilkes
Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, and the Keystone Northeast Chapter of the Pennsylvania Society for Professional Engineers conducted the Order of the Engineer ceremony, inducting 55 Wilkes senior engineering majors into the order April 3.
Area students who were among those inducted include Cyril Shickora, McAdoo, Jacob Rakowsky, Frackville, and Zachary Sullivan, Pottsville.
Univ. of Sciences
Leah Evert, Orwigsburg, a doctor of pharmacy student at University of the Sciences, Philadelphia, was inducted into the Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, a national honor society for first-year students.
Elizabethtown
Holly Sofka, Barnesville, was inducted into the Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society at Elizabethtown College.
Tyler Butkus, Barnesville, earned an Analytical Chemistry Award, Inorganic Chemistry Award and is a Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society Inductee in 2015.
Saint Joseph’s
Brianna Amos, Pottsville, a biology major, and Rachel Troxell, Pine Grove, a chemistry major at Saint Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, were inducted into the national liberal arts and sciences honor society, Phi Beta Kappa, during the spring semester.
Brianna will also participate in the summer scholars program at Saint Joseph’s.
She will work on a project titled, “Investigating the Expression of TERRA molecules in RNA:DNA hybrid structure in tlc 1 npl3 double mutants and tlc1 single mutants..”
The program, which runs from May until August, requires students to work exclusively with a faculty member to produce a written description of their research that will be published by the university, and to present their findings next spring during the Celebration of Student Achievement event.
Lycoming
Coral Chiaretti, Ashland, a junior mathematics major at Lycoming College, Williamsport, was one of the founding members inducted into the Omicron Delta Kappa honor society that was installed at Lycoming earlier this spring.
Tara Singer, Ph.D., the executive director for the national society, inducted the students and presented President Kent C. Trachte with the college’s charter.