News & Events

Congratulations to our new PhD graduates!

Biology celebrates new PhDs

The following students were awarded their PhD hoods in a ceremony in the George Sherman Union on Friday, May 15.

Valentina Di Santo (Dr. Philip Lobel lab)
Brett DiBenedictis  (Dr. Michael Baum lab)
Nelsa Estrella (Dr. Frank Naya lab)
Lauren Friedman (Dr. John Finnerty lab)
Ysabel Giraldo (Dr. James Traniello lab)
Tristan Lubinski (Dr. John Finnerty lab)
Derek Stefanik (Dr. John Finnerty lab)
Allison TImmons (Dr. Kim McCall lab)
Aryn Wilder (Dr. Michael Sorenson, Dr. Tom Kunz lab)
Kellie Cotter (Dr. Gloria V. Callard lab)
Michelle (Toomey) Olsen (Dr. Horacio Frydman lab)

Liz Burmester receives Outstanding Teaching Fellow in BU Marine Program (BUMP) for 2014/2015

Elizabeth Burmester of the John Finnerty lab was awarded Outstanding Teaching Fellow of the Year for the BU Marine Program, academic year 2014/2015. Burmester's teaching experience was part of the rigorous BU Marine Program semester or "BUMP semester". Her performance in both “Coral Reef Dynamics” and “Tropical Marine Invertebrates” was exemplary. Both of the Marine Semester courses that Liz taught featured a 12 day excursion to Calabash Caye Field Station (CCFS), which is located on a mangrove island, 33 miles off the Belizean coast. This is a well equipped marine field station, but its remote location puts a premium on logistical planning and safety.With respect to logistics, Liz played a substantially large role.

As she has for four consecutive years, Liz served as the de facto logistical coordinator for the BU Marine Program’s Belizean course offerings. She oversaw the planning for student research projects, packing scientific and safety gear, and she took the lead in obtaining relevant collecting permits from the Belizean government.

Liz’s dedication to student learning and safety was reflected in extremely high scores in the student evaluations. Liz’s average score for “Overall Instructor Rating” on the course evaluation forms were 4.83 in BI539, Coral Reef Dynamics and 4.88 in BI569, Tropical Marine Invertebrates, a perfect score being 5.0. The sentiments expressed in the comments section were effusively complimentary of her as a person, as a scientist, and as an instructor. As one student put it, Liz exhibited the “perfect balance of professionalism and friendliness towards students.” An another student stated, “Liz was exquisite[emphasis theirs] in her contributions to the class and her input was always positively constructive. She was always there to help explain concepts, statistics and field experiences. Her knowledge of not just corals, but the entire realm of biology was very evident and was exceptionally beneficial to the entire class. She was fantastic to have as a TF: there could be no better person for the job!"

Kristina Cohen receives Outstanding Teaching Fellow for Biology, 2014/2015

Kristina Cohen of the Karen Warkentin lab was awarded Outstanding Teaching Fellow of the Year for Biology, academic year 2014/2015. Cohen was nominated by 3 professors in Biology for her outstanding contributions to all areas of teaching in the Department of Biology over the last five years. Kristina entered BU with both formal training in pedagogy, as a certified teacher, and substantial practical experience as a middle and high school science teacher. Her teaching strategies and skills, and her daily interactions with students, clearly reflect a depth and breadth of knowledge about pedagogy, and a well-developed ability to function effectively in the classroom.

Over the last five years, she has taught in courses as diverse as Evolution, Vertebrate Zoology and Herpetology.

Kristina’s dedication to and enthusiasm for teaching is clear, not only in the classroom but in all aspects of modern university teaching. Outside of the classroom, Kristina has been instrumental in the inclusion of a Research Experience for Teachers (RET) component in one of Professor Warkentin’s funded NSF projects, and leveraging the RET for greater impact via collaborative development of resources for high school science teaching. She has also been superb in the mentoring of many undergraduates in Prof. Warkentin’s lab at BU and in the field in Panama, helping them with UROP applications, research, conference presentations and their personal growth and development. Professor Warkentin writes “Her skill, effort, dedication, and performance as a teacher, and her vision for improving pedagogy more broadly have been clear throughout her time at BU”.

Grad students awarded Warren-McLeod Fellowships

Congratulations to the following graduate students who were awarded Warren-McLeod Fellowships this year.

Full year fellowship:
Daphne Schatzberg / mentored by Cyndi Bradham

Summer fellowships:
Katelyn Mansfield / mentored by Tom Gilmore
Rebecca Branconi / mentored by  Peter Buston
Kathryn Lesneski / mentored by Les Kaufman & John Finnerty
Elizabeth Burmester / mentored by John Finnerty & Les Kaufman
William Kearney / mentored by Sergio Fagherazzi
Timothy Maguire / mentored by Wally Fulweiler

Special thanks to the selection committee, which consisted of Mike Sorenson, Suchi Gopal, and Nathan Stewart. They reviewed the twelve applications, evaluated the student talks given by the four candidates for the 12-month award, and conducted careful deliberations to identify the winners.

Special thanks also to all of the students who applied. The quality of the applications was excellent, and the Warren-McLeod Fellowship Symposium was a well attended event that featured four excellent student talks.

Tracing Our Roots

Rose Abramoff, a BU biology doctoral student, digs deep underground to learn more about the air that we breathe overhead. Read more at the BU Research article, "Tracing Our Roots".