“With upgraded equipment, EMU will provide richer, practical laboratory, research, and project-based experiences to prepare students for lucrative careers in STEM fields and nursing,” states a grant application submitted by Dr. Tara Kishbaugh, dean of faculty and student success for EMU.

The grant request also includes a “small salary allocation to support the procurement, calibration, and installation of equipment” and to train faculty and students on its use.

It further states that the upgraded equipment would provide a significant educational opportunity for current students, attract faculty and students to EMU, and enhance contributions to STEM and health care fields through research, publication, consultation with local businesses, and a better-prepared workforce in Virginia.

“This project would amplify the impact of our current NSF STEM scholarship program, which increases postsecondary education access for academically talented, Pell-eligible students,” the request states.

The “EMU grows STEM” project is among a list of community priorities highlighted in the Fiscal Year 2026 federal spending bill, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., announced in a news release in February.

For a full list of projects in the Shenandoah Valley and Highlands regions of Virginia funded through the FY26 spending bill, .

About EMU

EMU is a fully accredited university known for its outstanding STEM and health program preparation. Over 90% of job-seeking graduates of EMU find employment quickly, with many in nursing and STEM employed before graduation. EMU is a Forbes Best Return on Investment University and is one of the best colleges in the regional South (U.S. News & World Report). EMU STEM students gain practical and technical skills through project-based experiences and social networks through mentorship from faculty and supportive learning communities. 

“I’ve always been conscious of how much money I’m spending,” he said. “I don’t want to have tons of debt I’ll have to pay back later, especially at high interest rates.”

And so for Vasquez, who works a part-time job at The Home Depot, financial aid from the Montgomery GI Bill, the Virginia Tuition Grant (VTAG), and a new National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM Scholarship has been a godsend in covering the full cost of his college education.

“Without the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, I would’ve struggled financially,” he said. “The scholarship really takes the pressure off my shoulders, because now I won’t have that debt looming over my head.”

Born and raised in Harrisonburg, Vasquez graduated from high school in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and attended Blue Ridge Community College while enlisting in the military. After completing recruit training, taking time to reassess his academic goals, and changing majors from business to computer science, he transferred to EMU last fall.Ěý

He is among an initial cohort of EMU students receiving the NSF S-STEM Scholarship, which provides:

• Up to $15,000 in unmet financial need annually for the length of the degree
• A paid one-week Bridge to College program
• A STEM mentorship program
• An eight-week paid internship
• Free conference attendance
• Forest restoration opportunities in Park Woods (EMU’s on-campus woodland)

The scholarship is open to high-achieving, income-eligible students who are majoring in Biochemistry, Biology, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Math, or Psychology (research/STEM track).

Applications for the S-STEM Scholarship
are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026.

For more information, visit .

‘A welcoming community’

Forming friendships at a new school can have its challenges.

Along with other initiatives provided by the scholarship, a Bridge to College program helps new EMU students adjust to life on campus by moving them in a week early, introducing them to STEM faculty and staff members, and engaging them in activities to build camaraderie and form connections with one another. Students participating in the weeklong program receive a generous stipend for their time.

Ani Koontz, a first-year biology and secondary education double major from Newton, Kansas, is a recipient of the S-STEM Scholarship. She recalled traveling to Shenandoah National Park with students and faculty the week before classes, surveying salamanders and hiking trails, before bicycling around Downtown Harrisonburg on a tour led by city officials.

“That first week showed me how friendly and approachable my professors are,” she said. “They’ve done a great job creating a welcoming community.”

Another S-STEM Scholarship recipient, Mara Carlson, is a first-year psychology major from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. “Many of us have become close friends,” she said. “I’ll see the other scholarship recipients around campus and we’ll say hello to each other.”

Through the scholarship, each student is paired with an academic advisor specific to their major, who can answer questions and help guide them forward. Carlson said she meets with Kathryn Howard-Ligas, assistant professor of psychology at EMU. “We discussed a four-year plan, and I was really grateful for that,” she said. Part of that plan includes gaining invaluable experience through internships and conferences, additional perks of the S-STEM Scholarship.

Carlson said she already knew she wanted to attend EMU, and that receiving the S-STEM Scholarship was “a nice surprise.”

For the Kansas-born Koontz, EMU had always been on her radar, but she also considered attending in-state schools that normally would’ve been cheaper. When she learned she had been offered the S-STEM Scholarship and that it would lower her college costs to “a very affordable amount,” her choice to attend EMU became an easy one.

“It’s 100% the reason I came,” she said. “When I got that, it meant I could completely afford to go here, and it honestly made EMU more affordable than any other college in my area. It’s my joy to share how grateful I am because this is truly just an amazing thing that EMU has.”

The grant, awarded through the NSF’s , will fund up to $15,000 annually for each scholarship recipient throughout the length of their degree. Overall, the S-STEM Scholarship will fund a quality undergraduate education for 23 EMU students among three cohorts over the next six years, beginning with first-year students entering the Fall 2025 semester.

The scholarship is open to academically talented students with financial need who are majoring in the following fields: Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Engineering, Environmental Science, Math, and Psychology (research/STEM track).

Applicants for the S-STEM Scholarship must submit their application and reference forms by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025. For more information about the program and how to apply, visit: emu.edu/stem/scholarship

In addition to scholarships, the program offers students a paid one-week Bridge to College experience, where they can meet professors, learn material from their discipline, acquire study skills, and become better prepared for college.

EMU Biology Professor Dr. Kristopher Schmidt said that some first-year students can struggle to adjust to life on campus, and that the grant aims to ease that adjustment.

“We want to create a sense of belonging,” said Schmidt, who is principal investigator for the grant program.

The program also provides funding for embedded tutoring services and paid tutoring opportunities for students, specialized advising, and guidance from professional STEM mentors.

“This would be a person outside the university in their field of interest who can encourage them, help them, and connect with them along their four-year program,” Schmidt said about the mentors. 

The S-STEM Scholarship program offers innovative opportunities for place-based learning and funding for an eight-week paid internship. Students can use grant-funded resources to conduct research on forest restoration in the Park Woods space, which serves as a key learning lab for STEM students.

This latest grant builds on the success of a similar STEM grant that wrapped up in 2023.

By leveraging grants like these, EMU lives into its mission and vision, outlined in its 2023-28 strategic plan Pathways of Promise of opening new pathways of access and achievement, and can help the NSF achieve its goal of diversifying the STEM workforce.

“We were thrilled to receive this,” Schmidt said. “We’re excited and grateful the NSF has chosen to invest in our students at EMU.”

Faculty members Kristopher Schmidt, Jim Yoder, Daniel Showalter, Stefano Colafranceschi and Dean Tara Kishbaugh wrote the S-STEM grant proposal.

Johnson shared insights from her research on kidney disease using zebrafish at Notre Dame this past summer as well as her personal journey of falling in love with research. After an EMU professor asked her to present research from an EMU organic chemistry lab at UVA’s Chemical Society meeting, Johnson realized that she loved sharing her work with others. 

Johnson adheres to the personal motto “just keep swimming” from the movie Finding Nemo to guide her career choices. Her professors also highly influenced her journey into research through their constant encouragement and by providing opportunities including a trip to Australia to research fruit flies. “They have taught me to dream big and go for things I never would have expected myself to do,” she said.

Between nursing school and finishing her debut novel “Heartache on the Play Stage,” Mellinger was used to putting herself last. After a series of hardships while trying to become a licensed nurse post-graduation, she shared her realization of needing to prioritize herself.

“Trying to pour from an empty cup isn’t going to work,” she cautioned, detailing the ways in which she has begun to practice self-care, from sleep hygiene to exercise to choosing more nutritious foods. “Self care is not optional. It is essential for a healthy lifestyle,” she said.

Mark Sawin is a name known to many on campus, but his work is not limited to the classroom. Sawin spoke about his recent research and efforts to preserve Mrs. Isa Mae (Banks) Francis’ Green Book house where traveling Black folks stayed when hotels turned them away. Listed in the Green Book from 1953-1961, the house sits at 252 N. Mason Street. It is the last remaining Green Book house in Harrisonburg and was kept in its original state by siblings Henry and Lois Rouser, descendants of Mrs. Isa Mae (Banks) Francis.

William Reed, father of EMU’s own Mayor Deanna Reed, inherited the property from Lois Rouser in 2022. The Reeds called in experts, including Sawin, with the hope of further honoring the house’s legacy. Sawin has been researching the property and the family’s history because he says “being a historian is honoring people by telling their story.”

Tara Kishbaugh, chemistry professor and dean of the School of School of Sciences, Engineering, Art and Nursing—along with math professor Owen Byer, engineering professor Esther Tian and biology professor Jim Yoder—modeled the program off of one in the engineering program at Ohio State University. The four leveraged personal connections and LinkedIn to find mentors.

“It’s a mutually beneficial relationship that gives students a safe space to practice their networking skills, learn to ask good questions and listen well, hear professional perspectives, and develop long-term mentoring relationships,” said Kishbaugh. “It also gives mentors the opportunity to impart their skills and knowledge for students’ personal and professional growth.”

Luke Wheeler is a mechanical engineering major from Hudson, Michigan, whose mentor is Ashley Driver, president and owner of AD Engineering LLC based out of Timberville, Virginia. Wheeler is working part-time for Kawneer in Harrisonburg while finishing up his classes and will begin as an associate process engineer with Merck in Elton, Virginia, after graduation. Wheeler says it has been nice to have a resource to reach out to for advice and that he sees the STEM Mentorship Program as a gateway for internships and jobs for students in the years to come.

Ethan Spicher is a mechanical engineering major from Colorado Springs, Colorado, whose mentor is Gil Colman, civil engineer, owner and principal at Colman Engineering, PLC in Harrisonburg. Spicher says he and Colman have talked at length about his resume, engineering projects, and what it’s like to own a firm. Upon graduating, Spicher will work for JZ Engineering, a structural engineering company based in Harrisonburg.

Ben Bontrager-Singer is a mechanical engineering major from Goshen, Indiana, whose mentor is Kevin Nufer, an aerospace structural engineer at Leidos in Manassas, Virginia. Bontrager-Singer says Nufer looked at this resume and helped him to prepare for his job interview with Seattle-based Blue Origin, where Bontrager-Singer landed a job as a propulsion engineer starting after graduation. “It’s valuable to provide connections between students and the workforce and also a good opportunity for engineers to see what education looks like these days,” said Bontrager-Singer.

Interested in participating as an EMU student or community-based mentor in the STEM Mentorship Program? Email Tara Kishbaugh at tara.kishbaugh@emu.edu.

Read more about Bontrager-Singer’s internship at Tesla and all three seniors’ work with Engineers in Action.

Whether collaborating with graduate students in a university medical center’s research lab or shadowing doctors in hospitals in Peru, several ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř undergraduate students heading into careers in medicine and the health sciences came away from summer 2022 with memorable experiences and insights into their future.

Aden Weybright spent nine weeks at Baylor University working in a lab through the Baylor College of Medicine’s undergraduate research SMART program. He applied to about 20 programs offering similar opportunities and was accepted to five. Baylor’s program matched his research interests. He hopes to return there after graduation to a lab environment and then pursue a career in surgical oncology.

Cindi Boyer and Belen Hernandez Rosario, with several EMU s, traveled to Peru with Professor Kristopher Schmidt. They were recipients of CT Assist’s annual Experiential Learning Grant for students in EMU’s pre-professional health sciences program. Boyer hopes to become a physician’s assistant. Rosario is considering earning an MS in biomedicine before moving on to medical school and a specialty in cardiology.

Learn more about studying pre-professional health sciences at EMU.

Read on as they share more about their experiences.

‘Hands-on experience’ and ‘valuable advice’ 

Aden Weybright: I worked in the lab of Dr. Joshua Wythe in the Department of Integrative Physiology, specifically investigating the blood vessels that feed specific brain tumors and developing treatments that would target these blood vessels. I worked with a team of graduate students and laboratory technicians on mice models to determine how the blood vessels feeding these brain tumors could be treated resulting in a more specific and targeted treatment for these devastating tumors.

This summer experience was extremely valuable in providing more hands-on experience in medical research. I also met many other students also considering academic medicine with amazing stories about how they had become interested in science and medicine. Being able to talk to other people, especially graduate and medical students, was insightful and helped me to confirm that this was a community I want to be a part of. They all were very friendly and offered valuable advice about what things I should be considering if I want to start a career in academic medicine.

In Peru

Boyer and Rosario spent five weeks in Peru. While living with host families in the capital city of Lima, they went each day to Hospital Nacional Docente Madre y Nino San Bartolome to shadow two different pediatric surgeons.

With a group of EMU biomedicine graduate students, they attended seminars on Peruvian history, culture, and the healthcare system.

Rosario also spent a week with two graduate students in the rural town of Cieneguilla, working seven-hour days providing physical exams for about 150 residents, including seniors and children from three nearby orphanages.Ěý

“There are almost no healthcare facilities in this area,” Rosario said, “ so the population had none to little access to annual check-ups and providers. We provided a quick physical exam which included blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen, temperature, height, weight, glucose, covid test if needed, and one of the grad students provided free dental cleanings.”

Boyer found the opportunity to compare healthcare systems and explore cultural differences “invaluable” to her future plans.

Rosario said she gained important skills and was inspired by the “passion, determination, and humility of all of the providers I met. “The experience made me even more sure that I want to go into medicine.”

The group included six students from area universities: two from ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř, three from Bridgewater College, and one from James Madison University.

EMU students Anika Hurst and Laura Craft, now back on campus to continue their chemistry and environmental science studies, both said their individual teaching and research experiences helped to confirm where they’re headed next. Hurst hopes to do more field research, while Craft was energized by adapting her water health research learnings to lesson plans for Aboriginal learners from ages 8-18. Nicole Miller ‘21, a graduate of EMU’s chemistry program, is considering graduate school.

EMU chemistry professor Matthew Siderhurst is the principal investigator for the initiative, which is titled “Tephritid fruit fly Multidisciplinary Australian Research Collaboration for Biosecurity,” or T-MARC-BIO for short.

Siderhurst has led insect tracking and field trapping studies stateside, in Hawaii and the Pacific region for many years.  

The grant is part of the NSF’s International Research Experiences for Students program, designed to give US students multidisciplinary research experience in Australia that will advance basic science and address internationally significant challenges in biosecurity and global food supply chains. The program also aims to foster life-changing learning by enhancing interpersonal skills, empathy, and global awareness that come from living and working outside the US.  

A total of six students were funded by the initiative; in addition, a recent EMU graduate was supported by independent research funding. EMU biology professor Jim Yoder, who has led multiple to the Pacific region, traveled with the group to connect them with Australian scientists.Ěý

Four students were hosted by Macquarie University in Sydney, split between two labs with different foci of chemistry education, mentored by Dr. Joanne Jamie, and blowfly research, mentored by Dr. Soo Jean Park; those students were Craft, Mary Shifflett and Emily Schloss from Bridgewater College, and Jacqueline Kossey, from James Madison University.

Three others were based at Queensland’s Department of Agriculture and Fisheries headquarters in Mareeba and mentored by Stefano De Faveri and Jodie Cheesman. Their research was in tracking fruit flies with harmonic radar.

“I spent a lot of time out in the papaya field, tracking the Queensland fruit fly using a RECCO unit and flagging tape,” Hurst said, of her teamwork with Allison O’Brien, a Bridgewater College student, and Nicole Miller, a 2022 EMU graduate. 

Tephritid fruit flies are “among the most damaging horticultural insect pests worldwide, constituting pest management issues, trade barriers, and invasion threats for Australia, the U.S., and throughout the tropics and subtropics,” according to T-MARC-BIO documents. 

The student research is aimed at bolstering strategies for monitoring and controlling the invasive fruit fly species in ways that will reduce the negative impacts of pesticide use. 

Having been delayed twice by COVID travel restrictions, Siderhurst was excited to see a first cohort of students begin their travel and research. 

Two further cohorts of American students will be heading to Australia in 2023 and 2024.

This semester’s Suter Science Seminar lineup at ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř include professionals working in disease ecology, behavioral health and crisis services, animal health, and biology.

The events will be held in Swartzendruber Hall of the Suter Science Center, and will be livestreamed for the off-campus community on the . [You do not need to be a member of Facebook to view the livestream.]

Wednesday, Sept. 14, 4 p.m. “Emerging Vector-borne Disease in the Commonwealth” with Dr. Gillian Eastwood, assistant professor of vector-borne disease ecology in the Department of Entomology at Virginia Tech.

Saturday, Oct. 8, 10 a.m. “Building-up the Behavioral Health System in a Time of Crisis: Opportunities and Challenges” with Dr. Rolando L. Santiago, chief of behavioral health and crisis services for the Department of Health and Human Services in Montgomery County, Maryland.

Wednesday, Nov. 9, 4 p.m. “Count Up: My Reflections on Science, Industry, and Life…” with Raul E. Diaz Lugo, global quality lead for Merck, Animal Health North America.

Wednesday, Nov. 30, 4 p.m. “Characterization of Sensory Driven Intrinsic Iris Constriction in Mammals” Dr. Marquis Walker, assistant professor of biology at James Madison University.

The lectures are made possible by the sponsorship of the Daniel B. Suter Endowment in Biology and the co-sponsorship of supporting programs. 

Named in honor of long-time EMU biology professor, Daniel B. Suter (1920-2006), the Endowment in Biology was established in 1986 through the generous donations of alumni and friends and currently consists of over $1 million of invested funds. EMU hopes to double the Suter Endowment in order to more adequately support distinguished faculty and to increase scholarship aid to deserving students.

More than 100 ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř students were recognized for accomplishments and achievements during the 2021-22 academic year during a special recognition ceremony Tuesday.

Academics

Academic Success Center

Seniors who worked as tutors were recognized: Rodrigo Barahona, Jonas Beachy, Ben Bontrager-Singer, Garrett Cash, Tarynn Clark, Erin Clayton, Elizabeth Eby, Ike Esh, Ben Greenleaf, Mary Harnish, Tasia Hoover, Caleb Hostetler, Brenda Kasongo, Nicole Miller, Sara Beth Mumbauer, Jake Myers, Andrea Troyer, Laura Troyer, Jason Wong, Eli Wright, Teo Yoder, Janessa Zimmerman, and Verda Zook.

Bible and Religion

The annual Haverim* writing awards are given to students whose essays demonstrate robust scholarship related in one way or another to biblical studies, religion, philosophy, and/or Anabaptist/Mennonite thought and practice. Cash awards of $300, $200, and $100 for first, second and third place, respectively, come with the prize. 

• First place: Elizabeth Eby for “”Beyond Cancel Culture: Uniting around Difference in the Book of Acts,” highlighting how the “cancel culture” phenomenon can too often cause precisely the exclusion that it seeks to address and articulating how the Apostolic Decree encouraged radical inclusion while still challenging and de-centering the voices that perpetuate injustice.

• Second place: Isaac Alderfer for his exploration of the industrialization of food production and his argument that a turn toward agroecology could offer a form of food production that pays attention to both social and environmental justice.
• Third place: Jake Myers for his history of monasticism in Ireland and effects on surrounding communities.

*Haverim, the Hebrew word for friends, is a group of Bible, religion, and theology and seminary alumni which supports EMU and EMS.

Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Sustainability

• Nicole Miller: Outstanding Senior Chemistry Student
• Faith Manickam: Outstanding Senior Biology Student
• Isaac Alderfer and Jacob Myers: Outstanding Environmental Sustainability Student
• Evan Kauffman and Meredith Lehman: Outstanding First-Year Chemistry Student Award
• Megan Miller and Isaac Spicher: Outstanding Second-Year Biology Student Awards
• Jessie Landis: Award for Excellence in Research, 
• Andrew Troyer: Award for Exceptional Service.

Business and Leadership

• Rodrigo Barahona: Outstanding Economics Senior
• Alcinda Brubaker: Exceptional Service Award
• Max Driver: Outstanding Business Administration SeniorĚý
• Max Driver: Outstanding Research Award
• Jaylon Lee: Outstanding Recreation and Sports Management Senior
• Isaac Longacher: Outstanding Marketing Senior
• Verda Zook: Outstanding Accounting Senior.

Center for Justice and Peacebuilding

Graduate student Conner Suddick was selected for recognition for “exceptionally artful and inclusive leadership,” according to his advisor Katie Mansfield, lead trainer with the Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience. “Conner, thank you for imagining an inclusive experience for every body at EMU and working creatively to address historical and present wounds and weave a more loving future that includes queer bodies, engaging research, writing, participatory arts-based research and circle processes.”

Education

Five education students were named as 2022 Teachers of Promise, among 100 of the best and brightest pre-service teachers in Virginia:Ěý

• Mary Harnish, from Lancaster, Pa.; Elementary Education, PreK-6 & Special Education
• Hannah Leaman, from Bakersfield, Ca.; Mathematics, Secondary Education, 6-12
• Rachel Lute, from New Market, Va.; Early Elementary Education, PreK-3
• Bethany Shultz, from Harrisonburg, Va.; Elementary Education, PreK-6 
• Anna Smith, from Edinburg, Va.;  Elementary Education, PreK-6.

Gage Riddick was selected by department faculty for the annual Courage to Teach Award, modeled after principles in Parker Palmer’s book of the same name. Department faculty selected Gage for his  dedication and success in teaching, her genuine caring for students, reflective practice, highly principled behaviors, and her courage to navigate challenging experiences. He was presented with a copy of Palmer’s book.

EMU faculty selected Skylar Hedgepeth for the Virginia Woman’s Scholar Award from the Virginia State Organization of Delta Kappa Gamma Society International. The award is for an outstanding graduate with the promise of being a key woman educator.

Language and Literature

The following students earned awards and scholarships, many of which are in memory of valued professors who provided powerful examples of mentorship, scholarship and teaching.

• Sarah Bascom is the winner of the Carroll Yoder Award for Teaching Excellence, which honors an EMU senior or junior who has demonstrated academic excellence in both literary studies and education courses and has shown a clear call to the teaching profession.Ěý
• Claire Whetzel earned the Ray Elvin Horst Award for excellence in Spanish.Ěý
• Jessamine Domingo earned the Ervie L. Glick Award for excellence in world language study.
• Claire Whetzel is awarded the Omar Eby Writing Award. This award is presented to a senior majoring or minoring in writing studies who demonstrates excellence in the craft of creative writing and who provides insightful critique and support for other writers in creative workshops.
• Neo Carter was awarded the Omar and Anna Kathryn Eby Scholarship.
• Sarah Bascom and Tiffany Carey were awarded the Hubert R. and Mildred Pellman Scholarship.
• Karla Hostetter was awarded the Leroy Pellman/Elizabeth Lauver Scholarship.
• Jessica Chisolm and Joseph Whetzel were awarded the Esther Eby Glass Scholarship.
• Hannah Landis, Maria Menjivar, and Lucy Unzicker were awarded the Ernest G. Gehman Scholarship.Ěý

Mathematics, Engineering and Computer Science

• Jonas Beachy and Laura Troyer: Outstanding Seniors in Engineering Award, awarded by the faculty as the highest honor for the graduate/s demonstrating academic excellence, service, and contributions to community and culture at EMU.
• Ike Esh and Hannah Leaman: Outstanding Seniors in Mathematics Award, awarded by the faculty as the highest honor for the graduate demonstrating academic excellence, service, and contributions to community and culture at EMU.
• Isaac Andreas and Trajon Brown: Outstanding Seniors in Computer Science Award, awarded by the faculty as the highest honor for the graduate demonstrating academic excellence, service, and contributions to community and culture at EMU.
• Ike Esh won EMU’s annual math competition.
• Winners of the Kryptos international codebreaking competition, out of 77 teams, were Hannah Leaman, Caleb Hostetler and Mana Acosta. Look for news coverage soon!

Music

Two students were honored with the Outstanding Student in Music Award for leadership, service, music performance and music scholarship.

• Eve Yavny has served as concertmaster of the EMU Chamber Orchestra, is a two-time winner of the EMU concerto competition, and gave an excellent senior recital performance. She has distinguished herself as a teacher and assistant in the Shenandoah Valley Preparatory Program as well as performed in countless university and department events. Ěý
• Isaac Longacre distinguished himself throughout his career at EMU with exceptional performances in four EMU musical theater productions, playing iconic roles from a villain to a hero in “Shrek,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “U2 Romeo and Juliet,” and “Noye’s Fludde.”

Political Science

Paige Hurley was named the History and Political Science Outstanding Student. She was recognized for exemplary service, as the student assistant for the program, and scholarship, withĚý research published in New Errands, the online publication of the Eastern American Studies Association.

Psychology

• Avery Trinh and Katie Zuercher were both awarded the Galen R. Lehman Outstanding Achievement in Research Award. Both had exceptional designs, data collection and interpretation of results. Katie’s research was on the survival processing paradigm for first person shooter video games and Avery worked with EMU Institutional Research on a survey about belonging.
• Joshua Wenger and Lindsay Green received the Judy H. Mullet Award for Internship Excellence, for their outstanding and consistent performance in psychology internship with exceptional independent work in establishing a unique field placement experience with Sentara Behavioral Health and Outpatient Center and the Community Care and Learning Center, respectively.

Campus Life

Campus Activities Council

Natallie Brown, Isaac Andreas, Thomas Erickson, Aliyyah Haggard, Ashley Schoenhardt and Jeremiah Yoder for the CAC All-Star Award. Criteria includes volunteering over 200 hours or working more than 350 hours.

Office of Faith and Spiritual Life

The following students were recognized for leadership as student chaplains, nurturing faith and spiritual life in various ways: Micah Buckwalter, sustainability; Alyssa Breidigan, worship; Natallie Brown, discipleship; Elizabeth Eby, engagement; Kate Landis, worship; Emma Nord, community; Reah Clymer, community; and Halie Mast, service.

Center for Interfaith Engagement

Philip Krabill and Leah Walker were recognized for offering opportunities in fall and spring, respectively, helping to create spaces on campus for engagement around issues of religious diversity and justice. They co-planned events such as SoulStories and interfaith leadership convocation breakout groups, student dinners, and celebrations of sacred holidays on campus, according to Trina Trotter Nussbaum, associate director of the Center for Interfaith Engagement, who offered the appreciation.

Multicultural Student Services

Director of Multicultural Student Services Celeste Thomas recognized the leaders the Latinx Student Alliance, many of them first-year students who stepped in to revive and continue the club after several seniors involved in leadership graduated: co-presidents Ashley Iscoa, Mayra Cruz and Cristal Narciso; co-secretaries Diego Tijerina Saucedo and KC Argueta-Rivas; marketing director David Flores Cano; historians Emily Diaz and Ariel Morales Bonilla; and treasurers Margarita Hernandez-Perez and Tony Cortes.

Residence Life

Sarah Grossen was recognized with the Outstanding CA Award, for her three-year commitment to serving as a community advisor in EMU residence halls. “She continuously creates safe, fun, and inviting spaces for all of her residents,” said Tyler Goss, assistant director of student programs.

Student Government Association

Co-presidents of the Student Government Association Philip Krabill, Faith Manickam, and Aman Seyoum, were recognized for outstanding leadership by Dean of Students Shannon Dycus.

The co-presidents passed the gavel to the incoming leadership team of Meredith Lehman, Ella Brubaker, and Hannah Beck.

Athletics (includes winter and spring seasons)

Athletic Department Awards

Freshman of the Year – Brii Redfearn: Women’s Basketball and Damon Morgan: Men’s Track & Field

Athlete of the Years – Paris Hutchinson: Women’s Volleyball and Alijah Johnson: Men’s Track & Field

President’s Award – Allison Shelly: Women’s Triathlon, XC and Track & Field and Isaac Alderfer: Men’s XC and Track & Field

Field Hockey

Skylar Hedgepeth, Maggie Groetsch, Kate Landis and Libbie Derstine were named Scholars of Distinction as well as to the National Academic Squad. Joining them on the National Academic Squad were Rachel Breslin, Keely Mitchell, Cassidy Armstrong and Morgan Leslie.Ěý

Women’s Volleyball

Paris Hutchinson: VaSID All-State Second Team

Men’s BasketballĚý

Tim Jones: Royals Athlete of the Week; D3 National Team of the Week; ODAC MBB Player of the Week; 1,000 Career Points; All-VaSID Second Team; All-ODAC Second Team.

Mizz Nyagwegwe and Mark Burkholder were each named to a Royals Athlete of the Week honor.

Women’s BasketballĚý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý

Claiborne Poston: Royals Athlete of the Week

Men’s Indoor Track and Field

Distance Medley Relay – Set EMU indoor T&F record – 10:22.26 

Alijah Johnson: Set EMU indoor T&F record in the 60m – 6.96; Set EMU indoor T&F record in the 200m – 21.96; All-ODAC Second Team in the 200m; All ODAC Third Team in the 60m;Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý All-VaSID First Team – Sprints; Qualified for NCAA Indoor National Championships.

Justice Allen: Royals Athlete of the Week

Eli Roeschley: Royals Athlete of the Week; All-ODAC Second Team in Triple Jump

Isaac Alderfer: Royals Athlete of the Week;ĚýAll-ODAC Second Team in the Mile; All-ODAC Second Team in the 800m; All-VaSID Second Team – Mid Distance;ĚýQualified for NCAA Indoor National Championships; DMR-All-VaSID Second Team

Women’s Indoor Track and Field

Jenna Weaver:Ěý Royals Athlete of the WeekĚý

Men’s Volleyball

Nate McGhee: Royals Athlete of the Week

Baseball

Jon Sawyers: D3 Team of the WeekĚý

Brett Lindsay: ODAC Player of the WeekĚý

Ray Tricarico, Ethan Spraker, and Natty Solomon were each named to a Royals Athlete of the Week honor.Ěý

Women’s Lacrosse

KC Argueta-Rivas and Skylar Hedgepeth were each named to a Royals Athlete of the Week Honor.

Softball

Grace Fravel, Bri Allen, Emily Campbell and Sierra Lantz were each named to a Royals Athlete of the Week Honor.Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý Ěý

Men’s Outdoor Track & Field

Alijah Johnson: Men’s ODAC Track Athlete of the Week and Royals Athlete of the Week.

Women’s Outdoor Track & Field

Kendra Oguamena: Royals Athlete of the Week

Three ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř students heading to careers in science and medicine have earned funding for summer research and travel.

The CT Assist Health Experiential Learning Program awards funds to pre-professional health science students at EMU to support overseas clinical experiences that help prepare students for professional health programs. is a Harrisonburg-based healthcare staffing business owned by two alumni. 

Cindi Boyer, a junior neurobiology major who wants to become a physician’s assistant, and Belen Hernandez Rosario, a sophomore majoring in biology on the pre-med track, were awarded grants from CT Assist. They will be traveling to Peru this summer with Professor Kristopher Schmidt. 

“Students will shadow in large hospitals and small clinics around the country, exposing them to a variety of treatment centers,” Schmidt said. “They will also be auditing a graduate class with me on cross-cultural healthcare.  We will hike a section of the Inca Trail as well as some touring around the Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu.”

The Kauffman-Miller Research Awards are named for emeritus professors Glenn Kauffman (chemistry) and Roman Miller (biology), each of whom were “champions of undergraduate involvement in authentic scientific research at EMU. Over their 30-plus year tenures, Kauffman and Miller each worked with more than 40 undergraduates on research projects ranging in topics from organic blueberry production to the synthesis of new cyclic organic compounds.

Zach Bauman, a junior environmental science major, will be supported by a Kauffman-Miller Research Award in surveying changes in stream water quality, including nutrients and sediment loading, of the North, Dry and Briery Branch rivers.

The research will help to explain how much agricultural land impacts the rivers as they transition from a more natural environment to a more human-influenced environment, Bauman said. He is one of several students who have contributed to ongoing research in water quality differences between forested and agricultural lands with Professor Doug Graber Neufeld.

“We’re in a unique area where there’s such a clear boundary between forested and agricultural lands, so I’ve had students working for some time to try to use that to understand that role,” Neufeld explained.

The research is “some of the only research on headwater streams in the Shenandoah Valley,” Bauman said.

READ the tributes for EMU’s Class of ’22 Cords recipients.

Ten graduating seniors are the 2022 Cords of Distinction recipients. They will wear blue and gold cords signifying their achievement during the 2022 Commencement.

Faculty, staff and fellow students nominated the recipients, who were cited for their “significant and verifiable impact” on the university and on student life; for their contributions to developing the institution’s positive image; for substantial contributions to the Harrisonburg/Rockingham County area and beyond; for their high academic and social standing; and their embodiment of EMU’s shared values of Christian discipleship, community, service and peacebuilding.

The cords are blue and gold. Blue represents strength of conviction that one person can help to create a better institution or community. Gold represents the love of spirit and yearning toward creating a better university environment or community.

The 2022 Cords of Distinction recipients are:

—Rodrigo Barahona, majoring in environmental science and economics from Tegucigalpa, Honduras;

—Asha Beck, with a major in digital media and communications major and a minor in Spanish from Linville, Virginia; 

—Alcinda Brubaker, a marketing major from Keezletown, Virginia;

—Tahj’ae Coleman, a psychology major from Willingboro, New Jersey;

—Elizabeth Eby, majoring in peacebuilding and development and Bible, religion and theology from Goshen, Indiana;

—Skylar Hedgepeth, an elementary education major from Smithfield, Virginia;

—Hannah Leaman, a mathematics major with secondary education licensure and a minor in Honors from Bakersfield, California;

—Faith Manickam, a biology, pre-med major and chemistry minor from Hesston, Kansas;

—Mishram Nyagwegwe, a recreation and sports management major from Norristown, Pennsylvania;  

—Allison Shelly, a political science major with minors in Honors, journalism, community organizing and development, and history from Collinsville, Mississippi.

Nominees are:

• Isaac Andreas
• Garrett Cash
• Emma Cordell
• Jacob Durren 
• Hailey Edmonds
• Ike Esh
• Sarah Grossen
• Jareya Harder 
• Addison Hawpe
• Alyssa Himsey 
• Tristin Hogge 
• Alijah Johnson
• Jessie Landis
• Isaac Longacre
• Nikki Mumaw 
• Sara Mumbauer 
• Jonathan Murch
• Anna Paetkau
• Partha Roy 
• Katherine Szambecki  
• Andrea Troyer
• Laura Troyer
• Navy Widyani 

In her seminar, Johnson will present on the most recent research in her laboratory, where she uses “molecular genetics, biochemistry, and mathematical biology to understand the basic mechanism by which cells produce RNA,” Johnson says.

The sessions are free to the public, and made possible by the sponsorship of the Daniel B. Suter Endowment in Biology and the co-sponsorship of supporting programs. They will be live streamed on the . The campus community is invited to attend the seminars in person in room 106 of the Suter Science Center.Ěý

Prior to working at JMU, Johnson served as a program director in the Molecular and Cellular Biosciences Division at the NSF, and as an associate professor at Georgia State University. Her interest in pursuing genetics stemmed from transmission of deafness and hearing loss in her family. Johnson has also created and led workshops for middle- and high-school teachers interested in incorporating genetics laboratories into their classes.

Named in honor of long-time EMU biology professor, Daniel B. Suter (1920-2006), the Endowment in Biology was established in 1986 through the generous donations of alumni and friends and currently consists of over $1 million of invested funds. EMU hopes to double the Suter Endowment in order to more adequately support distinguished faculty and to increase scholarship aid to deserving students.

Since opening in 1968, the Suter Science Center has been an important site of learning, research and inspiration for hundreds of ˛ÝÝŽÉçÇř’s alumni working in the STEM fields. Collin Longenecker ‘20 represented them all at the Saturday, Oct. 16, Suter West dedication ceremony when he called the building his “home away from home” during the four years he earned his engineering degree at EMU.

The young alumnus added personal thanks to the more than 700 donors who contributed to the newly transformed, energy-efficient, well-lighted and state-of-the art spaces so important to his education — where he worked on projects, learned in classrooms, studied for exams, and engaged with professors.

The ceremony, attended by a veritable “Who’s Who” of EMU STEM history, marked the end of the second and final phase of the multi-year, $12 million Suter Science Center renovations. Suter East, the first phase, and its new biology, chemistry, and physics labs, classrooms and office space, was dedicated in October 2015. []

The ceremony, initially scheduled for 2020 but delayed a year by the pandemic, provided a wonderful “finish line” for a host of guests, including Vice President for Advancement Kirk Shisler, who has led the multi-year fundraising campaign.

“Today’s dedication of Suter Science Center West is a truly exhilarating moment for many people who worked hard over many years, both to raise the $12 million in philanthropic support to fund the renovations, and to design and implement the major renovations of Suter East and now Suter West,” he said. “It’s even more gratifying to see how students and faculty are thriving in the state of the art labs of EMU’s strong STEM programs.”

 Among the guests of honor were President Emeritus Loren Swartzendruber, his wife, Pat, and their family. The couple were jointly honored with the renaming of the iconic S-106 lecture hall as “Swartendruber Hall.” 

Along with new seating, lighting and upgraded technology for S-106, Suter West renovations included modernized classrooms, new laboratory space for EMU’s engineering program, upgrading of the discovery room and expanded displays from the D. Ralph Hostetter Natural History Collection, upgraded climate-control system and an improved sprinkler system. 

The project’s donors and contributors are recognized in a special display at the building’s west entrance. Accompanying this recognition, Shisler offered special commendations to  individuals “who have been a very special part of this remarkable journey”:

—  Professor Daniel Suter, for whom the building is named, and his exemplary guidance over several decades enabled scores of EMU students to qualify for medical school with great success and global impact. His daughter, Jan Suter Showalter, and her husband, Dr. Sam Showalter, were in attendance;

–faculty involved in shaping EMU’s outstanding science programs having built upon the legacy of Daniel Suter and others of his era: professors Kenton Brubaker, Glenn Kaufman, Galen Lehman, Robert Lehman, Joseph Mast, Clair Mellinger, Roman Miller, Millard Showalter, Gary Stucky, Robert D. Yoder, and John Horst;ĚýĚýĚý

— project leaders during both major phases Ed Lehman, Eldon Kurtz, Jack Rutt and Phil Martin.  

After thanking the university for the honor and sharing a few anecdotes from his experiences in S-106, Swartzendruber offered praise for EMU’s “well-founded reputation across academic disciplines” and the dedication and commitment of its “extraordinary faculty members.”

The importance of science education, of teaching and research, is all the more apparent now, he said. “We will continue to educate future doctors, nurses, and other scientists. Our graduates will serve and lead with compassion and empathy. Some will lead in preparing for future pandemics. Others will partner with health educators and ethicists to address the complexities of distribution and access. Graduates of the engineering program will help solve some of the world’s most vexing problems such as climate change. We owe it to our grandchildren and their children.”