And in participating in the Spring STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Celebration poster session in the , Stoner practiced a few more practical skills he will need: graphic design and public speaking.

Stoner and partner Sarah Carpenter were winners of the upperclass division for their research titled “Bergton Stream Restoration: Stream Health Assessment Using Macroinvertebrate Sampling.”

The poster session, which is preceded by an informal multidisciplinary science quiz-off and pizza feast, offers students “a chance to share their research with fellow students, faculty, and the larger EMU community in a fun, social setting,” says physics professor , who judged the contest with biology professor .

Poster sessions are commonly held at scientific conferences, in which “scientists and students present and explain their own findings to those who are interested but are not necessarily experts in that field,” said King, who is also an assistant professor in the program.

Posters were judged on quality of experimental design, quality of research analysis, and quality of presentation, said Herin, also with the biomedicine program. “The presentation included the appearance, accuracy and clarity of the poster, as well as the presenters’ knowledge and explanation of the project.”

Coursework and independent study represented

EMU’s poster session featured more than 90 participants showcasing research from a variety of courses such as electronics, general chemistry, organic chemistry, statistics for natural sciences, and environmental toxicology. Students in Herin’s advanced human anatomy class (BIO 437) also contributed 3-D visualizations of body systems.

Carpenter and Stoner were among several students presenting water quality research in the nearby Bergton area as part of . Biology professors and are supervising teams of environmental sustainability students working on water quality monitoring and stream restoration in two tributaries of the Shenandoah River and the Chesapeake Bay, with other facets of the project involving and graduate students.

Students in professor ’s general chemistry class focused on phytoremediation of a variety of plants, including carrots, forsythia, corn, cattails, and radishes.

Professor ’s statistics class explored the widest range of topics, including electronic devices owned by students; the fuel economy of cars driven by EMU faculty and staff versus those driven by James Madison University faculty and staff; cereal shelf placement based on sugar and price at Food Lion and Kroger; sustainability effectiveness in EMU residence halls; and a statistical analysis of the “Settlers of Catan” game.

Two unique projects with professor Steve Cessna explored the rhetoric of science and instructional techniques in the science classroom. In their plant ecophysiology course, Hannah Chappell-Dick, Eli Wenger, and Emma Beachy analyzed plant physiology research literature for changes in the “assignment of agency.” For his biochemistry research course project, Kyle Storc investigated student comprehension and retention of biochemistry topics through the use of two-dimensional tools.

Several posters were the result of independent research that students conducted with faculty members. Camille Williams worked with biology professor to analyze the effects of fermented milk supplementation on gut microbacteria in mice.

Rachel King, who will be a research assistant on this summer, worked under chemistry professor on “A Mixed Methods Approach to Green Chemistry Knowledge Gains in the Organic Laboratory.” Kishbaugh also worked with Ben Stern, who studied the effects of barium toxicity on zebrafish.

Underclass winner links research to upcoming internship

Amanda Williams and Nader Alqahtani paired up to win the underclass division with their project that compared phytoremediation between native and invasive species.

For Williams, a first-year biology and secondary education major, the research project reminded her of how much she cares about the environment.

“I live in the wetlands in Delaware, surrounded by the plants we were experimenting on, cattail and phragmites,” she said, adding that she’ll continue her research in a summer internship with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. “I think it’s important to understand the possible negative effects of invasive species, but also to know that sometimes they are just as important as native species.”

Alqahtani, a sophomore biology major who is interested in medical research, said the hands-on learning experience “was a more fun and exciting way to learn than reading and studying.”

And the presentation? That was “the exciting part,” he said, even though English is his second language. “We were confident that we knew everything about our project and we trusted each other’s ability to make a perfect presentation … when we started presenting and I saw how well we were doing, I got comfortable and started to enjoy telling our audience about our research.”

Poster Session Winners: Upperclass Division

1st: Bergton Stream Restoration: Stream Health Assessment Using Macroinvertebrate Sampling – Sarah Carpenter and Sam Stoner

2nd: Keyless Entry – Stephan Goertzen and Jordan Leaman

3rd: Bergton Stream Restoration: Ecological Monitoring Using Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) – Jonathan Drescher-Lehman and Ryan Keiner

Honorable Mention: An ecophysiological study determining how three different invasive evergreen vines handle the varying winter temperatures by measuring their photosynthesis, transpiration, and Fv/Fm levels – Jonathan Drescher-Lehman, Chris Miller, and Abby Pennington

Honorable Mention: The Effects of Barium Toxicity on Zebrafish (Danio rerio) – Ben Stern

Poster Session Winners: Underclass Division

1st:  Comparing Phytoremediation between Native and Invasive Species – Nader Alqahtani and Amanda Williams

2nd:  Phytoremediation in Forsythia – Tyler Denlinger and Jeremiah Robinson

3rd: Electronic Devices Owned by EMU Students – Sammy Kauffman, Josh Miller, and Roy Ruan

Honorable Mention: Phytoremediation in Various Plants – Aaron Dunmore and Kat Lehman

The Royals broke open an otherwise close first half with two goals just before the break.  In the 39th minute,  (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg) set up fellow freshman  (Glenwood Springs, Colo./Glenwood Springs) at the top of the box, and Martin bent a shot into the upper left. One minute later, the women struck again. This time  (Martinsville, Va./Carlisle) received a pass at the top of the box, moved around a GC defender and launched a shot into the goal.

Despite being out-shot 8-6 in the half, the sudden 2-0 lead for the Royals gave them a boost for the second half. Keeper  (Spotsylvania, Va./Spotsylvania) then gave them an even bigger shot in the arm less than three minutes into the second.

After a foul in the box on a breakaway, Guilford was awarded a penalty kick.  Stanard read the kick and made a diving stop to knock it away, then quickly got back to her feet and swatted away the rebounded attempt for a second save.

With Stanard keeping the Quakers off the board, senior  (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) made the lead bigger with a breakaway goal in the 71st minute, pushing it to 3-0. Guilford finally got a goal on a rebound in the 80th minute. The Quakers got one more shot in the final minute, but that was it in EMU’s 3-1 win.

The Royals ended up being out-shot 15-10, although shots on goal were even at 6-6.  Osei had a team high four attempts including three on goal. Stanard charted five saves in goal.

Eastern Mennonite is now 6-7-1 overall including 4-4 in the ODAC.

John taught courses in , during 1956-57 at EMC, then headed to Indiana University where he earned an MBA with a focus on accounting in 1962. The following year he became a CPA. He taught accounting part time at Goshen College, while maintaining an accounting practice serving Goshen and vicinity. His professional brochure from that period said, “Since 1962 our business has been helping others achieve.” He stressed the importance of estate planning and the value of deferred charitable giving.

Mildred recalls that EMC president Myron Augsburger invited John in the late 1960s to return to his original alma mater to teach, but John felt that EMC still didn’t value business as a career – and thus had little incentive to provide quality instruction in business and accounting – and he passed up the invitation.

In 1983, John died of a heart attack, leaving behind Mildred and seven children, including two EMU alumni, Beverly ’73 and Alden ’79 (in medical school then), plus two sons enrolled in EMC, Loren ’85 and J. Eric ’88. Daughter Ardith ’90, was enrolled in Hesston when her father died. Mildred says the family benefited from her husband’s financial expertise and foresight – he ensured that they would not be homeless, destitute and uneducated without him.

Two decades after John Hostetter’s era as an EMC undergraduate, Daniel H. Martin ’69 had better luck studying business at EMC. He majored in “general business” – taking every accounting course EMC offered, from basic to advanced, augmented by courses like “business law” and “office machines” – but EMC still didn’t offer a major in accounting, with instruction in auditing. Dan had to pursue his CPA on his own later, after graduating from EMC and after doing voluntary service with Mennonite Central Committee for two years.

In his first 14 years as an accountant, Dan worked for a Staunton firm. In 1985, he returned to Harrisonburg and became a partner in what is now known as Martin, Beachy & Arehart, PLLC.* One of the other three partners is also an alumnus, R. Scott Beachy ’88, who majored in accounting just a few years after that became an option at EMC.

Martin and Beachy work in what was once a gracious home, now renovated into attractive offices, fronted by clear signage on busy N. High St., just a mile and a half from EMU. It’s a street corner that I pass at least three times a week as I head toward Community Mennonite Church, Rocking R Hardware, Greenberry’s Coffee or downtown Harrisonburg.

In contrast to the cumbersome adding machines with rolls of paper that John Hostetter used at the beginning of his career, the technological resources of Martin, Beachy & Arehart have made their operations largely paperless.

On a personal level, though, one thing has not changed. Like the Hostetters, Dan and Scott have entrusted their children’s education to EMU. The first-born child of Daniel and his wife Ruth Ann, Jonathan Daniel, is a 1997 graduate who is a legislative budget analyst for the State of Maryland. Their daughter, Nicole Ann Stark, is a 2001graduate who directs student health services at the University of Pittsburgh, Bradford. (She is married to Zachary Stark ’02 who many will remember as a member of the men’s volleyball team from 1998 to 2002.)

Scott and his wife Jodi Gerber Beachy ’89, who teaches grade 5 at Eastern Mennonite School, have two children currently enrolled at EMU – Emma, a rising junior who is majoring in , and Ryan, a rising sophomore who is majoring in accounting, as his father did.

“The education I received from EMU gave me a strong base from which to operate,” says Scott by way of explaining his loyalty to his alma mater.  “Although it’s been many years since I sat in an EMU classroom, I still remember the integrity displayed by all of the professors with whom I interacted.”

— Bonnie Price Lofton, MA ’04, editor-in-chief