Allegheny College's Law and Policy Program provides students with opportunities to explore their interests in politics and prepare them for the kinds of work they want to pursue after graduation. This program is open to students majoring in any academic discipline at Allegheny College. In January of 2023, Prof. Brian Harward and some staff members in the Center for Career and Professional Development took 12 Allegheny students to Washington DC to participate in a 9-day seminar called "Institutions and Interests that Shape the Policy Process" where students learned from top policymaking experts during rigorous academic seminars on critical elements of the policy process, observed oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court, and toured key sites including the White House, the Capitol, and the Library of Congress. Listen in to part of the conversation that I had with Lexi Adams and Joe Leszczynski about their trip to DC.

For a number of years, Dr. Becky Dawson ('00) has partnered with the Meadville Medical Center on a number of projects associated with public health and epidemiology. One of these projects has been assisting in the Crawford County Health Needs Assessment. This is an ongoing research project aimed to assess the health in Crawford County by collecting, analyzing, distributing and using valid and reliable quantitative and qualitative data to improve community health. During the Summer of 2022, Skyler Masse (Biology) and Emily Spitz (Biochemistry) were part of a team of students that worked with Dr. Dawson on this, and other, projects. Listen in to hear about the work that Skyler and Emily did on this project!

The Art Department at Allegheny College has a rich tradition of helping students learn to contextualize artworks, understand the connection between art and history, and showcasing original pieces of art in the Allegheny Art Galleries. Allegheny students and faculty also have opportunities to collaborate with art galleries and museums in the surrounding area during which students gain valuable exposure to regional artists and can assist in local art exhibitions. In this episode, I chat with Haley Fabich (L) and Erin Magnus (R) about their involvement in some projects and internships at the Erie Art Museum.

Glucocorticoids are steroid hormones that occur naturally in vertebrates and regulate many aspects of an organisms physiology. They are also widely used for the treatment of inflammation, autoimmune diseases, and even in some cancers. In this episode, I chat with Lottie Mateyak ('23; Biology) about a research project that she conducted with Dr. Mahita Kadmiel, Assistant Professor in the Biology Department at Allegheny College. The big aim of the project is to understand how researchers can use glucocorticoids as part of the treatment  of eye diseases but minimize the negative side effects that glucocorticoid use can have. Listen in as Lottie discusses her work with retinal cells and glucocorticoids during her summer research experience at Allegheny. 

Evelyn Griffith ('24) is a double major in Computer Science and English Creative Writing and also a soprano vocalist at Allegheny College. In November of 2022, Evelyn performed a Junior Vocal Recital (one of many possible Performance Opportunities for Allegheny Students through our Music Department) in the Ford Memorial Chapel. Prior to her recital, I had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Evelyn about a number of topics ranging from singing as a child to what it means to be a student vocalist. In addition to our conversation, I had the chance to sit in and record one of her practices prior to the recital. Listen in to hear our conversation and clips of Evelyn singing. You don't want to miss this one! 

The Battle of Gettysburg was one of the most influential battles within the American Civil War -- it marked the turning point of the war and ended Confederate general Robert E. Lee's attempt to  invade the North and eliminating the possibility that the Confederate States of America would become an independent nation with the Union victory. Michael Gartland (’23), a History major and English minor, spent part of the Summer of 2022 as an intern at the Gettysburg National Military Park and worked on a research project in which he used an online database to find and catalogue over 200 soldier pension files over the summer to provide information about the lives of Union soldiers that died during the three days of the Battle of Gettysburg and were buried in the cemetery. The ultimate goal of the project, which was part of a larger archival digitization project, was to begin a database that catalogued these soldiers so that Rangers could use these stories for future Anniversary weekends and other events.

If you’re not familiar with NW Pennsylvania, this part of the country is beautiful! In fact, there are numerous natural resources and outdoor recreational areas that are within a 45-minute drive of Meadville. Ray Colabawalla ('25) and Hunter Goerman ('25) spent their summer traveling across parts of PA working on a project in conjunction with Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Professor Ishita Roy (Dept. of Communication, Film, and Theatre), and local community partners trying to assess the possibility of establishing a formal connection between the large swath of public and private lands and other assets in a north-south corridor in Western Pennsylvania, between the cities of Erie and Pittsburgh. The goal of the broader project (named the “Glaciers Edge”) is to determine the feasibility of creating such linkages through the nine-county area and to boost economic development through the protection and promotion of outdoor recreational assets in this region of Pennsylvania. In this episode, Ray and Hunter chat about their summer experience and how this project would benefit the local, and regional, communities in this area.

In this episode, Victoria Smith ('23) discusses her experience as the Director of a play titled "It's Not All About Sex (Or Is It?)". This play (written by Professor Emeritus Josh Searle-White) was performed at the Meadville Community Theatre March 11-13 of 2022. The Meadville Community Theatre was founded in 1967 and is the oldest continually running community theater in Meadville. "It's Not All About Sex (Or Is It?)" explores relationships, sexuality, and consent in our modern world. Victoria shares her thoughts on the play itself, how she got into theatre, and the coursework and preparation that goes into Directing a play [as a student]. Victoria and I also chat about the many ways in which students across all academic disciplines participate in theatre. 

All of us are now familiar with rapid COVID antigen tests: a single line indicates no active infection whereas a double line indicates a positive infection. How do these test cards actually work and what type of chemistry is involved in this type of test? This, and numerous other biochemical and medical applications, use chemical surface reactions like those on the COVID antigen test card. One of type of surface reaction is attaching proteins to surfaces to act as a recognition system for a biosensor. Bill Nese (’23), a student in the lab of Dr. Alice Deckert, conducted a project in which they investigated surface reactions when a silver nanoparticle reacts with imidazole. Understanding the mechanism and rate constant for the reaction between a silver nanoparticle surface bound NHS ester and imidazole could hypothetically be determined at various concentrations of imidazole. Broadly speaking, this research allows scientists to better understand protein attachment and aid the design of numerous types of biosensors.