Appalachian Lab
Monthly Newsletter

Welcome to the Inaugural Issue!

Dear AL community,

Happy new year! I hope you and yours had a relaxful holiday break. A new year provides opportunity for new beginnings, and one new thing we’re going to trial at AL in 2024 is a monthly internal newsletter. The goal of the newsletter is to help continue to increase communication and transparency across the lab, and so the newsletter will highlight AL happenings, introduce new AL employees, review safety and administrative processes, etc. You’ll find the content of the newsletter similar (but not identical) to our monthly AL town halls. Not everyone can attend every town hall so hopefully the newsletter helps fill in the gaps. If you have ideas for newsletter content or would like to contribute content please let Katie Kline or Heather Johnson know.

Dave

January 2024

New Faces

Bilgecan Sen, Assistant Research Scientist

Bilgecan Sen joined the AL community in early December.  He is an Assistant Research Scientist working with Matt Fitzpatrick.  He will be building statistical models to identify spatial and temporal drivers of benthic communities in the Arctic.  He will also be testing the predictive ability of these models to evaluate the degree to which they can be useful forecasting compositional changes in the Arctic communities under climate change.  During his free time, if he’s not spending time with friends and family, you can find him reading a Turkish novel or playing a video game on his PS5.

Photo of Bilgecan Sen

Recent Happenings

2023 In Review

At our holiday celebration in December, Dave provided an extensive review of 2023 AL events, accomplishments, and achievements.  We think that we captured everything, but if something was missed please let us know so that it may also be recognized:

  • Four graduate students successfully defended their theses:  Grace Avalos (advised by Rodney), Tan Zou (advised by Xin), Claire Nemes (advised by Emily), and Megan Massa (advised by Emily).  Congratulations to you all for a job well done!
  • We welcomed three new students:  Brian Tsuru (advised by Emily), Erin Geibel (advised by Matt), and Jun Suk Byun (advised by Xin).
  • We welcomed three new postdocs:  Claire Nemes, Xin Chen, and Bilgecan Sen.
  • We also welcomed visiting Fulbright Scholar, Mihaela Borota from Romania who is working with Keith Eshleman.
  • We welcomed Deb Richards to the AL staff.
  • Susanne Lachmuth and Iman Salehihikouei completed their postdoctoral research.
  • John Hoogland retired from AL in July and has been awarded Professor Emeritus status.
  • Cami Martin was the 2023 recipient of the UMCES Staff Excellence Award.
  • Joely DeSimone was selected for a three-year NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship that will begin in June 2024.
  • We are currently in the midst of a search for two new faculty members.  
  • Summer 2023 brought our second class of the undergraduate internship program with participation from 8 students.  The Western Maryland Consortium helped support the 2023 program.
  • Earlier in 2023, we launched and awarded AL’s first INSPIRATION award to Engineering in Allegany Count-Together (REACT).
  • The Richard A. Johnson Environmental Education Award was awarded to Annie Stark, a high school science teacher in Allegany County.
  • AL hosted the UMCES Faculty Convocation and Commencement Ceremony in May.
  • Members of the AL community participated in the city of Frostburg’s Halloween Parade for the first time.
  • UMCES partnered with Frostburg State to offer an innovative joint Master in Environmental Management (MEM) in Sustainability beginning in the fall of 2023;  Katia Engelhardt developed and led a field methods class in support of the MEM program.
  • Edgewood Commons has become a viable solution for visitor housing.  It has hosted or is currently home for Mihaela, Sadia, and Keyu Ren.
  • AL was able to make some improvements to our site facilities, including the following:  repair of the crumbling concrete around the drain grates in the parking lot, Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) funding to support wifi and wired internet improvements are in progress, updates to the IVN room are in progress, the Air Handling Unit (AHU) will be replaced in the summer of 2024, and we are planning to submit a grant proposal to MEA in early 2024 to fund the placement of solar panels on the roof to generate about 20% of our electricity needs.

Publication Award

The Genetics Section of the American Fisheries Society (AFS) recently awarded the 2023 Stevan Phelps Memorial Award to a research paper paper led by former PhD student, Dave Kazyak, and co-authored by Ray Morgan, AL Professor Emeritus.  The award is given annually for the best genetics paper published in an AFS journal the preceding year.   In the paper titled “Population genetics of Brook Trout in the Southern Appalachian Mountains”, they used microsatellite markers to explore population genetics of wild Brook Trout across their native range.  Dave is also a Frostburg State University alumni and earned his Ph.D. from the MEES program in 2015 when he was advised by Bob Hilderbrand.  He now works as a Supervisory Research Fish Biologist at the USGS Eastern Ecological Science Center.

Meeting Presentations

Grace Avalos and Cameron Garland both presented posters at the Entomological Society of America Meeting in November.  Both of their posters are hanging in the hallways in the lab.  You can also view the digital versions using the links provided below:

Upcoming Facilities Happenings

The new Security/Surveillance System is expected to be installed in Spring 2024.  Keep your eyes open for email announcements about phases of the installation that could affect your work here, like downtime events.

AL was awarded Appalachian Regional Commission funding to update our wired and wireless networks.  Details will follow later and be aware that this project will “touch” every data network in the facility and could result in some short-term outages.

UMCES Institutional Assessment Update

Each of the UMCES units over the past several weeks took part in listening sessions on the UMCES Institutional Assessment, facilitated by a team from the Integration and Application Network led by Dr. Heath Kelsey and Alex Fries. Thanks to all who participated in these sessions. The next step in the Institutional Assessment will be an anonymous survey that will be distributed and administered by the College of Exploration.

Outreach Roundup

UMCES Interim President Bill Dennison, Staff Excellence Award recipient Cami Martin, and Appalachian Laboratory Director Dave Nelson.
UMCES Interim President Bill Dennison, Staff Excellence Award recipient Cami Martin, and Appalachian Laboratory Director Dave Nelson.
UMCES faculty and graduating students following the Commencement ceremony.
UMCES faculty and graduating students following the May 2023 Commencement ceremony.
2023 Summer Interns Alex Donley and Aley Sarey using a Secchi disk on a field trip to Horn Point Lab.
2023 Summer Interns Alex Donley and Aley Sarey using a Secchi disk on a field trip to Horn Point Lab.
Photo of a brook trout
Brook Trout are native to western Maryland. David Kazyak and Ray Morgan, along with other co-authors were recently recognized for their paper on Brook Trout population genetics by the American Fisheries Society.
Annie Stark with members of the Johnson Family and Appalachian Laboratory Director David Nelson. Pictured left to right: Christopher Johnson, Marta Johnson Fiscus, Barbara Johnson, Annie Stark, Adron Fiscus, Julian Fiscus, David Nelson
REACT's Michael Fiscus, Lesa Edwards, Jessica Mellon and Barry Hartung with award.

From:  Rhonda Schwinabart

The application period for the summer 2024 Appalachian Laboratory Undergraduate Internship Program is now open. Applications will be accepted through Friday, February 16. Priority for placement will be given to students from our neighboring colleges and universities (FSU, ACM, Garrett, and Potomac) and to students who have not already completed an internship with AL. Learn more at:  www.umces.edu/al/internships.

The Appalachian Laboratory Inspiration Award ceremony and reception is scheduled for Wednesday, May 15, 2024. Please save the date. This year’s winner is Team 1629 Garrett Coalition (GACO) from Garrett County, and we are planning to host the event in Garrett County. Invitations will be sent in the spring, but as always, everyone in the AL community is welcome. The Richard Johnson Environmental Education Award will open for nominations in March 2024. The ceremony and event are scheduled to be held on Thursday, August 29, at a location to be determined.

The recording of Parks in Science History, the most recent Watershed Moments event, can be found at
www.umces.edu/watershed-moments.

DEI Updates

From:  Sarah Endyke

The AL DEI group will be molding the spring semester meetings around a central theme of mentorship. Mentorship is traditionally seen as a mutually beneficial relationship in which knowledge and skills are shared to support personal and professional development. Given the upcoming summer internship program and the onset of new (likely early career) faculty hires, thoughtful consideration of an AL mentorship strategy will be critically important for retaining faculty and creating a meaningful experience for the next generation of scientists. But how exactly do we cultivate positive mentorship experiences? Here’s our (tentative) plan: In January, we will begin with an educational meeting focused on co-learning best practices for fostering inclusive mentorship. We will transition these practices into action by developing interview strategies for the summer internship program in February and co-writing an intern-mentor ‘mutual expectations’ form in March. We will close out in April with a mentorship training provided by an external expert. All are welcome to attend, with a special note that faculty perspectives at these spring meetings will be especially important for expanding the mentorship program out to the new faculty hires.

Admin Updates - Fleet Vehicle Reminders

To help make everyone’s experience using the state vehicles go as smoothly as possible, please remember the following:

  • Vehicles are reserved using ALOnline.
  • Please include a grant number or name in the “Notes” section of the reservation form.
  • You can view the calendar online to check vehicle availability.
  • If you need to travel long distances, please check with Cami or Heather in advance of making your reservation.  It may be more cost effective to your project to rent a vehicle.
  • If you experience any problems or issues with the vehicle, please report them to administration IMMEDIATELY.  Waiting to notify someone could create serious potential safety issues for the next vehicle user.
  • Always be prepared for possible out of pocket expenses from vehicle issues that could arise after hours, out of the area, or because John is unavailable.  You will be reimbursed later, so save your receipts.  
  • When using a vehicle, remember to always make SAFETY FIRST.  If you experience any mechanical issues, your safety is paramount.  Never pull over until you are in a safe location.  Wheels and other things can be replaced, you cannot be replaced!
Screenshot of AL Online Vehicle Reservation Page

Spotlight on Safety - Emergency Preparedness

From:  Katie Kline

As a USM institution, we are required to develop and maintain a program of campus emergency preparedness to avert possible crises and to respond promptly and appropriately when an incident occurs.  This includes providing regular refresher training to members of our campus community.  Rather than make everyone sit through a PowerPoint slide presentation, we will begin a seven week series on January 22nd in our Bathroom Safety Postings that will provide you with information and tools to be better prepared to respond to possible emergencies.  There will be an interactive activity at the end with PRIZES for those that complete the activity, so stay tuned! 

Resource Review - Poster Printing

AL provides a complimentary printing service for students, faculty, and staff who need to print a poster or other wide format print job for professional events, meetings, or other activities.  Katie Kline can help you with printing a poster, but please keep in mind that it’s best to make her aware of your plans well in advance of your meeting.

To submit a print request, please complete this form to add your job to the calendar.  The perfect time to do this would be immediately after receiving notification from the meeting organizers that your poster has been accepted.  This allows staff to plan accordingly and make arrangements for any planned absences.

Learn more about available print sizes and file formats, along with external options here.

Mark Your Calendars

January will be chock full of seminars given by UMCES Faculty.  All will be held in the IVN room at 11 a.m. Lunch will follow in the classroom.  Please be sure to sign up for lunch by the deadline indicated on the sign up sheet.

  • January 5th – Laura Lapham, CBL – Promotion Seminar: Investigating processes that lead to variable methane emissions from aqueous environments: A journey from the mountains to the sea
  • January 12th – Xin Zhang, AL Promotion Seminar    
  • January 18th at 11:00 am – AL Town Hall Meeting
  • January 19th – Jamie Pierson, HPL Promotion Seminar
  • January 26th – Matthew Gray, HLP Promotion Seminar
  • May 15th – Appalachian Lab Inspiration Award
  • August 29th – Richard Johnson Environmental Education Award

 

Faculty Candidate Seminars

Please be on the lookout for email communications providing details on upcoming faculty search candidate visits.  All levels of the AL community will be included in the interview process.

 

Do you have an announcement or update you’d like to include in a future newsletter?

AL’s monthly newsletter is issued during the second week of the month.  Please submit any announcements and updates to Katie Kline or Heather Johnson before the close of business on the first Friday of each month to ensure that your content can be included in that month’s newsletter.

Return to Main Newsletter Page