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Awards

Three awards are given annually, The Beaver-Schmale Award, the Russell Mixter Award, and the David Bruce Memorial Research Award.

The Beaver Schmale Award is given to a biology major that excels in effort to conduct research in biology, professionalism in work (typically a research paper is written) and a presentation to the Biology department or outside audience (ACCA).

The Mixter Award is given to a junior or senior Biology major with a GPA of 3.5 or above who exhibits the qualities of exemplary character, Christian witness, and academic promise to which faculty, students and other campus personnel should attest.Funds for the Russell Mixter Award was provided by a Wheaton graduate to honor Dr. Russell Mixter Professor of Zoology at Wheaton from 1928-1979. As Chair of Biology, Dr. Mixter played a significant role in the development of biology at Wheaton College and was a respected member of the Wheaton College community.

The David Bruce Memorial Research Award was established 2003. It is in honor of the department's beloved physiologist here at Wheaton for over 20 years, Dr. David Bruce. The criteria for this award are:

• A Biology major junior or senior who has done collaborative research with a Wheaton Biology Department faculty member
  
  
• A presentation at a national meeting or authorship in a peer reviewed paper resulting from this research.
  
  
• A stated desire to continue in some type of scientific career in the future will also be an advantage.

This may include, for example, biological research, teaching, medicine or other careers that are clearly facilitated by the student's experience of doing biological research as an undergraduate.

BIOLOGY AWARD RECIPIENTS ACADEMIC YEAR '07-'08

RUTH ARMSTRONG ’08 BIOLOGY MAJOR CHOSEN FOR THE DISTINGUISHED RUSSELL MIXTER AWARD IN BIOLOGY

Ruth Armstrong is the recipient of the Russell Mixture Award '08. Ruth is a double major in both Biology and Spanish and will be graduating May 2008. She has sincerely enjoyed her time at Wheaton College, learning and developing her passion for medicine and the opportunities to use Spanish within the medical field. Ruth has spent significant time in the past four years shadowing medical professionals, both in the States and overseas. On one of these trips overseas, Ruth led a team of Wheaton students to Honduras where they investigated the state of orphan care in Comayagua, Honduras. Their work in Honduras was accepted as a paper at the North American Christian Foreign Language Association, where they presented in March 2008. Ruth and the team will return to Honduras again this summer, extending their research to other regions of the country. Their hope is that these initial investigations will serve as a springboard for continued research for Wheaton students passionate about using the skills developed at Wheaton in a global context.

While at Wheaton, Ruth received the Violet Bergquist Scholarship for Christian Service through the Spanish department as well as the Russell G. Mixter Award in the Biology Department. In addition, Ruth played Varsity Women’s Volleyball for 4 years, serving as chaplain for two years.

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KEN KELLNER ’09 BIOLOGY MAJOR CHOSEN AS THE RECIPIENT OF THE BEAVER SCHMALE AWARD IN BIOLOGY

Ken Kellner ’09 biology major, is the recipient of the Beaver Schmale Award in Biology. The Beaver Schmale Award is given to a biology major that excels in effort to conduct research in biology, professionalism in work (typically a research paper is written) and a presentation to the Biology department or outside audience (ACCA). Ken has done research with Dr. Kristen Page since his freshmen year. This research has focused on the study of the transmission dynamics of raccoon roundworm (Baylisascaris procyonis) in urban environments, and the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to model infection risk to humans. Ken and Dr. Page are currently writing a paper that they will submit for publication at the end of this semester. Last summer Ken was the winner of the American Society of Parasitologists Undergraduate Research Grant Competition. This summer he has an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) from the National Science Foundation at Miami University of Ohio working on a project related to Species and Ecosystem Responses To Human-Dominated Landscapes.

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ELISA TAKALO ’08 BIOLOGY MAJOR CHOSEN FOR THE DAVID BRUCE MEMORIAL RESEARCH AWARD

Since her sophomore year at Wheaton, Biology Major Elisa Takalo ’08 has worked on a research project involving detection antibodies in sera from multiple scleroris patients that react with nerve cells. She presented the initial results at the annual meeting of the American Society of Neurochemistry in Portland Oregon. She has continued to work toward identifying the targets of these anti-neuronal antibodies. During the summer of 2006 she worked with Dr. Judy Collins at the Oregon Health Science University on NOD-2 mutations in patients with Crohn’s disease. This work has been submitted to the journal, Gastroenterology.  In addition to research, Elisa spent Summer 2007 in Portland, Oregon, assisting/volunteering at two health clinics that helped underserved clientele.  She was on the "ground floor" of helping set up the "Good News Community Clinic" in Rockwood and helped at the more established Portland Adventist Community Clinic. Elisa played varsity waterpolo at Wheaton for 3 years (Freshman, Sophomore, & Junior year) & was captain her junior year.

Following graduation she will continue the work on multiple sclerosis in the laboratory of Dr. George Devries at the Hines VA Hospital in Chicago Elisa hopes to attend medical school and/or continue research into auto-immune diseases, with an emphasis on Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology.

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HONORS IN BIOLOGY AWARDED ACADMIC YEAR '07-08

RUTH BATES '08 BIOLOGY MAJOR AWARDED HONORS IN BIOLOGY

Ruth Bates has been an outstanding student in the biology department. Not only has she excelled in all her classes, she has also found time for a research/internship experience. During the summer of 2007, Ruth spent 8-weeks in Boston, MA, as part of a research internship co-sponsored by Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. There, she worked with the molecular thoracic oncology laboratory selectively sequencing mesothelioma cell lines for characteristic mutants. Results of this research will be included in future articles published by this lab. Graduating in May 2008, Ruth plans to attend Michigan State University College of Human Medicine this fall.

ELISA TAKALO '08 BIOLOGY MAJOR AWARDED HONORS IN BIOLOGY

Elisa Takalo recieve departmental honors and the David Bruce Memorial Research Award this year. Elisa has maintained a high grade point average and has been very active in colloborative research both at Wheaton and in the summer at Oregon Health Science University. She presented the initial results of her research project involving detection antibodies in sera from multiple scleroris patients that react with nerve cells at the annual meeting of the American Society of Neurochemistry in Portland Oregon. During the summer of 2006 she worked with Dr. Judy Collins at the Oregon Health Science University on NOD-2 mutations in patients with Crohn’s disease. This work has been submitted to the journal, Gastroenterology.For the next year she will be working as a research technician at Hines VA Hospital while applying to medical school.