In spite of the pandemic, we continued having one of the largest populations of BGSU undergraduate students enrolled in our programs. We have adapted our courses to include new teaching modalities, including the offering of remote and hybrid courses, which allowed students to enjoy their college experience while maintaining a safe environment to prevent the spread of COVID-19. With over 100 lab sections being taught at low student density to maintain social distancing, we continue offering meaningful experiential learning activities to ensure students’ progress toward graduation. Furthermore, our graduate programs continue recruiting highly competitive students, many of which help support the teaching mission of the university through graduate teaching assistantships.

Let me use this platform to acknowledge the fabulous work that our faculty, graduate teaching assistants, and staff have made under these challenging times. Both faculty and TAs have adapted rapidly to the new teaching modalities, maintaining their commitment to high quality teaching. In addition, our staff continues to support our faculty, and help students with enrollments, internships, class changes, and issues related to their progress toward degree completion. Please, join me in thanking our faculty, TAs, and staff for their commitment to our students and BGSU!

As supporting alumni and friends, you will be pleased to hear that our faculty and students have received multiple awards, which attest to the quality of our department. Julia Halo received the 2020 Outstanding Early Career Award and Hans Wildschutte received the 2020 President’s Award for Collaborative Research and Creative Work, which acknowledge their successful research programs. In addition, Shannon Pelini received the 2020 Women of Distinction Award for her dedication as a role model and mentor of women. Furthermore, nineteen of our faculty members have been recognized by students as someone who made a difference in their academic career. The nomination of Dan Wiegmann as fellow of the Animal Behavior Society, provide both national and international recognition to our faculty and BGSU.

Funds donated by YOU, our alumni and friends, allowed us to provide awards for both undergraduate and graduate students, many of whom received over $1000 to support research experiences and experiential learning activities. Furthermore, your funds helped support scholarships for over 30 undergraduate students for the 2020-2021 academic year. You can look at the list of recipients of these awards and scholarships in this newsletter. 

Our research programs have been essential sources for experiential learning and research experiences for our undergraduates, and the foundation of our graduate program. Research and creative activities play an essential role in the strategic plan of the university, as they show our commitment to the public good. During the past year, our faculty has been very successful in securing funds through external grants to support their research. Over nine faculty members have received grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Health, USDA, NOAA, and Ohio Sea Grant, among other highly competitive agencies. Research projects include work on ecologically relevant issues with high impacts to society, including studies on global change, contamination of wastewater and streams, invasive species, bees’ diversity, mosquito populations and disease transmission, and antibiotic resistance. Furthermore, the Center for Great Lakes and Watershed Studies continues expanding research on the dynamics of the Great Lakes ecosystems and associated biological communities, including studies on the impacts of agriculture on biogeochemical cycles, harmful algal blooms, and aquaponics. The direct impacts of our research programs on current societal issues play a major role on the strategic plan of BGSU, and show our commitment to the public good.

I would like to thank all alumni and friends of the department for your continued support over the years. Your contributions do make a difference! If you would like to continue supporting our programs, visit bgsu.edu/give and enter “biology” to see our fund options.

Our Bio:Life Newsletter describes some of our recent activities, achievements, and student successes, which attest to our commitment to the teaching and research mission of our department. We wish you a good end of the year and hope you can visit us soon.

Once a Falcon always a Falcon!
Wash your hands, and let’s flatten the curve!

Juan L. Bouzat, Ph.D.
Chair and professor, Biological Sciences