Lebanon Valley College Announces Arnold Grant Recipients

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Lebanon Valley College announced its Arnold Grant recipients for student-faculty research, internships, and scholarly projects.

ANNVILLE, PA (05/19/2016)(readMedia)-- Various Lebanon Valley College students will study healthcare in Cuba, analyze the Lakota language, and intern at the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Other students will collaborate with faculty to research user experience differences between American and German students, identify the relationship between genetics and personality in peer pressure, and travel to Brazil for pipe organ education as part of this year's Arnold Grant program.

These high-impact experiences are made possible by the continued generosity of Ed Arnold H'87, trustee emeritus, and Jeanne Donlevy Arnold H'08, member of the College's Board of Trustees. The Arnolds established The Edward H. Arnold and Jeanne Donlevy Arnold Program for Experiential Education in 2011. Through the program, the Arnolds award up to $50,000 per year to support student-faculty research across the curriculum, independent student summer research or scholarly projects, and independent student domestic or international internships.

Since its inception, the Arnold Grant program has grown exponentially. In its early years, U.S.-based Arnold Grants were awarded for student internships and student-faculty research projects in Massachusetts, New York City, Puerto Rico, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, and Washington, D.C., among others. International research and student internships occurred in England, Hungary, Mexico, the Netherlands, Paraguay, and Spain.

Arnold Grants are awarded through a competitive, systematic process overseen by Dr. Ann Damiano, associate dean of academic affairs, and the Arnold Grant Selection Committee, featuring faculty representatives from the three major academic divisions.

Arnold Grants for Independent Student Summer Research or Scholarly Projects and/or Independent Student Domestic or International Internships

Delaware Art Museum-Summer Domestic Internship

Hannah Dieringer '17, business administration and art & art history

Dieringer will intern with the Education Department at the Delaware Art Museum in summer 2016. She will work on educational programs in the museum and participate in outreach programs at libraries, schools, and parks with the goal of making art accessible to everyone. Dieringer is interested in a career in art administration.

House of Representatives, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania-Summer Domestic Internship

Timothy Markovits '17, digital communications

Markovits received partial funding for an internship with the House of Representatives in the Pennsylvania State Capitol. This opportunity will expose him to the legislative branch of state government, as well as lobbyists, lawyers, and activists.

The Atlantis Project-Summer International Internship

Rebecca Sheedy '17, biology

Sheedy will spend three weeks this summer in Cuenca, Spain, shadowing specialists in the medical profession to gain an insider's view into the Spanish healthcare system. In addition to following physicians throughout their daily activities, Sheedy will teach English to the doctors and nurses during evening hours. This experience will increase her knowledge of healthcare in another country, expand her cultural horizons, and increase her intercultural competence.

The Washington Center-Summer Domestic Internship

Ryan Shesman '16, business administration

Shesman wanted to learn about international business and the College's long-standing program at the Washington Center provided a great opportunity. Shesman secured a 16-week internship in Washington, D.C., to gain experience in this area of business, acknowledging that, though he had learned theory related to international business, he would need real-world experience to put it into practice.

Medical Systems and Health in Cuba-Summer Scholarly Research

Erin Angelini '16, health science and Spanish

Anna Quinn '17, Spanish and global studies

Angelini and Quinn plan to pursue careers in medicine and public health. They will visit Cuba this summer to gain a unique perspective on a developing country's medical system. While in Cuba, they will attend a conference that focuses on health professions, Congreso Internacional Enfermedades y Rehabitacion de Profesionales de Las Artes. This experience will enable the students to advance their research on public health in Central America.

Teaching Lakota Language and Culture-Summer Scholarly Research

Quinn Orris '17, English, psychology, and philosophy

Orris will spend three weeks in June at the Lakota Summer Institute in Fort Yates, N.D., taking coursework on Lakota language training and teaching. This experience builds on skills he acquired at the Lakota Summer Institute in 2014 and 2015. It will enable him to bring Lakota language learning opportunities to the local community. The experience will assist his efforts to recover a language once spoken by his great-great grandmother but now "lost" in his family. Orris aims to restore that loss, for not only his family, but also the future Lakota nation.

Arnold Grants for Student-Faculty Research

"Relationship Among Balance, Lower Limb Asymmetry, and Movement Velocity on Y-Balance Test Performance"

Dr. Marcia Epler, associate professor physical therapy

Erin Ulrich, clinical assistant professor of athletic training and clinical education coordinator

Dr. Joseph Murphy, director of athletic training and assistant professor

Megan Streisel, assistant athletic trainer

Jessica Boyd '15, D'17

Daniel Johnson '15, D'17

Patrick Jones '15, D'17

Katelynne Luckenbaugh '15, D'17

Christian Grove '15, D'17

Adrienne Eshleman '15, D'17

As part of this research grant, physical therapy doctoral students will assist faculty and staff with the balance, asymmetry, and movement evaluation of 40 student-athletes. This follows a pilot study completed earlier this year involving a smaller sample group. Once data is collected, it will be grouped and analyzed with the results being compared to current literature findings. The students will help in the development of the research design, participate in the literature review, and play a primary role in data collection. At the project's completion, the intent is to submit an original research study for consideration in publications and/or as a poster presentation at national conferences.

"Measuring Cultural Characteristics of the Alert-Based User Experience"

Dr. Joel Kline, professor of digital communications

Damian Grosso '16

Through this research grant, Dr. Kline and Grosso are studying Alert-Based User Experience (ABUX), which is a lifestyle that features reactionary behaviors prompted by alerts on digital communication devices. Examples include notifications from a smartphone taking priority over interactions that are face-to-face. The hypothesis is that these ABUX behaviors vary by culture. Dr. Ursula Weisenfeld, dean of master programs M&E at the University of Luneburg in Leuphana University, is assisting with this study, enabling Dr. Kline and Grosso to visit Germany in June to conduct research on German students. This research will be compared to a study of American students.

"Energizing the Organ Culture of Brazil"

Dr. Shelly Moorman-Stahlman, professor of music and College organist

Cody Kelly '16

Kevin Gane '17

Kara Hess '17

Christian Johnson '18

Jerin George '19

Scott Hummel '19

This grant will enable the College's Organ Guild to travel to Sao Paulo and Rio de Janiero, Brazil for a residence at two universities. Dr. Moorman-Stahlman and the students will raise awareness of the pipe organ and teach Brazilian students how to hold a pipe organ encounter.

"Symmetry, Entanglement, and Applications"

Dr. David Lyons, professor of mathematical sciences

Ezekiel Wertz '17, physics

Justin Cammarota '19, physics and mathematics

Dr. Lyons and students will collaborate to achieve advances in the theory and applications of quantum information science through an analysis of key type of symmetry in systems of many quantum bits. This research will build on previous work supported by the National Science Foundation. Students will spend the summer conducting computational experiments and analyzing data and theoretical arguments. When the research is complete, it will be submitted to leading research journals and presented at professional conferences.

"The Relationship Between Genetics and Personality Factors in Peer Pressure Susceptibility"

Dr. Michelle Niculescu, director of neuroscience and associate professor of psychology

Peyton Carper '16

Ashlee Albright '16

Vincent Tranchitella '16

Corrina Parsons '17

Elizabeth Aguilar '17

This grant builds on previous research related to an effective model of peer pressure and related personality characteristics. Dr. Niculescu and the students used this effective model to further explain the genetic correlates to the personality characteristics that affect peer pressure susceptibility. They focused specifically on novelty seeking (dopamine), harm avoidance (serotonin), and reward dependence (norepinephrine). Results of this research will be presented at professional conferences and later submitted for publishing to a journal related to neuroscience, behavior, and genetics.

About Lebanon Valley College

Lebanon Valley College is a private, coeducational college founded in 1866 and dedicated to the liberal arts. The College offers 36 undergraduate majors plus self-designed majors and a range of minors, concentrations, and pre-professional options, as well as graduate degree programs in athletic training, business administration, music education, physical therapy, and science education.

The College has 1,573 full-time undergraduate students and 106 full-time faculty. Students can choose from more than 90 clubs and organizations, and 12 study abroad programs. LVC awards generous academic scholarships to those whose high school records demonstrate a commitment to challenge and achievement.