Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association Graduate Research Award

Cedar Crest College proudly congratulates Ashley Worley, a recent graduate of the Master of Arts in Art Therapy and Counseling (MAATC) program, on receiving the Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association (PAATA) Graduate Research Award for her outstanding capstone project. The award honors emerging art therapy professionals whose scholarship contributes meaningfully to the growing body of knowledge within the profession.

The PAATA Graduate Research Award recognizes exceptional research and capstone projects completed by graduating art therapy students. Submissions are evaluated for their relevance, innovation, and overall quality, and Ashley's work distinguished itself in each of these areas.

As part of this recognition, Ashley will be featured on PAATA's social media channels and honored at the PAATA All-Member Meeting. An important component of the award is the opportunity to share scholarship with the broader art therapy community. Ashley will share the highlights of her capstone project and her research and contributions to the profession at an upcoming PAATA Zoom event.

Ashley's achievement reflects her dedication to the field of art therapy and counseling and her commitment to rigorous scholarship, creativity, and professional growth. Her selection for this award highlights the impact of her research and its potential to inform and inspire future work within the art therapy community.

We also recognize the significance of being nominated for this award by a faculty member, a distinction that speaks to the quality of Ashley's scholarship and the promise of her contributions to the profession.

The annual Lehigh Valley Ecology and Evolutionary Society (LVEES) meeting was held at Cedar Crest College on Saturday, April 11th, 2026. 53 Attendees from the 6 LVAIC schools attended and gave both oral presentations and poster presentations. Cedar Crest College students Serenity Fenton '26, Lillyanna Glass '27 and Alexia Kempski '28, all working in the lab of Dr. Amy Faivre, Professor of Biology, gave poster presentations. Dr. Rich Kliman, Professor of Biology, organized the judging of the oral presentations. Dr. Alyson Brokaw, Assistant Professor Biology, arranged the keynote speaker Dr. Melissa de Waal of Fairleigh Dickinson University with her talk "Symbiosis Under Selection: Eco-Evolutionary Perspectives on the Bat Gut Microbiome".