SUNY Potsdam Congratulates 2015 Walker Fellowship Winners

Awards for Regional Research Presented to Faculty from Clarkson, SLU, SUNY ESF and SUNY Potsdam

POTSDAM, NY (05/21/2015)(readMedia)-- The Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at SUNY Potsdam is pleased to announce the winners of the T. Urling and Mabel Walker Research Fellowship Programs for 2015.

Nine area professors were awarded fellowships to support research projects. They include faculty members from Clarkson University, the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, SUNY Potsdam and St. Lawrence University.

The 2015 Walker Fellowship winners include:

Clarkson University

Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science Costel C. Darie and Research Assistant Professor Alisa G. Woods of Clarkson University were awarded $5,000 for their research on autism spectrum disorder in Northern New York children. They are using a technique called mass spectrometry to study protein biomarkers in children from Northern New York, to try to develop a potential autism diagnostic test and to understand the potential causes of autism in the region. The researchers have already identified several potential protein biomarkers, and this study will follow up by conducting a larger analysis of 32 participants from St. Lawrence, Franklin and Clinton counties. The project is being conducted in collaboration with the SUNY Plattsburgh Neuropsychology Clinic, where assessments of behavior are being collected by neuropsychologists Dr. Laci Charette and Dr. Jeanne Ryan.

Professor Charles J. Robinson, director of Clarkson University's Center for Rehabilitation Engineering Science & Technology, and Professor of Operations and Information Systems Boris Jukic, director of business analytics, were awarded $5,000 for their project, "Recycling as a Viable Industry for Supported Employment of Those with Disability." A group of engineering and MBA students are working to help St. Lawrence County's NYSARC program improve its recycling redemption facility in Massena, as well as at other locations in the county. In the past, such supported employment workshops have enabled thousands of New Yorkers with disability to hold a regular job as they serve their communities. Following the passage of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, individuals with disabilities who are 24 years old or younger will no longer be allowed to work for less than the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, unless they first receive pre-employment transition services at school and try vocational rehabilitation services. NYSARC is an affiliate of the New York State Industries for the Disabled, which recognizes that this recent act could make the concept of supported employment a thing of the past. Therefore, the organization is partnering with Clarkson to see whether a recycling enterprise employing fully-paid workers with disability could remain a viable entity, through the use of enhanced technology. The NYSID Cultivating Resources for Employment with Assistive Technology Program is also funding the recycling redesign effort.

St. Lawrence University

Carol Cady, a Geographical Information Systems specialist and maps librarian at St. Lawrence University, was awarded $4,938 for her project, "Digital Agricultural Atlas of St. Lawrence County." She will partner with the St. Lawrence County Planning Office to develop the atlas, which will contain digital mapping files that will be made available to the public on an interactive website. The files will include critical information to assist the farming industry, including aerial imagery, U.S. Department of Agriculture land capability classifications on soil suitability for use as cropland and response to management, land constraints that can hinder agricultural production, municipal land use regulations and current Agricultural District boundaries. The creation of such a comprehensive overview will significantly improve the efficiency of land use in the county, and in turn, its overall economic health.

Mindy Pitre, an assistant professor of anthropology at St. Lawrence University was awarded $5,095 for her study, "Death in St. Lawrence County: Mapping the Poorhouse Cemetery." The bioarchaeologist will map the St. Lawrence Poorhouse Cemetery, located on the Eastern bank of the Grasse River in Canton, using ground penetrating radar, GPS, GIS and 3D scanning. The results will assist with the interdisciplinary Death in St. Lawrence County project and are critical for documentation, interpretation and preservation of the cemetery, revealing invaluable insights about life in American poorhouses in the 19th and 20th centuries, and giving voice to many of the county's most vulnerable and long-forgotten residents.

SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry

Stacy McNulty, the associate director of SUNY ESF's Adirondack Ecological Center, was awarded $4,810 for her project, "Assessment of the Role of Recreation in the Distribution and Prevalence of Amphibian Chytrid Fungus in the Adirondack Park and Northern New York." Chytridiomycosis is a disease pathogen that has caused global declines in many amphibian populations and the extinction of at least 200 species worldwide. Amphibian chytrid is caused by the fungi Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and B. salamandrivorans (Bs), and is introduced via human activity. Native species in the Adirondack region, such as the iconic spring peeper and the brightly marked spotted salamander, could be at risk. McNulty will map the current distribution of the fungi and the future risk of introduction, using field sampling and GIS modeling, from St. Lawrence County to Essex County. The New York Natural Heritage Program also supports this project.

SUNY Potsdam

Robert Ewy, an assistant professor of biology at SUNY Potsdam, was awarded $5,000 for a project on "Developing and Promoting Sustainability in the North Country." Working with Raymond Bowdish, a university instruction specialist in the biology department, Ewy's research emphasis will focus on renewable energy production and indoor food production. They will begin a virtual outreach program by using cameras and digital sensors to show streaming images and provide environmental data from the College's greenhouse, as well as an outdoor "willow cam" focusing on the willow field that has been established as part of research on developing willows as a biofuel. They will also concentrate on developing methods whereby local households can easily grow produce indoors during the winter months, using LED grow lights that use minimal energy. This project is supported by the Wiser Institute for Sustainability and Ecological Research at SUNY Potsdam, and by Never Tire Farm, Lisbon, N.Y.

Clifford S. Rossiter, an associate professor of chemistry at SUNY Potsdam, received $5,000 for his study, "Treatment of Bovine Mastitis with Essential Oils," which expounds upon research that was funded by a past Walker Fellowship in 2012. Bovine mastitis is considered the most costly disease of dairy cows for North Country farmers, but organic farmers cannot use antibiotics to treat these bacterial infections in cows. Rossiter will research using essential oils of thyme, oregano and cinnamon dissolved in ethanol gel using naturally occurring emulsifiers to treat infection. This research ultimately aims to create a new formulation that will allow farmers to treat bacterial infections in dairy cows while still adhering to organic regulations.

Partner institutions for the Walker Fellowship include: Adirondack Community College, Clarkson University, Clinton Community College, Jefferson Community College, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, North Country Community College, Paul Smith's College, St. Lawrence University, SUNY Canton, SUNY Plattsburgh and SUNY Potsdam. Full- or part-time teaching and non-teaching faculty from the 11 institutions are eligible to apply. The program is designed to promote greater community-academic cooperation.

Funding for this program comes from the Campaign for the T. Urling and Mabel Walker Research Fellowship Program, which is administered by the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at SUNY Potsdam.

For more information about the Walker Fellowship program, please visit www.potsdam.edu/faculty/research/walkerfellowship.cfm.

Founded in 1816, and located on the outskirts of the beautiful Adirondack Park, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America's first 50 colleges. SUNY Potsdam currently enrolls approximately 4,300 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its handcrafted education, challenging liberal arts and sciences core, excellence in teacher training and leadership in the performing and visual arts. Empowered by a culture of creativity, the campus community recently launched Take the Lead: The Campaign for Potsdam, which aims to raise $32 million by the College's bicentennial in 2016.

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