Penn State Schuylkill to offer biology degree

SCHUYLKILL HAVEN Penn State Schuylkill will offer a Bachelor of Science degree in biology, general biology option starting this summer.

The campus announced last week that it had been approved to offer the program to current students, as well as those being accepted in the summer and fall 2015.

The program tailors to careers requiring broad backgrounds and diverse skills in the biological sciences and graduate studies in many fields of biology. Students can select courses from a variety of areas of contemporary biology.

Career opportunities for graduates of the program include environmental consultants, water quality specialists, teachers and professors, pharmaceutical administrators and chemical technicians. Students can also acquire advanced degrees through graduate study and prepare for careers in medicine or other health-related professions.

The ability to offer a bachelors degree in biology is one of the most exciting things that has happened in the science division during my twenty-five years as a member of the faculty at Penn State Schuylkill, Rod. M. Heisey, biology professor and program coordinator, said in a press release. Having students at the junior and senior level participating in our classes, and with our research projects will be a great asset both for the campus and the science faculty.

Heisey is a plant ecologist and microbial ecologist, teaching courses in microbiology and general biology.

He was the principal investigator on a grant program from the National Science Foundation to renovate and modernize the biology research laboratory at Penn State Schuylkill.

Heisey also helped with the design of the new teaching lab, the Cotler Life Sciences Lab, which was dedicated in January 2013.

His research focuses on chemical interactions of plants and microorganisms. He is currently investigating the ecological role of a toxic chemical produced by tree-of-heaven, a common, alien, invasive tree in Pennsylvania.

Additional faculty in the biology program include Darcy Medica, associate professor of biology and interim director of academic affairs, and Brenna Traver, assistant professor of biology.

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Penn State Schuylkill to offer biology degree