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Biological Sciences Department

Project returns campus fields to nature to support bird populations

| 1 minute to read
A few years ago, biological sciences faculty member Daniel Baldassarre convinced SUNY Oswego to make an earth-friendly and bird-friendly decision to let some underused fields go wild to provide a home for bobolinks and other migrating species.
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Bat researchers exploring a cave as part of the inaugural Global South workshop

Faculty member helps organize workshop gathering bat researchers across Global South

| 4 minutes to read
Biological sciences faculty member Maria Sagot helped organize a first-of-its-kind workshop supporting important research across the Global South on an often-misunderstood yet ecologically vital animal.
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Sheila Sicilia takes part in a dive during a study-abroad trip to Honduras

Study-abroad trip to Honduras allows students to gain experiences, memories

| 4 minutes to read
Roatan, an island in Honduras, is just one of the many locations students can travel to through the study-abroad programs offered at SUNY Oswego. This opportunity allowed students to learn more about ways to address an ecological challenge while acquiring...
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Zoology major and intern Sarah McCauliffe holds a tray of saplings

Constellation Energy CLEAN grant supports Rice Creek’s role in reforestation initiative

| 6 minutes to read
A $25,000 Constellation Leading Environmental Accelerators Network (CLEAN) award will support at least five more years for SUNY Oswego's Rice Creek Field Station playing a key role in a reforestation project supporting trees important to the ecosystem.
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SUNY Oswego students and faculty exploring Tanzania

Summer study-abroad course in Tanzania opens new world to students

| 6 minutes to read
This summer, 15 SUNY Oswego students traveled to Tanzania for the “Biodiversity and Conservation” study-abroad course led by biological sciences faculty members Susan Hammerly and Karen Sime, learning about the complex topic of conserving species while also partaking in an...
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Biological science faculty member Daniel Baldassarre provides an ornithology lesson to visiting students from South Korea

South Korean school group visits SUNY Oswego in program restart

| 4 minutes to read
In late July, SUNY Oswego’s Office of International Education and Programs hosted 18 students and teachers from the SIS International School in Gwangju, South Korea. While the experience itself was fun for participants, it also represented the return of the...
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Image of a total solar eclipse courtesy of NASA

SUNY Oswego plans activities connected to April 8 eclipse

| 4 minutes to read
With the once-in-a-lifetime experience of being in the path of totality for a total solar eclipse on April 8, SUNY Oswego will host student research, viewing opportunities, planetarium shows, children’s activities, lectures from experts and more on its lakeside campus.
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Student and staff volunteers planting the alvar garden outside Shineman Center.

New alvar gardens pay homage to rare North American ecosystem

| 5 minutes to read
A freshly planted garden outside of the Shineman Center aims to pay homage to incredible rare and native ecosystems found in the Finger Lakes region.
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SUNY Oswego student Naw Ka Paw Paw, who earned a position in SUNY’s 2022 Premedical Opportunity Program, is shown among stacks of medical books

Oswego student earns SUNY EOP ambassador role

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego senior biology major Naw Ka Paw Paw recently joined a distinguished list of SUNY Educational Opportunity student ambassadors, a role in which she advocates for and promotes this program that opens doors to higher education for students.
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Visitors of all ages tour the SUNY Oswego greenhouse in Shineman Center

Oct. 20 event welcomes visitors to plant museum and greenhouse

| 2 minutes to read
Two of SUNY Oswego’s plant-focused facilities will open their doors to visitors during a joint Fall Open House on Friday, Oct 20, 2023, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
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Students from SUNY Oswego and Cortland look at fish being reared to restock the region

Grant to support conservation, restoration of native fish species

| 7 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego, Cortland join forces with USGS and others on large-scale Great Lakes native fish conservation and restoration project
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A pair of baboons in the wild grooming

Friendships can help overcome early trauma, faculty research finds

| 4 minutes to read
Forming friendships can help mitigate the effects of trauma early in life, according to new research released by a team led by SUNY Oswego biological sciences faculty member Liz Lange. While the study involved baboons, researchers see tangible connections to...
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From left, Kaitlin Flint, Adriana Militello, Brooke Goodman and Kaitlyn Jesmonth at the April ceremony in Albany celebrating their Chancellor's Awards for Student Excellence

Four Oswego students win SUNY Chancellor’s Awards

| 3 minutes to read
Four SUNY Oswego students have earned the 2023 SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Student Excellence, the highest such recognition in the state system. These awards recognize outstanding accomplishments inside and outside the classroom for childhood education-English major Kaitlin Flint, zoology major...
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Attendees of the Feathered Friends Festival will have the opportunity to work with SUNY Oswego faculty and students to gently interact with birds

Rice Creek to host Feathered Friends Festival on May 6

| 3 minutes to read
Join Rice Creek Field Station for a Feathered Friend Festival on Saturday, May 6, for a day packed with all things birds -- from fun avian activities to up-close encounters with real birds.
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Senior zoology major Danielle Marichal will survey the damage done by an invasive species, and track another species introduced to contain them

Campus grant supports student project studying invasive species

| 3 minutes to read
Senior zoology major Danielle Marichal will survey the damage done by an invasive species, and track another species introduced to contain them, thanks to a campus grant.
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A black swallowtail butterfly perches on a purple flowering plant

RCA Reflections to host 'A Life with Butterflies' on May 13

| 2 minutes to read
The next installment of Rice Creek Associates (RCA) Reflections will feature Mike Holy discussing "A Life with Butterflies" at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 13, at Rice Creek Field Station.
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Canal Forest Restoration Project interns Julia Zinszer and Elizabeth Triana show some plants

SUNY Oswego’s Arbor Day celebration features invited speakers and tree giveaway

| 3 minutes to read
For the fourth year in a row, members of the campus community and general public are invited to celebrate National Arbor Day with the Canal Forest Restoration Project (CFRP) team at SUNY Oswego’s Rice Creek Field Station. This year’s celebration...
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Senior zoology major Brooke Goodman shows off some of the window stickers at Rice Creek that serve as deterrents for birds

Zoology major’s project works toward safer flightpaths for birds

| 4 minutes to read
Senior zoology student Brooke Goodman is working toward saving the lives of birds on the SUNY Oswego campus by adding window stickers to buildings around campus to divert feathered friends from them.
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The SUNY Oswego herbarium is providing hands-on opportunities for student researchers helping preserve and provide access to a vast collection

SUNY Oswego herbarium providing research benefits, training students through NSF grant

| 4 minutes to read
The SUNY Oswego herbarium will preserve and provide access to natural history while giving 20 students paid research experience, thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
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Dan Baladassare holding a phainopepla, a breed of bird that is gothic black and looks like a cardinal

SUNY Oswego biological sciences professor's bird migration data support Audubon Society's new interactive digital platform

| 4 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego biological sciences faculty member Daniel Baldassarre provides migration data for the phainopepla to Audubon Society bird migration tracking tool.
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Sydney Waloven collects water samples for a research study

Professor’s projects support Great Lakes ecosystem

| 5 minutes to read
Biological sciences faculty member Nicholas Sard is engaged in several grant-supported projects related to helping support the Great Lakes ecosystem.
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SUNY Oswego student Naw Ka Paw Paw, who earned a position in SUNY’s 2022 Premedical Opportunity Program, is shown among stacks of medical books

SUNY Oswego student earns opportunity to advance medical ambitions

| 3 minutes to read
For SUNY Oswego student Naw Ka Paw Paw, earning a position in SUNY’s 2022 Premedical Opportunity Program will continue building toward a dream that could lead to establishing clinics in her homeland of Myanmar.
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Student lab employee Lindsay Fluman checks samples imported into the new grain lab, a partnership between the Port of Oswego Authority and SUNY Oswego

College, Port partner on new grain lab facilities to feed opportunities

| 4 minutes to read
A May 10 ribbon cutting ceremony marked the official opening of a new $15 million Grain Export Center, a milestone in a partnership between the Port of Oswego Authority and the SUNY Oswego that preserves the health of consumers and...
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‘Not-test’ results take flight in zoology classes

| 7 minutes to read
A catchy music video with nearly 27,000 views on Twitter. Tinder-style profiles of birds and their mating habits. Comic strips, sculptures and paintings.
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Junior zoology major Brooke Goodman is working on a project tracking the songs of birds and how they are impacted by human noise pollution. It's one of many wonderful opportunities she enjoys through the biological sciences program, helpful faculty and the unique resources in Rice Creek Field Station.

Brooke Goodman

SUNY Oswego senior zoology major Jamie Perrin collects environmental DNA from recent winter melt

Campus grant supports study of barred owl environmental DNA

| 3 minutes to read
SCA grant supports research of barred owl environmental DNA research by SUNY Oswego senior zoology major Jamie Perrin.
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Fingerprint image, courtesy of WikiMedia

Student's Quest presentation to focus on fingerprint research

| 3 minutes to read
Discussion of groundbreaking forensic research of biochemistry major Michaela Gysbers is among the sessions on Quest day looking to make an imprint on audiences.
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Junior zoology major Brooke Goodman checks on some automatic recording units in Rice Creek Field Station in summer 2021, part of an ongoing study on how human noise pollution impacts birds' song repertoires

Taking note: Campus grant supports student study of human impact on bird songs

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego junior zoology major Brooke Goodman is analyzing how human noise pollution impacts the repertoire of Northern cardinals with support from a campus grant.
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SUNY Oswego to offer free biotech camp this summer for high schoolers

| 3 minutes to read
This summer, SUNY Oswego will launch the Biotechnology Training Camp for High School Students, which will provide local youth with opportunities to take part in cutting-edge research and learn more about having a future in science.
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A monarch butterfly sits on a bright pink flower

Public invited to attend annual 'Experience Rice Creek' scholarly symposium

| 2 minutes to read
Rice Creek Associates (RCA), the support group for SUNY Oswego’s Rice Creek Field Station, invites members of the public to an annual symposium highlighting the scholarly work of RCA small grants awardees on Saturday, Nov. 13.
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Skylar Bechard

| 2 minutes to read
Skylar Bechard came from Southern California to SUNY Oswego to join a rising Laker volleyball team and a nationally recognized zoology program. She’s one of many student-athletes looking forward to the return of live fall sports contests next week.
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Cardinal study gives flight to undergraduate research opportunities

| 3 minutes to read
Every morning along the trails of Rice Creek Field Station, a faculty member and three students set out for a unique research opportunity that examines ways cardinals adapt to humans in different environments.
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Biological sciences faculty member Karen Sime shows the inside of insect nests, one of her research areas

Biological sciences faculty member joins national AASCU leadership program

| 3 minutes to read
Biological sciences faculty member Karen Sime is among 35 higher education professionals in the country selected for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ (AASCU) prestigious Emerging Leaders Program (ELP).
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Collaborative research trying to crack the eggshell code

| 3 minutes to read
A collaboration between faculty in the field and in the lab with outstanding student researchers tries to crack the code of what eggshell variations might mean.
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Christian DiBiase sits in a Shineman Center lab surrounded by research equipment

Oswego biology major earns SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence

| 4 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego senior biology major Christian DiBiase recently earned a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, the highest such recognition in the statewide system, for outstanding work spanning classrooms, research labs and fieldwork to help others.
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Kamal Mohamed, Rice Creek Field Station director, and Laurel Artz, Rice Creek Association president, transplant tree seedlings as part of the Canal Forest Restoration Project

Rice Creek to host Arbor Day webinar on April 30

| 5 minutes to read
For the second year in a row, members of the public are invited to celebrate National Arbor Day with the Canal Forest Restoration Project (CFRP) team at Rice Creek Field Station via a free online webinar conference on Friday, April...
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Kristen Haynes presents online Exploring Nature program

Rice Creek offering live online Exploring Nature, research programs

| 2 minutes to read
Rice Creek Field Station staff and associates are finding creative ways to connect with the public this summer, including a weekly online Exploring Nature Live and programs on the station's research.
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Oswego Health picks up 16,600 donated gloves for health-care heroes

Science programs donate 16,600 gloves to support Oswego Hospital

| 1 minute to read
Faculty and staff in SUNY Oswego science programs found a way to lend a big hand to the Oswego Hospital by donating 16,600 gloves to Oswego Hospital.
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A recovered owl takes flight at Rice Creek Field Station

Comeback story: Injured owl found at Rice Creek recovers, returns home

| 5 minutes to read
A great horned owl found injured at SUNY Oswego’s Rice Creek Field Station recently completed her comeback story, released back into her wild home on Jan. 10.
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SUNY Oswego 2018 zoology graduate Gabrielle Solomon, shown here working on a current conservation project in Hawaii

Student-faculty team publishes study on invasive species

| 3 minutes to read
The work of four SUNY Oswego student researchers and a faculty member tracking and potentially combatting an invasive species -- for which they made the first discovery in Oswego County -- recently earned publication.
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Daniel Baldassarre, a current SUNY Oswego biological science faculty member, recently published research that found the phainopepla (or Northern cardinal) is only the third kind of bird with a particular and peculiar migration pattern.

Faculty member publishes breakthrough research on bird migration

| 4 minutes to read
Research from Daniel Baldassarre, a current SUNY Oswego biological sciences faculty member, found only the third kind of bird with a particular and peculiar migration pattern -- which captured widespread attention and opens the door to even more research on...
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Students learning by traveling across Tanzania

Students learn about conservation, biology traveling Tanzania

| 4 minutes to read
Over the summer, 13 SUNY Oswego students from six majors learned about biology, conservation and culture first-hand through a class that traveled across northern Tanzania.
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Students work with faculty mentor in a biology lab

Faculty honored for outstanding research accomplishments

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego honored two faculty members with the Award of Excellence in Research and Sponsored Programs, based on outstanding dedication to seek and obtain external funding, and the cumulative funds in which they have received.
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Arizona residents and New York state canal system boaters George and Jane Pauk join SUNY Oswego's Kamal Mohamed in a lab at Rice Creek Field Station

Biological sciences professor assists Canal Forest Restoration Project

| 4 minutes to read
Dr. Kamal Mohamed, director of SUNY Oswego's Rice Creek Biological Field Station, has signed on to assist -- and expand -- a citizen-science project to repopulate white oak and white pine trees along the New York state canal system and...
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Poongodi Geetha-Loganathan, an award-winning member of biological sciences faculty, in a lab

Professor honored for 'patient, thorough' mentorship of student researchers

| 2 minutes to read
Biological sciences faculty member Poongodi Geetha-Loganathan -- "Dr. Poon" as her student research assistants know her -- has earned the 2019 Provost's Award for Mentoring in Scholarly and Creative Activity.
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Manna Job shows pride in college's research accomplishments at Sigma Xi international conference

Student researcher earns international recognition

| 4 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego senior biology major Manna Job recently earned a top prize at the Sigma Xi International Conference for research on how a widely used chemical impacts the environment.
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Scientists working in a wetland

Faculty, students team with county agency to protect fen

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego faculty and student scientists working to monitor and protect an environmentally sensitive Oswego County habitat of endangered species also plan to work with the Oswego County Soil and Water Conservation District to hold neighborhood education sessions about how...
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Sharona Ginsberg congratulates Tenaja Smith-Butler

Solutions-seeking student wins library network award

| 2 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego’s 2018 Northern New York Library Network Outstanding Student Employee award honored makerspace assistant Tenaja Smith-Butler, a three-year Penfield Library employee.
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Students pose with elephants in background

Tanzania's diverse wildlife, conservation measures inspire students

| 4 minutes to read
Giraffes and elephants grazing alongside cattle and goats. Lions lounging in acacia and sausage trees. Terrain as varied as Kilimanjaro's mountain, the Serengeti's plains and Lake Manyara's wetlands and woodlands. Elite, heavily armed "rhino rangers." Strict rules on human-wildlife contact.
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Students work with faculty mentor in a biology lab

NSF grant supports professor, undergraduates studying cell movement

| 3 minutes to read
Thanks to a nearly $300,000 National Science Foundation grant, undergraduate researchers, starting this summer, are working with Dr. Yulia Artemenko of SUNY Oswego's biological sciences faculty to investigate how single cells determine where to move, which could have implications for...
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The Environmental Research Center features faculty, staff and students collaborating on important lake research

Lake Ontario researchers finding cleaner waterway

| 5 minutes to read
Ongoing research by three New York colleges shows that Great Lakes contaminants continue a welcome and dramatic downward drop, said project investigator James Pagano, director of SUNY Oswego’s Environmental Research Center.
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Dr. Hilary McManus in Antarctica for research

Alumna to discuss scientific journey to Antarctica

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego alumna Dr. Hilary McManus will return to campus to discuss her role in a global initiative for women in science and her February journey to Antarctica at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, April 26.
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Jennifer Olori and Meghan Gillen observe computer model of animal skull

Grant helps student researchers gain skills studying skulls of ancient animals

| 4 minutes to read
Dr. Jennifer Olori of the biological sciences faculty recently won a National Science Foundation grant for a project designed to provide undergraduates -- particularly women, who remain underrepresented in sciences and math -- with research experiences focused on head-first burrowing...
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Wooden footbridge over wetlands at Rice Creek Field Station

Nature walks, stories highlight fall at Rice Creek Field Station

| 2 minutes to read
Autumn at SUNY Oswego's Rice Creek Field Station will bring nature education programming in the form of Rice Creek Rambles, Story Hours for children and plenty of opportunities to tour the updated headquarters.
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Cliff-Simon Vital praises Summer Scholars program, research opportunities

| 2 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego’s Summer Scholars program is one of many avenues funding and making research available for students. And students like Cliff-Simon Vital enjoy the opportunities.
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Lauren Saroli: 2017 SUNY Chancellor’s Award winner

| 1 minute to read
Zoology major Lauren Saroli was 1 of 4 Oswego students earning 2017 Chancellor's Awards for Student Excellence, the highest such honor in the SUNY system.
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Allysa Swilley kisses giraffe

April's keeper: 2015 grad cares for world's most famous giraffe

| 1 minute to read
Millions around the world followed the pregnancy of April the giraffe -- and the care of her favorite keeper, Allysa Swilley, a 2015 SUNY Oswego zoology graduate.
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Students doing collections work in lab

Grant supports student experiences with Rice Creek collection

| 3 minutes to read
A state-administered grant program recently boosted its longtime support of Rice Creek Field Station to $175,000 over five years -- a $10,000-a-year bump that has enabled hiring of student curators for animal collections and much more.
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Restoration project brings college's plant museum into the light

| 4 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego’s recently opened herbarium features more than 50,000 dried and mounted plant specimens in a historically significant collection that links the main campus’ scientific education and research mission with that of Rice Creek Field Station.
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Students digging

Fossil-hunting students flourish in New Mexico dig

| 4 minutes to read
Thanks to a National Geographic Society Committee for Research and Exploration grant, three SUNY Oswego undergraduates spent three weeks at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, this summer unearthing such fossils as the tiny jaws of ancient animals—and the fossilized bones of...
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Grant supports college's effort to protect rare moth, turtle habitat

| 3 minutes to read
SUNY Oswego faculty and students have taken on a project to slow or stop the advance of cattails threatening to choke the sensitive Oswego County habitat of two rare species, the bog buckmoth and bog turtle.Biological sciences faculty members Dr....
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Port of Oswego welcomes SUNY Oswego co-op workers

| 1 minute to read
SUNY Oswego cooperative education student employees William Ernest and Alison Taylor (from left) speak with Port of Oswego Executive Director Zelko Kirincich and college President Deborah F. Stanley, a strong supporter of college-community partnerships that spur economic development.
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SUNY Oswego researchers share new grant to monitor fish for pollutants

| 4 minutes to read
Under a $1.5 million share of an Environmental Protection Agency grant, SUNY Oswego and its Environmental Research Center will continue in a research partnership that has documented marked declines in older chemical pollutants in the Great Lakes.“Most legacy chemical compounds...
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Oswego scientist on team reporting findings on tissue regeneration in Nature

| 2 minutes to read
Dr. Jennifer Olori of SUNY Oswego’s biological sciences faculty co-authored research published Oct. 26 in the international journal Nature suggesting that regeneration of limbs, unique in modern salamanders, may have been a widespread feature that other four-legged vertebrates lost in...
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Summer day, Sheldon Hall exterior

Academic advisement award honors three at SUNY Oswego

| 4 minutes to read
The SUNY Oswego President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Advisement for 2015 will honor biological sciences staff member Lisa Brancato, Mary Rodgers of the finance faculty in the School of Business and Karen Wolford, professor of psychology. The honorees will...
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NSF grant to Oswego professor to offer student research opportunities

| 4 minutes to read
A major National Science Foundation grant recognizes the research and accomplishments of SUNY Oswego biological sciences faculty member Christopher Chandler while providing research opportunities for his students at Oswego and overseas.
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