Castleton University’s McNair program provides promising undergraduate students the opportunity to explore and conduct research alongside a faculty mentor while also learning more about graduate study. 15 Castleton students representing a variety of academic majors are participating in this year’s summer research program.
“The McNair program allows eligible McNair Scholars to spend the summer working with a faculty mentor on a research project of their choosing in any discipline. This opportunity allows students the chance to experience actively doing academic research in a field they are interested in pursuing, which is invaluable preparation for the rigors of study at the graduate level," said Amanda Richardson, director of the McNair Scholars Program.
Nursing major Sandra Guyette is conducting research on genetic screening to identify the downstream partner of SMa0113 alongside Associate Professor Dr. Preston Garcia. They’re comparing various types of bacteria and their structures to determine how the bacteria functions and survives.
“I’m taking bacteria and growing it on specific plates with specific antibiotics, and bacteria that has excess GFP glows brighter green, and bacteria that doesn’t have any GFP doesn’t glow. So, I pick up the bacteria that glows, and those that don’t, and run those through PCR. After I run it through that, we’re looking for a specific gene sequence,” she said.
Guyette is interested in continuing her education in Castleton’s new Master of Science in Nursing program and wanted to participate in the McNair Scholars Program because of its focus on preparing first-generation students like her for graduate studies.
Biology major Kris Thomas is also working in a lab alongside Dr. Garcia, focusing on a type of bacteria that forms a symbiotic relationship with legumes.
“There’s some metabolic pathways involved in that and we’re isolating those pathways and trying to determine the molecules at play,” he said.
English major Trinity Robichaud’s summer research experience has been different from students in science or social science disciplines, as she is undertaking research work in the humanities under the mentorship of English Professor Christopher Boettcher.
“I’m doing more literary analysis and I wanted to look at the recent surge of popularity among dystopian fiction, so I’m focusing on The Hunger Games since that’s one of the most popular recent series. I’m looking at the way that propaganda and social media is used to represent the main character and then comparing that to recent trends in social media and representation of the self,” she said.
Biology major Garrett Wilcox is working in a lab alongside Associate Professor and Natural Sciences Chair Dr. Andrew Vermilyea. His research focuses on phosphorus in water, comparing water near farmland and forest streams.
“Since Otter Creek is adjacent to a significant amount of farmland, we’re looking at how that area might be different than streams that are from more up mountain or further away from farmland.”
Below is a list of McNair Scholars completing summer research and the faculty mentor(s):
Student | Major | Faculty Mentor |
Jamie Boyle | Multidisciplinary Studies (Education) | Deborah Waggett |
Kassidy Buley | Health Science | Rebekah Peterson |
Zachary Chagnon | Psychology | Gregory Engel |
Sandra Guyette | Nursing | Preston Garcia |
Skyler Hulser | Political Science | Brendan Lalor |
Chas Jewett | Marketing | Timothy Thibodeau |
Owen Kretschmer | Exercise Science | Andrea Corcoran |
Sierra Maxwell | Multidisciplinary Studies (Education) | Michael Reeves |
Kameryn Norse | Global Studies | Patricia van der Spuy and Sam Davis-Boyd |
Trinity Robichaud | English | Christopher Boettcher |
Linda Rodriguez | Psychology | Lacy Skinner |
Kaitlin Sherber | Multidisciplinary Studies (Education) | Angela Sillars |
Paul Tetreault | Statistics | Richard Clark |
Kristopher Thomas | Biology | Preston Garcia |
Garrett Wilcox | Biology | Andrew Vermilyea |
The McNair Scholars will present the results of their work on Friday, September 10, 2021, at the McNair Summer Research Symposium.
The Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, also known as the McNair Scholars Program, was established by Congress in 1986 in memory of astronaut and renowned laser physicist Ronald E. McNair. The program is a federally-funded TRIO program administered by the U.S. Department of Education. Since 2017, Castleton University has been one of 151 institutions across the country to participate in the McNair Scholars Program, which encourages low-income and first-generation students, as well as students from groups that that are under-represented in doctoral study, to pursue graduate study.