Below is a summary of previous research projects conducted by the College of Arts & Sciences faculty and students in a number of diverse fields. Through a gift from the Seidler family, the College is given the ability to encourage faculty from all disciplines to participate in this incredible opportunity.
Summer 2022 - Spring 2023
| Faculty | Student | department | project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anaya, Christina | Karla Mendoza Mackenzie Beck-Gibson |
Biological Sciences | Freshwater gastropods as parasite biodiversity indicators in Southwest Florida |
| Cimarusti, Tom | Victoria Paulino de Souza | Bower School of Music & The Arts/Music | Reimagining Spanish Opera: Astor Piazzolla's "Maria de Buenos Aires" and Daniel Roble's "El condor pasa" |
| Demers, Nora | Jorge Garcia Acosta Rachael Rerrie |
Biological Sciences | Endocrine disruptors in our waters; evaluating contamination using mosquitofish as a model organism |
| Dhumal, Nilesh | Mary Richardson | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Influence of cation symmetry on normal vibrational frequency in mid and far IR of imidazolium-based ionic liquids: Simulation studies |
| Feng, Peng | Dennis Whitener | Mathematics | A Mathematical Model to Understand Tuberculosis Granulomas Formation and Its Impact on Disease Progression |
| Fortin, Andrea | Melissa Williams | Integrated Studies | Kindness, Empathy, and Compassion: A Study of The Impact and Challenges of Student Course-Based Service Learning |
| Griffin, Conan | Shu Ting Wang | Language & Literature/English | Understanding & Learning How to Improve DWF Rates for Online Classes |
| Hutchinson, Jeff | Devin Arena | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Searching for Quark Interacting Dark Matter at the Future Circular Collider |
| Insko, Erik | Calvin Finley | Mathematics | Applying graph theory to sports data analytics |
| Loscuito, John | Sarah Baker | Bower School of Music & The Arts/Art | FGCU Art Galleries Permanent Collection Oral Histories and Exhibition |
| McManus, Greg | Damian Hernandez | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Removing toxic lead from Southwest Florida water sources via porous Metal-Organic Frameworks |
| Price, Sarah | Cierra Barron | Communication & Philosophy/Communication | Pronouns and Support for Gender Diverse Students |
| Reilly, John | Anthony Valenzano Justin Hogue |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Expansion of FGCU Micro-Brewery and the development of a Food Science and Fermentation Minor |
| Von Cannon, Michael | Keyshawn Frazier | Language & Literature/English | Eagle Podcast Challenge: An Exploration of New Media and the Public Humanities |
| Wagle, Durgesh | David Hardy | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Bio-Based Deep Eutectic Solvents: A Non-Aqueous Media for Preservation of Nucleic Acid-Based Vaccines |
| Watanabe, Ken | Max Smuda | Chemistry & Physics/Physics | Multiwavelength Observations of Blazars |
Summer 2021-Spring 2022
| Faculty | Student | department | project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bacalzo, Dan | Makayla Davis | Bower School of Music & The Arts/Theatre | Preparing Moliere's The Misanthrope for Stage Production |
| Boyce, Greg | Marisa Luz | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Employing Biocatalytic Desymmetrization in the Synthesis of Complex |
| Brown, Trent | Brooklyn Webb | Bower School of Music & The Arts/Music | Study of the Impact of the Feldenkrais Method Awareness Through Movement Activities in Music Conducting Students and Choral Ensemble Participants |
|
Bugarin, Alejandro |
Bryan Ortega | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Sustainable Synthesis of New Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells |
|
Condori, Alberto |
Sierra Edelstein | Mathematics | Exponentially isometric matrices in low dimensions |
| Emer, Sherri | Ashlee Brentlinger William Staeb |
Biological Sciences | The force is strong with… mechanosensitive receptors: The distribution of force-detecting TRP proteins and associated bone remodling cells in spaceflight specimens |
| May, Melissa | Stephanie Browning | Marine & Earth Sciences | Genetic identification and quantification of larval bivalves in Southwest Florida |
| McManus, Greg | Arleth Ortiz Villa | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Water Harvesting from Air to Deliver Fresh Water via Novel Hybrid Materials |
| Rotz, Rachel | Lane Davis Jasmine Morejon |
Marine & Earth Sciences | Investigating the Effects of Storm Tide Inundation on Barrier Island Groundwater and Vegetation Vulnerability |
| Urakawa, Toshi | Victoria Lowers | Biological Sciences | Genetic Engineering of Soybean Plants for Manufacture of An Edible Drug to Treat Insulin Response Disorders |
| Wagle, Durgesh Vinod | Elizabeth Recker | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Bio-Based Deep Eutectic Solvents: A Non-Aqueous Media for Preservation of Nucleic Acid-Based Vaccines |
Summer 2020-Spring 2021
| Faculty | Student | department | project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adhikari, Puspa L. | Zachary Tabaac | Marine & Earth Science/Marine Science | The Distribution of Emerging Contaminants in Surface Sediments in Southwest Florida |
| Baron, Michael | Melissa Sanchez Sandra Escribano |
Bower School of Music & the Arts/Music | A comparison of Piano Pedagogical Methods in Cuba and the United States, and an investigation into unknown classical Cuban music. |
| Bugarin, Alejandro |
Abby Lewis |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Elimination of Trace Metallic Impurities in Drug Syntheses |
| Hoetzlein, Rama | Angela Humphrey Joseph Adams |
Bower School of Music & the Arts | An Open Library for Animation & Motion Studies in Undergraduate Digital Media Education |
| Hutchinson, Jeffrey | Noah Boyar | Social Sciences/History | Searching for Lepton Interacting Dark Matter Signals in the Future Circular Collider |
| Inkso, Erik | Viktoriya Bardenova Vincent Ciarcia |
Mathematics/Math | Modeling Partially Random Walks on Graphs |
| Lambrecht, Daniel | Grace Anderson Ieda Andrade |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Medicinal Drug Synthesis Using Green Chemistry ("MediGreen") |
| Meij, Jan Martijn | Nathen Garcia | Social Sciences/Sociology | Sex and Drugs at FGCU: An Exploration of Gen Z at a Florida Southwestern University |
| Miller, Amy | Frances Elmore | Social Sciences/Sociology | What Constitutes Consent and Who Reports?: Understanding FGCU Students' Perceptions of Nonconsensual Sexual Contact |
| Mujtaba, Mustafa | Danielle Fletcher-Williams | Biological Sciences/Biology | The antifungal properties of short cytokine mimetic and cationic peptides |
| Paull, Daniel | Jennii Burrell | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Protected yet highly active palladium catalysts: Design, and providing collaborative cancer research in the undergraduate lab curriculum |
| Reilly, John T. | Zach Hutcherson Ben Siegel Drew Brady |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Scaling up of a bench-top, microbrewery to a 1/2 barrel professional system |
| Urakawa, Toshi | Julia Davis Elizabeth Dahedl |
Ecology & Environmental Sudies/Environmental | Mitigating toxic cyanobacterial blooms using amino acids |
| Wagle, Durgesh Vinod | Mary Richardson | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Ionic Liquids: A Key to Minimize Sulfar Oxides (Sox) Emissions and Creating Sustainable Environment |
| Watanabe, Ken | Martin Marks | Chemistry & Physics/Physics | Search for coincident events between NASA's ASIM mission and GRT-WF/JAEA Gamma-Detector |
Summer 2019-Spring 2020
| faculty | student | department | project |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Allen | Lexi Velte | Language & Literature/English | The Man Who Invented Florida, a screenplay about the life of Carl Fisher |
| Michael Baron | Fernando Lopez Flores | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Music | Bolivian Classical Piano Music, and a Comparison of Piano Pedagogical Methods in Bolivia and the United States |
| Greg Boyce | Daniel Quiroz | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | The concise total synthesis of khusiol: a neurite growth promoting natural product with a unique structure |
| Ju Chou | Anakaria Gomez-Hernandez | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Characterization of Gold Nanoparticles (AuNPs) Fabricated from Green Synthesis and Developing Optical Probes to Investigate |
| Marilyn Cruz-Alvarez | Rodrigo Tomas, Grace Dorton | Biological Sciences/Biology | Molecular analysis of flowering in Melaleuca quinquenervia |
| Don Duke | Abigail Kruger | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Marine Science | Ready for the Next Hurricane Irma? Predicting Flood Conditions by Linking Precipitation to Surface and Groundwater Flows On, and from the FGCU Campus by Monitoring Campus Ponds |
| Serri Emer | Fane Antione, Sabrina Soto | Biological Sciences/Biology | May the force be with… The distribution of mechanosensitive protein receptors and bone remodeling cells in spaceflight specimens |
| Jay Horn | James D’Amico, Allison Boza, Alex Amador | Biological Sciences/Biology | Testing species boundaries and inferring the biogeographic history of Stillingia (Euphorbiaceae) in the North American Coastal Plane, with a focus on south Florida |
| Sharon Isern | Alicia Belony | Biological Sciences/Biology | Lysogenic Phage Defense Against Superinfection in Host Microcycstis aeruginosa |
| Felix Jose | Kelly Murphy | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Marine Science | Long-term Geomorphological Evolution of St. Joseph Peninsula and Cape San Blas and the Impact of Hurricane Michael on Florida Panhandle |
| John Losciuto | Farah Alkhadra | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Art | Student Success using Permanent Collection of Art Migration |
| Myra Mendible | Kiera Eckardt | Language & Literature/English | American Identity in an age of Transnationalism |
| Mustafa Mujtaba | Joseph Wislet | Biological Sciences/Biology | Development of Peptides Having Interferon and Antiviral Properties Tour Abroad |
| Lyndsay Rhodes | Olivia Romas, Christy Doan | Biological Sciences/Biology | Evaluation of essential oils as potential anti-cancer therapeutics in triple-negative breast cancer |
| Michael Scott | Kelsey White, Sara Feith | Biological Sciences/Biotechnology | The isolation and bioinformatics analysis of broad-host range cyanophage to combat local blue-green algae blooms |
| John Straussberger | Morgan Kirk | Social Sciences/History | Oral Histories of Hurricane Irma |
| Toshi Urakawa | Gabrianna Andrews | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Marine Science | Prediction and prevention of harmful algal blooms using hydrogen peroxide |
Summer 2018
| FACULTY | STUDENT | DEPARTMENT | PROJECT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greg Boyce | Brittany Klootwyk | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Harnessing the Potential of Cyclopropenones in Organic Synthesis |
| Tom Cimarusti | Madeline Peterson | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Music | A Reconstruction and Performance of Koreshan Hymns |
| Alberto Condori | Nicholas Seguin | Mathematics/Mathematics | Norm behavior of matrices in low dimensions |
| Lori Cornelius | Harold Schau | Language & Literature/English | The Intersection of Folklore & Legal Studies |
| Nora Demers | Christopher Hormuth Sabrina Suarez |
Biological Sciences/Biology | The Ins & Outs of Gopher Tortoises: what do they eat and what parasites are they harboring? |
| Chris DiMattina | Chance Hamilton Charly Garsia-Valero |
Psychology/Psychology | Investigating neural mechanisms of visual boundary detection using deep neural networks |
| Jeff Kleeger | Adolph Brink | Justice Studies/Legal Studies | Immigration Showdown: California Versus United States Government |
| Kara Lefevre | Katelyn Rawlings | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Marine Sciences | Assessing Hurricane Irma's impact on threatened Burrowing Owls in North Cape Coral |
| Arsalan Mirjafari Gregory McManus |
Allison Hawkins Luke Lamos |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Development of Innovative Hybrid Materials to Mine Lithium from Seawater: A New Resource fo Lithium-Ion Rechargeable Batteries |
| Molly Nation | Matthew Hale | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Environmental Studies | Impacts of Sustainable Attitudes on Personal Action |
| Lindsay Rhodes | Rachel Ranschau | Biological Sciences/Biology | Identifying stillbenes to inhibit triple-negative breast cancer migration |
| Gerritt VanderMeer | Joseph Herrera | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Theatre | Greek Play Adaptation |
| Jordon Von Cannon | Alyssa Prosper | Language & Literature/English | Transatlantic Departures: Mapping Catharine Sedgwick's 1839-1840 Tour Abroad |
Summer 2017
| FACULTY | STUDENT(S) | DEPARTMENT | PROPOSAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Bacalzo | Laura Moch | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Theatre | Dramaturgy for world premiere play, Your Florida Fantasy |
| Grege Boyce | Kellie Martinez | Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Efficient Synthesis of Bioactive Natural Product |
| John Braddy | Gunnar Gibson | Communication & Philosophy/Communication | Liberation - Research trip to South Africa |
| Ann Carncross | Emma Paige Cook | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Theatre | Scene Shop Training and Resource Manual |
| Anna Goebel | Marisa Sauer | Biological Sciences/Biology | Evolutionary Adaptations in the Silver Apalm and American Beautyberry |
| Jeff Hutchinson | Anthony Grippo | Chemistry & Physics/Physics | Analyzing Dark Matter Producation at Colliders |
| Erik Insko | Chance Hamilton | Mathematics/ Mathematics | Learnin' a Machine to Find Waldo! |
| William Locascio | Kelly Jones | Social Sciences/Anthropology | Late Archaic Ceramic Production in the Okeechobee Basin of South Florida |
| Megan McShane | Marchall Nathanson | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Art | Apiary Interactions in Art & Ecology |
| Jan Martin Meij | Hannah Seitz | Social Sciences/Sociology | Racial Justice in a Changing Political Opportunity Climate |
| Daniel Paull |
Nichalas Lauta |
Chemistry & Physics/Chemistry | Preliminary Studies & Methodology for New Rapid Funchionalization Methods towards Synthesis of Bioactive Molecules from Disubstituted Ketene Precursors |
| Joelle Richard | Savannah Myers | Marine & Ecological Sciences/Marine Science | Evaluating the use of the of the Florida Bay scallop to reconstruct past environment in Southwest Florida |
| Joseph Ross | Grant Tindall | Political Science & Public Administration/Poli Sci | Decision-making in Elected and Appointed State Supreme Courts |
| Tak Ueda | Dominic Enyart | Biological Sciences/Biotechnology | Production of Plant-Based Drugs for the Treatment of Insulin Response Disorders |
Summer 2016
| Faculty | Student(s) | Department | proposal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Bahr | E. Porter Gulseth | Bower School of Music & the Arts/Music | Construction & completion of a new orchestral piece: Music Calligraphy: Concertino for Flute & Orchestra |
| James Brock | Hanny Zuniga | Language & Literature/English | Production of new theatrical piece: Tableaux Vivants. |
| Kathryne Byrne-Bailey | John Dean | Biological Sciences/ Biology | Microbial processes and movement of genetic material between microbial populations of local soils, mammals and insect populations. |
| Marilyn Cruz-Alvarez | Brand Califar | Biological Sciences/ Biology | Determining if a retrotransposon (jumping gene) controls expression of genes and affects flowering and production of the edible parts in broccoli and cauliflower. |
| Patricia Fay | Jordan Blankenship Felipe Maldonado |
Bower School of Music & the Arts/ Art | Create gas/wood/soda hybrid fast-fire kiln out of a decommissioned commercial electric kiln. |
| John Herman | Damian Baker | Biological Sciences/ Biology | Developing an automated telemetry system to understand the fine-scale movement ecology of wildlife. |
| Erik Insko | Lucas Everham Vincent Marcantonio |
Mathematics/ Mathematics | Peak polynomials - The research group is studying peak polynomials which are a family of polynomials counting the number of permutations with a given peak set. These newly discovered polynomials have applications in probability theory and the analysis of random data sets. |
| Kara Lefevre | Jayne Johnston Keith Moore |
Marine & Ecological Studies/ Environmental Studies | Avian breeding activity in human-dominated environments - how changes in landscapes and plant communities effect breeding success. |
| Gregory McManus | Arianna Soares | Chemistry & Physics/ Chemistry | Reducing greenhouse gas emissions through carbon dioxide capture in metal-organic nanotubes |
| Arsalan Mirjafari | Stephen T. Nestor | Chemistry & Physics/ Chemistry | "Click" synthesis of a novel class of functionalized ionic liquids for use as superdydrophobic coating agents |
| Morgan Paine | Caitlin Rosolen | Bower School of Music & the Arts/ Art | Creation of a centralized and compliant collection management procedure for Florida's Art in State Buildings Program at FGCU. |
| Daniel Paull | Stephen George | Chemistry & Physics/ Chemistry | Development of new methods for organic synthesis towards biological interests including treatment of osteoporosis and proprietary catalysts. |
