Ten Slippery Rock University students presented research at the 56thAnnual Meeting of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania University Biologists, April 5, at Commonwealth University, Bloomsburg.
The student presenters included:
- Qiuke Pebly, a senior biology major from Avondale (Kennett HS).
- Brandon Dedrick, a junior biology major from McKean (General Mclane High School).
- Heer Zaveri, a junior biology from Bangkok, Thailand.
- Anna Greer, a junior biology major from Harrisville (Slippery Rock HS).
- Maddie Pifer, a junior biology major from Edinboro (General McLane HS).
- Erin Melcher, a senior dual biology and modern languages and cultures major from Ypsilanti, Michigan (Saline HS).
- Roni Kaufman, a senior biology major from New Alexandria (Greensburg Salem HS).
- Alyiah Slifkin, a senior biology major from Cranberry Township (Seneca Valley HS).
- Jennifer Klink, a senior biology major from Manheim (Manheim Central HS).
- Alicia Pflugh, a senior dual biology and psychology major from Butler (Slippery Rock HS).
Attended by more than 200 students and faculty, the event featured multiple judging clusters based on poster type and student level, such as undergraduate or graduate.
SRU students were awarded multiple awards for different poster categories, including:
- Qiuke Pebly’s poster, “Investigation of Drug Resistance of Small Strongyles in Horses at the Storm Harbor Equestrian Center,” earned first place in Group 1’s Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology category under the mentorship of Wayne Forbes, SRU associate professor of biology.
- Madeline Pifer’s poster, “Selective Feeding by Lumbricus terrestris: Implications for Native and Invasive Plant Litter Decomposition,” earned first place in Group 2’s Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology category under the mentorship of Cory Shoemaker, SRU associate professor of biology..
- Heer Zaveri’s poster, “Investigating the Mechanisms of Resveratrol-induced Heat Stress Resistance in Drosophila: The Role of Heat Shock Response and Unfolded Protein Response,” earned second place in Group 5’s Cellular and Molecular Biology category under the guidance of Martin Buckley, SRU associate professor of biology.
- Aliyah Slifkin and Roni Kaufman’s poster, “Toxicity of the Rare Earth Elements Towards Bacteria,” earned first place in Group 6’s Cellular and Molecular Biology category under the mentorship of Christopher Maltman. SRU associate professor of biology
In addition, Pebly was selected as the 2025 Outstanding CPUB Student by SRU’s Department of Biology for his academic excellence, active departmental involvement and contributions to undergraduate research in parasitology, including drug resistance studies supported by a College of Engineering and Science grant.
More information about the biology programs at SRU is available on the department’s webpage.
