Current Lab Members
Kyleigh LevinskyKyleigh is currently a 4th-year, senior undergraduate Biology student with a concentration in ecology/conservation and marine science. Her primary interest is marine ecosystem ecology with emphasis on carbon storage and cycling in mangrove and coral reef systems. She is currently working under Dr. Schedlbauer on a 5-year census of the Gordon Natural Area, located on the West Chester University campus. Her project will utilize this census to determine the influence of invasive insect pests (Lycorma delicatula and Agrilus planipennis) on carbon pool components and species composition in the Gordon Natural Area. Her future plans are to attend a MS/Ph.D program.
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Alex DesjardinsAlex is currently a senior undergraduate student at West Chester University studying Biology with a concentration of Ecology/Conservation. His primary interests are in community ecology and its intersections with geography and sustainability. Alex’s project is done in conjunction with Stroud Water Research Center and focuses on investigating different algal communities’ structure and function in the Delaware River watershed.
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Dr. Jessica SchedlbauerDr. Schedlbauer is a Professor in WCU's Department of Biology, teaching several ecology-focused courses, and conducting research in forests of the Mid-Atlantic region. She has a B.A. in Biology from Hartwick College, a M.S. in Ecology and Environmental Sciences from the University of Maine, and a joint Ph.D. in Natural Resources from the University of Idaho & the Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigactión y Enseñenza (CATIE) in Costa Rica. She has done research in many different ecosystems, including Arctic tundra, subtropical wetlands, and tropical rainforests. Dr. Schedlbauer loves that her research gets her outside and has provided such an amazing way to explore the world!
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Mara JansonsMara is currently a senior undergraduate student at West Chester University majoring in Biology with a concentration in Ecology and Conservation. Some of her specific interests within the field include nutrient cycling (from aquatic to terrestrial ecosystems), plant ecology, conservation ecology, and forest ecology. Her research with Dr. Schedlbauer focuses on the effects of elevated growth temperatures on rates of photosynthesis and respiration in Phaseolus vulgaris.
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Meredith FitzgeraldBio coming soon.
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Former Lab Members: undergraduate student lab members & their independent study/internship topics
Former Lab Members: Biology M.S. student lab members & their thesis topics
- Kathryn Krueger, The impact of reforestation technique on stem mortality in a seven-year-old reforestation experiment
- Laura DeHart, Assessing different control methods for invasive plant species Microstegium vimineum and Alliaria petiolata on individual homeowner property scale
- Rachael Resuta, Native tree seedling regeneration and survival in the Gordon Natural Area
- John Guerrero, Analysis of green roof vegetation impact on substrate and building temperature at the Francis Harvey Green Library, project suspended due to COVID restrictions
- Sarah Polohovich, A five-year reassessment of the carbon distribution in WCU’s Gordon Natural Area and its implications for climate change
- Katie Thompson, δ13C variation in three ecotypes of the tussock-forming Arctic sedge Eriophorum vaginatumunder experimental warming
- Kellie Matson, Safety of pellet hormone therapy vs. FDA approved hormone therapy for menopausal women
- Alaina Bertoline, Ecological integrity of edge and interior environments at West Chester University’s Gordon Natural Area
- Natalie Naylon, Seasonal differences in leaf physiology between early and late successional Liriodendron tulipifera and Quercus alba species
- Lukas Bernhardt, Soil analysis of four Delaware hayfields: implications for reforestation
- Cheryl Mauch, Analysis of soil pH and soil texture among four reforestation study sites and two different depths at Mount Cuba Center, Hockessin, DE
- Calvin Cooper, Canopy leaf physiology of trees across an urban to suburban gradient
- Katharine Walston, Investigating the effect of land-use and the environment on woody debris deposition and carbon stocks of a subtropical wet forest in Puerto Rico
- Jesse Armine, Effect of trail type on the diversity of native and invasive plant species in the Bull Mountain Wilderness
- Noelle Hart, What are the barriers to 100% organic farming on a global scale? An analysis featuring Africa and Asia
- Kelly Slabicki, Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) growth in response to light in the Gordon Natural Area
- Greg Barren, The effects of prescribed fire and environmental variation on soil respiration in the serpentine barrens of southeast PA
Former Lab Members: Biology M.S. student lab members & their thesis topics
- Sarah Polohovich, Photosynthetic induction and experimental sunfleck responses of the native species Acer rubrum and Fagus grandifolia, compared to the non-native species Acer platanoides
- Jason Miller, The influence of edge effects on soil carbon storage and CO2efflux in temperate deciduous forest of southeastern Pennsylvania
- Nicole Havrilchak, The influence of light environment on the performance of Smilax rotundifolia and two dominant C4 grasses in the serpentine barrens of southeastern Pennsylvania
- Dana Charitonchick, Forest fragment viability and predicted future plant composition based on seed bank germination
- Seth Keller, Above and below ground carbon storage survey in a temperate Pennsylvania forest - WCU's Gordon Natural Area (GNA)
- Veronica Pistoia, The water relations of roundleaf greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia L.) encroaching on serpentine barren ecosystems in southeast Pennsylvania