UPDATES FROM THE DEAN
COSMFacultyandStaff,
Withalittleoverthreeweeksremaininginthespring2025semester,thissemesterseemstohavegonebyina flash. For the past couple of months, the chair and I have been busy with annual evaluations, post-tenure reviews,andpre-tenurereviews.Forme,thisprovidesanopportunitytocontinuetolearnmoreaboutthegreat work being completed by the more than 180 faculty and 20+ staff in COSM. Believe it or not, I do spend some timereadingeachannualreviewwhichreinforcesmybeliefsthatweareanoutstandingteamcomposedofa greatgroupoffacultyandstaffwhoarecommittedtosupportingGeorgiaSouthern’smissionofprovidinghigh qualityeducationalexperiencestoourstudents!!Toeveryone-THANKYOU!
Therearealsosomegoodnewsitemstoshare:
TheCenterforAdvancedMaterialScience(CAMS)hasbeendesignedastheprimarybenefactorfora$2.75 million endowment to support material science research. The anonymously funded endowment is fully fundedandevenincludesnearly$400,000forimmediatespending.Additionally,the$2.75millionwillprovide approximately $120,000 per year to support material science research in CAMS. The endowment will help expedite CAMS becoming the home for material science research at Georgia Southern that supports all facultyworkinginthisresearchspace.
The Ph.D. program in Environmental Science received support for five additional students under the Presidential Research Fellowship program. The fellowship program provides three years of GRA support for thestudentsplusfundsforprofessionaldevelopment.Intotal,theprogramwillhavesixPresidentialFellows. Thecurrentprojectionsestimatetheprogramwillhave18totalPhDstudentsenrolledthisfallwith12different faculty dissertation mentors from four different COSM units (3 from BCP, 5 from Biology, 2 from SEES, and 2 fromICPS).Thesesixfellowshipsprovide$300,000peryearofsupportforthestudents!
Our current estimates are for 630-649 incoming freshman students for COSM programs in the fall 2025 semester.Thesecalculationsutilizetheyieldratesfromlastyearincomingfreshmanthroughtheadmissions funnel - application to admits to SOAR registration to enrollment in classes. The projections show a 14-17% increaseintheincomingfreshmenclassforCOSMascomparedtoFall2024whichwas553COSMfreshmen students.
Dr. Kathy Sherman-Morris has accepted the position of Chair for the School of Earth, Environment, and SustainabilitywithanAugust1,2025startdate.KathyiscurrentlyservingasanAssistantDeanfortheCollege ofArtsandSciencesatMississippiStateUniversity.ShewillreplaceDannyGleasonwhoisretiringattheend oftheyear.
Weareinthefinalstagesofapprovalfor10visitinginstructorpositionsinCOSMforthe2025-2026academic year.Thepositionsshouldhelpusmanagethegrowthinenrollmentaswellasfillthevoidleftduetosome faculty leaving Georgia Southern, mostly due to retirements. In addition, we are anticipating at least seven tenuretrackfacultysearchesfornextyear.Asaresultofthenewbudgetmodel,wecanmakethedecisions onthepositionsatdean’sofficelevel,allowingustobemorestrategicandbegintheprocesssooner.
Overall, this has been a very good year for COSM. With the enrollment growth in COSM and other recent accomplishments, I think we will be in a very strong position to request new funding in next year’s budget process Wewillbeginaprocesssoonofidentifyingourmosturgentneedstoframeourrequestsinthatcycle
Thankyouagainforeverythingyoudoforthestudents,yourunits,COSM,andGeorgiaSouthern!!
Sincerely,
COSM EXCELLENCE AWARDS
COSMisexcitedtoannouncethatnominationsarenowopenfortheCOSMAwardsofExcellence.
Nominatedeservingcolleagues/teamsherefromMarch3toApril14.
For multiple nominations, submit one form per nomination Individuals/Teams may self-nominate Nominatedteamsmustconsistof50%ormoreCOSMstaff/faculty
COSMAwardsofExcellenceinclude:
StaffAwardofExcellence(awardedtoanindividual)
ExcellenceinService(awardedtoanindividual)
ExcellenceinTeaching(awardedtoanindividual)
ExcellenceinResearch(awardedtoanindividual)
COSMCollaborationAward(awardedtoateam)
Contactbkoehler@georgiasouthern.eduwithquestions.
COSM COUR ANNOUCEMENTS
AreyouplanningtorecruitundergraduateresearchstudentsforSummer and/orFall2025?LetCOURhelp!
Undergraduatestudentsareofteninterestedinresearchbutdon'tknowhowtogoaboutfindinga researchmentor Tothisend,COURwouldliketoprovidestudentsalistoffacultycurrentlyrecruiting undergraduateresearchstudentsonourwebsitetofacilitatethesearchforresearchexperiences
IfyouareinterestedinrecruitingundergraduateresearchstudentsinSummerand/orFall2025,please completetheUndergraduateResearchRecruitmentForm.Ifyouhavemultipleprojectsyouare recruitingstudentsfor,pleasesubmitmultipleforms.
Theinformationfromthisformwillbeusedtocreatealistofpotentialfacultymembersandresearch areas/projectsavailableontheCOURwebsiteavailabletostudentspriortoregistrationinMarch.
COURSummerUndergraduateResearchFellowship(SURF)
TheCOSMCollegeofUndergraduateResearch(COUR)invitesapplicationsforthe2025Summer UndergraduateResearchFellowship(SURF) Thisfellowshipisdesignedtoenhanceexperiential learning forstudentsbysupportingundergraduateresearchduringtheFullSummerTerm $4000awardswillbe madetothebestapplicationsandinclude:
$3000stipendfortheundergraduatestudent,withtheexpectationthatthestudentconducts researchwithaCOSMfacultymentorfor25hours/weekfor10weeksduringtheFullSummer Term.
$500summerstipendforthefacultymentor
$500insuppliesorresearchtravel(fundsmaynotbeusedforconferencetravel)
Toqualify,studentsmustbeaCOSMmajorandmentoredbyaCOSMfacultymember.Formore informationandtoviewapplicationinstructions,visithttps://ww2.georgiasouthern.edu/cosm/cour/ andselectthe2025-2026GrantstaboremailDr.HeatherJoestingathjoesting@georgiasouthern.edu. ApplicationsaredueApril14,2025.
PleasedirectanyquestionstoHeatherJoesting(hjoesting@georgiasouthernedu)
COSM COLLABORATIVE GRANT (CGI)
The COSM Collaborative Grant Initiative (CGI) is designed to promote interdisciplinary research involving faculty in the College of Science and Mathematics. The CGI program provides up to $7,500 per interdisciplinary team to support collaborative research efforts. In this cycle, three projects were selectedafterreviewbytheCOSMFacultyResearchCouncilandtheCOSMleadershipteam.
Brown/delaCerna
Awardees:LisaD.Brown,Biology,MarkdelaCerna,Biochemistry,Chemistry&Physics
ProjectTitle:Thebactericidalactivityofcatflea(Ctenocephalidesfelis)antimicrobialpeptides.
Summary:Thiscollaborativestudywillcharacterizefleaantimicrobialpeptidesandassesstheir bactericidal activity against Bartonella henselae, using recombinant peptides and MIC assays. It will alsoevaluatetheimpactofLPSdifferencesonantimicrobialpeptideeffectiveness,offeringinsightsinto flea-borne disease transmission. Cat fleas (Ctenocephalides felis) are vectors for several Gramnegative bacterial pathogens, including Bartonella henselae, Rickettsia typhi, and Yersinia pestis. Though susceptible to these pathogens, fleas have innate immune defenses, notably antimicrobial peptides that disrupt bacterial membranes However, little is known about flea antimicrobial peptides, whichmayinfluencepathogentransmission
Machingura/delaCerna
Awardees:MarylouMachingura,Biology,MarkdelaCerna,Biochemistry,Chemistry&Physics
Title:Characterizationofasolutecarrier,CIA8,involvedininorganiccarbonuptakeinChlamydomonas reinhardtii
Summary:ThiscollaborativeprojectaimstocharacterizeCIA8structurallyandfunctionallythrough recombinant expression, localization studies, and heterologous assays, with long-term goals of improvingcropphotosynthesisandfoodsecurity Thecarbondioxideconcentratingmechanism(CCM) of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is a crucial adaptation that enables photosynthesis under low CO₂ conditions in aquatic environments Interest in this mechanism has grown due to its potential to improvecropyieldsthroughgeneticengineering Thoughmanyinorganiccarbontransportproteinsare proposed for this system, only a few have been fully characterized One notable candidate is CIA8, whichisknownforsodium-coupledtransport,thoughitsexactfunctioninCiuptakeremainsunclear.
Cohen/He/Siccardi
Awardees:RisaCohen&AnthonySiccardi,Biology,JianzhouHe,Biochemistry,Chemistry&Physics
Title:UtilizationofAlgalTurfScrubberstoRemoveMicroplasticsfromWastewater
Summary:ThiscollaborativeprojectwilldevelopmethodsformeasuringmicroplasticsinAlgalTurf ScrubbingbiomassandassessAlgalTurfScrubbingperformanceinpilot-scalesewagetreatment, potentiallyofferingasolutionformicroplasticpollution Microplasticsoriginateeitherfrom manufacturedproductsorbreakdownoflargerplastics Theynegativelyimpactwildlifeandhuman health, contributing to infections, organ damage, and diseases. Algae have shown promise in lab settingsformicroplasticremovalviaentanglementandsecretionofstickysubstances.isusedtoclean wastewater, grows dense algae mats that capture pollutants. While effective for nutrients and metals, thecapacityofAlgalTurfScrubbingtoremovemicroplasticshasn’tbeentested.
COSM SOCIAL MEDIA
CollegeofScienceandMathematics
ArmyROTC
TheBotanicGarden
TheDepartmentofBiology
ThePlanetarium
SchoolofEarth,EnvironmentandSustainability
CollegeofScienceandMathematics
ArmyROTC
DepartmentofBiology
SARCAquaponics
Ifyouhavephotographsfromarecentevent,class,orlabthatyou’dliketoshare,orifyouhavea flyerpromotinganupcomingevent,we’dlovetofeaturethem!PleasecompletetheGoogleFormto submityourmaterials,andwewillensuretheyaresharedononeormoreoftheCollegeofScience andMathematics(COSM)socialmediaplatforms.Yourcontributionshelpushighlighttheexciting activitieshappeningwithinCOSMandkeepourcommunityengaged!
COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND MATHEMATICS