(Posted August 1, 2016)

Katie Shelledy, in the Galapagos Islands during her study abroad year.
Katie Shelledy, in the Galapagos Islands during her study abroad year.

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Katharine Shelledy, a Juniata College junior studying biology from Milwaukee, Wis., received an Honorable Mention designation for her research proposal for the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. Shelledy, the daughter of Robert and Terese Shelledy, is a 2013 graduate of Divine Savior Holy Angels High School. Shelledy was chosen from a field of more than 1,000 students from hundreds of colleges and universities nationwide. The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established by Public Law 99-661 in 1986. The scholarship program honoring the late Sen. Barry M. Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in mathematics, natural sciences, and engineering. Shelledy began her undergraduate research experience at Juniata during the spring semester of her freshman year when she volunteered in the lab of Vincent Buonaccorsi, professor of biology. During this same time, she worked on an interdisciplinary fish genetics project with Buonaccorsi and Christopher Grant, assistant research professor. During the fall of her sophomore year, Shelledy wrote a literature review on plant adaptations with Buonaccorsi and Norris Muth, associate professor of biology. She also worked on a stream chemistry research project with a fellow classmate. During the spring of her sophomore year, Shelledy worked on a brook trout population genomics interdisciplinary project with Buonaccorsi and Grant. Shelledy then presented this research at Juniata's 2015 Liberal Arts Symposium. "I have worked most closely with Dr. Buonaccorsi, who is my academic advisor as well as my research principal investigator. He has motivated me to excel throughout my time at Juniata, and he has improved my understanding of how scientists think. Dr. Muth and Dr. Grant have also been key contributors to my scientific development. I know that they want me to do well and find my scientific footing, and I am grateful for the opportunities they have given me over the years," said Shelledy. After her sophomore year, Shelledy spent the summer of 2015 at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis. as part of the National Science Foundation's Research Experience for Undergraduates program. In the lab of Krassimira Hristova, assistant professor of Wehr Life Sciences, she researched antibiotic resistance in bacteria colonizing invasive mussel microbiomes. She then presented her research at the Summer Research Poster Session at Marquette University. During the fall of her junior year, Shelledy conducted research on zooplankton distribution in the lab of Alan Shank, professor of biology at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology. Shelledy is currently spending the spring of her junior year in the Galapagos Islands through Juniata's study abroad program. Shelledy continues to be active in other activities on campus. During the 2016-2017 academic year, she will serve as the vice president of Amigos de Guanin, a service club that fundraises for a rural community in the Dominican Republic. She is also a member of the Tri-Beta Biological Honor Society and participates in the Scuba Club.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.