School of Biological Sciences

Interdisciplinary research on COVID-19 impact

Fifteen faculty and graduate student researchers from multiple colleges and campuses across the University recently joined forces to form the WSU COVID‑19 Infant, Maternal, and Family Health Research Collaborative. Spanning a variety of disciplines, including biological sciences, anthropology, and psychology, the collective already has a half dozen studies lined up to address critical questions related […]

SBS director earns WSU leadership honor

Listen to Pat Carter, recipient of the 2020 WSU Outstanding Chair/Director award, talk about the School of Biological Sciences for a few minutes and you’ll be ready to jump online and register for every course the school offers. “I see the role as creating an environment where students, faculty and staff can be successful” said […]

Mt. St. Helens: next generation of research

When Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980, it leveled more than 230 square miles of forest, but it also opened a rare scientific opportunity to study how an ecosystem responds after an extreme disturbance. WSU ecologists John Bishop and Mark Swanson have been involved in Mount St. Helens long-term research for decades and […]

Amphibian study shows stress increases vulnerability

Even the anti-freeze frog is not invulnerable to stress, according to a new study led by WSU biological sciences researchers. “We’re seeing these mass mortality events in wildlife that are often due to infectious diseases; while at the same time, we notice an association with some kind of environmental change,” said Emily Hall, the lead […]

Biology, music senior headed to Wales as Fulbright Student

Senior biology and music double major Thomas LeClair received a prestigious, nationally competitive Fulbright Student Award that will fund his master’s degree studies in marine biology at Bangor University in Wales. “Studying and being in Bangor for a year will allow me to plug into both halves of my life. I’ll be able to gain […]

Service-learning boosts student success

In a first of its kind study at WSU, students taking introductory biology coupled with a service-learning project performed better academically and had improved first-year retention rates compared with students who did not participate in service-learning. The differences were most profound among first-generation and multicultural students. The study titled “Service Learning as a Portal to […]

New degree in human biology

Responding to the global need for more skilled professionals in health, social and environmental sciences, and public policy, the College of Arts and Sciences will launch an interdisciplinary degree in human biology this fall. The new degree is designed for rigorous study in the natural and social sciences, and will be unique in Washington state […]

Alumni recall Peace Corps experience

In all, more than 235,000 Americans have served in 141 countries since Peace Corps’ inception in 1961. The Corps has three main aims: help meet the needs of interested countries, help promote a better understanding of people in other countries, and help promote a better understanding of Americans. Nearly 10,000 volunteers have come from the […]

Scientists look to public to help collect migratory data

During the Western Monarch Mystery Challenge, which started on Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, and runs through April 22, Earth Day, California residents are asked to report sightings of monarchs. The data they collect will give much-needed insight into the butterflies’ habitat needs during the spring months, so researchers can better target conservation efforts. “We are […]