Faculty News
William Jewell professor collaborates on anthrax research with KUMED
Dr. Scott Falke, assistant professor of biology at William Jewell College, is a member of a collaborative research team studying the structure of anthrax toxin that may one day result in a vaccine to protect humans from lethal anthrax infection. Dr. Falke is a member of the research team led by Dr. Mark Fisher, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Kansas Medical Center. The team’s findings were recently published in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology. Also collaborating on the study were researchers from Harvard University and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Although it is known that the anthrax toxin consists of three protein components, no one knew the structure of the protective antigen pore protein component (what the pore actually looks like). The protective antigen pore protein of anthrax toxin is responsible for delivering the other two anthrax toxins into human cells, which leads to cell death. “Solving the structure is an important step in understanding how the pore facilitates transfer of toxins into the cell,” Dr. Falke said. “Understanding the structure of the pore gives us new insight into the molecular details of anthrax toxicity.”
Presently, the only way to prevent an infection is a vaccine, and it is only approved for use by people at risk of exposure to spores, primarily military personnel and workers in certain research or agricultural jobs. “From a drug discovery standpoint, understanding the molecular details of anthrax toxins are essential in eventually preventing anthrax infections from harming humans,” said Dr. Mark Fisher, leader of the University of Kansas Medical Center-based research team. “Finding drugs that can prevent this newly discovered structure from forming or blocking the transport of lethal proteins could prevent general anthrax toxicity and will serve as a first line-of-defense for people who acquire an anthrax infection.”
The research team used GroEL, a known “chaperone” protein, to stabilize the protective antigen pore structure so that it could be observed using electron microscopy. Electron microscopy revealed that the protective antigen pore protein forms a syringe-like structure that enables it to “inject” the anthrax toxic proteins into human cells. “Using GroEL as a scaffold for solving a membrane protein structure may be a useful approach for determining the structure of other membrane-inserted bacterial toxin proteins by electron microscopy,” said Dr. Falke. “I would like to thank Dr. Fisher at the University of Kansas School of Medicine and Dr. Gogol at the University of Missouri-Kansas City for including me as a member of their research team. Collaborative efforts with other Kansas City institutions provide excellent research opportunities for Jewell students.”
Sallee to receive achievement award
Dr. David Sallee, president of William Jewell College, will receive the Alumni Achievement Award from Oklahoma Baptist University. Dr. Sallee, a member of the OBU class of 1973, has been named as a recipient of the OBU Alumni Association’s highest honor. The award will be presented during homecoming weekend in November.
William Jewell College welcomes new faculty, admission staff
William Jewell College welcomes the following new faculty members for the 2008-2009 academic year:
Frida A. Oswald, assistant professor of Spanish, received her B.A. in 1999 from the University of California-San Diego; her M.A. in 2003 from San Diego State University; and her Ph.D. in 2008 from the University of California.
Kirsten Theye, assistant professor of communication, received her B.A. in 1998 from Valparaiso University; her M.A. in 2004 from the University of Kansas; and her Ph.D. in 2008 from the University of Kansas.
Carla D. Mebane, assistant professor of education, received her B.S. in 1995 from William Jewell College; her M.Ed. in 1999 from Lesley University; her M.A. in 2001 from Baker University; and her Ed.D. in 2005 from the University of Missouri.
E. Shane Price, instructor of chemistry, received his B.A. in 2002 from William Jewell College and is currently working toward his Ph.D. at the University of Kansas.
In addition, the college’s Office of Admission welcomes the following new members:
Tim Everly has joined the staff as associate dean of admission. He will be working to expand the office’s use of information technology in addition to serving prospective students in Platte County, Mo., and Minnesota. Everly received his B.A. in psychology from William Jewell College in 1994 and is working toward an M.A. in higher education at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Jennifer Lund has joined the staff as an admission counselor. She will serve prospective students in Tennessee, Kansas and southeast Missouri. Lund received her B.A. in psychology and Applied Critical Thought and Inquiry from William Jewell College in 2008.
Kenneth White has joined the staff as an admission counselor. He will serve prospective students in Jackson County and northeast and northwest Missouri. White received his B.A. in psychology from William Jewell College in 2007.
Department of Art
Nano Nore, professor of art, won third place in an international juried competition held in July-August at For Arts Sake Gallery in Malone, New York. Beginning this month at For Arts Sake, Nore will have a month-long, one-person exhibition of “Landscapes and Prints from Norway.” In November she will have a one-woman exhibition of new paintings and prints in the Creative Spirit Gallery in Potsdam, New York.
Department of Biology
Dr. Paul Klawinski, associate professor of biology, continued his ongoing research gathering data on elevational distributions of spiders in the Luquillo Mountains of Puerto Rico, and how they change after a hurricane disturbance.
Department of Chemistry
Dr. Jason Morrill, assistant professor of chemistry, has had an article accepted for publication in the Journal of Molecular Graphics and Modeling.
Core Curriculum
Dr. Ron Witzke, professor of music and associate dean for the core curriculum, and Dr. Andy Pratt, dean of the chapel and vice president for religious ministries, will represent William Jewell College with a presentation on “The Core Curriculum and Applied Learning – Creating a Context for Moral and Ethical Growth” at the conference Engaging Science, Advancing Learning: General Education, Majors, and the New Global Century, scheduled for February in Baltimore.
Department of Languages
Missouri Campus Compact has funded a grant proposal from Dr. Kathleen Tacelosky, professor of Spanish. The project is titled “The Language of Immigration: Community-Based Research.”
Department of Music
Dr. Ann Marie Rigler, associate professor of music and college organist, is working on a book of essays for publication by members of the American Guild of Organists Task Force on Academic Organ Programs.
Department of Nursing
Dr. Ruth Edwards, professor of nursing, recently celebrated her 35th year at William Jewell College. She has provided instruction to every nursing graduate in the history of the department at Jewell.
Pam Arnold, instructor of nursing, received the 2008 Outstanding Community Service Award from The Research Foundation.
Martha Baird, assistant professor of nursing, received the 2008 Scholarly Achievement Award from The Research Foundation.
Leesa McBroom, assistant professor of nursing, has been accepted for a poster presentation at the 2008 Pediatric Nursing Conference.
Nancy Crigger, associate professor of nursing; Vicki Meek, assistant professor of nursing; Liz Kessler, instructor of nursing; and Nichole Spencer, instructor of nursing, have been accepted to present their paper on civility in nursing education at the 35th Annual Conference on Professional Nursing Education and Development.
Department of Philosophy
Dr. Elizabeth Sperry, professor of philosophy, presented a paper entitled “What’s Wrong With Substantive Autonomy?” at the fall meeting of the Midwest Society for Women in Philosophy. The conference was held at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Sperry’s paper argues in favor of a content-neutral, procedurally oriented conception of personal autonomy, against those who maintain that agents must meet certain norms of morality, rationality, and the like in order to be counted as self-directed.
Department of Physics and Mathematics
Dr. Neil Nicholson, assistant professor of mathematics, is collaborating on knot theorists and topologists with faculty members at the University of Iowa.
Department of Psychology
Dr. Robert Troutwine made his debut in the NBA this year. Dr. Troutwine, professor of psychology, has worked with NFL teams for the past 25 years and MLB teams for the past 10 years. Troutwine conducts research and assessment for the purpose of player selection and development in the professional sports ranks. He also works with major college sports programs. The Houston Rockets joins the list of professional teams Dr. Troutwine has worked with and he predicts the number of NBA teams he works with will grow.
Department of Religion
William Jewell College faculty members delivered papers at the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion annual meeting held at Belmont University this spring. Representing William Jewell were: Taking on the ‘A Word’: Assessing Religious Studies at William Jewell College; Dr. J. Bradley Chance, professor of religion; and The Yearning that is Joy: Fasting and Desire for the Divine in the Thought of Catherine of Genoa and Simone Weil, Dr. Elizabeth Webb, visiting assistant professor of religion.
Student News
Department of Business and Leadership
Jewell students Ashley Billinger and Anthony Bowen have been selected among Delta Mu Delta’s “Outstanding Students of Business Administration.” The $1,000 award is presented by the international honor society in business administration. The organization promotes higher scholarship in training for business and recognizes and rewards scholastic attainment in business subjects.
Department of Nursing
Nursing students Lucy Akins, Lydia Downey, Melanie Leuth and Elizabeth Shoemaker have received $2,000 scholarships from The Research Foundation in Kansas City.
Melissa Swierczek is the recipient for a Pfizer Nursing Scholarship administered by the Foundation of the National Student Nurse’s Association.
Department of Psychology
Jessica Hixson, psychology major, won second place for her poster presentation entitled Does Single Gender Instruction Influence Student Self Confidence in Problem Solving? The paper was presented at the 2008 Missouri Psychological Association Convention in Lake Ozark, Mo. Previously Jessica had presented this poster at the 2008 William Jewell College Undergraduate Colloquium. Jessica’s research was done as part of her study in the Education Undergraduate Research Seminar course under the guidance of Dr. Donna Gardner. She used a standardized inventory to determine whether or not single gender instruction influences problem solving confidence in a local public school which is experimenting with fifth-grade, single gender classrooms. Jessica found a very slight difference between males’ and females’ problem-solving confidence in the single gender classroom, but the difference was not statistically significant. Jessica was the only undergraduate to present a poster at the convention and her abstract will be featured in MOPA’s online publication.
Gilman Scholarship
Hang (Summer) Vu has been awarded the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. The scholarship, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students who will be studying abroad. Hang, a junior Oxbridge molecular biology major, is studying at Cambridge during the 2008-09 academic year. The Gilman International Scholarship Program offers a competition for awards for undergraduate study abroad and was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. The scholarship provides awards for international study for U.S. undergraduate students who are receiving federal Pell Grant funding at two- and four-year colleges and universities.
NAIA All-American
William Jewell College baseball player Jeremy Strack was recently named as a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics All-American. Strack, a junior, was named to the All-American first team, becoming the first Jewell player to earn that honor since Ben Blanton in 2005. Strack finished the season leading the Cardinals with a .422 batting average, 62 stolen bases and 12 home runs. His 62 stolen bases also were tops among all NAIA Baseball programs in 2008. Strack drove in 46 RBI’s as well, which was the second highest total for the Cardinals this season. “This is an outstanding honor for Jeremy and for our program,” said head coach Mike Stockton. “Jeremy is such a hard worker, and that really rubs off on the rest of our team.”
