Agriculture News

A WKU graduate student and a faculty member in the Department of Biology have received grant awards from the Kentucky Academy of Science to support their research projects.

Kevin Tewell, who is conducting research under the supervision of assistant professor Jarrett Johnson, was one of three recipients of the 2012 Marcia Athey Award for his research proposal: Comparative landscape genetics of the marbled salamander, Ambystoma opacum. Tewell, who received his bachelor’s degree at Seattle Pacific University, is investigating landscape genetics of marbled salamanders at Mammoth Cave National Park.

Dr. Johnson was a recipient of a 2012 KAS Special Research Program Award in support of his research proposal: Comparative Landscape Genetics of Amphibians. His project investigates gene flow among populations of multiple amphibian species in the eastern foothills of California’s Santa Clara Valley.

Dr. Johnson’s project will identify species-specific patterns of amphibian dispersal on a single landscape and inform conservation decision-making for several amphibian species of special concern across the region.

Tewell’s research, which also received funding from the Sigma Xi Grants-in-Aid of Research Program, has the potential to identify key differences in patterns of salamander gene flow in landscapes that are largely intact, versus landscapes that suffer from fragmentation and urbanization.

The Kentucky Academy of Science Foundation makes available funds through the Marcia Athey Fund for research in science. The funds are for research planned and conducted by students of Kentucky secondary schools, colleges and universities under the supervision of a faculty member.

The KAS Special Research Award is directed to research conducted by faculty in Kentucky higher education institutions, public or private, involved primarily in undergraduate education.

Proposals are reviewed and selected for funding by the Kentucky Academy of Science Distribution of Research Funds Committee.

The Kentucky Academy of Science is a nonprofit organization whose goals are to encourage scientific research, promote the diffusion of scientific knowledge, and unify the scientific interests of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Established in 1914, the Academy is an Affiliate of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Association of Academies of Science.

Contact: Jeanne Harris, (859) 227-2837; or Jarrett Johnson, (270) 745-6032.