2008 Pathways to Knowledge Lecture Series highlights graduate student research

2008 Pathways to Knowledge Lecture Series highlights graduate student researchOctober 07, 2008Janel Martinezjmarti11@syr.edu

The Fall 2008 Pathways to Knowledge: A Lecture Series for Undergraduates and Graduates, will kickoff at 7 p.m., Oct. 14 with “The Burning of Serengeti National Park, Tanzania: Animals and Fire,” presented by Stephanie L. Eby, a doctoral candidate in The College of Arts and Sciences‘ Department of Biology. The lecture will be held in the College of Law’s Grant Auditorium and is free and open to Syracuse University students.

The lecture series invites SU students to discover the possibilities of graduate school through notable research presentations given by doctoral candidates. The series is coordinated by Marvin Druger, Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence and professor of biology and science education; and Derina Samuel, acting director for professional development programs in the Graduate School. The series is co-sponsored by the Department of Science Teaching in The College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School.

Eby’s lecture will focus on her research in the Serengeti National Park. “The Serengeti park management intentionally lights fires every year at the end of the wet season/beginning of the dry season,” Eby says. “When I started working in the Serengeti, this burning was going on, but no one was studying its impact on the wildlife. So I decided to study how the burning is affecting the wildlife.”

Eby’s unique research is exactly the kind of information Druger seeks when choosing presenters. He wants to show students the latest developments in each lecturer’s field. “To get your Ph.D. you have to do something nobody else did. You have to add knowledge to the field,” says Druger.

This knowledge is what Druger wants to share with students-undergraduates in particular. He says the three main reasons for hosting the series are to convey the research of doctoral students to undergraduate and graduate students, broaden the academic horizons of students and provide undergraduates with insights into graduate education.

“Ph.D. students will have to present and defend their thesis to a committee of six faculty members,” says Druger. “The Pathways lecture series provides Ph.D. students with practice in presenting their research-prior to the dissertation defense-to a non-threatening audience of undergraduates and graduate students. Student feedback is provided to the speaker. The benefits to the students in the audience are that they learn about some of the latest developments in that field and they find out about what it’s like to be a graduate student. The speakers represent many different disciplines.”

Eby, who has previously presented her research at the Graduate Student Seminar, says this will be a more relaxed setting and one in which the audience members will be fun to present to because of their eagerness to learn and enjoy.

“It’s [also] fun to share,” says Eby. “I love my research and I love where I work. It’s fun to share that with other people who might not have experienced it, or with people who have because then they can relate to similar experiences.”

Other scheduled lectures are:

• On Oct. 28, Jennifer Flad, doctoral candidate in the Department of Sociology in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, will present “The Good and Bad of Delivering ‘Bad News’: Using qualitative methods to investigate doctor/patient interaction around serious diagnosis.”

• On Nov. 18, David Deacon, doctoral candidate in the Department of History in the Maxwell School, will discuss “Paper Towns: Industrialization and Sense of Place in Northern New England, 1870-1930.”

For further information, e-mail Druger at mdruger@syr.edu or Samuel at dssamuel@syr.edu.