When, how and why this natural science became VWC's top major
By Stephanie Smaglo | November 17, 2014
As a young girl, Nancy Kelly ’15 watched each day as her mother put on nursing scrubs and went into the world to heal people. This early exposure to medical care sparked a lifelong interest and put Kelly on the path to becoming a physician—beginning with a biology degree at Virginia Wesleyan. She is not alone in her undergraduate pursuit; in the last five years the number of biology students at VWC has increased by 93 percent, and in 2013 it became the College’s top major for day students.
Big draws for biology majors like Kelly are VWC’s pre-professional programs, including medical, dental, veterinary and environmental studies. A pre-med student, Kelly was accepted into the highly-competitive Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) Joint Program in Medicine in the spring of her sophomore year. Not only does the program grant early admission to EVMS, it also exempts students from the Medical Colleges Admissions Test.
“I see a lot of people who are really struggling with studying for MCATs and stressing over the application process,” she says. “For me it’s just so great to know that this is what I’m doing and I don’t have to worry about where I’ll be or what I’ll be doing this May.”
Batten Associate Professor of Biology Deirdre Gonsalves-Jackson believes the success of VWC’s biology program is a combination of many factors, perhaps the most important being the modernization of the College’s natural science building. Since 2010, Blocker Hall has received close to $3.5 million in renovations, among them the creation of several dedicated research labs; major updates to Blocker Auditorium; and the addition of a state-of-the-art scanning electron microscope, the result of a $242,502 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
“Now it’s a showcase,” says Gonsalves-Jackson. “I think we’re attracting more students because our facilities are modern and students are seeing the kind of science we’re doing here.”
The NSF has also provided the College with grant funding for the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Scholars Program. The grant could total as much as $564,750 over a five year period and provides funding for 30 need-based scholarships for academically talented students majoring in STEM disciplines like biology. Students receive individualized tutoring and one-on-one advising as well as networking opportunities and workshops with STEM professionals. They even live in the same residence halls and take classes together.
“We try to provide a good bonding experience,” Gonsalves-Jackson says. “It’s been found that students who feel connected, especially in the sciences, have a greater chance of being successful. They’re doing so many challenging things that can be abstract and technical; we really want them to bond and help each other get through it.”
Virginia Wesleyan is also one of the only schools in the area to offer a marine science minor, an interest for many biology students. Located on the doorstep of the Chesapeake Bay, VWC provides the perfect setting for oceanography and offers invaluable opportunities for undergraduate research aboard the Ocean Explorer, the College’s 45-foot research vessel in partnership with the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center.
Standing behind these undergraduate research efforts is an enthusiastic and dedicated faculty. Professor of Biology Victor Townsend has contributed greatly to the Undergraduate Research Program at VWC. In the last 15 years, he has mentored 38 students in a diverse array of research projects, from the evolution of snake skin to comparative studies of reproductive anatomy amongst harvestmen. He’s also brought considerable funding to the College, including NSF grants totaling more than $860,000 that resulted in major renovations in laboratory facilities and the acquisition of the scanning electron microscope.
“[Vic] has been really instrumental in promoting undergraduate research,” says Gonsalves-Jackson. “This place is really important to him and it shows. He’s really helped to put us on the map.”
Finally, the draw to biology is simply a natural one, says Gonsalves-Jackson.
“Kids’ first exposure to science is typically biology. Growing up, they’re exposed to it; they go to the beach, they go out on boats, on walks, to the zoo and to the aquarium. They’re just looking at life and they want to continue that.”