CWRU Department of Biology

PhD candidate Sam Harbol from the Burns lab recently received the “Best Student Proposal” award for the Oglebay Small Grants program. The Oglebay Small Grants programs funds research conducted at the Squire Valleevue and Valley Ridge Farms. Sam’s proposal details his experiment to manipulate the precipitation pattern using rainout shelters at his research site located at the University Farm. Through altering the precipitation pattern he hopes to learn how competitive interactions between a native and nonnative rose species shift under future climate change.

Congratulations Sam!

Presenting our first Graduate Student Spotlight: Miranda Shetzer!

Miranda is a 4th year PhD Candidate, and her first manuscript "Rhododendron minus seedlings achieve similar performance across light environments with anthocyanin accumulation and architectural adjustments under light stress” was recently accepted at AoB PLANTS.

Read more about Miranda, and her work in the Medeiros Lab at Holden Arboretum here: https://biology.case.edu/2026/02/25/graduate-student-spotlight-miranda-shetzer/

The Cleveland BioScience Alliance (BSA) held their annual symposium on January 7th at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. The symposium provided a valuable opportunity for faculty, staff, and students of the BSA partner organizations (Case Western Reserve University Department of Biology, The Holden Arboretum, and Cleveland Metroparks Zoo) to showcase on-going research, student training opportunities, and collaborations.

Read more about it on the CWRU Biology webpage:
https://biology.case.edu/2026/02/17/cleveland-bioscience-alliance-holds-annual-symposium/

Congratulations to PhD Candidate Alex Gurgis (Wolff Lab) for winning the DNNSB Best Student Talk at the 2026 Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology meeting Portland, OR for her talk "Ostracod brain anatomy: evidence for ancestral mushroom body and central complex in Pancrustacea.”

Way to go, Alex!

Like our reptilian brethren, the Biology Department will also be hibernating this winter. We hope you have a happy and safe holiday season, and we look forward to seeing you again in 2026!

What says “holiday season” better than cookies? The Biology Department held a cookie decorating contest as part of its holiday party, and the entries did not disappoint! How many decorating contests have *more than one* picture of a fly brain?

Congratulations to PhD candidate Gracie Bellino for taking first place with her beetle cookie. Dr Karen Abbott’s alligator took 2nd, and PhD student Haley Altadonna’s frog life cycle cookie won third.

All of the entries were delicious.

Many of our faculty and students attended CWRU's undergraduate research poster symposium where students showcase their faculty-mentored research projects. Here is a photo of Dr. Drushel with Julio Paez-Norena, who shared the results of his library research project,"The Rise of Microplastics in Society and their Impact to Humans."

PhD Candidate Russell Engleman's research into the Dunkleosteus was featured in today's edition of The Daily!

Cleveland’s famous sea monster gets a scientific update | CWRU Newsroom | Case Western Reserve University About 360 million years ago, the shallow sea above present-day Cleveland was home to a fearsome apex predator: Dunkleosteus terrelli. This 14-foot arm...

Abisola Folorunso, a Biology PhD Candidate in the Burns Lab, was recently featured in Case Western Reserve University Magazine for her commitment to community service. Her story highlights how volunteering enriches both her academic and personal journey at Case Western Reserve University.

What CWRU experience outside your comfort zone made you want to do it again? | CWRU Newsroom | Case Western Reserve University Growth rarely happens in comfort zones. For these members of the Case Western Reserve community, new challenges sparked confidence, community, and a d...

“Brain? What is brain?”
The Biology Department celebrated with its tastiest Halloween tradition: Dr Rich Drushel’s gelatin brain!
The department also celebrated by participating in the CWRU Candy Crawl, and dressing up in costumes.

Ever wondered what it's like to be a CWRU Biology Graduate Student? Sign up for our first Biology Graduate Admissions Q&A Webinar! You'll learn about the admissions process, Biology Department faculty will talk about their research, and what they are looking for in a potential grad student. Sign up today!

https://applygrad.case.edu/register/BiologyQAOct2025

Ever wonder how frogs prepare for the freezing temperatures of winter? Real all about that and other innovative research done by the Department of Biology in today's issue of The Daily!

Climate change may create ‘ecological trap’ for species who can’t adapt | CWRU Newsroom | Case Western Reserve University Even as autumn days grow shorter, a warming climate means Ohio winters aren't as cold as they were just a few decades ago, according to National Ocean...