Kennesaw State Biology

06/12/2026

The Kennesaw State University Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology hosted the 2026 Southeast Society for Developmental Biology (SESDB) Meeting at the KSU Center from Monday, May 18th, to Wednesday, May 20th. Dr. Brandon Carpenter was one of two co-chairs for the conference, while Drs. Eduardo Gigante and Joanna Wardwell-Ozgo helped as organizers and moderators for the event. The event had over 150 attendees representing 29 distinct higher ed institutions across the Southeast, including those from notable institutions such as Emory University, University of Georgia, Duke University, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Vanderbilt University, Auburn University, and more. Thank you to all the volunteers from the college who made this event successful!

04/02/2026

Happy Giving Day at Kennesaw State University! Help us support our biology and environmental science majors through an Emergency Assistance for CSM students and departmental funds by donating at https://bit.ly/CSM-GivingDay26!

Happy Giving Day at Kennesaw State University! Help support our students through Giving Day donations to the College of Science and Mathematics. Contributions go toward our scholarships, supporting our programs, buying equipment for departments, and more to help our science and mathematics students succeed. A simple $10 makes a big difference! 🔗 https://bit.ly/CSM-GivingDay26

Learn more about our giving options below:
▪️Emergency Assistance for CSM Majors: Help support hardworking CSM students with unexpected financial hardships.
▪️College of Science and Mathematics Excellence Fund: Help support CSM faculty/staff initiatives, college-wide events, and special programs.
▪️College of Science and Mathematics General Scholarship: Help financially support our CSM students to help them complete their degree.
▪️College of Science and Mathematics Departments: Help support CSM departmental initiatives, equipment, and special programs.

03/31/2026

As an undergraduate at Kennesaw State University, Master of Science in Integrative Biology (MSIB) student April Ford discovered a passion for biology, genetics, and molecular tool development and sought a mentor in the graduate program to help advance her interests. April found the perfect fit in Dr. Joanna Wardwell-Ozgo’s lab working on hormonal signaling, and together they developed a toolkit to understand how specific proteins regulate development. Even though the toolkit didn’t yield the results they expected, April’s curiosity helps her embrace the challenge to drive the project forward.

Click the link our bio to learn more about April's time in the MSIB program.

03/11/2026

Since 2016, Kennesaw State University environmental science researcher Dr. Daniel Ferreira has traveled to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster site to study the radioactive contaminants in the region’s farmland soil. Now, fifteen years after the disaster, his research has evolved into a deeper mission: preserving the stories and struggles of Fukushima farmers through the KSU Global Education Maymester course, Earth Science and Culture of Japan.

Read more about the program by the links in our comments!

02/04/2026

The College of Science and Mathematics, in collaboration with KSU Global Education’s Year of the UK initiative, is excited to present UK's Legacy in Science, a Spring 2026 lecture series highlighting the United Kingdom’s enduring contributions to modern science.

The lecture series will launch this month, with Kennesaw State Biology professors Dr. Thomas McElroy presenting on February 11th and Dr. Martin Hudson presenting on February 23rd.

Details regarding the upcoming UK's Legacy in Science lectures can be viewed on the CSM calendar - link in the comments.

12/19/2025

Congratulations to all the Kennesaw State University students graduating this December! Like their fellow College of Science and Mathematics graduates, biology majors Kaitlyn Sennett, Essix Moser, and Jessica Tazanou thrived at KSU and are ready to make an impact as they join the Kennesaw State University Alumni Association Forever Owl family.

After taking a semester off following a serious motorcycle accident, Kaitlyn was determined to return to normalcy. She managed a full course load while working 45 hours a week and participated in an immunology research project with biology lecturer Sheila Marie Schreiner. The project helped clarify her path, and she now plans to take a couple of gap years to earn a surgical technician certification before applying to medical school.

Hockey kept Essix at KSU, but undergraduate research revealed his future. Inspired by his ADHD diagnosis, Essix pursued neuroscience research with Dr. Martin Hudson to learn more about how neurological development differs in the brain. His work led him to present at several regional and national conferences and opened the door to continue his research as a 2025 Birla Carbon Scholar. These experiences have prepared him for graduate school, where he plans to study neurodevelopmental disorders.

Growing up in Cameroon, Jessica saw firsthand how poverty limited children’s access to education. Inspired by her experience, Jessica created a summer education program called Africa No Limits to help children in poverty gain access to learning and better opportunities. Her yearly visits to Cameroon reinforced her commitment to help others, and she now plans to pursue medicine to help underserved communities.

Check out the links in a comment below to learn more about each of their journeys!

12/15/2025

Growing up, Sydney Morton always knew she wanted to work in a career that allowed her to work with animals. After witnessing the impacts humans have on wildlife as an undergraduate, she enrolled in the Master of Science in Integrative Biology program at Kennesaw State University to further study human-wildlife interactions. Now, she’s working with biologist Dr. Nicholas Green to research how small mammal populations can become increasingly isolated due to human infrastructure and what that means for public health.

Tap the link in the comments to learn more about Sydney's research!

12/10/2025

Congratulations to biology major Ari Schwartz, who is the recipient of Kennesaw State University's Fall 2025 President’s Award of Distinction, a prestigious honor that celebrates the extraordinary accomplishments of one exceptional graduating Owl each semester.

Ari faced serious health conditions while earning his degree, however, he remained deeply involved at KSU. His journey included undergraduate research with Dr. Premila Achar, a first-author publication, serving as a learning assistant, and presenting at conferences nationwide. Following graduation, Ari plans to attend medical school to become a cardiologist. Congratulations again!

Tap our link in the comments to learn more about Ari and his time at KSU.

12/02/2025

Congratulations to the undergrad biology majors who placed second at the Fall 2025 Symposium of Student Scholars with Kennesaw State University Department of Mathematics faculty mentor Dr. Asma Azizi!

Suki Lewis (Biology), Sri Gunturu (Biology), & Katelyn Nguyen (Biology)
Title: Decoding Early COVID-19 Responses Using Mathematical Modeling of Social Distancing Strategies Across Multiple Countries