NCUR/LANCY INITIATIVE
AWARDEES FROM THE 2005 ROUND
The NCUR Board of Governors and the Alice and Leslie E. Lancy Foundation are pleased to announce the awardees from the fourth round of the NCUR/Lancy initiative. The award coordinator is listed for each institution.
Transforming Life from the Ground Up: The Ecological Lessons of the Centralia Mine Fire
Susquehanna University
Cultural, Natural, and Historical Resources Associated with The Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians
Western Carolina UniversityAwardee Abstracts:
Transforming Life from the Ground Up: The Ecological Lessons of the Centralia Mine Fire
Susquehanna UniversityCentralia is located in the heart of the Anthracite coal region in central Pennsylvania. Once home to roughly 1,100 residents, the town is now mostly vacant, sitting atop an active mine fire caused in 1962 by a trash fire that ignited a near-surface coal seam. Roughly 300 acres have been consumed. Repeated attempts by the state and federal governments to put out or contain the fire have failed; over $45 million has been spent to acquire and relocate 545 residences and businesses. Today, Centralia resembles a ghost town, its landscape pitted with vent pipes releasing noxious gases, sinkholes, shriveled vegetation and the charred remains of trees.
Against this backdrop, Susquehanna scientists and students have, since 1999, conducted highly successful research through the Summer Research Partners program. The program pairs faculty and students from the sciences for intensive collaboration that has resulted in an abundance of senior thesis projects, national and regional presentations (including NCUR) and professional papers. Our goal is to expand the program to students and faculty from history and communications to produce a wider interdisciplinary examination of the mine fire and its impact on people and the environment.
The objectives of the Centralia project are to: 1) provide students from both science and non-science disciplines with a “living laboratory” for hands-on learning and experimentation; 2) expand on existing research being done on the mine fire to develop a fuller picture of the ecological impact of the disaster; and 3) provide a model of interdisciplinary research for the Susquehanna community to emulate in future collaborations.
Seven NCUR/Lancy Scholars, three from history and communications, and four from the sciences, will work with faculty to study and document the effects of the mine fire. New projects proposed for history and communications include: conducting a history of the health of Centralia residents; producing a film documentary of the mine fire; and examining Centralia against the larger decline of the coal industry in Pennsylvania. Continuing work will include: examining the mine fire’s effects on soil; investigating the influence of the mine fire on thermophilic bacteria; and researching the impact of the mine fire on plants and microorganisms.
Project Directors:
Edward Slavishak (slavishak@susqu.edu).
Tammy Tobin-Janzen (tobinjan@susqu.edu)Cultural, Natural, and Historical Resources Associated with The Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians
Western Carolina UniversityWestern Carolina University (WCU) proposes the creation of an interdisciplinary undergraduate research program involving eight undergraduates focusing upon cultural, natural, and historical resources associated with the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians. The university has a longstanding relationship with the Eastern Band, including a service center on the reservation, an interdisciplinary minor and a master’s degree in Cherokee Studies, and initiatives to preserve Cherokee culture and historic lands. A group of committed faculty from a diversity of disciplines is available to serve as mentors to undergraduates. Projects include documentation of the historical landscape, natural resources, and archaeological sites on campus; chemical and microbial analysis of archeological samples; documentation and revitalization of traditional Cherokee arts and crafts; and the characterization and effects of air and water quality upon traditional homelands. An aggressive plan has been developed to recruit students into the program, with emphasis upon rising sophomores, students eligible to receive financial aid, and Cherokee students. Project evaluation will monitor recruitment and educational goals to continually improve the program. The ten-week experience will begin on May 30, 2005, beginning with universal participation in an archeological dig on campus to build camaraderie. Students will work with faculty mentors the remaining nine weeks, with weekly faculty seminars and student discussions of their research. The program will conclude with a poster presentation and a talk at NCUR 2006. The faculty team and university administration are committed to the sustainability of the project through a combination of internal and external support. Support from the NCUR-Lancy Initiative is requested for undergraduate stipends, student subsistence, and undergraduate research support. WCU will provide administrative support and student travel to NCUR.
Project Director:
David J. Butcher, Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry and Associate Dean,
College of Arts and Sciences
Telephone Number: (828) 227-7646
Fax Number: (828) 227-7647
butcher@email.wcu.edu
