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Biology Program Overview
The biology program is a challenging
and rewarding one. The curriculum provides a solid foundation
in the Life Sciences and prepares students to enter a variety
of professional fields or graduate or allied health programs.
Biology majors at MacMurray enjoy the advantage of small classes
and generous laboratory space. Students are encouraged to interact
intensively with their professors and with each other in an atmosphere
of cooperative and collaborative learning.
A set of five tracks allows students to select a combination
of courses which best meets their interests and future career
plans. These tracks include Environmental, Organismal and Molecular
Biology. In addition, our Pre-Health and Education tracks are
designed for students seeking either admission to an allied health
program or teacher certification.
The biology curriculum is a hands-on program which emphasizes
the experimental, deductive nature of the Life Sciences. In addition
to their regular course work, students are encouraged early on
to participate in a variety of faculty projects and develop and
implement ideas of their own design. Areas of interest include,
but are not limited to, plant science, environmental biology,
ecology and animal behavior.
In addition to these in-house opportunities, biology career
experience programs provide a wide variety of professional internships
with local organizations, including hospitals, medical laboratories,
environmental agencies and zoos.
Program of Study
The Biology Department offers a program
that provides students with a solid and comprehensive foundation
in Biology, preparing them to enter a variety of professional
fields or transfer to a graduate or health professional program.
Both a Biology major and minor are offered
Major
All biology majors are required to take a set of two General Biology I and
II course (Bio 121 and 122) in the freshman year, in Genetics (Bio 308), in
Evolution (Bio 410), and Topics in Science (Bio 420). Biology majors must also
take an introductory course in computer science, statistics, one year of college
Chemistry (Chemistry 221 and 222) and one year of college Physics.
During the sophomore and junior year, students select one of
five tracks (or sets of recommended courses) which best meets
their interests and career goals. Tracks are as follows:
Organismal
Biology (morphology,
anatomy, taxonomy and function of organisms as a whole):
Ecology (Bio 360), Zoology (Bio 312), Botany (Bio 311)
and Microbiology (Bio 209).
Cell/Molecular Biology (molecular
and biochemical processes of life): Biochemistry (Bio 333), Cell
Biology (Bio 317) and Microbiology (Bio 209).
Environmental Biology/Ecology (interactions
of organisms with the biotic and abiotic environment): Ecology
(Bio 360), Microbiology (Bio 209), Environmental Biology (Bio 215),
Botany (Bio 311), and Zoology (Bio 312).
Pre-Health (a
track for pre-professional students such as pre-medicine, pre-veterinary
medicine, pre physical therapy, etc.): Anatomy and Physiology I
(Bio 320), Anatomy and Physiology II (Bio 321), Cell Biology (Bio
317) and Biochemistry (Bio 333).
Secondary Education (a
track for Biology students seeking a certification to teach secondary
education biology): Zoology (Bio 312), Ecology (Bio 360), Botany
(Bio 311), Microbiology (Bio 209) and Environmental Biology (Bio
215). Note that there are additional requirements for certification.
Please refer to the section on secondary education.
Each track in combination with the core biology
course requirements satisfies the 30 hour minimum requirement
for a B.S. or B.A. degree in Biology.
Minor
A Biology minor requires a minimum of 20 hours.
Required courses include two introductory courses (Bio 121 and 122),
Genetics (Bio 308) and Evolution (Bio 410). The remaining courses can
be selected from the area of organismal, environmental or molecular
Biology.
Internships
The biology department in cooperation with the career
service program offers a wide variety of internships. Pre-med and Pre-Physical
Therapy students may pursue internships at the local hospital, at local
doctors or at facilities associated with the medical school at Springfield.
Local veterinarians and the Henson Robinson Zoo in Springfield offer pre-vet
students the opportunity to get hands-on experience with local and exotic
animals.
Students interested in zoology and environmental biology have the opportunity
to participate in projects at organizations such as the Illinois State
Museum, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, the Henson Robinson
Zoo, the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service, the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service or the Illinois Natural History Survey.
In addition, facilities at nearby universities offer students the opportunity
to participate in on-going research projects.
Faculty
Our faculty brings a broad range of educational and professional
experience to the classroom.
Carol Kasper, M.S.
B.A., Biology, Millikin University; M.S.,
Botany, Rutgers, The State University
Professor Kasper has done research on vascular regeneration
in plants and is interested in prairie reclamation and restoration. She
is currently a Site Steward for The Nature Conservancy, helping to restore
the last remnant of lowland prairie in the state. Carol has been a volunteer
at the Illinois State Museum, and an interpreter/site seamstress/gardener
at Lincoln's New Salem State Park. She has also been involved with emergency
medicine as an EMT Instructor-Trainer and spent 15 years as an EMT volunteer
with local emergency services agencies.
E-Mail: carol.kasper@mac.edu
URL: http://www.mac.edu/faculty/carolkasper Janet Rasmussen, Ph.D.
B.Sc. Oklahoma State University, Ph.D. Purdue
University, Associate Professor, Chair of the Department of Biology.
Dr. Rasmussen began her Science teaching career
in Lesotho, in Southern Africa as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer. She
has also served on the faculty of the School for Field Studies at the
Center for Wildlife Management in Nairobi, Kenya and at several universities
in Texas. Janet's research interests are in the areas of behavioral
ecology and conservation biology. She is currently monitoring butterfly
populations at a nature reserve owned by The Nature Conservancy.
E-Mail: janet.rasmussen@mac.edu
Sharon L. C. Young
B.S. Biology, George Washington University
Ph.D. Molecular Cell Biology, Washington University in St. Louis
Dr. Young has a long history of basic research, beginning as a teenager at the National Institutes of Health, in the National Institute on Aging studying Alzheimer’s disease with Dr. Dan Brady. She then did research investigating cell-to-cell communication through gap junctions at GWU with Dr. Valerie Hu, and spent a summer at Baylor College of Medicine studying progesterone receptor signaling with Dr. Nancy Weigel. Dr. Young’s doctoral research examined the molecular mechanisms of G protein signaling in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in the laboratory of Dr. Kendall J. Blumer at Washington University School of Medicine. After completing her doctorate, she stayed at Wash U to pursue post-doctoral research in the laboratory of Clay F. Semenkovich, studying steroid metabolism and aging in mice.
E-Mail: sharon.young@mac.edu
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