Biology major Esther Par has won the prestigious Stan Hudson Research Grant Award from the Missouri Native Plant Society for her research on the evolutionary diversification of the temperate North American false foxgloves plants with endangered prairie native species which she is conducting with Biology Assistant Professor Dr. Tilo Roy.

Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Csengele Barta has been awarded the 2021 Primarily Undergraduate Institutions Award of the American Society of Plant Biologists.

Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Julie Jedlicka conducted research at Spring Mountain Vineyard in St. Helena, California concerning the impact of bluebirds as pest control. Her research can be seen in a video on YouTube: griff.vn/bluebirds.

Seniors Heather Sadler, RHIT, HCS-D and Kimberly West, RHIT, were awarded two $300 student scholarships at the Missouri Health Information Management Association Annual Business Meeting for their work in Missouri Western’s Health Information Management program.

Associate Professor of Geography Dr. Dawn Drake released the second edition of her book, “A Profile of the Farm Machinery Industry: The Power to Help Farmers Feed the World,” from Business Expert Press.

Members of Missouri Western’s Lambda Chapter of Alpha Chi National Honor Society won second place in the collaborative research team competition at the Alpha Chi National Convention for their project, “Sterilization and the State: The Impact and Modern Remnants of the Eugenics Movement.” Members include Hannah Berry, economics and English; Julia Stolfus, social work; Jordan Holkesvik, history education, Matthew Bobela, music education; and MacKenzie Grantham, biology/health sciences; mentored by Dr. Angela Haas, history.

Madeline Rislow, assistant professor of art, and Dr. Pam Clary, associate professor of social work, won the Spring Advisor Shout-Out Awards from the Student Success and Academic Advising Center.

The Xi Omega Chapter of the International Honor Society for Education, Kappa Delta Pi, initiated three new members, Melissa Berger ’21, elementary education; Tori Brock, early childhood education and Tanner Merwin, history education; and honored outstanding graduates Kennedy Chavez ’20, early childhood education; Victoria Vaughn ’21, elementary education and Emily Zawodney-Walkup ’21, secondary/K-12 education.

Seven students graduated in May with American Chemical Society Certification of their chemistry degrees: Leo Derr, Matthew Edlin, Kindall Henning, Emily Holland, Christopher Holcomb, Jacob Koonce and Amanda Scoular.

The following students won Chemistry Department awards for the spring 2021 semester: Leo Derr, Edgar C. Little Outstanding Chemistry Graduate Award; Cameron Hal, William Rosalee Medical Technology Award; Jessie Wright and Kendall Henning, Department of Chemistry Student Service Award; Munaa Mbarak and Marlen Munoz-Franco, Len Archer Chemistry Graduate Student Award; Nelson Maxey, Zweerink Physical Chemistry Scholarship Award; Kyle Roller, American Chemical Society Undergraduate Award in Analytical Chemistry; Bowyn Ziebarth, American Chemical Society Undergraduate Award in Organic Chemistry; Kindall Henning, American Chemical Society Undergraduate Award in Inorganic Chemistry; Jacob Koonce, American Chemical Society Undergraduate Award in Physical Chemistry, and Catherine Cates, Missouri Western State University Award for Excellence in Biochemistry.

The Missouri Western Model Arab League Delegation consisting of students Max Miller, Darby Hay, Jordan Miller, Tate McCoy and Sara Mosley, were named  Outstanding Delegation in Political Affairs at the 2021 Great Plains Model Arab League virtual meeting.

The Department of Social Sciences and Humanities recognized two students for academic success in political science: Max Miller was recognized as the Outstanding Senior in Political Science and Dillon Schreckler was recognized as the Outstanding Graduate in Political Science.

The Nu Eta Chapter of Gamma Theta Upsilon, the international honor society in geography, welcomed three new members, Konner Larkin, Tanner Merwin and Bailee Romaker. Romaker was also given the Excellence in Geography award.

Wildlife conservation and management major Alyka Zahnd was awarded the prestigious American Society of Plant Biologists Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Award for 2021.

The History Department has awarded Kendra Carman, Adrian Dodson and Jordan Holkesvik the James R. Jordan History Honors Award; has awarded Shannon Evans, Tycen Gray, Jordan Holkesvik, Tanner Merwin and Josian Schmedding the Scholastic Key Award for excellent GPAs, and has initiated Shannon Evans and Brian Salsberry into the historians’ honor society, Phi Alpha Theta.

Pam Klaus ’03, director of the Craig School of Business Center for Franchise Development, has been awarded the Missouri Business Education Association’s Northwest District University Educator of the Year.

Dr. Teddi Deka was honored for nine years of service as honors director at the spring 2021 Honors Medal Ceremony.

Raechel Tittor ’21 was awarded the Directors Award for her service as a student employee in the honors office at the spring 2021 Honors Medal Ceremony.

Dr. Gary Clapp, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and director of the Kit Bond Science and Technology Incubator, was credited with two U.S. patents (10,729,673 and 10,993,927) for the synthesis and pharmaceutical applications of taxane particles.

Biology faculty Dr. Tilo Roy was the plenary speaker at the 38th Symposium and Annual Meeting of the Association of Systematic Biologists of the Philippines.

Sally Gibson, library director, was elected as the vice president/president-elect of the MOBIUS Board of Directors.

Austin Holmes, Elaina Jones and Dana Eplett submitted artwork that was accepted into the National Undergraduate Juried Exhibition at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art in St. Joseph.