May 24, 2022
Recent Shawnee State University graduate, Megan Long (Hometown: Waverly, OH), presented her own research at the annual Celebration of Scholarship (COS) conference on treating acute myeloid leukemia cells with matcha green tea. Continuously adding to her project over time, the biology student received the Dean’s Award during the conference in recognition for her research.
“I presented my research project on measuring circadian rhythm genes in acute myeloid leukemia, and how certain genes might be affected by an antioxidant found in matcha green tea,” said Long. “I had written a grant proposal during the autumn semester of 2021, which I submitted to the Tri-Beta national biological honors society and received funding for my research.”
Seeing where she started and where she finished in this project, Long enjoyed seeing the personal and professional growth that has occurred. Her experience in COS reflected her interests and allowed her to contribute to her studies within her independent project.
“This experience was meaningful to me because I got to talk about the research that I was extremely excited about and enjoyed doing,” she said. “I had planned for this research for a while through the grant writing process, and presenting at Celebration of Scholarship gave me the opportunity to reflect and see how far I had come.”
Long enjoyed the hands-on approach as she was out in the field collecting data. She also learned to adapt to the challenges that came her way so she could get her results.
“Gathering data was my favorite part of the process,” said Long. “There were a few hiccups because it was a new research project but after changing some methods, I was able to get some results.”
Long was thrilled to be doing the work she enjoys. Her effort was rewarded when she received the Deans’ Award for all her research. The Deans’ Awards are chosen based on faculty nominations by the Deans of the College of Professional Studies and the College of Arts & Sciences for outstanding research papers.
“I spent a lot of time on my grant proposal and gathering research, and I was very interested in the research that I have been doing,” she said. “It was a project that I thoroughly enjoyed. Receiving the Deans’ Award was meaningful to me because it made me feel like my work on the project was recognized by others.”
To learn more about Shawnee State University’s annual Celebration of Scholarship Conference, visit shawnee.edu/cos.