Biology Faculty Headquarters

  • Biology
  • Faculty & Staff
  • Faculty Headquarters

Alumni Newsletter

  • Published online twice per year (January, June)
  • Faculty contact: Charles Umbanhowar

Behrents Fund

  • Fund set-up by Dr. Gordon and Alice Behrents
  • Supports student research supplies
  • Generates about $1700 per year which is divided in half for each semester
  • BIO 398 students are encouraged to apply (consideration will also be given to BIO 375 students and BIO 396 courses if funds allow)
  • Proposals for Fall projects due to Jean (via the student) the last Wednesday in September. 
  • Proposal should include an informative paragraph about the proposed research, and a clear description of the proposed costs.

BioMass

  • Online newsletter for biology majors and students interested in biology
  • 6 issues per year (September, October, November, January, February, April/May)
  • Student Coordinator: Brenna Peterson (petersbp)

Bio 375

  • A 0.25 credit option for a student to either get started on a research project or to finish up work on a research project.
  • You can sign their add slip – the course is listed with the Chair as instructor.
  • This is a “pass or no-pass” course.

 

birdcollection-stolaf

 

 

 

Department Aliases

  • biology-dept@stolaf.edu – includes current faculty and staff and faculty on sabbatical/leave if they choose
  • biology-all@stolaf.edu – includes faculty, staff and emeriti

Department History – link to now private page

 

Falcons – now private page

Getting Lab Manuals Printed

  • Submit a hard copy or email an electronic copy of your lab manual to Chalee Follansbee (Course Pack Manager at the Bookstore), x3161, <follansb@stolaf.edu>
  • She needs to know

number of copies for students in class and number of desk copies (you, TAs),
single or double sided
if you want pages numbered
if anything requires copyright approval
if you prefer a certain type of binding; coil, comb, 3-hole punch, shrink wrapped

  • Desk copies will come to you in campus mail
  • Student copies are sold in the bookstore
  • Deadlines for submitting manuals are

Fall courses – May 1
Interim courses – Nov 1
Spring courses – Dec 1
Summer courses – April 1

Internships and Independent Study and Research Courses

Faculty are often asked to serve as advisors for students doing internships for academic credit (BIO 294 or BIO 394), and/or as advisors for independent study (BIO 298) or independent research (BIO 398) courses. Faculty do not get teaching credit for any of these endeavors, though they each can be rewarding in other ways.

Internships (BIO 294)

Supervising an academic internship (BIO 294) involves guiding the student toward daily and final work that will help her/him reach their learning goals, and assessing that work for assignment of a pass or no-pass grade only. Internships do not count towards the major, and much of the logistical work is handled by the student via the Piper Center.

Independent Study (BIO 298)

Supervising an independent study (BIO 298) involves regular meetings with a student on a topic not otherwise offered in our curriculum, and assessment of the student’s work toward assignment of a grade (although students may elect to take the course pass/fail). These often take the form of a directed readings course, but are quite flexible according to the faculty and student goals. Students are allowed to add a WRI to a BIO 298 course, but the student and faculty member must propose (and follow through on) how the course work and assessment will meet the learning goals of the WRI general education requirement (see here and scroll down to WRI for the downloadable PDF).

Independent Research (BIO 398)

Supervising an independent research (BIO 398) involves mentoring a student in research, and assessment of the student’s work toward assignment of a grade (although students may elect to take the course pass/fail). Students are allowed to add a WRI to a BIO 398 course, but the student and faculty member must propose (and follow through on) how the course work and assessment will meet the learning goals of the WRI general education requirement (see here and scroll down to WRI for the downloadable PDF).

Supervision of either a BIO 298 or a BIO 398 requires the completion and submission of a form (found here) for registration; this does not have to be completed during web registration, and students usually wait until the first few days of the semester for their IS and IR registrations. The department chair must sign the form before the student submits it to the Registrar’s Office.

Jobs aliases (Mike Swift is the owner of the alias)

gradschool14-15 = ads for grad school
gradsjobs14-15 = ads for jobs that begin before school is out this year or that continue summer ’15 into the school year in F ’15
jobs14-15 = ads for summer research and summer internships

Lysne Fund

Harold J. Lysne ’53, donated $1000 in 2003 as part of his Reunion Gift for his 50th class reunion at St. Olaf.  The funds are used to purchase plants in the greenhouse.  Charles Umbanhowar oversees the fund.

Prospective students visiting your classroom

Biology is a popular major.   Many high school students looking at St. Olaf for their college experience want to sit in in a biology course.  When Admissions gets these requests they:

  • Send you an email, usually a week ahead, to notify you that a student is interested in coming to your class.
  • They assume if you don’t respond, you are okay with the visit.
  • The prospective will leave a yellow card on the desk in the classroom when they come to class or hand it to you.  The yellow card has information about the prospective student.
  • You are not expected to acknowledge the prospective student but you can if you want.
  • Parents are not allowed to join the prospective student in the classroom.

 

Search – Tenure Track Organismal Biologist

Committee Chair – Steve Freedberg, Committee Members – Lisa Bowers, Dave Van Wylen, Anne Walter, Anne Kuxhausen, Jean Porterfield, Mary Walczak

 

Seminars

Mondays, 4:00 p.m., RNS 410

 

Student Work

Flow chart – hiring student workers 

 

Tri-Beta

  • St. Olaf’s chapter of the National Biology Honor Society
  • Officers plan social events for biology majors and students interested in biology (Waffle Social, Halloween Party, Holiday Party, Chinese with the Profs, Programming for the Biology Senior Banquet)
  • Faculty Contact: Lisa Bowers