Educational Enrichment

Educational Enrichment

Ohio Wesleyan Awards Nearly $37,000 in OWU Connection Grants to Support Hands-On Learning

DELAWARE, Ohio - Ohio Wesleyan University is awarding $36,950 in OWU Connection grants this spring to help students conduct biodiversity research in Peru, work with zoo animals in Ecuador, research the bacteria that protect squid eggs, review American voting behavior, and explore the Slow Food Movement in Italy.

The university awards multiple rounds of Theory-to-Practice Grants (TPGs) each academic year to support its signature academic experience, the OWU Connection. All students complete at least one OWU Connection experience before they graduate that teaches them to Think Big (complete undergraduate research), Do Good (participate in community-engaged learning, including student leadership), Go Global (complete off-campus study), or Get Real (explore their future careers through meaningful internships and externships).

Those earning spring 2026 grants and their OWU Connection projects are:

• "Balancing Biodiversity and Human Benefits in Peru's Amazon Ecosystems," submitted by junior McCalister Klinzing of Strongsville, Ohio, in collaboration with junior Simon Rivera of Delaware, Ohio, and sophomore Carrie Key of Dayton, Ohio.
  
  In June, the three students will travel to the Peruvian Amazon for 10 days to work with Fauna Forever to complete hands-on biodiversity research and community-based conservation initiatives. "Through mist netting, wildlife transects, forest plot measurements, and collaboration with local 'Forest Guardians' and Indigenous communities, we will examine how land-use practices impact ecosystem health and wildlife populations," Klinzing wrote in the grant proposal. "By integrating field ecology with conservation economics and community engagement, the project seeks to better understand how long-term environmental protection can coexist with sustainable development."
• "¡Cuánta biodiversidad! A Wildlife Husbandry Volunteerism in Cuenca, Ecuador," submitted by first-year student Zachary Lamoreux of Wadsworth, Ohio.
  
  During June, Lamoreux will volunteer for a month at Zoo Bioparque Amaru. "My tasks would include, but are not limited to, preparing diets, working with medicine under veterinary supervision, constructing habitats, and carrying out an independently assigned research project," Lamoreux stated in the grant proposal. "This project would help me gain knowledge on various topics such as animal nutrition and wildlife management while simultaneously contributing to my Zoology and Spanish majors with career-furthering research in a Spanish-speaking environment."
• "Investigating variability in the antimicrobial pigment production, indigoidine, in commensal marine bacteria Leisingera spp. ANG59 and JC1," submitted by junior Augustine Lemert of Granville, Ohio, in collaboration with faculty member Andrea Suria, Ph.D., assistant professor of Biological Sciences.
  
  During the 2026-2027 academic year, Lemert will complete an independent microbiology/molecular biology project to continue previous research on two symbiotic bacteria from Hawaiian bobtail squid eggs and the antimicrobial blue pigment they produce. "This proposed study will provide an avenue for student-led independent research at an undergraduate level and allow for development of lab and bench techniques in molecular and microbiology," Lemert wrote in the grant proposal. "The project is planned to conclude with furthering abilities in scientific communication and knowledge sharing for the local OWU and Ohio community in microbiology and molecular studies."
• "How Important is 'Important'? Re-examining the Role of Subjective Issue Importance in American Voting Behavior," submitted by Brianna Mack, Ph.D., associate professor of Politics and Government, in collaboration with junior Payton Mindel of Fisherville, Kentucky.
  
  Beginning in mid-May, the professor and student will spend a year exploring the "concept of subjective issue importance and its influence on voting decisions," Mack stated in their grant application. "In light of recent American political discourse following the election of Donald Trump and changes to the federal government, we want to explore the extent to which issue importance influences voting decisions as opposed to candidate characteristics. … The project integrates theory, methodological training, and career preparation in ways that mirror both graduate-level research and applied policy analysis environments."
• "Popup Pollinator Pathway Project," submitted by junior Camille Mattox of Blacklick, Ohio, with senior Max Huntington of Newton, Massachusetts, and junior Colby Sprague of Lancaster, Ohio.
  
  "Working with the North Central Ohio Pollinator Pathway Organization (NCOPP), we will create a sustainable, native pollinator and prairie habitat in the garden beds around the Ross Art Museum," the students stated in their grant application. They will use the funding to create planting schematics and to purchase native plants, planting materials, and educational signage. "This project is intended to be the initial step towards creating a pollinator pathway across OWU's campus," they stated. "By engaging with the OWU and Delaware communities, we will beautify our campus and foster a deeper respect for the natural world."
• "Food & Belonging: How The Slow Food Movement Restores Commensality in the Modern Day," submitted by junior Lily Reinert of St. Louis, Missouri, in collaboration with sophomore Jessica Aneshansel of Canal Fulton, Ohio; sophomore Lily Boehnlein of Avon, Ohio; sophomore Rachel Decker of Marion, Ohio; and junior Corin Mueller of Avon, Ohio.
  
  "Our project seeks to explore how the Slow Food Movement is implemented in the daily food system rituals of Perugia and Parma, Italy," the students stated, of their nine-day international excursion. "We hope to understand how their practice of commensality within the food system has shaped the region's cultural, environmental, and social structures."

After students complete their OWU Connection experiences, they prepare reports and make presentations based on their objectives and experiences. Learn more at owu.edu/connection.

Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation's premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 70 undergraduate majors and competes in 24 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through its signature experience, the OWU Connection, Ohio Wesleyan teaches students to understand issues from multiple academic perspectives, volunteer in service to others, build a diverse and global perspective, and translate classroom knowledge into real-world experience through internships, research, and other hands-on learning. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book "Colleges That Change Lives" and included on the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review "Best Colleges" lists. Connect with OWU expert interview sources at owu.edu/experts or learn more at owu.edu.