Scholarly Innovation & Student Research

Dr. Melissa May

• This paper evaluates the role of sirtuins, a group of proteins that regulate function of other proteins through post-translational modification, in regulating how marine mussels respond to heat stress. In mammals and other species, sirtuins are important in antioxidant responses, where they can help to combat aging, regulate metabolism, and defend against stress. Previous work has shown that they may play a similar role in marine mussels and help explain why well-fed mussels are better responding to heat shock than poorly fed mussels, and found that like other species, these proteins show increased activity in mussels acclimated to low food availability and correlate with superoxide dismutase activity, one of the proteins sirtuins are thought to regulate. We also used sirtuin inhibitors to try to understand how sirtuins regulate heat shock and subsequent antioxidant stress responses in marine mussels. We found that well-fed mussels respond different to heat shock and sirtuin inhibitors compared to those with given low food availability, suggesting a link between sirtuins, food availability, and heat shock responses. The increases in sirtuin activity in well-fed mussels following stress may indicate a role of sirtuins in restoring homeostasis following heat stress, allowing these animals to recover more quickly than poorly fed mussels.  
• May, M.A. and Tomanek, L.T. 2024. Uncovering the roles of sirtuin activity and food availability during the onset of the heat shock response in the California mussel (Mytilus californianus): Implications for antioxidant stress responses. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology, Part B: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 269:110902
• Dr. May is an Assistant Professor of Marine Biology in The Water School and the Marine Science Program Coordinator.

Dr. Darren Rumbold

• This is a case study that focused on the Caloosahatchee River Estuary that employed a relatively new type of model, a Bayesian Network. Its ability to evaluate the effects of different water management actions on multiple stressors (e.g., altered salinity, nutrients, plankton blooms) and their impacts on multiple ecological endpoints (e.g., oysters, sea grasses, etc.) simultaneously revealed significant interactions between restoration goals, sometimes synergies, and sometimes goal conflicts. Most importantly, it did this in a transparent manner resulting in highly interpretable results.
• Rumbold, D.G. 2023. Use of a Bayesian network as a decision support tool for watershed management: A case study in a highly managed river-dominated estuary. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 195:741.
• Dr. Rumbold is the Director of the Coastal Watershed Institute and Professor of Marine Science.

Dr. Landon Frim

• Prometheus and Gaia: Technology, Ecology and Anti-Humanism, co-authored with Harrison Fluss, explores two currents in contemporary politics: a Futurism which sees boundless technology as a saving force and an Eco-Pessimism which sees human innovation as inherently destructive. While apparent opposites, these two currents share in common: a rejection of Enlightenment humanism, or the idea that politics should fit the human frame.

• Fluss, Harrison and Landon Frim. Prometheus and Gaia: Technology, Ecology and Anti-Humanism (New York: Anthem Press, 2022). 

• Dr. Frim is an Associate Professor of Philosophy.

Dr. Russell Sabella, Dr. Krista Bixler, Dr. Ann Tilman, Dr. Maureen Ungarean, and Dr. Onder Koklu

• This article presents the Educational Leaders’ Knowledge of School Counseling Inventory (ELKSCI), which objectively assesses the level of knowledge about comprehensive school counseling programs among educational leaders. The study collected validity and reliability data among school counseling experts and leaders, providing valuable insights into the collaboration, advocacy, and partnership between school counselors and educational leaders.
• Sabella, Russell, Krista Bixler, Maureen Ungarean, Onder Koklu, & Tilman, Ann (2023). Validating the Educational Leaders’ Knowledge of School Counseling Inventory. Professional school counseling, 27(1), 2156759X231187618.
• Dr. Sabella is a Professor and Program Coordinator in the College of Education.
• Dr. Bixler is an Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator in the College of Education.
• Dr. Tilman is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education.
• Dr. Ungarean is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education.
• Dr. Koklu is an Associate Professor and a Program Coordinator in the College of Education.

Dr. Steven Fraser and Dr. Daniel Huerta-Sánchez

• This paper describes the pedagogical approach of incorporating a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) module in an undergraduate finance major capstone course at Florida Gulf Coast University, a regional comprehensive 4-year university. The module consists of two class periods and requires research of publicly-traded REITs using industry accepted sources of data, empirical and qualitative data analysis, and preparation of written and oral presentations that receive academic and practitioner feedback. The assignment aligns with experiential learning theory and the constructivism learning theory found in research in that it incorporates experiencing, reflecting, thinking, and active learning combined with the participation of guest speakers and judges who serve as external validators enhancing the student classroom experience.

• Fraser, S., D. Huerta-Sanchez, and H. Weeks, Incorporating a REIT Module to an Undergraduate Capstone Course: An Experimental Education Approach, Journal of Real Estate Practice and Education, 2023, Volume 25, Number 1, 1-8. 

• Dr. Huerta-Sánchez is an Associate Professor, in the Department of Economics & Finance and as a Research Fellow for the Lucas Institute for Real Estate Development & Finance. 

• Dr. Fraser is a Professor in the Department of Economics & Finance.

Dr. Michael Baron

• Dr. Baron recorded French Music for Piano Duo with former FGCU student, Dr. Priscila Navarro, and has received ecstatic reviews worldwide. It has been internationally released and is on all streaming platforms.
•  Click here for James Harrington's review, published in "Fanfare", of French Music for Piano Duo by Dr. Michael Baron and Dr. Priscila Navarro.
• Dr. Baron serves as the Myra and Van Williams Distinguished Professor of Music and Head of Keyboard Studies at the Bower School of Music

Dr. Harry Maisch

• Megalodon was one of the largest carnivores that ever existed, and went extinct during the Pliocene Epoch, approximately 3.5 million years ago, around the time of extreme changes in climate and sea-level which impacted prey types and their distribution. This giant megatoothed shark, Otodus megalodon, had a body temperature that was elevated compared to its environment. This study provides empirical evidence that megalodon was warm blooded, or more formally, “regionally endothermic” and was capable of heating certain parts of its body. Several modern sharks are also regionally endothermic and include the great white shark and shortfin mako shark. Deciphering the biology of the prehistoric shark offers crucial clues about the ecological and evolutionary roles large carnivores have played on marine ecosystems through geologic time, and  sheds light on the vulnerability of large marine apex predators, such as the great white shark, to stressors such as climate change.
• Griffiths, M.L., Eagle, R.A., Kim, S.L., Flores, R.J., Becker, M.A., Maisch IV, Harry M., Trayler, R.B., Chan, R.L., McCormack, J., Akhtar, A.A. and Tripati, A.K., 2023. Endothermic physiology of extinct megatooth sharks. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120(27), p.e2218153120.
• Dr. Maisch is an Instructor in the Department of Marine and Earth Sciences at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Dr. Yong-Taek Min

• Demand for foreign nurses and medical staff is rapidly increasing due to the severe labor shortage in U.S. hospitals triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, empirical studies on the effect of the racial diversity of medical staff on hospital operations are still lacking. This research gap is thus investigated based on the foreign medical staff working in 3870 U.S. hospitals. Results show that workforce racial diversity has a significantly positive relationship with hospital operational efficiency regarding occupancy rate, manpower productivity, capacity productivity, and case mix index. Notably, this study empirically supports that increasing the ratio of foreign nurses positively affects the overall operational efficiency of hospitals.

• Lee, C. C., Cho, Y. S., Breen, D., Monroy, J., Seo, D., & Min, Y. T. (2023). Relationship between Racial Diversity in Medical Staff and Hospital Operational Efficiency: An Empirical Study of 3870 US Hospitals. Behavioral sciences, 13(7), 564.

• Dr. Min is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Dr. Melodie Eichbauer

• It is impossible to understand how the medieval church functioned and, in turn, influenced the lay world within its care without understanding “canon law”. Covering all aspects of medieval canon law and its influence on medieval politics, society, and culture, this book provides students of medieval history with an accessible overview of this foundational aspect of medieval history. The book examines its development from its beginnings to the end of the Middle Ages, updating its findings in light of recent scholarly trends.

• Eichbauer, Melodie H. Medieval Canon Law, 2nd edition. Expanded and revised version of the First Edition by James A. Brundage, The Medieval World (London: Routledge, 2022).

• Dr. Eichbauer is a Professor of Medieval History in the Department of Political Science, Public Administration & History.