Six Nicholls faculty members of the biology, language and literature and chemistry departments were presented with $168,000 worth of grants for undergraduate educational enhancement from the Louisiana Board of Regents.Earl Melancon, a biological sciences professor, received the largest grant of $42,000 for his proposal, “Upgrading Microscope Technology for Instructional Needs in Marine Biology and Invertebrate Zoology.” Melancon’s project ensures that the money will be used on new microscopes and audiovisual equipment. Biology sophomores and juniors in Introduction to Marine Biology and Invertebrate Zoology will use these materials.

Upon receiving the grant, Melancon said, “I was very happy, and I am looking forward to new state of the art microscopes in the hands of biology students.”

Joelle Bonamy, assistant professor of Spanish, recieved a $34,884 grant with her proposal “Moving Pictures, Culture, and Literature around Classrooms.” The money will be used to assist the instruction of culture in foreign language courses in becoming more interactive. With the money, Bonamy will purchase three technology carts, which are portable media centers that include a laptop computer with wireless Internet connection, a projector and a DVD/VCR player. Bonamy said that in the humanities classrooms, where there are no computers or screens, the technology carts will turn them into multi-media rooms.

Bonamy was thrilled at receiving the award. “I was very happy, not only for myself, but also for the proposal investigators, Robin White and Mabel Illidge, and the University,” she said.

Rajkumar Nathaniel, assistant professor of biological sciences, was awarded a $15,337 grant for his proposal, “Enhancing Biology Laboratories Through E-Learning Tools.” The money will be used to buy laboratory instruction supplies, such as high-resolution digital video for media and streaming web-based formats. These purchases will help students to continue working on biology courses whenever school is canceled and power is out because of hurricanes. Nathaniel was also awarded a $34,000 grant for laboratory equipment for biology freshmen with his proposal, “Enhancing Biology Laboratory Experiences for Freshmen”.

Nathaniel has received grants for proposals five years in a row and has received six grants total. “I was extremely grateful and excited for the department,” he said.

Aaron Pierce, assistant professor of biological sciences, received a grant for $28,317. His proposal titled “Enhancing Biological Fieldwork Capabilities of the Department of Biological Sciences at Nicholls State University” will further develop student experiences in the field by supporting wetland bird research, as well as other areas of research.

Chemistry instructor April Dupre received $13,000 to buy a spectrofluorometer to relate biology to experiments conducted in biochemistry, organic and analytical chemistry laboratories. Her proposal was titled “Improving the Biological Relevance in Chemistry Laboratories.