Student Faculty Research
We strongly encourage our students to engage in geoscience research from their first semester at Millersville. Students learn how to ask scientific questions, make observations, design experiments, conduct literature reviews, and ultimately present their results. Our students present at not only our own undergraduate research conference Made In Millersville, but also regional and national meetings of the Geological Society of America and Ocean Sciences meetings. These experiences are invaluable and give students the edge when applying for graduate school or jobs after graduation.
Dr. Sam Earman
Dr. Earman focuses on water resources issues, including studies of groundwater and surface water. His specialty is using stable isotopes and hydrogeochemical data to better understand water systems. Recent research projects have included an analysis of pre-dam vs. post-dam flooding on the Schuykill River near Reading PA; how early COVID lockdowns impacted sewage plant discharge rates in the Lancaster area; and use of machine-learning algorithms to model water-quality impacts from the Susquehanna River on the Chesapeake Bay.
Dr. Lynn Marquez
Dr. Marquez specializes in hydrothermal systems of the oceanic crust as well as igneous and metamorphic petrology. Her current work focuses on the origin and evolution of the Baltimore Mafic Complex which extends from Baltimore into southeast Pennsylvania. Field and petrographic studies suggest that the complex intruded a sedimented margin during the early stages of Appalachian mountain building.
Baltimore Mafic Complex
Jessica Hetrick '23 conducted field and petrographic studies for her senior thesis.
Dr. Talor Walsh
Dr. Walsh's research focuses on structural geology and the relationships between structural geology and geologic fluid flow. He is broadly interested in faulting and fracturing in rocks, the evolution of mountain belts, and the relationships between subsurface fluid flow and geologic structures. His approaches include field-based studies at multiple scales, microstructural studies, experimental modeling, and integrating geological and geochemical data. He also studies the kinematics and physical evolution of mountain belts using field mapping and physical modeling (sandbox and claybox modeling experiments).
Structural Geology
Dr. Walsh conducts field and laboratory studies on rock deformation. Cory Grudovich '23 conducted box modeling...
Dr. ajoy kumar
Dr. Kumar is a seagoing oceanographer specializing in the deployment and use of long-term moored and in-situ instrumentation to study coastal ocean circulation. His research involves studies of coastal wind-driven and tidal circulation in the Eastern Shore (Chincoteague Bay Field Station), and the application of satellite and drones with emphasis on algorithm development and climate research.
Recent Student Research Projects presented at professional meetings:
Jessica Cabbibo '26: Spatial Distribution of Karst Features in South-Central and Southeastern Pennsylvania Carbonate Formations and Implications for Hazard Mitigation, NE GSA
Santina Cerquetelli '26: Petrographic Analysis of the Octoraro and Peter's Creek Schists, Lancaster County Pennsylvania, NE GSA
Jackson Grumbein '25: Investigating Work Balance Models for Fault Formation Using Analog Modeling, NE GSA
Zachary Hersh and Kortlin Yetter '25: Satellite Derived Chlorophyll Estimates in Highly Stratified Regions of the Mid-Atlantic Bight, AGU Ocean Sciences
Jessica Hetrick '23: Field and Petrographic Study of the Baltimore Mafic Complex, Cecil County, MD, GSA
Kate Lundberg '25: Fracture Analysis of Utica and Marcellus Shales in the Appalachian Basin: A Comparative Study, NE GSA
Michael Miller '26: Potential Physical Forcings of the Ocean's Upper Mixed Layer Depth Near the New England Continental Shelf Break, AGU Ocean Sciences
Ethan Mitton '25: Fluid Inclusion Determined Trapping Conditions in the Lackawanna Synclinorium, NE GSA
Elizabeth Ott '25: Microscale Study of the Conestoga Limestone, NE GSA
Emmanuel Owusu '25: The Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAVs, Drones) Technology for Environmental and Geospatial Studies, Made in Millersville
Kathryn Pirhalla '26 and Danny Ahne '26: Relationships Between Structural Geology and Karst Features in Sinking Valley, PA, NE GSA
Samantha Reynolds '25: Assessing Karenia brevis on the West Florida Shelf using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques
Samantha Reynolds '25: Physiological and Behavioral Effects of Salinity on Two Species of Intertidal Snails
Isaac Stapler '26: Investigating the Structural Effects of Volume Loss in Deforming Sedimentary Basins Using Analog Models, NE GSA
Emily Stauder and Somer Barrett '25: Marine Policies and Organism Decline in Chincoteague Bay and Surrounding Salt Marshes, AGU Ocean Sciences
Taylor Steinhilber '27: Tracing Groundwater Flow in Karst Aquifrs: The Hydrogeology of Sinking Valley, PA, NE GSA