Dennis J. Taylor

Professor of Biology

B.A. Biology: Hiram College (1973)
Ph.D. Ecology: Cornell University (1979)
Postdoctoral Fellow, NSF, University of Stirling, Scotland (1980)

Colton 307
(330) 569-5267
taylordj@hiram.edu

Education:

B.A.  1973  Hiram College, Hiram, Ohio.  Biology

The two most influential mentors in my major, biology, were Professor Dwight Berg, a classical plant taxonomist who instilled in me a passion for understanding evolutionary relationships based on strong scientific evidence, and Professor James H. Barrow Jr., an animal behaviorist and parasitologist who was 30 years ahead of his time in using inquiry-based, hands-on learning.  My first professor at Hiram, Charles McKinley, cultivated my interest in international studies due to his love of the Irish and the Middle East. 

Ph.D. 1979  Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.  Ecology

At Cornell I studied in the lab of Professor William McFarland, influenced by Ellis Loew, who was a postdoctoral fellow.  I studied the interaction between environmental cues (photoperiod and temperature) and hormones (thyroxin and prolactin) in changing sensitivity to colors by changing visual pigment proportions.  Professor Emeritus Grace E. Pickford, who retired at Hiram, provided valuable advice and training.  The group of graduate students in the Vertebrate Ecology group, headed by J.B. Heiser provided a kind of education that went far beyond four walls of the classroom and remain important colleagues and friends to this day. 

Postdoctoral Fellow 1980 National Science Foundation, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland

I worked in the lab of Professor William Muntz on an organoculture of trout retina project that had to be abandoned due to a worldwide shortage of fetal calf serum necessary for the work to proceed.  Instead I examined the influence of the pineal gland on vision in goldfish and continued work on vision in brown trout.

Professional Appointments:

Hiram College:

      Assistant Professor 1979 - 1985, Associate Professor 1985 - 1994, Professor 1994 - present 

      OBR STEM Academy Director 2007

      Director of Academic Programs, James H. Barrow Field Station 2005 - 2006

      International Recruiting 1999-2000

      Director, Center for International Studies, Hiram College 1991 - 1998 

      Administrative Director, James H. Barrow Field Station, Hiram College, 1988 - 1990

Cornell University

      Core Faculty, Shoals Marine Laboratory, Cornell University 1982- present

University of Stirling, Scotland

      Postdoctoral Fellow

Other Professional Experience:

Other Research Experience

1991  The College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University and Becktin-Dickinson Corporation Quantitative Buffy Coat Analysis of Avian Blood

1985  The New York Zoological Society - Hemachromatosis and its impact on captive avian species

1983  The New York Zoological Society (Bronx Zoo) and the Population Council at Rockefeller University, New York City -- Reproduction in the Snow Leopard: Hormonal Studies

Professional Service:

2006-2007  Innovative Teaching and Learning Committee Member - The Ohio Learning Network

2006-2007 Northeast Ohio Regional Center of the Ohio Learning Network - Advisory Committee Member

2005-2006 The Ohio Digital Commons for Education - Conference Planning Committee Member

2002   Lecturer - Educational Advising with the U.S. State Department in Bhutan

2001- present - Upper Cuyahoga River Management Task Force - Hiram College Representative

1993-2001   Science Education & College Advising Annual Lecture Series for International High Schools and Advising Centers delivered in 34 countries throughout Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and Europe at over 120 institutions.

Awards:

2001, 2002  Steifel Faculty Fellow - Shoals Marine Laboratory.

2000, 1997 & 1994 Paul E. Martin Faculty Award for Exemplary Teaching, Research and Service 1988  Vencl/Carr Award for Distinguished Teaching, Hiram College

1999, 1998, 1983    Outstanding Faculty Award, Hiram College Student Senate

1985  Omicron Delta Kappa, Leadership Honorary Society, Hiram College

1978 & 1975 Clark Award for Distinguished Teaching, Honorable Mention, Cornell University

1973  Phi Beta Kappa, Hiram College

Grants:

Active Grants as Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator or Project Director:

   Igniting Streams of Learning In Science: Supporting and Enhancing STEM Careers

Using the Recovering Cuyahoga Watershed as a Local Model - Ohio Board of Regents Stem and Foreign Language Academies 2007-2008; Project Director ($340,000)

Development of Primary Headwater Habitat Multi-Media Training Modules - The Ohio Environmental Education Fund 2007; Project Director ($46,043)

From the Campus to the Coast: Increasing Diversity in Marine Sciences (Track 2) Cornell University State - National Science Foundation Geosciences Directorate on Minorities Shoals Marine Laboratory 2006-2008 - My role as one of the co-principal investigators was to develop and teach the 3 week intensive summer course on Ocean Sciences ($99,462)

Biomonitoring Initiative of the Center for the Study of Nature and Society - United States Department of Education 2004-2007;  Biomonitoring Program Director  ($75,487 of a $500,000 grant)

Past Grants as Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator or Director

Bridging Economic Generational and Cultural Divides with PDAs - Ohio Learning Community 2004, Principal Investigator ($19,887)

Support for Faculty Development - Bhutan Study Abroad Program - Fiat Lux Fund Hiram College - 2002 - CoDirector ($10,000)

Mapping, Assessment and Planting of Street Trees of Hiram Village and Hiram Fairview Cemetery - Hiram Community Trust 1999 - 2001 ($13,500) Director

Master Plan for the Hiram Fairview Cemetery and Street Trees of Hiram Village - The Hiram Community Trust - 1998 - ($3,000) CoDirector

Development of Integrated International Programs - course development, faculty development, international student  support and recruitment - focus on Latin America, the Middle East, Asia and Africa -  James A. & John S. Knight Foundation - Project Director        1991-1996 ($250,000)

Landscape Assessment of the Hiram Fairview Cemetery - Hiram Community Trust - 1995   Co-Director

Quantitative Buffy Coat Analysis of Avian Systems - Adaptation of Autoscan Technology Instrumentation from Idexx Corporation -1994 -  Co-Principal Investigator with Robert Levine, Harvard University

Quantitative Buffy Coat Analysis in Birds - Instrumentation from the Becktin-Dickinson Corporation - 1994  Co-Principal Investigator with Robert Levine & Stephen Wardlaw Harvard University ($6,000)

Equipment in Endocrinology Assays - National Science Foundation Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement Program for Instrumentation in Physiology, Endocrinology and Molecular Biology - 1989 - Principal Investigator

Habitats and Adaptations of Aquatic and Wetland Species - Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Nongame Wildlife Grant - 1988 - Principal Investigator

Physiology, Endocrinology and Molecular Biology - National Science Foundation College Science Instrumentation Program 1987 Principal Investigator

Organoculture of fish retina - Faculty Summer Research Grant - Hiram College - 1981 Principal Investigator

Organoculture of the retina and pigment epithelium of fishes, and studies on the environmental and hormonal control of visual pigment sensitivity in brown trout..National Science Foundation National Needs Postdoctoral Fellowship. 1980 Recipient

Institutional Grant Participation:

Personal Digital Assistant Pilot Project using Handhelds in the Classroom - Ohio Learning Community  2003 - Grant to Sajit Zachariah at the University of Akron -  Team Member

Mobile and Equitable Scientific Inquiry - Learning Communities Network - Ohio Learning Network 2002 - Grant to Sajit Zachariah University of Akron - Team Member

Development of an Inquiry-based Science Methods Course for Teachers -Teaching Inquiry in Mathematics and Science (TIMS) -  2001-2002  Team member

Support for Development of the Core Curriculum in Biology -The Howard Hughes Medical Institute to Hiram College - 1991 Participant

Support for the Development of International Collegia (three courses linked by a common theme): Exploitation In Mesoamerica - an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Spanish language, history and tropical ecology - The Lilly Endowment Incorporated to Hiram           College - 1990 - Team Member

Support for the Development of Collegia: Germany Copes with the Past - an Interdisciplinary Approach to the Study of German History, Literature, Language and   Ecology -The Murphy Foundation to Hiram College - 1987 - Team Member   

Support for the Development of Collegia:  Ecology, Ethics , Economics and the Environment - The Murphy Foundation to Hiram College - 1987 - Team Member

Workshop on Critical Thinking in the Classroom:  Teaching Critical Thinking in Zoology and Physiology - Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education to the East Central College Consortium - 1984 -1986 - Participant

Computer Assisted Instruction in Undergraduate Science Education:  Computer Assisted Instruction in Physiology - The National Science Foundation to Hiram College - 1981- 1982 -  Participant

Ecological Consulting Projects - Invertebrate & Fish Surveys and Water Analysis Using Student Assistants & Professional Colleagues- Ohio Department of Transportation:

      1990 April Cleveland Airport - Runway Extension survey

      1991 July Tinker's Creek - Summit County

      1991 July Chagrin River - Geauga County

      1992 May Clear Fork Mohican River - Richland County, Ohio

      1992 July West Branch Huron River - Huron County

      1992 August  Sugar Creek - Wayne County

      1992 September  Killbuck Creek - Wayne County

      1992 October  Camel Creek - Medina County

      1993 July Salt Creek - Wayne County

Classes:

Taught since Fall 1999:

Biology 101   Beginning Field Biology - Summer 2002 - in Alaska

Biology 141   Introductory Biology:  Zoology - Spring or Fall 12 week 1999-2006

Biology 223   Vertebrate Zoology: Spring 12 Week 2004

Biology 280   Learning Science and Technology Through Horticulture: Fall 12 week 2004

Biology 280   Seminar on Public Gardens: Fall 3 week 2003

Biology 310   Fisheries Biology:  Spring 3 week 2004 - in Alaska

Biology 326   Animal Physiology - Fall 3 week 1999-2000

Biology 341   General Ecology - Spring 12 week 2001, Fall 12 Week 2004, 2006

Biology 342   Marine Ecology - Spring 3 week 2003, Fall 3 week 2004, 2006 in Florida

Biology 380   Seminar: Biology of Fishes - Spring 3 week 1999, 2005 in Northeast Ohio

Biology 380   Seminar: Fisheries Biology - Spring 3 week 2001 - in Alaska

Biology 380   Seminar: Herpetology - Spring 3 week 2006 in Northeast Ohio and south Utah&California

Biology 380   Seminar: Wetlands and Streams - Fall 12 week 2006

Biology 380   Seminar: Fluvial Geomorphology - Fall 12 week 2005

BIOSM 123   Ocean Sciences - Summer 2006 at the Shoals Marine Laboratory

BIOSM 413   Research in Marine Biology (former Experimental Marine Ecology)  - Summer 2000

                   2006- at Shoals Marine Laboratory

Education 384 Science Education - Fall 12 week 2001

First Year Colloquium 101-20  Good Science and Bad Politics in an Election Year:  Fall 12 week 2004

First Year Seminar 146   Creation Evolution and Literalism - Spring 12 week 2000-01

First Year Seminar 182   American Gardens and Gardening - Spring 12 week 2002 and 2005

Interdisciplinary 318  Natural History in the Early 21st Century - Summer 2002 - in Alaska

Interdisciplinary 326  Finding Order in Nature: Natural History of the Himalayas - Spring 3 week 2002 - in Bhutan 

Interdisciplinary 344   Two Centuries of German Achievement in Science and Its Reflection in Literature - Spring 3 week 2000; Fall 3 week 2002 - in Germany

Writing 280  Nature Writing - Spring 12 week 2000

Masters in Interdisciplinary Studies 5270 - Wetland Plant ID and Application

Other Teaching Experience Prior to 1999:

AT HIRAM COLLEGE in Biology: 

      Adaptation and the Environment

      Biology for the Non-Major,

      Endocrinology, Field Biology and Ecology,

      Human Anatomy and Physiology,

      Molecular and Cellular Biology

AT HIRAM COLLEGE in General Education: 

      Colloquium on Environmental Ethics, 

      First Year Seminar-Journey into Exotic and Unknown,

      Interdisciplinary Course - Germany Copes with the Past

AT THE SHOALS MARINE LABORATORY: 

      Adaptations of Marine Organisms (Cornell University and University of New Hampshire)

      Marine Mammals

      Sea Beside the See

AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY GRADUATE ASSISTANT:  Biology of Fishes, Ecological Animal Physiology, Herpetology, Vertebrate Zoology

Current Research Interests:

College Science Education - Strategies for Retention of Minorities and International Students and the retention of all groups in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math careers  

K-20 Innovations in Technology to Promote Curriculum Reform in Science Education Centered on Improving Student Learning

Landscape Ecology - Looking at ways that our use of land affects water resources of our natural world

Wetland and Stream Assessment and Biomonitoring - Studies in Biodiversity and Applied Science

Recent Contributed Papers and Invited Lectures:

2005        David Anderson, Valerian Anderson, Lucy Chamberlain, Joe Dombroski, Bryan Drennen, David Factor, Martin Flagg, Sean Little, Dan Scott, Jason Seith, Forrest Smith, Dennis Taylor, Jeff Wanser, Sajit Zachariah. 8 March 2005.  Columbus, Ohio.  "Bridging Generational and Cultural Divides with Personal Digital Assistants".  The Ohio Digital Commons for Education

2004        David Anderson, Lucy Chamberlain, Joe Dombroski, Bryan Drennen, David Factor, Dan Scott, Jason Seith, Forrest Smith, David Sporar, Dennis Taylor, Jeff Wanser, Brian Watkins, Paul Watler, Emily Wittenmyer, Sajit Zachariah, Nicholas Zimet.  9 February 2004 Columbus, Ohio, "Growing Gardens, Communities and Minds with Digital Nutrients".  The Ohio Digital Commons for Education.  http://www.oln.org/conferences/OCDE2004/papers/Growing_Gardens.pdf

2002        National Science Teacher's Association - Integrating Public Materials, State and National Standards into an Inquiry Based Stream Curriculum for Grades 5-8 Portland Oregon

2000        American Cultural Center, Doha Qatar - Higher Education in the United States - Strategies for Success for International Students (one example of over 400 given between 1993 and 2000)

1994        Tufts University, College of Veterinary Medicine.  Quantitative Buffy Coat Analysis- Adaptation to Avian Systems 

Reports - Case Studies, Reviews and Interviews

2005  Lake Erie College External Review of the Sciences Area. Report to the Department with Professor John Andrews, Chemistry Department Hiram College

2005 Taylor, D. J. Hiram College- University of Akron Learning Community - Case Study      http://www.oln.org/teaching_and_learning/lci/cases/Taylor-Hiram-yr1.pdf

2005 Taylor, D.J. "The effect of treatment on the pH, turbidity and temperature of Drinking Water and Sewage" published online at the E-Learning Athenaeum of Ohio. A middle school science education module. http://www3.uakron.edu/education/OLN/taylor.html

2003  Taylor, D.J. "Bhutan: A Balance of Extremes" Abroad View Magazine 10/31/2003      www.abroadviewmagazine.com/fall_03/balance.html

 1995  Taylor, D.J. The Role of Overseas Advisors in Promoting Educational Exchange - The Association of Overseas   Advisors - South East Asian Region - Panel Paper of the Quarterly Newsletter