In 2007, Aquinas College was endowed with funding for student and faculty research by the Mohler family bequest. A year later, the Thompson family made additional contributions to the annual grant, which we now know as the Mohler-Thompson Summer Research Scholarship.

The Mohler-Thompson Grant empowers student-faculty collaboration for undergraduate research over the summer months, with each partnership working together on a project in their respective disciplines. The grant funds research expenses and provides student and faculty stipends, though academic credit can, in some cases, be substituted for stipends. Since its birth, the program has featured 57 students and 20 faculty members throughout five different departments: biology, chemistry, mathematics, geography and physics.

Aquinas’ Coordinator for Undergraduate Research and Associate Professor of Chemistry Elizabeth Jensen, Ph.D. reports that the program has had exceptional success in all projects, specifically those who pursued more sustainable methods of developing synthetic compounds. Dr. Jensen said that one cannot discuss past projects without mentioning the infamous “cockroach experiments” of Associate Professor of Biology Thomas Bahl, Ph.D., in which he removed glands from the insect’s brain and observing how their physiology influences mating behavior.

Dr. Jensen stated that perhaps one of the program’s most notable achievements was in the publishing of a math textbook, “Geometry by Construction.” Written and published by Professor of Mathematics Michael McDaniel, Ph.D., the book is a compilation of the work he and several of his student partners developed over several years on Euclidean and non-Euclidean geometry. According to Dr. Jensen, McDaniel has been consistently involved in the program each year.

When asked about the overarching goal of the Mohler-Thompson grant, Dr. Jensen explained that it aims to provide research experience for undergraduates in their field. “If students aren’t sure they want to do this in their future careers, it would be better to find that out now than when they’ve already enrolled in a grad program,” said Dr. Jensen. Dr. Jensen herself has worked on several different projects, with topics ranging from environmental problems and lead contamination, to counterfeit pharmaceuticals and liquid crystal synthesis. Regarding the experience itself, Dr. Jensen said, “It's really the student’s project, in my eyes, so I like to let them drive it—really see what they are passionate about and how we can tackle it together.”

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Mohler-Thompson Scholarship, and it is operating at full capacity, awarding the funds to six pairs of faculty and students.

In geography, Dr. Mary Clinthorne and Jacob Towne '17 are working with geographic information systems (GIS) and computerized mapping as it pertains to agriculture. In chemistry, Dr. Jonathan Fritz and John McAfee ’17 are pursuing a project on direct arylation. In biology, Dr. Jennifer Hess and Avery Wagner ’17, are researching bacteria contaminants in vitamins and nutritional supplements, while Dr. Rob Peters and Bridgette Degenhardt '17 are researching the immunology of coral. In mathematics, Dr. Michael McDaniel and Tristen Spencer '19 will be undertaking more non-Euclidian geometry, while Dr. Joseph Spencer and Maria Maguire '19 are taking a mathematical approach to the ancient board game Mancala. 

These six teams are well underway in their research, and will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the program with new and interesting findings.