Alumni Profiles
Ben Kolber, Ph.D.
Since graduating from UD in 2003 with bachelors’ degrees in biology and psychology, Ben Kolber earned a doctorate in neuroscience from Washington University in St. Louis. He is now a post-doctoral research fellow at Washington University. Though Kolber has moved on from Dayton, he considers UD an integral part of his career formation. Both in and out of the classroom, Kolber found the biology department to be influential in his life experiences. “In general, I found all of the biology professors at UD to be incredibly accessible. Whether it was in-class questions or out of class problems, I was never turned away by anyone in the department,” he said. “Kelly Williams was always interested in my experiences and offered honest and thoughtful advice when I began thinking about a career in the biomedical sciences. Carissa Krane provided me with an incredible opportunity to learn both the basic and advanced laboratory skills that I would later need to be successful in a research career. Her passion for undergraduate research has continued to influence me today as I have had the opportunity to mentor undergraduates.”
During his time in St. Louis, Kolber’s work has focused on the endocrine system, stress and psychiatric illness. Kolber and his colleagues have published their work in a variety of research journals. He is currently studying the amygdala, an emotion-processing center of the brain. Kolber recently demonstrated that the amygdala can induce a pain-like state in the absence of any tissue injury, something he is continuing to research.
Kolber enjoyed his UD experience and considers it to be a great starting block for his scientific career. He hopes to continue his biomedical research after completing his post doctoral-work and teach at a small university, specializing in endocrinology, stress and neuroscience.
“UD was an incredible place to learn and grow up,” Kolber said. “One of the most important aspects to this experience that has continued to resonate with me is the breadth of knowledge that I was exposed to at UD. Whether it involved non-science classes in the humanities, service in the community or immersion trips abroad, the broad range of experiences and areas that I encountered at UD has allowed me to maintain a balanced perspective on my own work and the world around me.”
Chelsea Korfel
While at UD, Chelsea Korfel caught the Marianist spirit and has integrated it into her life ever since. Since graduating in 2006 with bachelors’ degrees in environmental biology and environmental geology, Korfel has moved on to The Ohio State University. She received a master’s from OSU in natural resources in 2007 and is now working on a doctorate in evolution, ecology and organismal biology. Though she has physically left UD, she strives to embody the character she found during her undergraduate years.
“I saw the Marianist spirit as an influence in the way my professors taught and interacted with students,” Korfel said. “Since I left UD, I’ve realized that the biology department there has a really unique and amazing group of scientists who aren’t afraid to let their religion guide them in the classroom. I am grateful for the balance of nurture and pushing me to my limits that these professors provided, and wouldn’t be in graduate school today without it.”
Korfel became a lay Marianist before leaving UD and hopes that commitment will continue to guide her in the future. At OSU, she is currently researching a critically endangered species of harlequin frog and the high altitude dynamics of chytridiomycosis, a fungal disease that is suspected to have impacted amphibian populations worldwide. Some of Korfel’s research has been done in Ecuador, where she worked with a Marianist brother, Giovanni Onore. She was introduced to Onore through Kelly Williams, a UD biology professor. Korfel also joined Williams for part of the Spring Breakout he led in March 2010.
“I met up with the group, and enjoyed a day of interacting with the students,” she said. “I think it is amazing, and unique to UD, that a professor would continue to take interest in me and be willing to help my research project succeed even after I have graduated.”
Kaitlin Moredock
A current student at the University of Notre Dame Law School, Kaitlin Moredock thinks her scientific background has helped her succeed in her postgraduate career.Moredock graduated from the University of Dayton in 2008 with Bachelor of Science degrees in biology and psychology. Some of the lessons she learned at UD were instrumental in guiding her choice to go on to law school.
“My research in the biology department required that I think about a number of possible outcomes and test my hypotheses in a systematic way. This approach has worked well in my experiences in criminal law and litigation,” Moredock said. “The idea that permeated UD that your career is your vocation rather than just a job has resonated with me and guided my career choices.”
While at Notre Dame, she has been named Executive Managing Editor of the Notre Dame Law Review, and has been published in the review. Moredock has been placed on the Dean’s list for three consecutive semesters and will be working as an associate at a Cincinnati law firm this summer.
Moredock said that her undergraduate studies in the science field have helped her in criminal cases to understand evidence, such as autopsy reports. Moredock also gives credit for her success to professors in the biology department, such as Carissa Krane and Robert Kearns.
“So many of the biology [faculty] made my time at UD enjoyable and helped me figure out what I was called to do,” she said. “It was evident that these professors cared about the students as people and wanted us to succeed. That type of learning environment was so beneficial and gave me the confidence that I needed in order to achieve my goals.”
Shannon Mueller
The field of biology is one that offers many different career paths, including a few that many people would not expect. For Shannon (Stewart) Mueller, a 2007 UD graduate, her success at a Dayton-area engineering firm has proven how many diverse careers are available to biologists. Mueller graduated with a bachelor’s in biology with a concentration in environmental biology. Since then, she has worked at LJB, Inc., a Kettering-based engineering and environmental consulting firm. There, she is one of two biologists employed and some of her responsibilities include stream monitoring, wetland delineations, stream and wetland mitigations and Ohio Department of Transportation ecological surveys.
“I find my job challenging and a good balance between helping to educate my clients and the public about the importance of natural resources, particularly wetlands and streams,” Mueller said. “We are in the process of designing a wetland mitigation site in a nature conservation area that Five Rivers MetroParks recently acquired. Figuring out the soils and hydrology of the area is quite fascinating.”
Mueller first discovered her love for ecology at UD, working with biology professors Bro. Don Geiger and Dr. Kelly Williams. While an undergraduate, she worked in the field at Greene County Park District creating a habitat management and restoration plan with Geiger. His extensive knowledge of the plant life in the area encouraged her to continue to pursue a career path in the ecology field. In the classroom, Williams inspired Mueller through his passion for the subject of ecology.
“Dr. Geiger and Dr. Williams really taught me the how apply the things learned in the classroom to the field,” she said. “It is incredibly interesting to me to try to understand the study of the relationships between living organisms and their interactions with their natural and developing environment. It is especially fascinating when you involve invasive species or habitat alteration through development. The intricate webs of life will always be fascinating to me because there are so many.”Mark Rastetter, M.D.
The University of Dayton’s mantra of “Lead, Learn, Serve” is one that is repeated to its students many times during their time as undergraduates. The university hopes the message will guide students in both their current and future endeavors. For UD alumnus Dr. Mark Rastetter, “Learn, Lead, Serve” has become an integral part of his life. Rastetter, who graduated from UD in 2002 with dual degrees in biology and religious studies, received his medical degree from Loyola University Chicago in 2006. While in medical school, he became involved with Physicians for Human Rights and began clinical work with underserved populations. Since finishing his residency in Family Medicine in 2009, Rastetter is now completing a fellowship in Maternal-Child Health that combines additional training in obstetrics and pediatric care. This fellowship allows Rastetter to continue to help the marginalized and poor, something he found a desire to do while still in Dayton.
“As a student at UD and then at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, I sought the type of education that would allow me to lead and serve effectively. I have always tried to use my skills to create a preferential option for the poor, a tenant of liberation theology and one I learned while at UD,” he said.
“The education model that I experienced as a biology and religious studies major at UD, I feel pushes students to work hard and focus, but allows it to happen within a supportive community of students, faculty and staff…I sought that sort of model in my medical education and continue to seek it in the work that I do in my professional career.”
Rastetter has also dedicated his time and skills through medical relief work in communities in Africa, South and Central America and the Caribbean. Most recently, he worked in Malawi, Africa in March 2010 to help serve the mother and child population of the area. In January 2010 he traveled to Haiti, a country he first visited while as a UD student participating in a cultural and service immersion program, to assist victims of the 2009 earthquake.
Rastetter still considers the experiences he had at UD as an undergraduate to be defining moments in his career, and named Carissa Krane as a key mentor.
“I remember not only extensive discussions about my research projects, but also about ethics, human rights and becoming a physician,” he said. “Dr. Krane continually encouraged me to explore the reasons I wanted to enter medical school and challenged me in my essays and personal statement. Looking back…those conversations proved to be some of the most important of my career.”
Besides undertaking his fellowship and work abroad, Rastetter is also a clinical instructor in the family medicine department at Northwestern University, a position that also furthers his vocation to assist the impoverished.
“In this role, I have had the opportunity to work with medical students and have been involved in the creation of a new family medicine residency through Northwestern dedicated to the underserved,” he said.