Biology

Organization Description

The Department of Biology is a close-knit community of faculty, staff, and students bound by a shared curiosity and respect for the living world. 

Kevin J. Emerson
- Associate Professor of Biology
(240) 895-2123
Schaefer Hall 231
Asst. Professor Daniel Tobiansky Lends His Expertise on Woodpecker Head Banging to Scientific American
July 14, 2022
Tobiansky holding a Downy Woodpecker with 2 undergraduate researchers at SMCM
Assistant Professor of Neurobiology Daniel Tobiansky was quoted in Scientific American about a paper recently published in Current Biology called "Woodpeckers minimize cranial absorption of shocks" by Van Wassenbergh et al. as a scientist not involved in the publication. The author of the popular… Find Out More
Assistant Professor Lorena Torres-Martínez and colleagues published in Molecular Ecology
July 13, 2022
Dr. Lorena Torres-Martinez
Assistant Professor of Biology Lorena Torres-Martínez and colleagues recently had their research work titled "Microbial mediation of salinity stress response varies by plant genotype and provenance over time" accepted for publication in the journal Molecular Ecology.
Torres-Martínez and… Find Out More
Meghan Stevens '24 Earns Best Undergraduate Poster at National Conference
December 21, 2023
Meghan Stevens with poster
Environmental studies and biology major Meghan Stevens ’24 presented her research, produced under the mentorship of Cassie Gurbisz, associate professor of marine science, at the Coastal & Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) conference held November 12-16 in Portland, Oregon.

Stevens’ poster,… Find Out More
Podcast Highlights Tobiansky Lab's Research by Neuroscience Students Barnes '23 and Estremsky '25
December 7, 2023
Barnes and Estremsky at SfN conference
Neuroscience and biology students Tara Barnes '23 and Anna Estremsky '25 were interviewed while giving their poster at the Society for Neuroscience Conference and spotlighted by the podcast "In Plain English" (https://inplainenglishpod.org/). The students' interview is in season 3, episode 3 (… Find Out More
Professor of Biology Jordan Price and Karolyn Garcia '19 Co-authored Paper in Journal
November 27, 2023
Karolyn Garcia with poster presention at Md Ornithological Society
Professor of Biology Jordan Price co-authored and published a paper with Karolyn Garcia ’19, based on Garcia’s St. Mary’s Project research. The paper appeared on November 7 in the journal Evolution: International Journal of Organic Evolution. Garcia previously presented this work at the annual… Find Out More
Assistant Professor Latchney Published in Genes, Brain and Behavior
August 2, 2023
Sarah Latchney portrait
Assistant Professor of Biology and Neuroscience Sarah Latchney recently published an article in the journal Genes, Brain and Behavior. The article's title is “Maternal upbringing and selective breeding for voluntary exercise behavior modify patterns of DNA methylation and expression of genes in the… Find Out More
Assistant Professor Emily Brownlee and colleagues published in Journal of Plankton Research
June 20, 2023
Assistant Professor Emily Brownlee
Assistant Professor of Biology Emily Brownlee and colleagues recently had their research work titled “Mixoplankton and mixotrophy: future research priorities” accepted for publication in the Journal of Plankton Research.

Brownlee and collaborators make future research recommendations to study a… Find Out More
St. Mary’s College Alumni Rustin Pare and Mira Willson Present at Conference/ Pare Wins Best Undergraduate Presentation Award
August 17, 2021
Rustin Pare and Mira Willson pictured
St. Mary’s College of Maryland Alumni Rustin Pare ’21 and Mira Willson ’21 presented during the joint annual meeting of the American Ornithological Society and Society of Canadian Ornithologists, August 9-13, with Pare winning the Best Undergraduate Presentation Award. Both presentations were based… Find Out More
Visiting Professor Santos-Ciminera and SMCM Students Ba and Ponticos Present at the Helminthological Society of Washington Meeting
May 18, 2021
Patricia Santos-Ciminera, Oumoul Ba and Joseph Ponticos pictured
Patricia Santos-Ciminera, visiting assistant professor of biology, has recently presented at the Helminthological Society of Washington on “Parasite abundance and diversity in river otters (Lontra canadensis) within tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay.” The research was executed along with two SMCM… Find Out More
Assistant Professor Latchney Published in Developmental Neurobiology
May 3, 2021
Assistant Professor Latchney
Sarah Latchney, assistant professor of biology and neuroscience, has recently been published in Developmental Neurobiology titled, “Persistent organic pollutants at the synapse: Shared phenotypes and converging mechanisms of developmental neurotoxicity.”

In this article, Latchney reviewed the… Find Out More
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