Awards

The Illinois State Academy of Science annually awards grants and makes presentation awards to our student members in support of developing science achievement. In addition, faculty and research members periodically receive special recognition awards.

T.K. Vinod, WIU-Chemistry, receiving ISAS Fellows recognition at Annual Meeting held April 5&6, 2019, at Bradley University.

Illinois State Academy of Science, itself, received 2018 Best of Springfield Award due to its service and promotion of science.

Student Research Grants

  • Competitive grants are awarded annually to Illinois high school, undergraduate, and graduate students who are members of the Illinois State Academy of Science.
  • High school awards are up to $200 each, undergraduate awards are up to $500, each and graduate awards are up to $1,000 each.
  • Online proposals are generally accepted beginning in October each year via the online application portal
  • Awards are announced in December each year, with funding provided no later than January the following year.
  • Previous Student Research Award recipients.

The 2022 application period for 2023 Student Research Grants was October 1 through November 13. Awards were announced on December 27, 2022, with funding to follow.

2023 Recipients

Jessica Harris, Eastern Illinois University
The Relationship Between Triclosan Concentration and Antibiotic Resistance Gene Abundances in Central IL Wastewater Treatment

Merve Diler, Eastern Illinois University
The Role of Msx1 and PurA on Fibroblast Identity

Brianna Haase, Eastern Illinois University
Investigation of CH4 Activation on Modified Metalloporphyrin Graphene Sheets

Sahar Rashid, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Does Cigarette Smoke or E-Cigarette Vapors Affect Growth and Biofilm Formation of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans?

Student Presentation Awards

2023 Recipients

Anthropology & Archaeology Division

  • Oral
    • 1st place – Abraham Packard, Southern Illinois University Carbondale
      Bones, Bugs & Bioerosion: Dermestid Beetle Substrate Preference, Substrate Survivorship, and Their Taphonomic Effect on Bone
  • Poster
    • 1st place – Isabella Aguirre, Illinois College
      Human Orbital Index Development and Sexual Dimorphism

Botany Division

  • Oral – Graduate
    • 1st place – Noah Pyles, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Root Microbial Communities in Illinois Spiranthes Orchids
  • Oral Undergraduate
    • 1st place – Ally Wiseman, Illinois College
      Isolation and Provisional Identification of Mycorrhizal Fungi from Roots of Orchids Native to the Republic of Palau in the Western Pacific
  • Poster
    • 1st place – Samantha Roberts, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Variation in Insect Visitation and Seed Viability for Three Species of Spiranthes Orchids

Cellular, Molecular, & Developmental Biology Division

  • Oral – Graduate
    • 1st place – Maede Shahin, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Studying SLC12 Family Ion Channels in Planarians
  • Oral – Undergraduate
    • 1st place – Riley Martin, Bradley University
      Localization of Estrogen Receptor Alpha in Chick Embryonic Spinal Cord Neurons
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Oluwaseun Adeleke, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      The Immediate Effect of Bite Blocks on Brux-Like Motor Patterns and Long-Term Expression of Myogenic Cell Lineage Markers, Pax7 and Myogenin
  • Poster – Undergraduate
    • 1st place – Jaelyn Boone, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Identifying and Evaluating a Potential Full-Length Receptor Gene in Schizophyllum commune Matb α9-β6
    • 2nd place – Cherise Anderson, Bradley University
      Production of Dopaminergic iPSC-Derived Neurons on Polycaprolactone Nanofiber
    • 3rd place – Marjori Russo, Illinois College
      Treating Xenopus laevis Corneas with Amylase and Collagenase to Disrupt Stromal Integrity

Chemistry Division

  • Oral – Grad
    • 1st place – Funmilola Anjorin, Western Illinois University
      Pancreatic Cancer Specificity of Phage Display-Selected Peptide MCA1
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Zachary Dodson, Western Illinois University
      Quantification of Cannabidiol in Hemp-infused Water by Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography Electrospray Ionization Tandem Mass Spectrometry
    • 2nd place – Ogheneruno Theodora Ideh, Western Illinois University
      Toxicity Evaluation of Acmella alba Crude Extracts on Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Embryos
  • Poster – Undergraduate
    • 1st place – Kaitlyn Walls, Bradley University
      Measuring Varying Levels of Sugars in Soft-Drinks Utilizing RI and Raman Spectroscopy
    • 2nd place – Eduardo Fulgencio, Illinois College
      Preparation and Preliminary Application of Imidazolium Ionic Liquids of Varying Carbon-Chain Length
    • 3rd place – Scott Huckabay, Illinois College
      Exploring New Nickel-Based Catalysts or Suzuki-Miyaura Reactions

Computer Science Division

  • Oral
    • 1st place – Mohamed Salem, Western Illinois University
      Sybilsocnet: An Algorithm for the Detection of Sybil Entities and Sybil Attacks

Engineering & Technology Division

  • Oral
    • 1st place – Seth Seaba, Illinois State University
      The Application of Lean in Software Development Lifecycle
    • 2nd place – Samson Olorunsiwa, Illinois State University
      Agile Software Quality Assurance using Scrum Theory
    • 3rd place – Mayank Hegde, Illinois State University
      Smart Supply Chain Risk Management

Environmental Science Division

  • Oral – Grad
    • 1st place – Sayeed Uddin-Shoaib, Northern Illinois University
      Municipal Solid Waste: A Prediction Methodology for the Generation Rate in the United States Counties
  • Oral – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Autumn Belt, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Mortality Bioassay of Drosophila melanogaster Following Exposure to Perfluorooctane Sulfonate Along with Ivermectin
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Katie Cutler, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Assessing Seismic Pollution from Bridges Over Streams and Rivers
  • Poster – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Jenna Staszewski, Lewis University
      The Filtering Effects of Dreissena polymorpha on Metschnikowia bicuspidata Parasitism in Daphnia dentifera
    • 2nd place – Emily Beiler, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      The Determination of Altered Perfluorooctane Sulfonate Toxicity in Male Drosophila melanogaster Following Co-exposure of Ion Channel Modifiers

Health Sciences Division

  • Oral
    • 1st place – Lei Guo, Northern Illinois University
      Novel Risk Indices for Analyzing County-level Cancer Disparities in Illinois: Development and Validation
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Maddie Walsh, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      The Effects of Smoking and Vaping on the Oral Microbiome: A Comparative Study
  • Poster – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Elise Murphy, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Survivability of Opportunistic Oral Candida albicans After Exposure to SmartMouth and Other Mouth Rinses

Microbiology Division

  • Oral – Grad
    • 1st place – Emma Chilcoat, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      The Type VI Secretion System: A Defense Mechanism by a Termite Gut Symbiont
  • Oral – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Devan R. Morgan, Illinois College
      Identifying Potential Novel Antibiotics for Future Use
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Caitlin Martin, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Investigating the Role of Lysozymes and Other Host Factors in Mediating Amoeba Resilience to Paraburkholderia Infections
  • Poster – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Jenna Grabowski, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Exploring the Role of Antimicrobial Lysozyme Genes in the Susceptibility of Amoeba Host Cells to Paraburkholderia Symbiont Infections
    • 2nd place – Gia-Maria Calbaza, Bradley University
      Implementing Transposon Mutagenesis to Investigate Proteins that Alter the Expression of Bacterioferritin Comigratory Protein in Bacillus subtilis

Physics, Mathematics, & Astronomy Division

  • Oral – Grad
    • 1st place – Al-Maliq Adetunji, Western Illinois University
      An Investigation into Extending Capabilities of Standard Quantum Error Correcting Codes to Handle Amplitude Damping Errors
    • 2nd place – Amisha Rane, Western Illinois University
      Finding the Optimal Spectral Resolution for Analysis of Molecular Line Observations of a Sample of High-Mass Star Forming Regions
  • Oral Undergrad
    • 1st place – Gabriel Sojka, Western Illinois University
      Molecular Masers in the Orion Nebula

STEM Education Division

  • Oral
    • 1st place – Lucas Schultz, Illinois College
      Special Relativity 2D Pedagogical Video Game
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Jana Wollesen, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Investigating Metacognition in Introductory Biology Students at a Public University in Illinois
  • Poster – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Fabiola Perez, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Illinois High School Students’ Perceptions and Relatability to Scientists Before and After Authoring or Completing Scientist Spotlights

Zoology Division

  • Oral-Grad
    • 1st place – Mariah Mack, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Developmental Plasticity of Ambystoma texanum Under Various Hydroperiod and Predation Risk Conditions
  • Oral – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Delaney Haubner, Millikin University
      Surveillance of West Nile Virus in Migratory Warblers in Central Illinois
  • Poster – Grad
    • 1st place – Jessica Sandoval, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Drivers of Life History Variation in a Paedomorphic Salamander
    • 2nd place – Efe Oniovokukor, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
      Investigating the Impact of Predator Odor Cue on Field Mice
  • Poster – Undergrad
    • 1st place – Patrick Menke, Bradley University
      Exploring the Effects of Potassium Chloride during Aerial Exposure on Zebra Mussel Survival
    • 2nd place – Sophie Dorgan, Millikin University
      Repeatability of Peak Corticosterone Response in Recaptured Songbirds

Illinois Junior Academy of Science Posters

  • 1st place – Jad Dibs, Niles West High School (11th grade)
    Comparing Importance of Dopamine Receptor Types in PD Treatments
  • 2nd place – May Sughayar, AQSA School (10th grade)
    Does Fish Type Impact the Effectiveness of the Aquaponics System
  • 3rd place – Grace Stevens & Morgan Wilcox, Southeastern Junior High School (8th grade)
    Mycelium: Powerhouse or Parasite? Testing the Effects of Mycelium on Zea mays and Raphanus sativus

Botanical Division Travel Grants

  • Proposals accepted February 1st through March 24th of each year with notification of recipients by April 1st. Online form not yet available. Contact ISAS for information.
  • Advisor support letter required. Online form not yet available. Contact ISAS for information.
  • College undergraduates and graduates compete for up to two $250 awards each year.

2018 Recipients

Samantha Danguilan, Northwestern University/Chicago Botanical Garden

Fellows and Honorary Members

2007 Centennial Award

  • A one-time award given during our centennial celebration of 2007. The recipient best exemplifies a lifetime of scholarly excellence and service. Dr. Roger C. Anderson of Illinois State University received this award in 2007. (Anderson_Bio)