Learning outside the classroom: MCC students present research
MCC students Elizabeth Shirley, Kaitlyn Hebig, Emma Sowell, and David Sherman, and
Dr. Angela Carraway listen as Dr. Tom Huebner comments about the research opportunity.
For the past year, four Meridian Community College students have been traveling and collecting in Meridian, Lauderdale County, and adjacent Clarke County —not just as students, but as researchers, measuring the sounds and air around them as part of an environmental study in partnership with Brown University.
As part of their work, they shared what they discovered with the community during a presentation in the College’s Dulaney Room.
The event marked the end of a yearlong research partnership between MCC and Brown University School of Public Health. The study focused on learning how air and noise in the environment might affect the health of local residents.
MCC students Elizabeth Shirley, Emma Sowell, Kaitlyn Hebig, and David Sherman worked with Dr. Erica Walker, a professor of epidemiology at Brown University, and Dr. Christina Nica, a scientist with Brown’s Community Noise Lab and the project lead for Mississippi.
Over the past year, the students gathered air and noise data from locations around Meridian, Lauderdale County, and part of Clarke County, creating a baseline map; the data will help guide a longer five-year study. Another part of the study, which will be developed later, will include gathering information to build a soil library.
“This research gave our students hands-on experience and helped them connect what they learn in class to real-world problems,” said Dr. Angela Carraway, MCC chemistry instructor and chair of the Science and Wellness Division.
Each student brought a different major and perspective to the project. Shirley is studying physical therapy, Sherman is majoring in orthopedic medicine, and Hebig is working toward a career in medicine.
The project was designed to help students and the community; the students said they are proud to be part of something that could make a difference. “We had a great partnership amongst our teammates with Brown and Dr. Carraway. It was a very fruitful experience, and I am so grateful to MCC for the opportunity, and I think we are excited to see what comes out over the next four years,” Hebig said.
To learn more about Meridian Community College, visit meridiancc.edu.