Student Research Opportunities

Cedar Crest College students conduct their own research and present the findings at major regional and national conferences.

The field of forensic science relies heavily on research to advance the field and ensure that criminals are held accountable for their actions. Students in the forensic science program at Cedar Crest College work with some of the most-respected faculty and best technology in the nation, conducting quality research and often presenting their findings at major regional and national conferences, including the:

• American Academy of Forensic Sciences
• Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists
• Mid-Atlantic Association of Forensic Scientists
• Eastern Analytical Symposium and Exposition
• Chromatography Forum of Delaware Valley
• American Chemical Society

These conferences are also a great way for students to meet and learn from both experts and peers. Some of the recent research presentations by our forensic science students include:

Christen Corby, Analyzing the Halo Effect: Factors Involved in Sequencing the Deposition of Overlapping Bloodstains Caused by Transfer and Airborne Droplets, 2012 annual Meeting of the Mid-Atlantic association of Forensic Scientists,  Ellicott City, MD.

Jennifer Bonetti, Forensic Soil Analysis of New Jersey State Parks Using a Combination of Simple Techniques and Multivariate Statistics, Sixty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Atlanta, 2012.

Julia Garofalo, The GC/MS of Salvinorin A in Blood Plasma as Well as an Evaluation of Satndard Color Tests for the Presence of Salvinorin A, Sixty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Atlanta, 2012.

Manal Khalil, Assessing the Degree of Similarity Between Accidental Patterns on Shoeprints Associated With Wearers That Participate in Shared and Independent Activities, Sixty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Atlanta, 2012.

Gina Parada, Detection and Simultaneous Quantitation of Beta-Naphyrone and 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, Sixty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Atlanta, 2012.

Jaclyn Vincent, A Novel LC/MS/MS Method for the Detection and Quantitation of GHB, Sixty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Atlanta, 2012.

Kristen Johnson, An Investigation of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy and Its Application to Forensic Science Drug Analysis of Gamma-Hydroxybutrate, 2011 Eastern Analytical Symposium, Somerset, NJ.

Kaitlyn Bealer, Evaluating the Error Associated in Bloodstain Impact Angle Determination, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Jennifer Bonetti, A Multivariate Approach to a Simple Method of Forensic Soil Analysis, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Amanda Dombroski, Stability Study of Cathinone Derivatives Using LC/MS/MS, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Tara Fikes, Fast Fourier Transformation and Frequency Filtering to Suppress Background Noise in Fingerprint Evidence, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Kaitlin Hafer, The Spatial Relationship of Fingerprint Minutiae in Males vs. Females, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Kaitlin Hafer, Statistical Comparison of Black Ballpoint and Gel Pen Inks Using Hyperspectral Imaging and Principal Component Analysis, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Kristin Johnson, Spectral Investigation of Gamma-hydroxybutrate (GHB) and Gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) using Near Infrared Spectroscopy in Varying Beverage Matrices, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Kristina McNerney, A Spectroscopic Investigation of the Binding of Benzodiazepines to Human Serum Albumin, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Gina Parada, Stability Study of β-Naphyrone and 3,4-Methylenedioxypyrovalerone using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Elizabeth Sunderhaus, The Spatial Relationship of Fingerprint Minutiae in a Common Ancestral Line, Thirty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Newport, RI, 2011.

Kristina McNerney, Spectroscopic Investigation of the Binding of Benzodiazepines to Human Serum Albumin. Eleventh Annual Student Poster Session, Undergraduate Research Poster Session, The Lehigh Valley Section of the American Chemical Society, April 26, 2011.

Kelsey Wilkinson, Differentiating UV-VIS Spectra by Normalized Line Spectra Analysis. Eleventh Annual Student Poster Session, Undergraduate Research Poster Session, The Lehigh Valley Section of the American Chemical Society, April 26, 2011.

Caitlyn Hauke, Evaluating the Deposition Sequence of Overlapping Bloodstains Caused by Transfer and Airborne Droplets. NIJ 2011 Forensic Science R&D Grantees Meeting, Chicago, February 2011.

Melinda Lower, Development of an LC/MS/MS Method for the Analysis of Fatty Acid. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Jennifer Smith, The Application of UV/VIS and Fluorescence Derivative Spectra in the Forensic Analysis of Illicit Drugs. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Gina Dougherty, The Effect of Accelerant and Passive Headspace Analysis on DNA From Simulated Arson Evidence. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Michelle Shortell, Investigation and Separation of Interferences from Fire Debris Analysis by Solid Phase Extraction. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Kimberly Moran, mRNA Decay in Biological Fluids in Order to Establish an Estimation of How Long a Stain Was Deposited at a Crime Scene. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Kristin Johnson, Spectral Analysis of the Interconversion of Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and Gamma-Butrolactone (GBL) Using Near Infrared Spectroscopy. Sixty-third Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, Chicago, 2011.

Kelsey Wilkinson, Differentiating UV-VIS Spectra by Normalized Line Spectra Analysis. Eleventh Annual Student Poster Session. The Philadelphia Section of the American Chemical Society, Temple University, February, 2011.

Michelle Schmidt, A Study of Degradation of Nitrites in Gunshot Residue Over Time. 2010 Eastern Analytical Symposium, Somerset, N.J., November.

Kelsey Wilkinson, Analysis of Illicit Drugs with First Derivative Spectra using Color Reagents. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Amanda Dombroski, LC-MS/MS Determination of Cathinone and its Derivatives. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Jaclyn Vincent, A Novel LC-MS/MS Method for the Detection and Quantitation of GHB. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Kristina McNerney, Spectroscopic Investigation of the Binding of Benzodiazepines to Human Serum Albumin. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Melinda Lower, Development of LC-MS/MS Method for the Analysis of Fatty Acids. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Tara Whispell, Analysis of Goldenseal Hydrastis Canadensis L and Related Alkaloids in Urine. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Jessica Heeter, Detection of Isopropylbenzylamine Adulteration of Methamphetamine. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Victoria Richards, An Investigation Into Different Spatial Combinations of Minutiae In Fingerprints: Black v. Non-Black Database. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Jennifer Bonetti, A Method to Discriminate Soil Samples From Different Locations Using Particle Size Distribution Combined With Elemental Composition Using Multivariable Analysis. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.

Victoria Richards, An Investigation of the Effects of Different Laundering Treatments On Commonly Used Fabrics In Regards to Bloodstain Pattern Formation and Analysis. Thirty-sixth Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists, Manchester, Vt., 2010.