PRECS is a program designed to provide community college students with authentic research experiences in the area of phenotypic plasticity, the phenomenon of a single genotype producing multiple phenotypes depending on the environment.
Parkland's Dr. C. Britt Carlson and Dr. Nathan Schroeder of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, are the program's creators. PRECS a three-year program funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
Students present their research at their home community colleges as well as at Illinois Summer Research Symposium on the University of Illinois campus. This collection contains their work as well as participant videos captured during the research process.
Submissions from 2023
PRECS Student: Emily Beger, Emily Beger
Evaluating the Enzymatic Activity of Transformed X. cucurbitae, Emily Beger, Iris Lee, and Sarah Hind
PRECS Student: Cassidy Constant, Cassidy Constant
Revisiting the Reproductive Behaviors of Blackspotted Stickleback, Cassidy Constant, Megan Tucker, Colby Behrens, and Alison M. Bell
PRECS Student: Maya Davis, Maya K. Davis
The Tomato Strikes Back: Plant Response to Environmental Stress, Maya K. Davis, Erinn Dady, and Esther N. Ngumbi
PRECS Student: Liam Kent, Liam Kent
Fusarium Isolates Adapt to Specific Wheat Tissues, Liam Kent, Mara Krone, and Santiago Mideros
Effect of Varied Macronutrient Ratios on Honey Bee Tolerance to IAPV Infection, Caitlin Lennon-Puthoff, Alex Payne, and Adam Dolezal
PRECS Student: Cameron Lewis, Cameron Lewis
Role of Age and Sex in the Effects of Repeated Methamphetamine Exposure on Hedonic Tone in Sprague Dawley Rats, Cameron Lewis, Conor Strumberger, and Joshua M. Gulley
PRECS Participant: Hailie Liu, Hailie Liu
PRECS Student: Hannah Maher, Hannah Maher
Potential Implications of Elevated CO2 for Enhanced Rock Weathering in Croplands, Hannah Maher, Megan Allen, and Lisa Ainsworth
PRECS Student: Lauren Mobo, Lauren W. Mobo
ACTH Challenge: Stress Response Across Tadpole Development, Lauren W. Mobo, Lucas Jimenez, Lisa L. Surber-Cunningham, and Eva K. Fischer
PRECS Student: Ethan Perez, Ethan Perez
Confirming Presence and Mobilization of Partner Quality Genes in Sinorhizobium meliloti, Ethan Perez, Ivan Sosa Marquez, and Katy Heath
PRECS Student: Caitlin Puthoff, Caitlin Puthoff
PRECS Student: Mya Reyes, Mya Reyes
How Fungicide Alters the Hidden Mycobiome of a Restored Prairie System, Mya Reyes, Noah Brown, and Anthony Yannarell
PRECS Student: Jason Rivera, Jason M. Rivera
Identifying Genes Influencing the Efficiency of Photosynthesis, Jason M. Rivera and Steven Burgess
Submissions from 2022
PRECS Participant: Kayleigh Ambrose, Kayleigh Ambrose
The Effects of Temperature Changes on Bioluminescent Dinoflagellates (How Climate Change May Affect Our Ocean's Raves), Kayleigh X. Ambrose, Molly Fleming, and Carla Caceres
PRECS Participant: Olivia Barrett, Olivia Barrett
Exploration of Squash Plant Floral Volatiles Influencing Beetle Attraction, Olivia Barrett, Nicholas Seiter, Esther Ngumbi, Joseph Spencer, and Sarah Hind
PRECS Participant: Richard Carr, Richard Carr
PRECS Participant: Chandra Davies, Chandra Davies
Concentrating on Carbon Concentration in Algae, Chandra Davies and Steven Burgess
PRECS Participant: Kaithren Garcia, Kaithren Garcia
How to Quantify Female Mate Preference in Threespine Stickleback, Kaithren Garcia, Megan Tucker, Meghan Maciejewski, Usan Dan, and Alison M. Bell
PRECS Participant: Anthony Lamb, Anthony Lamb
Polinators in Peril - Are Illinois Native Bees Getting Smaller?, Anthony Lamb, Tristan Barley, and Adam Dolezal
Stressed Out: Why Does Ancient Maize Thrive in High-Stress Conditions?, Alexander C. Lozano, Aaron Mleziva, and Esther Ngumbi
PRECS Participant: Sarah Porth, Sarah Porth
Intra- and Interspecific Variation in Tadpole Lateral Line Cells, Sarah Porth, Lisa Surber, and Eva Fischer
PRECS Participant: Sarah Redman, Sarah Redman
Exploring Amaranth’s Color Palette: Linking Phenotype, Plant Adaptation, and Human Health, Sarah Redman and Chance Riggins Ph.D.
PRECS Participant: Stephanie Thomas, Stephanie Thomas
Bacterial Metabolism of Glucosinolates from Brassica: Association with Isothiocyanate Production, Stephanie Thomas, Jiaxuan Li, and Michael J. Miller
Submissions from 2021
GEMS Student: Brittney Bailey, Brittney Bailey
GEMS Student: Can Improved Diet Quality Alleviate Harmful Effects of Pesticides and Viruses in Honey Bees?, Brittney Bailey, Ed Hsieh, and Adam Dolezal
Nature & Nurture: Examining How Diverse Organisms Adapt to Changes in their Everyday Environment., Brittney Bailey, Soohyun Lee, and Faith Smith
PRECS Participant: Elijah Davis, Elijah Davis
Effects of Color Polymorphism and Lighting Environments on Male Bluefin Killifish Behavior, Elijah Davis, Ratna Karatgi, and Becky Fuller
PRECS Participant: Harrison Hall, Harrison Hall
Can In Vitro Phenotypes of Fusarium graminearum Indicate In Planta Aggressiveness?, Harrison Hall and Santiago Mideros
PRECS Participant: Min Rung "Nicole" Hsu, Min Rung (Nicole) Hsu
Evaluating the Efficiency in the Application of Transformation and CRISPR/Cas9 Gene-editing Technique on Pumpkins, Min Rung (Nicole) Hsu, Maria Malvino, and Sarah R. Hind
PRECS Participant: Soohyun Lee, Soohyun Lee
Bioinformatics Protocol for Assessing Contamination Level and Quality on Genomics Data of Ensifer meliloti, Soohyun Lee, Mario Ceròn Romero, and Katy Heath
PRECS Participant: Amiyah Moore, Amiyah Moore
PRECS Participant: Anh Nguyen, Thi Lan Anh Nguyen
Determining the Causal Link of Honey Bee Gut Microbial Composition on Behavioral Maturation, Thi Lan Anh Nguyen, Cassondra L. Vernier, and Gene E. Robinson
PRECS Student: Gabi Ortiz, Gabriela Ortiz
Mapping Traits in a Soybean Recombinant Inbred Line Population, Gabriela Ortiz, Chris Montes, and Lisa Ainsworth
PRECS Participant: Samta Oza, Samta Oza
Behavioral Plasticity in Response to Environmental Cues in Poison Frog Tadpoles, Samta Oza, Lisa Surber, and Eva K. Fischer
GEMS Student: Faith Smith, Faith Smith
GEMS Student: Biofilm Production in Rhizobia Influences Clover Drought Response, Faith Smith, Kevin Ricks, and Anthony Yannarell
PRECS Participant: Megan Tucker, Megan Tucker
The Genetics of Aggression in Unique Three-Spined Stickleback Populations, Megan Tucker, Colby Behrens, and Alison M. Bell
PRECS Participant: Lauren Urie, Lauren Urie
Sometimes, When it Rains it Pours: How Does Flooding Alter Plant-Herbivore Relationships?, Lauren R. Urie, Erinn Dady, and Esther N. Ngumbi
PRECS Participant Interview: Harvey Vela, Harvey Vela
The Effects of Forest Management Practices on Wild Bee Abundance and Functional Traits, Harvey Vela, Marissa H. Chase, and Alexandra Harmon-Threatt
Submissions from 2019
Fungal Endophytes Interact with Endophytic Yeast Isolated from Soybean Leaves, Baldemar Basurto, Natalie Christian, and Katy Heath
Precs Participant: Baldemar Basurto, Baldemar Basurto and Parkland College
Plasticity or local adaptation?: Survival of L. parva larvae in varying salinity, Kaitlyn Cortez, Lauren McDaniel, and Becky Fuller
Precs Participant: Kaitlyn Cortez, Kaitlyn Cortez and parkland college
Precs Participant: Erinn Dady, Erinn Dady and Parkland College
Verification of Successful Kainic Acid Injections in a Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Mouse Model, Adrian J. Garcia, Robbie J. Ingram, and Catherine A. Christian
Precs Participant: Adrian Garcia, Adrian Garcia and Parkland College
Construction of a Tn5 mutant library in Xanthomonas cucurbitae, Keirsten Kline, Rikky Rai, and Sarah R. Hind
Precs Participant: Justina Lee, Justina Lee and Parkland College
Direct Impacts of Heat Stress on Illinois Soybeans, Jessica O'Connor, Charles Burroughs, and Lisa Ainsworth
Precs Participant: Jessica O’Connor, Jessica O'Connor and Parkland College
Precs Participant: Isiah Ramos, Isiah Ramos and Parkland College
Stress Induced Remodeling in the Nematode C. elegans, Becky Rose, Rebecca Androwski, and Nathan E. Schroeder
Precs Participant: Becky Rose, Becky Rose and Parkland College
Comparative Efficacy of Novel Endolysins in Queso Fresco, Daniella Smith, Maxwell J. Holle, and Dr. Michael Miller
Precs Participant: Daniella Smith, Daniella Smith and Parkland College
Effects of Mycorrhizae on Struvite Dissolution Can plant-fungus mutualism increase the viability of a sustainable phosphorus fertilizer?, Isako Battista Di Tomassi, Erinn Dady, Neha Chatterjee, and Andrew Margenot
Precs Participant: Isako Di Tomassi, Isako Di Tomassi and Parkland College
Precs Participant: Jessica Trueblood, Jessica Trueblood and Parkland College
Submissions from 2018
PRECS Participant: Jessica Alvarez, Jessica Alvarez and Parkland College
Methamphetamine Effects on Adolescent Brain Development in Both Sexes, Jessica Alvarez, Sarah Westbrook, and Joshua Gulley
Finding dex-1 Phenotype Suppressing Components, Matthew Barnum, Kristen Flatt, and Nathan E. Schroeder
PRECS Participant: Matthew Barnum, Matthew Barnum and Parkland College
PRECS Participant: Lily Feeny, Lily Feeney
PRECS Participant: Allison Houghton, Allison Houghton and Parkland College
Identifying KIF Subtype that Mediates Axonal Targeting of Kv7 Channels, Allison Houghton, Jennifer Walters, Mary Hong, Dhruv Joshi, and Hee Jung Chung
Production of Bioactive Isothiocyanates by Bacterial Myrosinase, Juan Isaiz, Xiaoji Liu, and Michael J. Miller
PRECS Participant: Juan Isaiz, Juan Isaiz and Parkland College
Sperm-mediated Effects of Predation Risk on Reproduction in Male Threespined Sticklebacks, Shayne Kempfer, Erika Carlson, Jennifer Hellmann, Jason Keagy, and Alison Bell
PRECS Participant: Shayne Kempfer, Shayne Kempfer and Parkland College
PRECS Participant: Seldon Kwafo, Seldon Kwafo
PRECS Participant: Jami Martin, Jamilyn Martin
The Effect of Imidacloprid on Honey Bee Queen Fecundity, Jamilyn Martin, Julia D. Fine, Amy Cash-Ahmed, and Gene E. Robinson
