Kyle Barreiro, second from left, is pictured with interns and departmental mentors from the Fall 2025 internship. Photo: Courtesy of Kyle Barreiro

Kyle Barreiro, a senior in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), will graduate this May with a degree in Environmental Sciences. He knew right away that this was the major he wanted to pursue.

He found himself “both challenged and inspired by coursework that explores the complexity of our environment and its processes.” Those experiences helped strengthen his interest in environmental protection and sustainability, and he’s thrived despite the challenges because of the support he’s received. “My professors and peers have played a significant role in shaping my academic journey, and I am grateful for the support and guidance I have received along the way.”

A defining part of Kyle’s journey at SEBS was his Experiential Learning (EL) opportunity in summer 2025. He interned with the Joint Meeting of Essex & Union Counties (JMEUC) as an Environmental Science Intern. The internship provided a comprehensive introduction to wastewater treatment operations. Kyle rotated through multiple departments, including the laboratory, Industrial Pretreatment Program (IPP), project engineering, mechanics, electricians, and collections, helping him to understand how departments work together to maintain plant performance and environmental compliance.

Kyle Barreiro is pictured assisting with maintenance on a sludge thickener motor that malfunctioned due to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) corrosion affecting its electrical components. Photo: Courtesy of Kyle Barreiro

In the laboratory, Kyle collected grab and composite samples from both the facility and industrial contributors. He assisted technicians with analyses for biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, total suspended solids, total solids, chlorine residual, nitrite, and nitrate. This hands-on work strengthened his technical knowledge and appreciation for accuracy. Kyle noted that the experience helped him better understand water quality monitoring and laboratory operations.

During his IPP rotation, Kyle reviewed discharge permits and participated in site visits to industries that discharge wastewater to JMEUC. He helped monitor pollutant limits and observed how violations were addressed. This experience offered insight into regulatory enforcement and environmental accountability. It also reinforced the importance of compliance in protecting water resources.

Kyle’s rotation in project engineering introduced him to infrastructure improvements and long-term planning. He assisted with FEMA-funded upgrades following Hurricane Sandy. His responsibilities included documenting contractor progress, taking daily photographs, writing summaries, and attending weekly coordination meetings. Kyle shared that this experience “gave me insight into engineering and communication needed for environmental infrastructure projects.”

The internship has made a lasting impact on Kyle’s professional growth, enabling him to gain technical skills while building confidence in unfamiliar environments. He also strengthened his communication, report writing and public speaking abilities.

The experience “gave me a much deeper appreciation for the complexity of a wastewater treatment system,” and by the end of the internship, he felt more “confident pursuing environmental career opportunities.”

A major takeaway for Kyle was the understanding that “clear communication directly impacts environmental protection and compliance.”

Kyle also faced challenges that supported his growth. For his final intern project, he addressed hydrogen sulfide corrosion in the sludge thickening building. Equipment deterioration was caused by emissions from gravity belt operations. Kyle admitted that “developing a technical solution for equipment I initially had limited knowledge of was intimidating.”

To overcome this, he asked questions, worked closely with mentors and conducted research. He proposed improvements related to air filtration and belt design to reduce anaerobic conditions. Presenting his “recommendations to the executive board was nerve-racking,” but it strengthened his confidence and presentation skills.

Kyle believes his EL experience directly connected his coursework and real-world settings. He also built professional relationships with engineers and environmental compliance specialists who provided valuable guidance. He advises students to pursue EL opportunities, and to ask questions and actively engage with mentors.

After graduation, he hopes to pursue a career in environmental compliance or wastewater treatment. “I plan to apply the technical knowledge, skills and professional experience I gained during my internship to contribute meaningfully to the environmental field.”

Kyle’s SEBS journey demonstrates how experiential learning can transform classroom knowledge into practical experience while helping students move forward with confidence and purpose.

Marian Hollenbeck SEBS’26.

Marian Hollenbeck, a senior in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), has been named a recipient of the 2026 Fred Winter Memorial Award for Excellence in Horticulture, presented by the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture (PSPA). The $3,000 scholarship will be awarded at the organization’s annual meeting in April.

A plant science major on the plant agriculture and horticulture track, with a minor in environmental and business economics, Hollenbeck has distinguished herself through academic achievement and hands-on experience. Hollenbeck maintains a 3.90 GPA and has earned multiple scholarships during her time at SEBS. She’s engaged in multiple internship experiences that reflect both the breadth and depth of her horticultural training, spanning hydroponic production, plant pest and disease identification and garden management.

Beyond the classroom, Hollenbeck has been actively involved in extracurricular activities aligned with her academic interests, further strengthening her foundation in plant science and agricultural systems.

“I want to be at the crossover between traditional farming, plant science, business, modern technology, and environmental sustainability,” Hollenbeck said. “I am a strong believer that thinking about our food and where it comes from encourages people to make better decisions for their own health and the health of our planet.”

The Fred Winter Memorial Award recognizes outstanding undergraduate students who intend to pursue careers in horticulture or related fields, including landscape architecture and environmental sciences. The award honors the legacy of Dr. Fred Winter, a longtime PSPA member and Pottstown-area farmer known for cultivating more than 200 rhododendron plants, including several varieties he bred and developed.

For Hollenbeck, the award affirms her commitment to advancing horticulture through innovation and sustainability—an approach that reflects the land-grant mission of Rutgers and positions her to contribute meaningfully to the future of food and environmental stewardship.

Aishlin Ingraham, SEBS’26, pictured outside of the marine science building at the University of South Florida. Photo: Courtesy of Aishlin Ingraham.

For students at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), experiential learning is more than a graduation requirement. It is an opportunity to practically apply disciplinary knowledge, discover passions and build confidence to prepare for what comes next.

For Aishlin Ingraham, SEBS’26 marine sciences major with a physical oceanography option, that moment came in the form of a transformative summer research experience that helped shape her future as a scientist.

As Aishlin prepares to cross the stage in May 2026, she reflects proudly not only on the credits she’s earned and the challenges she’s overcome on the way to her degree, but also on the hands-on research experience she pursued during the summer of 2025. Encouraged by her advisors in the SEBS Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) program, Aishlin applied for and was accepted into a highly competitive Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), a paid summer research program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The program covers housing, travel and a stipend, allowing students to fully immerse themselves in research alongside experienced scientists at host universities.

Aishlin Ingraham (front row, second from left) and fellow 2025 cohort of the “Making Waves REU,” pictured aboard the Miami University F.G. Walton Smith, getting hands-on field experience. Photo: Courtesy of Aishlin Ingraham.

Aishlin participated in the Making Waves REU at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Marine Science, where she worked with Steven Meyers, chief scientist at the Ocean Center for Maritime and Port Studies, and Mark Luther, a physical oceanographer and associate professor. Her project focused on assessing the use of artificial intelligence to rapidly digitize historical tide gauge records from a defunct tide station in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Using an optical character recognition (OCR) platform called QDox, Aishlin and her collaborators achieved a transcription error rate of less than one percent—an encouraging result for the growing field of data archaeology. “Longer, digitized historical records are critical for performing more accurate analyses and future predictions of oceanographic conditions in a region,” Aishlin explains.

At the conclusion of the REU, Aishlin presented her findings in a research poster, an experience she describes as a privilege for an undergraduate student. Her work didn’t stop there. During the Spring 2026 semester, she continues to collaborate with Meyers, her mentor, who is helping her analyze the data and draft a manuscript for a potential research publication.

Beyond the research itself, Aishlin gained valuable professional experience through career development workshops, networking with program alumni, and hands-on ocean sampling during a day cruise aboard a research vessel. “The REU offered many great career-building workshops,” she says. “We also had the chance to network and practice real-world ocean sampling techniques.”

The experience confirmed Aishlin’s passion for research and clarified her long-term goals. “This experience was pivotal in advancing my career as a scientist,” she says. “I made a lot of great connections and realized that I would like to continue research and education in graduate school. It made me feel more confident in my abilities as a scientist.”

As she looks ahead to life after SEBS, Aishlin is considering graduate study in physical oceanography or data analysis, or a career as a data analyst. The skills and confidence she gained through experiential learning, she says, will continue to guide her path.

For Aishlin, experiential learning wasn’t just a summer opportunity. It was a defining step toward a future in science.

An Amsterdam albatross, among the world’s rarest seabirds, seen during a Southern Ocean research expedition.

In a groundbreaking study of ancient ocean geochemistry, a Rutgers researcher and a former Rutgers graduate student have found evidence that the end of the latest ice age some 18,000 years ago, a period of rapid planetary warming, coincided with the emergence of salty water that had been trapped in the deep ocean.

The findings, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, shed new light on how salt levels in the Earth’s deepest waters may influence the amount of carbon dioxide – a principal heat-trapping gas – in the atmosphere. 

“In today’s oceans there are different major water masses, and each has a distinctive salinity,” said Elisabeth Sikes, a professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Studies at Rutgers-New Brunswick. “Researchers have long speculated that deep ocean salinity levels were linked to changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide across ice age cycles. Our paper proves it.” 

Oceans contain vast amounts of carbon dioxide, which absorbs infrared energy and contributes to global warming. Much of this carbon is taken up by marine organisms at the surface during photosynthesis. As these organisms live, die and sink, their remains break down and release the carbon dioxide into the deep waters. The differences in salinity of the deep layers of the ocean help form a barrier between the layers, keeping the gas from returning to the atmosphere.

Warming and cooling are cyclical, and this speeds up and slows down ocean overturning circulation – known as “the global ocean conveyor belt.” During warm periods, like today, the ocean circulates faster, keeping deep water from gathering as much carbon dioxide. When ocean circulation slows and denser water sinks in cool regions, more carbon dioxide is trapped with it. Eventually, the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the deep ocean helps cool the planet, and the cycle repeats.

During the latest ice age, which peaked about 20,000 years ago, the deep ocean stored carbon dioxide more efficiently than today, Sikes said, which helps explain why average temperatures were much lower.

Scientists know that the planet’s warming at the end of the last ice age was marked by a huge release of the carbon dioxide from the deep ocean. But what happened to the salt that supposedly helped lock carbon dioxide away has remained a mystery.

“The exact mechanism, the actual physical explanation for why that happens, is something researchers have been trying to resolve,” said Ryan H. Glaubke, a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Arizona and lead author of the study. Research for the study was conducted while Glaubke was a graduate student in Sikes’ lab at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences.

“This paper supports the idea that it’s the salinity of deep ocean water – the ‘salty blob’ – that keeps carbon dioxide locked away for long periods of time,” Glaubke said. 

Read more on the study in the original article, which appeared on Rutgers Today. 

While equity in climate adaptation is increasingly recognized, university-based research can inadvertently reinforce inequities. Inequities often arise when research fails to engage communities, overlooks relevant concerns, lacks trust, or misinterprets responses due to insufficient cultural understanding. Mutual aid organizations, inherently community-based, foster resilience and solidarity, addressing unmet needs while building collective trust.

A new article, co-authored by Rutgers researchers and other university colleagues and Philadelphia-based mutual-aid group, Homies Helping Homies (HHH), examines how a research partnership can fundamentally reshape climate adaptation research practices by shifting the focus from traditional, top-down academic approaches to equitable, action-oriented, and community-engaged co-production of knowledge.

The article, From Transactional to Transformative: Evolving Research Practices Through Mutual Aid Collaboration, shows that such a transformation prioritizes the needs and expertise of vulnerable communities, making research outcomes more relevant and implementable, according to the study.

It was co-authored by post-doc researcher Manasa Bollempalli in the Department of Human Ecology, along with Rutgers university co-authors Nuzhat Fatema, doctoral student in the Department of Geography; Amy Li, doctoral student in the Department of Anthropology; and Victoria Ramenzoni, associate professor in the Department of Human Ecology; along with Kevin Bass and Anthony Adams, of Homies Helping Homies Research Collective; Yvonne Appiah Dadson, doctoral student, and DeeDee Bennett-Gayle, associate professor in the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity, University at Albany; Elizabeth Gilmore, associate professor at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.

The research is part of the work being undertaken by the  Household Decision-Making Team at the Megalopolitan Coastal Transformation Hub (MACH) led by Rutgers. MACH is a consortium of 13 institutions that brings together academics, policymakers, and community leaders to research climate change impacts and develop effective, evidence-based responses in the Philadelphia–New Jersey–New York region and beyond.

Rutgers post-doc researcher Manasa Bollempalli in the Department of Human Ecology.

In the Q&A below, corresponding author and post-doc researcher Manasa Bollempalli shared the goals of the research study and how mutual aid functions not just as community support but as a methodological and ethical framework for equitable, justice-oriented climate research.

Why does this type of research matter?

Climate adaptation research often reinforces inequities by relying on top-down, researcher-defined questions and weak community engagement. Mutual aid organizations, rooted in daily relationships of reciprocity, care, and grassroots action, provide trust-based and culturally grounded access to communities that conventional research struggles to reach. This collaborative approach reveals how marginalized residents experience climate hazards such as heat, flooding, resource scarcity, and water crises in ways that differ dramatically from academic framings.

What are the key findings of this collaborative research?

Mutual aid reshapes research access, trust and relevance: Partnering with HHH provided crucial entry points into low-income and immigrant communities, enabling interviews, participant observation, and relationship-building that traditional outreach failed to produce

Researchers’ positionality and methods transformed: Participation in mutual aid activities required researchers to adopt solidarity-based, non-hierarchical roles, standing in food-distribution lines, packing groceries, helping residents, changing how residents perceived them and how data could be gathered

Community members discuss climate through vernacular risks: Residents rarely used terms like “climate change.” They responded instead to questions about  street flooding, disrupting wages, basement water damage, inability to afford cooling, food insecurity, and infrastructure failure. This reframed how researchers designed surveys, interviews, and coding categories.

Deep inequities shape climate preparedness: Residents face constrained decision-making due to poverty, lack of institutional support, and distrust of government. Many just make decisions on the spot during crises due to limited time, resources, and awareness of available aid

Mutual aid is both a resilience system and a research practice: HHH’s horizontal, care-centered model created “transformative spaces” for knowledge co-production, spaces where researchers must confront ethical tensions around power, extraction, and reciprocity.

What new finding did the research unearth?

The paper explicitly argues that mutual aid should be recognized as methodological infrastructure for climate adaptation research. It documents a rare case where community partners influenced research design, recruitment, interview content, data interpretation, and emerging outreach strategies. It reveals structural flaws in academic funding systems that do not support the time, labor, or relational work required for equitable community collaboration.

What are the implications for practice?

For researchers: Center reciprocity, shared decision-making, and context-specific recruitment; Use vernacular risks rather than scientific jargon when engaging marginalized populations; Build reflexivity and positionality work into every research stage.

For policymakers and institutions: Genuine community-based research requires time, resources, and flexible funding structures; Climate programs must incorporate insights from populations who often have the least access to preparedness resources and formal support systems.

For community organizations: Mutual aid groups can serve as critical bridges between frontline communities and research institutions while also shaping policy-relevant knowledge.

L-R: Award-winning Plant Biology graduate students Emmanuel Nwachukwu, Ryan Earp and Devan Gladden. Photo: Susane Ruemmele.

Leaders in agronomy, crops and soil sciences gathered at CANVAS 2025 from November 9-12 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to host the premier gathering of ideas, solutions and innovation from across the field of environmental sciences. CANVAS, formerly the ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting, provides a platform for emerging learners and leaders from industry, government agencies, and academic institutions to explore advances in agronomic, crop and soil sciences. 

Under the theme, “40 Years into the Future,” CANVAS 2025 offered scientific sessions, workshops, poster sessions, an exhibit Hall, and student-focused programming that ensured numerous opportunities for students pursuing studies in these fields.

Graduate student Ryan Earp. Photo: Susanne Ruemmele.

Among the emerging leaders were three graduate students in the Department of Plant Biology at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, who won awards for their poster presentations.

Ryan Earp won first place in the Turfgrass Breeding, Genomics, Physiology and Molecular Biology poster session for “Determining DNA Content and Ploidy Variation in Kentucky Bluegrass Cultivars and Accessions Using Flow Cytometry,” which he coauthored with Chris Tkach, Christine Kubik, Jennifer Vaiciunas, Mark LaBarge and Stacy Bonos. 

“This year, my poster focused on developing a high-throughput flow cytometry method to accurately determine ploidy levels in Kentucky bluegrass. Because this species is highly polyploid and extremely variable, reliable ploidy estimates are essential for fully understanding the genetic analyses for my overall project,” said Earp. 

“Receiving the award was truly an honor. This project required a lot of trial-and-error, so it was very rewarding to see that effort recognized. It also reinforced the importance of building strong foundational methods, not just focusing on the final results,” he added.

Earp is no stranger to this national industry event.

Graduate student Devan Gladden. Photo: Susanne Ruemmele.

“As a repeat presenter and previous award recipient, it has been exciting to show how my research is progressing from year to year. Last year’s project centered on building the bioinformatics pipeline for SNP discovery in Kentucky bluegrass, and this year’s work adds the cytogenetic framework needed to interpret those data. Presenting again allowed me to demonstrate how these pieces connect and how each step moves the overall project forward. I’m grateful for the continued support and motivated to keep advancing this research.” 

Devan Gladden won second place in the Turfgrass Water Conservation poster session for “High Throughput Phentoyping of Stay-Green Traits for Kentucky Bluegrass Under Variable Irrigation,” which he coauthored with Stephanie Rossi and Bingru Huang. 

“The research I presented is a comparison of using drone imaging versus more manual techniques like sampling, imaging, and rating each sample plot of turfgrass in response to watering that simulates varying levels of drought. The division I competed in was turfgrass water conservation and this research utilizes newer technology to help reduce labor and costs associated with breeding drought tolerant plants with reduced irrigation requirements, helping conserve water. I was pretty excited and surprised to have placed as this was my first time going to a research conference let alone presenting in two student competitions,” said Gladden. 

Graduate student Emmanuel Nwachukwu. Photo: Susanne Ruemmele.

Emmanuel Nwachukwu won third place in the Golf Turf Management and Remote Sensing poster session for “Influence of Soil pH Gradient on an Annual Bluegrass Putting Green,” which he coauthored with James Murphy and Matthew Elmore. 

“Our research revealed that during stressful summer times, turf quality of Poa annua putting green did not decline in mat layer acidic pH when supplemented with gypsum and nitrogen. I feel happy to assist golf course superintendents in their fertility programs,” said Nwachukwu.

The Rutgers Animal Welfare Judging Team with their awards at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences campus. L-R: Jacob Bazer, Courtney McCarroll, Coach Dr. Taylor Ross, Aditri Singh, and Sakhee Daga.

The Animal Welfare Judging & Assessment Competition (AWJAC) is a national, intercollegiate event that challenges students to evaluate the welfare of diverse animal species using science-based criteria. Competitors assess real-world management scenarios, score facilities, and deliver oral reasons defending their decisions. This year’s contest, hosted at Texas A&M University, featured one of the largest turnouts, to date.

After months of work, the Rutgers team of animal sciences undergraduates earned exceptional results, placing first overall in the Live Assessment and third overall as a team in the undergraduate senior division. The team handily won the Live Assessment by more than 15 points.

Rutgers receiving the Top Team in the Undergraduate Senior division award. Pictured from left to right are AVMA’s Dr. Gail Golab and Rutgers team members, Jacob Bazer, Aditri Singh, Sakhee Daga and Courtney McCarroll. Photo credit: Taylor Ross

This fall marked Rutgers’ second time attending the Fall Live, in-person contest, having first begun competing in Spring 2024. Despite being a relatively new program, Rutgers has consistently placed alongside — and often above — universities that have been competing for decades. The team looks forward to continuing to push the potential of this growing program.

Individually, Aditri Singh placed 10th overall, also earning the highest score in the entire competition in the pet gerbil scenario, followed by Jacob Bazer in 28th, Sakhee Daga in 33rd, and Courtney McCarroll in 37th, with all four team members finishing in the top half of a highly competitive division.

This year, competitors evaluated three species categories: gaboon vipers in zoos, dressage horses, and pet gerbils, in addition to an in-person live assessment of tilapia aquaculture. Preparation for the competition began early in the semester and involved intensive team practices focused on species-specific welfare science, facility analysis, ethical frameworks, and repeated oral reasons drills.

Students also took field trips to real-life facilities, attended guest lectures from industry and academic professionals, and reviewed current research to ground their evaluations in evidence-based welfare principles. During the competition weekend, students also participated in a formal networking event and attended keynote presentations from leading animal welfare scientists, further enriching their learning experience.

The team extends its appreciation to the facilities that hosted them during their preparation, the professionals who provided guest instruction, the generous donors and the Department of Animal Sciences who support their travel and training. Teaching instructor Taylor Ross served as team coach and her guidance was instrumental to this year’s success. The team is looking ahead to the Spring contest with enthusiasm and continued dedication to advancing animal welfare knowledge, scholarship and leadership within the program.

Student Juliette Loftus takes part in a “Planting a Healthy Mindset” class, a student-led, faculty-sponsored project supported by a ScarletWell Connection Grant.

Hours on the treadmill. Mornings on the yoga mat. For some, “wellness” is a solitary pursuit — a personal quest for physical or mental balance.

At Rutgers University-New Brunswick, students are taking a different approach this semester by learning how to cultivate comprehensive wellness in themselves and in others.

A new undergraduate minor in holistic wellness aims to equip students with the practical skills to design and deliver wellness programs – in their lives and in their careers. The coursework is interdisciplinary and experiential, with classes ranging from nature journaling and personal finance to nutrition and wellness communication. 

Developed by a committee led by ScarletWell, a Rutgers-New Brunswick wellness initiative, and housed in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS), the minor differs from programs at other universities, organizers say, by uniting disciplines in mental and emotional health, physical wellness, arts, policy and the environment. Importantly, the minor embraces a broad definition of wellness, expanding beyond the lens of nutrition or fitness used by similar programs.

“Minors elsewhere are mostly theoretical,” said Joshua Langberg, a professor of psychology at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology and the university’s chief wellness officer. “Our courses focus more on skills and strategies for deliberately fostering wellness in all areas of our lives.”

After approval by university leaders in spring 2025, the 18-credit minor was launched this fall. One of its first required courses, “Wellness Learning Community,” is co-taught by ScarletWell director Peggy Swarbrick and Amy Spagnolo, ScarletWell’s senior program coordinator.

In the course, students examine wellness across eight dimensions – emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, social, physical and spiritual – a framework that Swarbrick developed.

Swarbrick said one defining feature of the minor is its emphasis on preparing students to foster a culture of wellness, particularly in the workplace. For instance, students learn how to design and implement wellness programs that support both individuals and communities.

“These skills will make Rutgers students more attractive for jobs, regardless of their career or discipline of focus, because they will be able to work with leadership to improve sense of community and belonging and overall health of the workforce,” ScarletWell leaders wrote in a program summary.

The timing couldn’t be better. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. public health experts warned of a “mental health crisis” as stress, loneliness and isolation surged. That crisis coincided with a booming wellness industry – estimated at $480 billion in 2024 and expanding by up to 10% annually, according to McKinsey & Co.

Corporate America is helping to drive that growth, as employers link employee well-being to productivity and retention. A McKinsey Health Institute report from January 2025 estimated that “enhanced employee health and well-being could generate up to $11.7 trillion in global economic value.”

Langberg said these projections will open doors for Rutgers graduates with credentials in holistic wellness. Wellness-specific job opportunities are already popping up in schools and organizations, ranging from universities to police departments. Even Silicon Valley is taking notice.

One of the minor’s most hands-on offerings is “Horticulture Therapy: Concepts and Skills,” an elective taught by Gary Altman in the Department of Plant Biology at the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS). The course explores how nature can be used to promote wellness in personal and professional settings. Students spend time learning how horticulture therapy works, and how to create programs to help others. (SEBS also offers its own minor in horticulture therapy).

“Nature has a rhythm to it, which can provide predictability, especially when you’re feeling uncertain or anxious,” said Altman, a teaching instructor. “In horticulture therapy, we can use the predictability and stability of nature, like a garden space, to practice being present and grounded.”

The wellness minor is part of a broader movement to strengthen wellness education and connection across the university, fueled in part by Rutgers-New Brunswick Chancellor Francine Conway’s commitment to advancing mental and behavioral health resources. 

A small grants program supports student-led and faculty-directed wellness activities — such as pickup basketball and “wellness through clay.” A peer support leader program is training staff and faculty to become wellness advocates who foster a sense of belonging and community within the Rutgers community.

Ultimately, ScarletWell’s leaders hope the minor will serve as both a career credential and a catalyst for culture change.

“Industry is recognizing that the workforce needs to be well, not only for productivity, but to minimize losing qualified workers to burnout and stress,” Spagnolo said. “It’s no longer enough to simply give employees a discount at the gym. Wellness needs to be more.”

The article first appeared in Rutgers Today.

L-R: Chintan Bhavsar, graduate student in the Nutritional Sciences Graduate Program; Tracy Anthony, professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences; Loredana Quadro, professor in the Department of Food Science; and Youn-Kyung Kim, associate research scientist in the Quadro lab.

Groundbreaking PNAS research reveals a new pathway regulating vitamin A mobilization from the liver—independent of vitamin A status.

Researchers at Rutgers University have discovered that amino acid scarcity—whether caused by diet or chemotherapy—impairs the liver’s ability to release vitamin A into the bloodstream, revealing a previously unrecognized mechanism for controlling vitamin A availability in the body.

The study, “Amino acid insufficiency impairs hepatic vitamin A mobilization in mice,” was led by Loredana Quadro, professor in the Department of Food Science, and Tracy G. Anthony, professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences in the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Chintan Bhavsar, graduate student in the Nutritional Sciences Graduate Program, shares the first co-authorship with Youn-Kyung Kim, post-doc fellow in the Quadro lab. Bhavsar was awarded the 2025 Outstanding Masters Student Award from the Rutgers School of Graduate Studies. Study collaborators include colleagues from the Department of Nutritional Sciences, Department of Food Science, New Jersey Institute for Food Nutrition and Health, and the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the research reveals that amino acid shortage is a novel regulator of vitamin A homeostasis. Using dietary and pharmacological models—including the chemotherapy drug asparaginase—the team found that when amino acids are scarce, the liver accumulates retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4), the primary vitamin A carrier, while reducing its secretion into the bloodstream.

Vitamin A, which can be obtained through foods or taken as a supplement, including meat and dairy products as well as vegetables and fruits, is an essential nutrient for humans and aids general health, including vision, growth and cell division.

“Our findings challenge the long-held belief that vitamin A distribution is regulated solely by vitamin A status,” said Quadro. “We show that amino acid availability—and the liver’s stress response to it—plays a decisive role in controlling how vitamin A is mobilized to the rest of the body.”

Using mouse models and primary hepatocytes, researchers showed that amino acid insufficiency—whether from a low-protein diet, a leucine-devoid diet, or asparaginase treatment—suppresses secretion of RBP4 and transthyretin (TTR), two key proteins needed for vitamin A transport, without depleting hepatic vitamin A stores. Intriguingly, blocking the autophagy-related gene Atg7 restored normal vitamin A export, pinpointing a critical pathway linking nutrient sensing, protein trafficking and vitamin A metabolism.

“This discovery not only reshapes our understanding of vitamin A biology but could also have important implications for patients with leukemia who are receiving asparaginase, or for those suffering from protein malnutrition, where vitamin A delivery to critical organs like the eye and pancreas may be compromised,” said Anthony.

Rutgers Forestry Club students Katie Marra, Sebastian Chamberlain and Atomu Saul pose with the last plank for the boardwalk, along with Finn, the dog. Photo credit: Moira Keihm

October 23 marked an exciting milestone for the Rutgers Urban Forestry program and Forestry Club with the successful completion of a collaborative project that turned reclaimed wood into a revitalized trail at Rutgers Gardens.

The group of students from Rutgers Forestry Club and Rutgers Gardens interns who installed the boardwalk. Photo credit: Roslyn Dvorin

With help from Rutgers Gardens staff, interns and volunteers, 120 feet of new boardwalk was completed—blending research, learning and sustainability into one beautiful upgrade for the Helyar Woods Fern Trail.

The story of how this revitalized boardwalk made from reclaimed Dawn redwood came into being is a combination of impactful research, student innovation and sustainable thinking and partnership.

Rutgers professor of forestry from 1981 to 2001, the late John E. Kuser planted more than 350 Dawn redwood (Metasequoia) seedlings at the Rutgers Horticultural Farm III in a 75-year experiment to expand the germplasm of the species in the United States. A deciduous conifer, Dawn redwood was thought to be extinct until 1941 when it was found growing in China.

Roslyn Dvorin, outreach coordinator for the Rutgers Urban Forestry Program, explained that “the trees at the farm were planted closely together in four blocks, with the idea of thinning the trees in years 25 and 50, with a plan to accomplish this thinning without diminishing the collection.”

In 2023, a little past the 25-year mark of Kuser’s experiment, tree care professionals donated their time, energy and equipment to complete the first thinning of the Dawn redwood and honor Kuser’s memory.

Atomu Saul and Sophie-Elizabeth Villacampa work to mill the Dawn redwood logs for the boardwalk project. Photo credit: Roslyn Dvorin

“The thinning was completed with Kuser’s vision in mind, to allow the densely planted collection to grow properly without sacrificing the genetic diversity,” explained Dvorin.

Fast forward to 2025 when the Urban Forestry Program began thinking of creative ways to reuse the wood on campus. Katie Marra, a student with the Forestry Club suggested a partnership with Rutgers Gardens to rebuild a worn section of boardwalk using Dawn redwood from the thinning. The idea took hold, and with Urban Forestry intern Atomu Saul taking the lead in milling and coordinating the construction, the club began utilizing the program’s portable sawmill to mill planks to construct the 120-foot length of the boardwalk.

“These redwoods have now lived three lives, as part of a research plot, as an educational and training resource at the sawmill on Cook Campus and now as a new boardwalk improving the trails at Rutgers Gardens,” said Dvorin.

The impact of this collaborative project is not lost on 2025 Rutgers Gardens intern Isabelle Shields, an undergraduate at Rutgers-Newark, who shared her pride through an account of her working alongside her peers in this hands-on, sustainable on-campus project.

“Working on the boardwalk project in Helyar Woods was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my internship at Rutgers Gardens. Our team spent time preparing the area by cutting back thick patches of greenbriar, poison ivy and invasive plants. It was hot and sometimes overwhelming work, navigating through dense growth, but we tackled it together and kept spirits high.

Rutgers Forestry Club student Sebastian Chamberlain and Rutgers Gardens student horticulturist Isabelle Shields work together to secure the Dawn Redwood planks. Photo credit: Moira Keihm

Before the new wood could go in, we spent two of the hottest days of the summer dismantling and removing the old, worn-out boardwalk by hand. It was physically intense, having to axe through each wooden panel and rip up the sunken base layer buried in the ground. But it was also satisfying to know we were making way for something better. After that, we carried the old wood out through the trails, loaded it into the Workman carts, and made multiple trips to haul it all out.

After taking out the old boardwalk from Helyar Woods, we had to get supplies for the new boardwalk! Maxine, the Assistant Director: Horticulture, Lucy, my coworker, and I went shopping to get the base layer of the bridge and nails. We loaded twelve planks of wood and four boxes of nails into our work truck and took them back to Rutgers Gardens. When we arrived back at the gardens, my coworkers helped unload the truck and place the items onto a tailgate.

Once the Forestry team milled the Dawn redwood planks, we picked up the wood from campus and loaded each plank into our work truck. This took us two trips to complete, but we were able to tour their building which was really cool and new to us! When we were done, we loaded the planks into our carts and brought it all to the work site – carrying heavy stacks down narrow, uneven trails.

We then helped unload each plank and put them in categories based on the numbers on the side of each plank. We handed each plank to the forestry team to have them line up each piece! It was awesome seeing the whole thing come together piece by piece, especially knowing we played a big part in almost every step. What made it meaningful was the teamwork of the forestry team and us. Everyone brought their strengths, encouraged each other, and worked through the heat without giving up.

One moment that stood out was chatting with the Forestry team. We swapped stories about our projects and joked about how many bug bites we’d racked up. My favorite interaction was when two of the Forestry team members let Solana and I drill the final nails of the bridge that day. It was a small interaction, but it reminded me how cool it is when different programs come together for a shared goal.

This project taught me a lot, from how to safely and efficiently haul lumber through the woods to working as a team in tough outdoor conditions. It wasn’t always glamorous (especially the poison ivy part), but it was rewarding to see it finished. It is going to make a huge difference for visitors. It’ll give them safer, more accessible passage through Helyar Woods and help protect the landscape at the same time.

We’re all proud of what we accomplished. The boardwalk may be made of Dawn Redwood, but it was built with a lot of heart, sweat and teamwork.”