Highlights


Schmidt College of Science Strategic Faculty Hiring Initiative

Strategic Faculty Hires in Environment, Health, and Computational and Data-Driven Science

The Schmidt College of Science is undertaking a major strategic hiring initiative to recruit 16 new faculty members across the College’s eight academic departments that will build on our areas of strength in Environment, Health, and Computational and Data-Driven Science. Learn more.


Biology Continuing Education Certificate Courses

Biology Continuing Education Certificate Courses

The DNA Forensics certificate course is for professionals and non-professional students contemplating a career in biotech, forensic science, criminal justice and other allied life science programs.

The ART certificate course is for professionals or current students seeking a career in human reproductive medicine, veterinary medicine, nursing, biomedical science and other allied life science programs. Read more.


Outstanding Researcher: Colin Polsky, Ph.D.

Outstanding Researcher: Colin Polsky, Ph.D.

About 25 years ago, Colin Polsky, Ph.D., professor of Geosciences in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science and director of FAU’s Center for Environmental Studies (CES), chose to become an environmental advocate because he found the topic of climate change endlessly interesting and profoundly important. Read more.


Alumni Spotlight: Jackie Kingston, M.S. ’06, Founder, Sea Turtle Adventures

Alumni Spotlight: Jackie Kingston, M.S. ’06, Founder, Sea Turtle Adventures

Jackie Kingston earned an M.S. in Biological Sciences from Florida Atlantic in 2006 and used the skills she learned at FAU to form an organization called Sea Turtle Adventures that could contribute to conservation efforts. Read more.


FAU’s Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions Celebrates 50th Anniversary

FAU’s Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions Celebrates 50th Anniversary

The Charles E. Schmidt College of Science’s Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions (CUES) celebrated its 50th anniversary on May 17 at the Lake Pavilion in downtown West Palm Beach. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, and key partners in industry celebrated and CUES Director John Renne, Ph.D., shared the center’s vision for the future. Read more.


Schmidt College of Science Celebrates Future Doctors

Schmidt College of Science Celebrates Future Doctors

Dean Valery Forbes hosted the 20th Charles E. Schmidt College of Science’s Future Doctors’ Reception on May 3, in the FAU Student Union, on the Boca Raton campus. College faculty and staff, along with students’ families, gathered to celebrate FAU students who have been admitted to health professional graduate programs. Read more.


Schmidt College of Science Master’s Student Hayley Knapp Captures Second Place in State-wide 3MT® Competition

Schmidt College of Science Master’s Student Hayley Knapp Captures Second Place in State-wide 3MT® Competition

First-year Biological Sciences master’s degree student Hayley Knapp placed second overall in the state-wide Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition hosted at the University of Miami on April 19. Earlier this spring, Knapp won first place in Florida Atlantic’s annual 3MT® competition for her presentation, “From Poop to Parent: Examining Paternity in Dynamic Atlantic Spotted Dolphin Populations in the Bahamas.” Read more.



Alumni Spotlight: Sea Turtle Scientist Jeff Guertin

Alumni Spotlight: Sea Turtle Scientist Jeff Guertin

Schmidt College of Science alumnus Jeff Guertin, M.S. ’10, is a biologist with Inwater Research Group in Jensen Beach. During his time at Florida Atlantic, Guertin gained hands-on experience not only with sea turtles, but also with the development, planning and execution of a scientific project. Read more.


Professional Science Master in Medical Physics

Professional Science Master in Medical Physics

The Schmidt College of Science’s Professional Science Master in Medical Physics (PSMMP) degree program provides students with a strong foundation in radiological and applied physics training within the medical physics profession so that graduates can go on to create the cutting-edge medical technologies of tomorrow. Read more.


Marine Seagrass Meadows Show Resilience to Bounce Back After Die-Offs

Marine Seagrass Meadows Show Resilience to Bounce Back After Die-Offs

“Long-term monitoring programs in Florida Bay indicate that the time frame for full recovery of turtlegrass meadows after major die-off events is at least a decade,” said Marguerite Koch, Ph.D., senior author and a professor. Read more.


Climate Change Concern in Florida Linked With Recent Extreme Weather

Climate Change Concern in Florida Linked With Recent Extreme Weather

An increasing number of Floridians agree that human actions are causing climate change, including a record number of Florida Republicans, according to a new survey from Florida Atlantic University. This finding reinforces the trend observed in the prior seven Florida Climate Resilience Surveys, conducted by FAU’s Center for Environmental Studies within the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. Read more.


FAU Lands $2 Million Grant from U.S. Department of Transportation

FAU Lands $2 Million Grant from U.S. Department of Transportation

Researchers from Florida Atlantic University, in collaboration with the University of New Orleans, and other institutions, received a grant from the United States Department of Transportation to establish the “Center for Equitable Transit-Oriented Communities” (CETOC). CETOC will focus on “Preserving the Environment,” to support the U.S. DOT’s climate solution and sustainability goals. Read more.



New Model Based on Psychology Predicts Who Will Buy Trendy Products

New Model Based on Psychology Predicts Who Will Buy Trendy Products

Florida Atlantic University and collaborators developed and introduced a new mathematical innovation model, grounded in psychology, to provide both qualitative and quantitative predictions of adoption trends for new products. Read more.


Inaugural Jumpstart Postdoctoral Program Awardee: Juliana Marques, Ph.D.

Inaugural Jumpstart Postdoctoral Program Awardee: Juliana Marques, Ph.D.

The Charles E. Schmidt College of Science is pleased to announce that Juliana Marques, Ph.D., has been named a 2023 awardee of the inaugural Jumpstart Postdoctoral Program. Dean Valery Forbes, Ph.D., launched the new initiative last fall, with the aim of “jumpstarting” new multidisciplinary research collaborations. Read more.


2023 Technology Fee Grant Supports the Sciences

2023 Technology Fee Grant Support Sciences

The Charles E. Schmidt College of Science is pleased to have been awarded 2022-23 Student Technology Fee grants that will support our students and core teaching activities. The fee revenues are used to enhance instructional technology resources for students and faculty. Read more.


Celebrating the Success of the Rubin and Cindy Gruber Sandbox

Celebrating the Success of the Rubin and Cindy Gruber Sandbox

Florida Atlantic University celebrated the addition of The Rubin and Cindy Gruber Sandbox on March 23, located within the S.E. Wimberly Library on the Boca Raton campus. Read more.


Science Fest Celebrates Diversity and Student Research

Science Fest Celebrates Diversity and Student Research

On April 14, the  Charles E. Schmidt College of Science hosted the inaugural Science Fest throughout the Breezeway on the Boca Raton campus. Approximately 1,000 visitors, including area high school and middle school students, community members, FAU undergraduate and graduate students, as well as faculty and staff enjoyed science-related exhibitions, a student poster competition, along with interactive games and activities. Read more.


Sea Turtle Grants Program Awards Funds to Dr. Jeanette Wyneken’s Research Team

Sea Turtle Grants Program Awards Funds to Dr. Jeanette Wyneken’s Research Team

Congratulations to Jeanette Wyneken, Ph.D., Professor of Biological Sciences and Director of FAU’s Marine Lab at Gumbo Limbo Environmental Complex, and her Ph.D. student, Samantha Trail, for being selected to receive grant funding from the Sea Turtle Grants Program (STGP), during the 2023-2024 grant cycle. Read more.


FAU, Virtual Planet and City of West Palm Beach Unveil VR Experience

FAU, Virtual Planet and City of West Palm Beach Unveil VR Experience

Virtual Planet, in partnership with Florida Atlantic University and the City of West Palm Beach, announced the launch of a revolutionary new virtual reality experience, “Sea Level Rise Explorer WPB.” The multidisciplinary team created a virtual simulation of the devastation that a Category 5 hurricane and sea level rise could have on West Palm Beach. Read more.


Schmidt College of Science Celebrates 2023 Honors Convocation Awardees

Schmidt College of Science Celebrates 2023 Honors Convocation Awardees

The Charles E. Schmidt College of Science is pleased to announce that four members of the College were recognized during Florida Atlantic University’s 54th annual Honors Convocation on Wednesday, April 12. The ceremony celebrates the University’s most outstanding students and faculty. Read more.


‘New Horizons in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias’ Awardees

‘New Horizons in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias’ Awardees

In recognition of the quality of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) research being conducted at Florida Atlantic University, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Institute for Human Health and Disease Intervention (I-Health), the FAU Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, and the David and Lynn Nicholson Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research recently formed a collaboration to establish the “New Horizons in Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD)” Pilot Funding Program. Read more.


Florida Atlantic University professor engages in friendly rivalry with San Diego State colleague

Florida Atlantic University professor engages in friendly rivalry with San Diego State colleague

“This is the first time in 19 years working as a professor that I have a team that may be a national champion,” Dr. John Renne, Professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning. Watch here.


Wild Animals Stop the Spread of Socially Transmitted Misinformation

Wild Animals Stop the Spread of Socially Transmitted Misinformation

Results from FAU researchers and collaborators, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that even in the absence of predators, escape events occur frequently in natural groups of foraging fish but rarely spread to more than a few individuals. Read more.


FAU New Home to Award-winning Website ‘The Invading Sea’

FAU New Home to Award-winning Website ‘The Invading Sea’

The Invading Sea, an award-winning website featuring content on climate change in Florida, now has a new home at Florida Atlantic University. Read more.


Does Current Shellfish Culture Gear Curb ‘Crunching’ Rays?

Does Current Shellfish Culture Gear Curb ‘Crunching’ Rays?

According to NOAA Fisheries, more than 80 percent of marine aquaculture production in the United States consists of bivalve mollusks such as oysters, clams and mussels. Read more.


All Work, No Independent Play Cause of Youth Declining Mental Health

All Work, No Independent Play Cause of Youth Declining Mental Health

Anxiety and depression among school-aged children and teens in the United States are at an all-time high. Sadly, in 2021, child and adolescent mental health was declared a national emergency. Read more.


A State-of-the-Art AI Sandbox Gives Ph.D. Student a Boost With Neuroscience Research

A State-of-the-Art AI Sandbox Gives Ph.D. Student a Boost With Neuroscience Research

Jennifer Giordano, a second year Ph.D. student in the Graduate Neuroscience Training Program and Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, greatly relies on the Rubin and Cindy Gruber Sandbox’s transformative technology. Read more.


U.S. Representative Tours First Drone-based Quantum Network at FAU

U.S. Representative Tours First Drone-based Quantum Network at FAU

United States Rep. Cory Mills ( R-Fla.) visited Florida Atlantic University today to tour FAU’s quantum physics laboratory in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. Warner A. Miller, Ph.D., a professor of physics who spearheads the laboratory, provided an overview and demonstration of the nation’s first drone-based, mobile quantum network housed at FAU. Read more.


America on the Move: How Urban Travel Has Changed Over a Decade

America on the Move: How Urban Travel Has Changed Over a Decade

A new Florida Atlantic University study on America’s urban travel trends shows important variations in travel behaviors across income, home ownership, ethnicity, gender, age, and life-cycle stages. Read more.


Graduate Student Co-authors Paper on Shark Bites found on Sea Turtles

Graduate Student Co-authors Paper on Shark Bites found on Sea Turtles

Derek Aoki, graduate student in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science at the FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, recently co-authored a paper that used forensic analysis of shark bites on sea turtles in Florida and Alabama to infer the possible size and species of the predator. Read more.


FAU Alum on her way to NOAA Fellowship

FAU Alum on her way to NOAA Fellowship

Alexis Sturm, Ph.D., recently earned a doctorate in integrative biology from the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, and is a member of the FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. She is now on her way to start a one-year fellowship with the Coral Reef Conservation Program with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Read more.


2023 Science Fest and Call for Posters

2023 Science Fest

All are welcome to celebrate the sciences at Science Fest! Enjoy science-related exhibitions, a student poster competition, interactive games, activities, and networking opportunities to connect with each other. Learn more.

Call for Posters: Undergraduate Student Research Competition

Undergraduate students, showcase your research. $1000 award to the top poster presentation. Learn more.


College of Science Hosts, Joins Academic Integrity Forums

College of Science Hosts, Joins Academic Integrity Forums

In January, the Schmidt College of Science held a Faculty Teaching Forum on Academic Integrity that provided a platform for faculty to exchange best practice ideas. Read more.


Partner with the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science as we race towards excellence!

Partner with the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science as we race towards excellence!

At the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, we have an unprecedented obligation and opportunity to provide our students and community with the highest caliber of research, scientific invention, and education in the country. Donate Here.