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Mercer to Become Home to American Baptist Historical Society's Archives
The American Baptist Historical Society (ABHS) has announced it will consolidate and relocate its vast archival collections to Mercer University's Atlanta campus, pursuant to approval of a formal agreement. University President William D. Underwood was notified of the decision after the annual meeting of the ABHS Board of Managers in late September. Mercer will be the fifth home for the Society in its 153-year history.
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Mercer Theatre Presents "The Comedy of Errors"
Mercer Theatre will present William Shakespeare's "The Comedy of Errors" this week at The Backdoor Theatre on Mercer' s Macon Campus. The play will run from Tuesday, Oct. 3, to Thursday, Oct. 5, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 with student ID and $7 for general admission. Tickets are on sale, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at University Center Box Office, (478) 301-5470.
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Law School hosts Debate for Macon Circuit Judgeship
The Walter F. George School of Law will host a Judicial Forum from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3, for candidates for the Macon Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judgeship. The event will take place in the Moot Court Room of the Law School. Dean Daisy Floyd and the School are sponsoring the forum for the five candidates vying in the non-partisan contest. The candidates participating are Pamela White Colbert, Ed Ennis, Cedric Leslie, Charles E. Jones and Tripp Self. The forum is free and open to the public.
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Dortch Takes Grand Prize at Chemistry Research Symposium
Junior John Dortch is making the most of his time at Mercer. A baseball player and economics major on the pre-med track, Dortch already has his eye on medical school. Though he hasn't taken the MCAT, the national medical school admissions exam, yet, he has applied to a highly selective program at Wake Forest University School of Medicine that would admit him even before he takes the exam.
Dortch, who maintains a 3.96 GPA, recently spent eight weeks of his summer researching compounds to affect the proteins that contribute to a group of diseases collectively called the Metabolic Syndrome, including such diseases as Type 2 Diabetes and hypertension. |
Mercer junior John Dortch is studying economics and chemistry at Mercer's College of Liberal Arts. In September, he won the grand prize at the Herty Medallist Undergraduate Research Symposium at Morehouse College in Atlanta.
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Dortch presented his findings at the Herty Medallist Undergraduate Research Symposium at Morehouse College in Atlanta. His poster was awarded the grand prize and a $500 travel award to a future American Chemical Society meeting.
The award will be valuable to Dortch in his medical school applications, but the opportunity to do cutting-edge research as an undergraduate is the bigger win for him, Dortch said.
"This project will lead to lab work throughout the year and maybe next summer," Dortch said. "It was a great opportunity to learn at a different depth than the work you can do in the classroom. The work we do in the lab is just at a different level and has a different atmosphere."
Mercer faculty who do research in the basic sciences invite talented undergraduates, such as Dortch, to be their research assistants. Assistant professor of chemistry Kevin Bucholtz, selected Dortch from among his students in his organic chemistry class to perform research over the summer. Bucholtz guided Dortch's work, which included computer modeling to identify compound that will interact with unique and important elements of the protein. Eventually, the knowledge could be used to develop new methods of studying the diseases and building drugs to stop them. Bucholtz is currently preparing a manuscript to publish the research and the two are working together to continue the research by bringing the computer research into the lab and actually building the compounds.
"One of the things that sets Mercer apart is how closely you get to work with the professors," Dortch said. "It really helps you to succeed, and it can lead to great opportunities like this."
Medical school has been a lifelong dream for Dortch, and he is on the pre-med track, while also earning a minor in chemistry. He serves as treasurer of the pre-med club, MERPMED, and he is also participating in a Mercer internship program this semester in which he will be able to shadow residents at the Mercer School of Medicine as they go on rounds and work in the classroom. This summer, Dortch volunteered at Coliseum Hospital in Macon, and the experience has kept him excited about the prospect of medical school.
"The more I see, the more excited I get," Dortch said. "I'm not sure what field I want to go into, I change my mind just about every week, so I'm just going to keep an open mind. Every field has its good points."
The Tallahassee, Fla., resident is succeeding in sports as well. A former walk-on, Dortch became the starting right-fielder for the Mercer Bears as a sophomore and hopes to continue his success this year. The experience of being a student athlete has really helped him, and being able to do so many things has made his Mercer experience a good one.
"Mercer has given me the opportunity to do all the things I'd hope for," Dortch said. "At a different school, I might not have gotten do all these things. I would have been a small fish in a big pond. But at Mercer, the atmosphere just really helps you get involved."
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