People

The lab is directed by Jennifer Osterhage. Dr. Osterhage is an alum of the University of Kentucky, earning her BS in Biology from the university in 2002. Dr. Osterhage received her Ph.D in Biology from Vanderbilt University in 2007. Although originally trained as a molecular biologist, her current research interests are in biology education. She has taught Introductory Biology I at the University of Kentucky to over 6000 students over the past ten years. Over that time, she became interested in the metacognitive practices that students engage in as they learn biology concepts. She is interested in studying and promoting metacognitive development and effective learning strategies in introductory biology courses. She is also interested in understanding and promoting student motivation in these contexts. 

Hannah joined the BLAM lab in August 2025 as a PhD student. She received her bachelor's degree in Conservation Biology from Lincoln Memorial University in 2023 and her master’s degree in Entomology from the University of Kentucky in 2025. Hannah’s research experience spans across several areas within the broader field of biology, including ecology, microbiology, parasitology, and applied entomology.

During her time at UK, Hannah has also completed the Graduate Certificate in College Teaching and Learning program, which solidified her passion for fostering learning at the collegiate level. She looks forward to exploring motivation and learning within higher education biology courses while at the BLAM lab.

Irene joined the BLAM lab as a Ph.D. candidate in August 2024.  She completed her honors degree at the University of Agriculture, Makurdi, in Benue State, Nigeria, earning a BSc/Ed in Biology. She furthered her education with a Master’s in Science Education, concentrating on Biology. Irene has research experience in several areas, including collaborative instructional strategies in teaching Ecology, pollution monitoring and climate change, resource availability and utilization in teaching biology, and women’s participation in STEM education in Nigeria.

She is passionate about helping students develop their metacognitive skills and is currently dedicated to understanding what motivates students to engage with introductory biology courses, including molecular biology, ecology, and evolutionary biology.

Zack joined the lab as biology master's student in August 2025, received bachelor's degree in science with double major of Biology and Philosophy in 2024 from Georgetown College, held philanthropy chair position of fraternity of Lambda Chi Alpha chapter at GC, rudimentary research experience in several subdisciplines of biology including, evolution, ecology, geology, and microbiology, thesis in undergrad in conservation biology, TA of BIO155, BIO208, and BIO101, looking forward to investigating how to better cultivate the education of the foundational concepts in biology and the extrinsic motivations that initiate interest in biology in prospective students, passionate about assisting students in growing in their knowledge about the natural world, animals, and aspects of existence, further interested in growing research experience and applying to PhD programs. 

Leila is a junior majoring in Biology. She hopes to learn more about educational research methods. She is currently developing Scientist Spotlights for faculty and students in the Biology department. She has been part of the lab since her freshman year. 

Dylan Street is a senior majoring in Human Health Sciences on the Pre-Med Track who was recently accepted into medical school. He is interested in developing engaging activities for students in BIO 148 from data collected in Dr. Lennin's lab relating to evolution and fitness. He is involved in Alpha Lamda Delta and Healthcare Cats and is also a Chemistry tutor in both General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry. Dylan hopes to gain valuable skills from his research lab to implement into his future career as a physician. 

Trevin is a senior majoring in Biology on the Pre-Med track. He is involved with the Singletary Scholars and UKMED. He hopes to use the skills and knowledge gained from conducting research and apply it to his goals of becoming a physician. In his research, Trevin will be exploring how data collected from Dr. Lennin's lab can be used to develop activities for BIO 148 students to strengthen their understanding of fitness and evolution. 

Muhil is a junior majoring in Biology with a minor in Psychology and Neuroscience. She is interested in educational research and is working on the Scientist Spotlights for the Biology department. She hopes to gain valuable skills from conducting research that she can apply to her future career as a physician. She is also the Supplemental Instruction leader for Introductory Psychology. 

Chloe is a junior majoring in Pre-Medical Laboratory Sciences on the Pre-Med track. She is a Peer Mentor for the Interprofessional Healthcare Residential College, Director of Mentorship for HealthCare Cats, Diversity and Healthcare Program Mentor, and a Chellgren Fellow. In the lab, she will assess the development of the metacognitive skills, study skills, and belonging of students in a newly implemented BIO 101 course. Chloe hopes to gain valuable skills and knowledge from conducting research to implement into her future career as a physician and to help future Biology courses here at UK! 

Shea earned her Ph.D in May 2024. She has a background in physiology with a broad interest in cardiovascular and renal physiology. In the BLAM lab, Shea was interested in examining student misconceptions of integrative physiology and developing teaching tools to address these misconceptions. Shea has accepted a tenure-track position at Centre College. 

Mary earned her Ph.D in August 2024. She was a member of the Weisrock lab. As part of the Weisrock lab, Mary examined the health of fresh water mussel species in Kentucky using genetic methods. In the BLAM lab, she investigated the motivation of first-year and upper-level students in introductory biology. Her interests include: conservation, evolution, education, and making cookies for the lab.

Hunter Roadhouse is a junior majoring in Chemistry with a minor in Biology on the pre-dental track. He is interested in how students prepare for and approach open-ended questions in Chemistry. In the BLAM lab, Hunter is focusing on developing a tool to assist students in studying Organic Chemistry. He has experience in tutoring and plans to share his knowledge to better the oral health crisis in Kentucky after dental school.

Brenna graduated from UK in May 2024 in Biology with a minor in History. She was involved in Delight Ministries and ASLDCC(American Sign Language and Deaf Culture Club) on campus, in addition to being a member of Kappa Beta Gamma, a sorority on campus. She has tutored in the Biology Learning Center and that is what really got her interested in working with this lab. In the BLAM lab, her research helped better understand the financial challenges associated with being a STEM major. 

Annie is a recent graduate of UK with a Biology major and a minor in Russian language and Im interested in learning about how students study/learn. And I plan to continue studying in a graduate program in the medical field after I graduate. 

Avani Patel is a senior majoring in Human Health Sciences with a minor in Business. She is a member of the Lewis Honors College and is on the pre-dental track. In addition, she is currently a student program coordinator at PresentationU which is UK’s tutoring center for communication. She is interested in seeing how effective communication through the use of drawings and images can impact a patient-provider relationship.

Max is a visiting undergraduate student at the University of Kentucky and a Chemistry major at Bard College in NY. He is passionate about mastering chemical concepts and believes in the importance of a well-educated next generation in STEM. He is determined, through research and teaching, to uplift this generation by studying students' learning styles and educational challenges so he can one day meet a diverse body of students' needs in the classroom.

Sai Yalla is a senior majoring in Biology and Mathematical Sciences. She is involved in the Phi Sigma Rho Sorority, Medicats, Indian Student Association, and is an Undergraduate Research Ambassador. She hopes to use the skills and knowledge gained conducting research towards her future as a physician scientist. In the lab, she will be working on understanding financial concerns and obstacles that STEM students face.

Reagan Rose is a junior at the University of Kentucky, majoring in Biology and she is on the pre-pharmacy track. She is a certified pharmacy technician at a retail pharmacy. Recently with the COVID-19 pandemic, she has been trained and certified to give patients shots, along with this training she learned CPR and basic first aid skills.  

Laura Hoskins is a junior majoring in Neuroscience and Psychology with a minor in Criminology. She is the president of the Cover to Cover book club and involved in Neurocats. She wants to understand how people process information given to them, and how the brain connects them to certain things.. 

Courtney recently graduated from UK and is now pursuing her Ph.D in the biology department. In the lab, Courntey studied how positive communication affects how people learn and interact with their mentors.

Hope is a senior majoring in Human Health Sciences on the Pre- PA track. She is involved PA clubs, women’s clubs, peer mentoring and is a member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority. As a member of the lab, she hopes to learn lots of information that will help her and other students to learn and study for classes better! 

Olivia recently earned her Ph.D. from the Department of Physiology researching spinal cord injury.  She first started teaching the experiential credit within her service program to overcome her fear of public speaking and ended up finding her passion!  She is interested in learning the best ways to engage large classes in topics that can be overwhelming to students.

 Shannon is a senior majoring in Biology and Psychology on the Pre-Med track. She currently works as a Student Program Coordinator for The Study and is interested in studying metacognition in first-year biology students through the development of a BIO 101 course. 

Utku Caybas was a doctoral student in Educational Psychology at UK from 2021-2022. He is now a doctoral student at Michigan State University.  He graduated from Istanbul University with a BA in Psychological Counseling and Guidance with a double major in Teaching Gifted Children in 2018. Afterward, he completed his master’s studies in Curriculum & Instruction at Middle East Technical University in 2021. In the last year of his master’s, he worked as an instructional designer at a private middle school in Turkey. He is interested in how peer relationships influence students’ motivation. Email: caybasiz@msu.edu

My name is Aakanksha Konduri, and I am currently a sophomore on the Public Health on the Pre-Med track. I plan to use what I learned in lab to help further understand and interpret diagrams for my future as a Cardiothoracic Surgeon!  

Erin is a senior majoring in Biology on the Pre-Medical track. She is involved in Undergraduate Research Ambassadors, Take-a-Tampon, and KESEM at UKY. In addition, she is a certified Nursing Care Technician at UKY Hospital. She is interested in how biology students are best able to learn and retain information taught in class.