The Cicada-geddon is Coming!

They’re alive! Millions of cicadas will emerge from the ground in the midwestern and southeastern US from late April to early June. These cicadas are members of Brood XIX (13 year periodical cicadas) and Brood XIII (17 year periodical cicadas). Brood XIX includes four species of cicadas: Magicicada neotredecim, Magicicada tredicim, Magicicada tredecassini, and Magicicada tredecula. Isn’t that magical!  This cicada-geddon, coined by John Cooley, only happens every 221 years. The last time these two broods emerged together was when Thomas Jefferson was president!

Cicadas are true bugs (heteropteran), meaning they have two pairs of wings and a straw like mouthpart for sipping fluids from plants or animals. They are most known for their large eyes that are set wide apart, transparent wings and the distinctive loud song males make. Periodical cicadas spend most of their lifecycle underground as nymphs and emerge to become adults. Scientists have hypothesized that periodical cicadas spend so much time underground to avoid being eaten. When multiple cicadas emerge simultaneously, it’s hard for predators to get all of them. Survival in numbers!

Once these cicadas emerge, they shed their old exoskeleton, and males begin chorusing to find a mate. They do this by vibrating a noise-producing organ on their abdomen called a tymbal. Many people associate this sound with summer. Once they mate, the female cicada lays her eggs on a tree. After the eggs hatch, the new nymphs travel underground, and the cycle continues!

Emerging cicadas pose no threat to agriculture. They mainly feed on juices and sap from trees; mature, healthy trees are not seriously affected. Cicadas actually provide a huge benefit to the ecosystem. They aerate the soil while underground, enrich it when they die, and are a food source for birds and other larger animals.

While we won’t see any Brood XIX or Brood XIII members in Colorado, we can still appreciate this once-in-a-lifetime natural event!

Written by Celena Romero

Trees for Pollinators!

By Amy Yarger, Senior Director of Horticulture

When we think of gardens that support pollinators such as butterflies and bees, we often think of flower beds and sunny meadows. However, with over a thousand species of bees in Colorado and the countless flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, and wasps that pollinate plants, habitat can be as diverse as these important insects are. Pollinators not only move pollen from one flower to another but have other interactions with plants in their environment. Some pollinators are leaf chewers during their larval stage or spend part of their life cycle nesting inside plants. Others are predators or parasites of plant-eating bugs. And most insects use plants or plant material for shelter, whether that is pupating under leaf litter or roosting on a protected branch. For that reason, plantings for pollinators should feature a diverse selection of native plants, including woody plants such as trees and shrubs.

If you are considering planting a tree in your landscape, this is the time of year to do it; the temperatures are mild, and moisture is readily available. Here are a few recommendations for trees that have special relationships with local pollinators.

Prunus virginiana and Prunus americana – Chokecherry and American plum – These early spring bloomers provide festoons of pale fragrant blossoms which feed many bees, butterflies, and flies, but they also are hosts for swallowtail butterflies and the magnificent Weidemeyer’s admiral (Limenitis weidemeyerii).

Amelanchier alnifolia – Saskatoon serviceberry – This small tree is also an early spring bloomer and larval host for swallowtail butterflies. Their berries are also great food for birds.

Gleditsia triacanthos inermis – Thornless honeylocust – Honeylocusts and other related trees provide larval food for the silver spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus) and thrive in our climate extremes and heavy soil.

Quercus spp. – Oaks – Oaks have been celebrated for the hundreds of caterpillar species they feed, especially in other parts of the country, but they also are a key habitat tree here for the shelter they provide. A special tree shout-out goes to our native shrubby Quercus gambelii, or Gambel’s oak, which is the host for our state butterfly, the gorgeous Colorado hairstreak (Hypaurotis crysalus)

Celtis occidentalis – Hackberry – This species is another tough tree for our prairie climate, provides berries for birds, and also hosts for the American snout (Libytheana carinenta), mourning cloak (Nymphalis antiopa), and the question mark (Polygonia interrogationis). This tree species doesn’t look like much when small, but they mature into stately shade trees.

Some of the other key woody plants for pollinators, such as cottonwoods and willows, are harder to manage in smaller home landscapes, but we can advocate for them in natural areas where they provide resources for many kinds of wildlife, including pollinators. Butterflies such as the beautiful mourning cloak feed on cottonwood leaves as caterpillars, while many bees rely on the pollen of willows early in the spring.

Trees provide so many benefits to our landscape – they provide shade and shelter, cool our urban areas, feed people and wildlife, and even provide recreation if you are a climber. It’s nice to know that we can enjoy both pollinator habitat and trees to make our landscapes better for people and other living things.

What You Should Plant This Spring 

Written By Amy Yarger, Senior Director of Horticulture, Butterfly Pavilion In many parts of the country, April can be an unpredictable month. One day, the tulips are blooming, and the birds are singing, but the next day could be a soggy, chilly mess. Experienced gardeners know how to proceed with caution during this time of year. On the other hand, spring often brings a welcome dose of moisture, which helps new plants to establish and thrive. April is also known as Earth Month, so it is a wonderful time to make a commitment to make your garden better for the planet and its inhabitants, including invertebrates. Invertebrates, animals without backbones, make up 97% of animal species and contribute significantly to every ecosystem on Earth, and yet they are understudied and often feared. One key group of invertebrates are pollinators, insects that carry pollen, facilitating plant reproduction. Our food security and ecosystem health rides on the back of these bees, flies, beetles, butterflies, and other creatures. One of the most impactful things you can do in your garden is make it friendlier for pollinators by choosing a variety of native plants and avoiding pesticides. Native shrubs and perennials can weather the uncertainties of spring, so gardeners can start planting them as the night-time temperatures warm in late April. Native plants not only are adapted to our local conditions, but they also have long-standing relationships with local pollinators and other wildlife. Butterflies require specific plant species to lay eggs and feed caterpillars. Some notable examples are asters for painted ladies or violets and stonecrop for fritillaries. There are native bees that forage from a narrow selection of plants for their pollen, so plants such as sunflowers and rabbitbrush are key to support those species.  And then there are the wild and naturalistic plantings that support the full life cycles of beetles, flies, and other insect pollinators. An ideal pollinator habitat garden will include native plants with different flower shapes and colors, blooming at different times of year. Diversity is the gardener’s friend – landscapes with many kinds of native plants are less likely to be overtaken by pests and disease, while also supporting many kinds of pollinators and other beneficial invertebrates. Some examples of native plants that are great for sunny pollinator gardens in the western United States include dwarf rabbitbrush (Ericameria nauseosa nauseosa), sunset hyssop (Agastache rupestris), swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), and narrow-leaf coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia). If you have part shade, species such as Wood’s rose (Rosa woodsii), golden currant (Ribes aureum), and golden columbine (Aquilegia chrysantha) are great choices. These native plants usually require less maintenance, especially when factored over their life. Since these species have adapted to our local soils, they don’t require regular fertilization. They also use much less water compared to conventional landscaping.  Spring snow and rain can help a lot to get these plants established – just be sure to set aside time (and a little of your water budget) to continue regular, deep watering through the first summer and early fall. These plants, once they are thriving, will yield substantial dividends – providing habitat for pollinators and birds, sequestering carbon, while saving water and other resources.  A little preparation this spring can lead to a vibrant and successful landscape later in the coming months and years. Habitat gardeners, whether they have an enormous native plant garden or a few containers with wildflowers, are stewards supporting our most important resource – biodiversity. Who knew that a little digging could have such an enormous impact on our environment and ourselves?  Butterfly Pavilion has resources and upcoming programs about gardening just for you! Pollinator gardening resources here: https://butterflies.org/pollinator-resources/  April 21: Pollinator Gardening Bootcamp workshop: Pollinator Garden Design https://butterflies.org/event/pollinator-garden-bootcamp/  April 28: Expert lecture: “Get Ready, Get Set, Garden” https://butterflies.org/expert-lecture-get-ready-get-set-garden/ 

Jump into Conservation: A Q&A with Rich Reading, Ph.D. Vice President of Science and Conservation

Q: Butterfly Pavilion engages in a lot of work globally to protect, sustain, and grow varying ecosystems. Can you describe some of these global projects? 

A:

For starters, we engage in a large variety of projects around the world such as our Bees for Elephants project in Tanzania, we build bee fences to mitigate human-elephants conflict which happens when elephants raid communities, destroying farms and homes. Elephants are very smart, but they are afraid of bees, so when they hit the wires connecting hives that form a fence, the bees come out of their hives and sting elephants in sensitive areas like their trunks, eyes and ears. Elephants will run away from even just the sound of bees. We train farmers and community members on how to build bee fences, how to keep the bees and how to sell honey, giving them an additional source of income. We also do work in Sumatra, Indonesia where we have a butterfly farm. We will be able to supply many of our own butterflies to Butterfly Pavilion, including endangered Birdwings, as well as sell them to other butterfly houses. The money we generate goes into not only supporting local people but goes to supporting the conservation of the ecosystem that they inhabit. So, it’s not only helping butterfly populations but also helping support rhino, elephant, and tiger conservation too. 

Q: What are some local or national projects in which Butterfly Pavilion is involved

A: Domestically, we have a project where we’re trying to head start both firefly and dragonfly species that are in trouble. There are very few populations of fireflies left in Colorado, in fact most people don’t even know that we have them here through the management of these creatures under human care, we’ve endeavored to breed and nurture them until adulthood. This is what we call head starting them. In doing so, we’re able to help populations through the really crucial early stages where mortality rates are very high, and get them to a later stage in life, when they have a higher chance of survivorship. 

We’re also working with the Colorado Department of Transportation to help tarantulas during mating season. Currently, our focus lies in determining the optimal locations for tarantula underpasses, since during the fall season, male tarantulas venture out in search of females and often traverse busy roads in the process. This is obviously a risk because they can get run over so we’re trying to set up what we call drift fences, where an animal hits the fence and then goes along it until it reaches an underpass. Then hopefully, native tarantulas will have a way to safely find mates in the area.  We like to call it creating tunnels of love!  

Q: What can people be doing locally to support these projects and sustainability efforts?

A:

There are numerous ways individuals can support invertebrates and Butterfly Pavilion. One avenue is through participation in our community science initiatives such as the Urban Prairies Project and the Colorado Butterfly Monitoring Network. These projects engage community scientists—local individuals eager to contribute by either assisting in habitat restoration efforts or conducting butterfly counts. Additionally, individuals can contribute by making donations to our various projects.  

The nice thing about invertebrates is that they live everywhere. So, you can plant habitats for pollinators in your own yard or planter at home. If you lack a yard, consider engaging in community gardening initiatives. By establishing pollinator habitats throughout urban areas, you can foster connectivity crucial for the survival and thriving of pollinators.. I’ve done that in my own yard where I’ve replaced all my bluegrass with native grasses and pollinator plants and floral arrays of things. 

Q: What advice do you have for others who aren’t interested in conservation efforts or feel that they can’t make a difference?

A:

I think there’s hope in the invertebrate and conservation world. In urban and suburban areas with more or less a biological desert, replacing Kentucky bluegrass and similar grasses with native grasses and flowers really does help pollinators do better. I think there’s been an increase in the number of people who really want to do that, and I think it’s changing the landscape. It’s going to save water which we need to do in the Front Range and basically anywhere. Water is life, of course, so doing what’s going to save water is going to help in some capacity. It’s going to create a pollinator habitat, and I think that’s what’s happening and we’re seeing more and more of this occurring. So I think there is hope. I think we’re seeing the newer generation have a renewed commitment to conservation that was maybe a little lost for a while considering Earth Day was first created in the 70s. After a while, it’s resurging, and I think climate change has a lot to do with that. We have to get on top of it now because we’re already seeing the impacts of climate change. 

Thanks to our following partners and sponsors for supporting many of these projects: National Environmental Education Foundation, Wildlife Protection Solutions, Tanzanian Elephant Fund, PT Sama Seudati Lestari (SSL), Katie Adamson Conservation Fund  

At Butterfly Pavilion, we believe in conserving, protecting and educating the public about invertebrates from habitats around the globe. The reason we do this is because many of these animals are often forgotten.

They tend to be small, hide in dark places and may trigger a fear in many people. The truth is invertebrates make up 97% of the animal life on earth, with 1.2 million described species. Invertebrates are the foundation of countless food chains, control pests, pollinate our food, have vast research implications and are eaten by humans around the world.

In order to protect these important animals, Butterfly Pavilion participates in the Safety Web for Arthropod Reproduction and Management (SWARM). This program focuses on keeping vulnerable arthropods (invertebrates like insects, spiders and crustaceans) in zoo collections by breeding and refraining from wild collection. SWARM is a program sanctioned by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Terrestrial Invertebrate Taxon Advisory Group (TITAG). If you have ever been to Butterfly Pavilion, you have probably had an up close experience with one of our most important ambassador animals: Rosie the tarantula and she is the focus of the SWARM that Butterfly Pavilion holds. Our large collection of Rosie tarantulas (also called the Chilean Rose Hair, Grammostola rosea) allows us to communicate with other zoos about breeding, husbandry, welfare and conservation of this important species.

Chilean Rose Hair tarantulas are native to the edges of the Atacama Desert in Chile, which is the driest desert on earth. In their natural habitat, female Rosie tarantulas stay in their burrows and wait for an unsuspecting insect to walk by. These tarantulas may make their own burrow, or take a premade or naturally occurring space as their home. Males are much more active than females, as they wander around to find suitable mating partners. Once mated, a female tarantula produces a large egg sac made of silk which can hold hundreds of young. Males can live 5-10 years and female can live 20-25 years! It is because of this lifespan, that we can use tarantulas as an indicator species; they are sensitive to potentially massive changes in their environment and may not live to sexual maturity based on these changes.

Butterfly Pavilion believes that an up close interaction with animals such as Rosie can provide an invaluable experience to all of our guests, which helps them understand more about the importance of invertebrates to humans and the world at large. This is why we continue to work on keeping these magnificent animals in zoos and protect their habitats around the world.

Written by Sara Stevens, Director of Animal Collections at Butterfly Pavilion

Invertebrates in STEAM: Q&A with Sara Stevens, Director of Animal Collections at Butterfly Pavilion   

A: Invertebrates use engineering in a lot of different ways which are also utilized within architecture and engineering design by people. Some examples of this are honeycombs in a beehive. That honeycomb is designed to hold the honey that the bees use for food and resources. It’s also where they grow their larva that eventually pupate and turn into worker bees. This is all done by females within the hive.

A: The mantis shrimp is a really cool example of an animal that has evolved in such a way that they have become very beneficial to engineering due to the way their body works. When it comes to mantis shrimp, their eyes have 16 cones and are so uniquely developed that they’ve allowed researchers to develop a camera that can see cancer cells. The punch for the smashing mantis shrimp allows them to hit with the force of a 22-caliber bullet. Because of that, the recoil and design of their arms that can take this pressure, have researchers looking for ways to design better bulletproof armor and things of that nature. So, the mantis shrimp is a great example of how we can take something from nature and use it to benefit people.

A: Math helps my job in a variety of different ways. We use statistics a lot to help us make scientifically based decisions, not only for our scientific research and understanding if the data that we are collecting is significant or not, but also within our animal collections. So, we look at the longevity of our butterflies. For instance, using our Community Science Interactive within our Wings of the Tropics exhibit, called Butterfly Quest, our guests can report data to us of what our butterflies are doing. We’re then able to turn that into meaningful metrics for us to see how our butterflies are doing. Are we seeing good welfare? Are they living longer than we would have anticipated? We actually had one butterfly that had lived just under 11 months. Usually, we say on average an adult butterfly lives two to four weeks, so being able to have that data turned in, we can then take something that’s kind of qualitative and make it quantitative, which allows us to make good, informed decisions that we can then share with others.

A: A really cool use of technology related to invertebrate conservation is around the Florida Reef Tract Rescue project. This project is responsible for helping to preserve and protect Caribbean coral found in the Florida Reef Tract that was imperiled due to disease. Some really cool technology that’s being utilized for this project is helping to mimic the annual light and moon cycles and temperature cycles of the Caribbean. Using this technology, they’ve been able to spawn this coral in human care to help produce sexually unique offspring, which will be responsible for helping to replant and restore the Florida Reef tract. The coral we have at Butterfly Pavilion will go on to be parents of coral that will be planted there and the work they’ve been able to do to have these spawning events occur in human care would not have been possible without the really incredible controllers and technology that’s been developed.

A: A really cool relationship between invertebrates and art is the historic dye red dye made from cochineal. Cochineal is a scale like invertebrate that is found and was used in a lot of Mayan and Aztec cultures. Cochineal was used as this beautiful vibrant red dye, and to this day, is actually utilized in non-vegan red dye. That’s why it’s non vegan and the relationship of this invertebrate dye was so important because it was able to have a lot of cultural impacts across these very long spanning cultures. So, that’s a really unique way that invertebrate and art kind of came together.

After winter’s cold gloom, sunny days in early March can make us feel like spring is just a breath away. It’s hard not to want to start gardening after weeks of looking at bare trees and brown grass. But spring’s unpredictable weather can lead gardeners to premature exuberance, resulting in disappointment and regret under a foot of snow. Never fear, the horticulture team here at Butterfly Pavilion can help you survive these last few weeks before gardening season really starts.

Myth 1 – “Zero-scape” is the landscape of the future: Removing turf can be a great step for the environment, but landscape fabric covered by bare rock doesn’t help the planet much more. These landscapes still need maintenance while providing no food or shelter for pollinators and other wildlife. Without care, landscape fabric gets torn, weeds work their way through, and rocks get kicked away. But habitat gardens can significantly save water, provide beauty, and support our invertebrate neighbors. Our landscapes can be part of the solution instead of just another problem.  

Myth 2 – Cut everything down in fall and winter: Many of us were raised to believe that “cleanliness is next to godliness”, but tidy landscapes are bereft of the life we want to cultivate. The “fall cleanup” of perennial gardens is a common practice, leaving gardens bare through the season when animals are looking for shelter. For pollinators and other beneficial species to survive winter, gardeners should leave last year’s growth in garden beds at least until new growth greens up in mid to late spring, unless a plant is diseased or poses a hazard. If you have spots where you can leave the old growth for longer into the summer, do that! 

Myth 3 – To prep for your spring garden, till every year: The more we till the soil, the more we degrade the natural structure and encourage weed seed germination. We also disturb the habitat for some of our soil-dwelling beneficials; even pollinators such as some bees, moths, and beetles spend part of their lives as underground dwellers. If you’d like to amend your soil, try just top-dressing with about 2-3 inches of organic matter, which will foster the invertebrates and other living things that help to make the soil workable and easier to grow plants in. Sometimes it makes sense to till, but it’s not something you should do every year or in every situation.   

Myth 4 – Spring means emptying your wallet at the garden center: “Window shopping” at a nursery can be a dangerous game if you are trying to stay within a budget. Everything looks so colorful as you walk the aisles; how can you resist? But decisions made in haste seldom result in long-lasting gardens. For a landscape that is sustainable for our environment, as well as our pocketbooks, it’s best to come prepared with a plan. Find out what does well with your soil, water, and light conditions. Phase your work over a longer time so you can take time to establish your new plant babies. And if you are short on money, but still want to grow some pollinator-friendly plants, species such as prairie coneflower, desert four o’clocks, and blue flax come up readily from seed.    

Myth 5 – Plant your annuals on Mother’s Day: The average last frost date for much of the Denver metro area is around May 15. However, the average means that sometimes it’s earlier and sometimes it’s much later. It’s disappointing when you come home with your beautiful annuals, only to lose them to a spring freeze days later. If you can hold off until Memorial Day, the chances of freezing your annuals decreases significantly. And it never hurts to watch the weather and have a backup plan, such as covering your plants, if winter re-asserts itself.   

Gardeners can do a lot to help reverse declines of pollinators and other wildlife, while saving resources and connecting with their communities. The myths discussed above are commonly held, but the truth is that you can save money, labor, and time by choosing native plants that thrive in your locale and support the animals that support our ecosystems and our livelihoods. While you don’t need to spend time tilling, planting or cutting things back right now, you can use this precious time to learn and prepare for a busy spring in the garden.  

Written by Amy Yarger, Horticulture Director

Butterfly Pavilion has resources and upcoming programs about gardening just for you! 

Pollinator gardening resources 

March 10: Pollinator Gardening Bootcamp workshop: Plants for Pollinators  

April 28: Expert lecture: “Get Ready, Get Set, Garden”   

Butterfly Pavilion and Colorado State University Announce Partnership to Battle “Invertebrate Apocalypse”

Westminster and Fort Collins, Colo., Feb. 27, 2024

– With habitat loss and climate change threatening invertebrates – animals without backbones who form the essential foundation for every ecosystem on the planet – Butterfly Pavilion and Colorado State University announced a formal agreement to create a partnership to benefit entomology, as well as human and ecosystem well-being.  The partnership will see Butterfly Pavilion work with three of CSU’s colleges: Agricultural Sciences, Natural Sciences, and the Warner College of Natural Resources to increase research, conservation and management of invertebrate species, engage and provide opportunities for aspiring biologists, ecologists, agriculturalists and conservationists working globally, and connect that work to the public, creating more awareness and support for invertebrates. “Butterfly Pavilion is delighted to be working collaboratively on this unprecedented partnership pairing an Association of Zoos & Aquariums-accredited invertebrate zoo with a respected academic research partner like CSU to help us find solutions to some of the most pressing research and conservation challenges facing us today,” Butterfly Pavilion CEO Patrick Tennyson said. “Working together, we can move invertebrate research, conservation and education to new heights.”  “CSU is proud to formalize this unique partnership with such an important research and cultural institution,” CSU President Amy Parsons said. “Butterfly Pavilion and CSU have long connected students for internship opportunities and engaged in collaborative research. This partnership will prepare the future workforce, enhance conservation efforts, and elevate our research abilities, which is more important than ever given the critical impact of invertebrates on the food web, agriculture and the environment.”  Invertebrates exist on every continent and in every ocean, making up 97 percent of all animal species. These tiny giants pollinate our crops, recycle waste and decompose dead material, build healthy soil, and improve water quality. They make nutrients available to plants, control pest populations and protect crops. Invertebrate pollinators are responsible for over $40 billion of agriculture production in Colorado, and a half trillion dollars globally. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), less than one percent of all known invertebrate species have been adequately evaluated. “Invertebrates are foundational to entire ecosystems and yet we’re experiencing a global biodiversity crisis brought on by an insect apocalypse,” said Richard P. Reading, Ph.D., Butterfly Pavilion’s vice president of research and conservation. “We don’t have a basic understanding of them, let alone how to conserve them. Through this partnership with CSU, we can have a real impact on invertebrate conservation by identifying and acknowledging them as social, economic and environmental resources.” Together, Butterfly Pavilion and CSU will improve the quantity and quality of conservation, management and research projects conducted by the partners. They will increase the educational opportunities for students at CSU through internships, jointly conducted research and conservation projects, and conservation education opportunities. The partnership will also create pathways and inspiration for K-12 students to achieve higher education through the colleges within CSU and increase the awareness of the collaborative research and educational work among the public, especially among Butterfly Pavilion guests and stakeholders.  “As a professor and researcher at CSU, I am very excited for this partnership. Butterfly Pavilion does great work and is an amazing venue where CSU entomologists can communicate their research to large audiences. It is also a fabulous place for our students to gain hands-on experience with live invertebrates through volunteering and paid internships. I look forward to working on initiatives that will strengthen both our entomology program at CSU and offerings at Butterfly Pavilion,” said Marek Borowiec, CSU assistant professor of Agricultural Biology.  “In this groundbreaking partnership between CSU and Butterfly Pavilion, we’re unlocking a world of boundless opportunities for both current and future students,” said Shartrina White, Butterfly Pavilion’s vice president of Education. “Together, we’re not merely pushing the boundaries of invertebrate research, conservation, and education – we’re igniting a spark of inspiration that will fuel future generations. By championing the often overlooked yet essential role of invertebrates, we’re empowering students to become pioneers in understanding and safeguarding these vital species, making a lasting impact on the world.” 

About Butterfly Pavilion

 Butterfly Pavilion has been part of the Colorado community since 1995 and is the first Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA)-accredited, stand-alone, non-profit invertebrate zoo in the world, currently occupying a 34,000-square foot facility situated on an 11-acre campus provided by the City of Westminster, Colorado. Butterfly Pavilion’s mission is to foster an appreciation of invertebrates by educating the public about the need to protect and care for threatened habitats globally, while conducting research for solutions in invertebrate conservation.  

About CSU Research

 Colorado State University, a Carnegie R1 institution, reached $498.1 million in sponsored project expenditures in 2023, representing a 62% funding increase in the last decade and expanded impact and discovery across all eight colleges. With more than 100 research centers and institutes, the university is breaking barriers and collaborating to solve society’s greatest challenges. 

Written by Russ Pecoraro

Media Contact: Jennifer Quermann