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Contacts:
Carol Fassbinder, Zoology, (515) 572-5764
Joel Coats, Entomology, (515) 294-4776
Megan Kuhn, Agriculture Information, (515) 294-2957
ISU FRESHMAN RESEARCHER BUSY AS A BEE ON A HONEY OF A PROJECT
AMES, Iowa -- Many college students become involved in research projects after they arrive on campus. Carol Fassbinder brought hers with her.
Fassbinder, an 18-year-old freshman at Iowa State University, is majoring in zoology and is conducting research on honey bees in the entomology department as part of her honors mentoring program.
Her interest in honey bees comes naturally. Her family owns and operates Fassbinder Apiaries in Elgin, Iowa. Her father, Robert, has been a professional beekeeper for 25 years.
Fassbinder has been researching various problems related to her family's bee colonies since she was in seventh grade. She has focused on finding new ways to control mites that infect honey bee colonies. The mites pose a serious threat to honey production and pollination success throughout the country. The mites have become resistant to the main chemical control available, so Fassbinder is looking for natural compounds that can control mites.
That was how her connection to ISU started. When Fassbinder was a high school junior, she contacted Joel Coats, entomology professor, for advice on a science fair project. He helped her identify natural compounds to test. Coats has been working with her ever since.
Fassbinder, Coats and an ISU graduate student, have a patent pending on a promising compound from lavender and the perilla plant, both members of the mint family. "One company is interested and it is doing its own on the compound," Fassbinder says.
Fassbinder has presented her research results in several national and international science fairs, including ones in Washington D.C., London and Japan. She will compete in a worldwide competition in Hanover, Germany, in October.
"The competitions have taught me that you don't have to be a genius to succeed," Fassbinder says. "The judges are more interested in how your mind works and how you solve problems."
Fassbinder doesn't spend all her time on her research. In addition to a full class schedule, she is also active in the Agriculture Council, Entomology Club, President's Leadership Class and the Freshman Honors Program.
"Carol's enthusiasm and drive are amazing to me," says Coats, who now heads the entomology department. "She is a complete person -- a team player and an intelligent person. That is a fantastic combination."
Fassbinder isn't resting on her laurels. She's busy testing new compounds using four honey bee colonies her father donated to the ISU entomology department.
"My research has helped me learn some lessons in life," Fassbinder says. "Things don't always work out they way we think they should. I've done months of work that have amounted to no results, but I have learned to be stubborn and push on."
Fassbinder also feels a responsibility to the industry she grew up around. She gives annual updates on her research to the state beekeeping associations in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
"Many beekeepers are giving up because mites are destroying their colonies," says Fassbinder. "I feel a duty to them, to the industry and to my parents to find a control."
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