Maureen Peters

  • Professor of Biology
  • Premedical Program Director

Areas of Study

Offices

Education

  • BA, Washington University, 1992
  • PhD, Harvard University, 2002

Biography

Professor Peters received a Bachelors of Arts in biology at Washington University in St. Louis. For the next three years, she worked as a research technician at Rutgers University and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in the laboratories of Frederick Kaufman and William Agnew, respectively.

She obtained a PhD in genetics at Harvard University in 2002. Her thesis lab was that of Constance L. Cepko, PhD. Her work focused on development of the neural retina, specifically the transcription factors and secreted factors that determine the positional identity of the progenitor cells. For her postdoctoral training, Peters joined the lab of Erik M. Jorgensen, PhD, at the University of Utah. Here she studied the molecules controlling the one minute digestive motor program of C. elegans.

In 2005, she joined the faculty of the Department of Biology at Oberlin College, where she continues to study the digestive program of C. elegans using molecular genetics approaches. She is assisted by undergraduate researchers in her research lab and the teaching labs.

Fall 2023

The Biology of Cancer — BIOL 951
The History of Medicine: Germs, Sex, and the Brain — BIOL 952A
The History of Medicine: Germs, Sex, and the Brain — BIOL 952B

Notes

Maureen Peters Presents with Students

April 14, 2014

Several fourth-year biology students attended the Ohio Physiology Society Annual Meeting at the Northeast Ohio Medical University this Fall with Associate Professor of Biology Maureen Peters. These included members of her lab, Nelson (Trip) Freeburg, Phoebe Hammer, Sam McCright and a member of Associate Professor of Biology Taylor Allen's lab, Helen Rich. The students presented posters describing their respective research projects, while Peters presented a talk entitled "As the Worm Turns: Understanding How an Intestinal Calcium Wave Elicits a Motor Program." Several students received recognition for their work. Phoebe Hammer '14 was awarded a Poster Presentation Prize. Nelson (Trip) Freeburg and Sam McCright both won the Peter K. Lauf Travel award to fund expenses associated with attending the Experimental Biology annual meeting in San Diego, CA in the spring.

News

Local Partnership Provides Hands-on Experience for Students Interested in Healthcare

May 11, 2022

Oberlin College’s Pre-Medicine and Health Careers Program has entered into a partnership with Welcome Nursing Home, a long-term care facility with nearly 100 residents located just a few minutes from campus. The partnership will provide students interested in a career in healthcare with an opportunity to gain clinical knowledge and grow their interpersonal skills.

2022 Winter Term Recap

March 11, 2022

More than 2,290 students explored projects and research opportunities outside of their normal course of study during Winter Term. In this wrap-up gallery we look back at some of the group projects students performed.

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