WELCOME TO THE APPALACHIAN OHIO
TICK PROJECT
This project builds upon earlier work done by students and teachers at New Philadelphia High School to examine ecological factors driving blacklegged tick abundance, Borrelia burgdorferi prevalence, and the rapid increase in diagnosed Lyme Disease cases in our region.
One of the outcomes of our initial project was the development of a core set of techniques that empower high school students and teachers to apply methods of field ecology and molecular biology to answer important questions about the ecology of Lyme Disease, while also meeting a suite of academic content standards in biology and environmental science courses.
This next phase of the project seeks to expand the geographic scale of our research and foster collaboration among high schools across the Appalachian Region of Ohio.
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Ticks are parasitic arachnids that feed on the blood of vertebrate animals, and so are important agents in the spread of a variety of diseases between wildlife and humans. The geographic ranges of many tick species have been expanding rapidly, and, along with them, the diseases they transmit. As as result, ticks are the most important vector of zoonotic infections in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere.
The primary goal of this project is to engage students from high schools across the Appalachian region of Ohio in a collaborative research experience that examines ecological factors regulating blacklegged tick population densities and Borrelia burgdorferi prevalence rates within these ticks.
2026-2027 School Year
Currently, 11 high schools across 9 southeastern Ohio counties are participating in the Appalachian Ohio Tick Project (AOTP). Click on the pins within the map to learn more about these schools. For the 2026-2027 school year, we hope to continue our collaboration among these schools and possibly add a few new schools to the AOTP. If you are a teacher interested in learning more about the project, please contact us.
“What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?”