Research and Creative Activities ‘mind blowing’
The day has always showcased the best of the downtown Denver campus, and this year’s Research and Creative Activities Symposium was better than ever. With 80 exhibits on display in North Classroom and more than 104 students on hand to explain their work and answer questions, the ninth annual event more than doubled last year’s participation.
“The Symposium is an important event for students and for the University,” stresses Lissa Gallagher, committee chair and director of the Career Center. “As a Research-1 university (Carnegie classification), it is imperative that we give our students an opportunity to showcase their scholarly work. Here we see first-hand the high quality student research and creative activity that goes on at our campus. And students gain so much from the experience; they grow intellectually and professionally. You can see the self-confidence building in students as they articulate their research projects to others.”
Spanning the breadth of the consolidated university, exhibits included factors affecting child care insurance, West Nile virus education campaigns, diversity training curricula in local churches and “Growing up Girl.”
As students busied themselves setting up their displays for the day, Anne-Barrie Hunter, associate professor of the Ethnography & Evaluation Research Center at CU-Boulder talked about the benefits of undergraduate research experiences in the sciences.
"Student observations include personal, professional gains, especially in confidence, the ability to think and work as a scientist, skills and career clarification,” Hunter explained, adding that faculty noted similar increases among the students who are interested in“becoming a scientist.”
While more than a hundred scientist-students stood by posters detailing their accomplishments, several hundred viewers passed through the North Classroom Atrium, asking questions, nibbling cookies and sandwiches and expressing awe at the breadth of research projects.
Christine Olyer, winner of the Outstanding Entrepreneurial Activity for her project “Diversity Training Curriculum in the Local Church,” was impressed not only with the interest in her own project, but her interest in others. “The scope of information that was presented blew my mind—I didn’t expect to see such a wide variety of topics and in-depth research,” notes the communications major. “I also gained insight about how to improve my own research and presentations.”
Rosemary Bogart, a graduate student in the School of Education and Human Development presented “Switch Access for Students with Severe Disabilities.” She said fellow presenters were “inspirational” and noted Sen. Gary Hart’s talk on globalization and the importance of higher education was most memorable. “I was greatly impressed.”
The symposium was sponsored by the Chancellor’s Office, the Office of the Provost, the Division of Enrollment and Student Engagement, the Center for Faculty Development, Student Government and the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and the Graduate School.
The committee has already begun plans for the 2007 Symposium. “We hope to attract more of the Denver Metro community next year.” Gallagher said. “We have a story to tell about the quality of education offered at UCDHSC, and what better way to tell it than by the students themselves.”
Here are the winners of this year’s Research and Creative Activities Symposium:
Faculty Award for Outstanding Student Mentoring: Jake York, English, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence ($200): Outstanding Undergraduate Research: Bruce Hines, Kenneth W. Anderson, Physics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: SQUID Susceptometry between 4 K and 250 mK in a Helium-3 Cryostat
Outstanding Graduate Research: Uddhab Bhandary, Design and Planning, College of Architecture and Planning, Vulnerability to Natural hazards: Study of Wildfire Burned Subdivisions in the Wild-Land-Urban Interface in the Western United States Using IKONOS Imagery and High Resolution GIS Data
Outstanding Undergraduate Creative Activity: Janiece Hockaday, Music Industry Studies, College of Arts and Media, CAM Records
Outstanding Graduate Creative Activity: André Almeida, Public Affairs, Graduate School of Public Affairs; Less than a Drop in the Ocean
Outstanding Entrepreneurial Activity: Christine Olyer, Communication, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Diversity Training Curriculum in the Local Church
Outstanding Research and Creative Activities Awards ($250)
(These students presented their research at the general session.)
Helen Beaty, Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Factors Affecting Child Health Insurance in Single-Parent Families: Does Child Support Matter?
Cory Zoetewey, Biology, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Arabidopsis Thaliana Response to Tobacco Rattle Virus
Illène Pevec, Debra Flanders, Uddhab Bhandary, Design & Planning, College of Architecture & Planning, Children’s Guide to Active Living: Participatory Action Research
Melanie Holzheuer-Guinan, Sociology, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: A Comparison of Successful and Unsuccessful Adoption Seekers Based on a National Sample