Students win Outstanding Presentation Awards at Undergraduate Research Symposium
LAWRENCE — More than 800 students, faculty, staff, and guests attended KU’s 22nd annual Undergraduate Research Symposium on April 27 to hear student presenters share the results of their research and creative projects. The event took place in the Kansas Union and the Commons, where over 300 students from across campus presented their projects.
“We were impressed by the number of students who chose to share their research and creative endeavors with the campus and community at the Undergraduate Research Symposium this year, as well as the quality of the work they were presenting,” said Alison Olcott, director of the Center for Undergraduate Research and associate professor of geology.
Student presenters prepared for the symposium by attending workshops with staff from the Center for Undergraduate Research and working closely with their research mentors to refine their oral presentations, poster presentations and artist’s talks. KU’s Undergraduate Research Symposium is sponsored by the Center for Undergraduate Research and the KU Office of Research.
Outstanding Presentation Awards
Volunteer judges selected 36 presentations to receive Outstanding Presentation Awards, listed below. Award recipients were recognized at the Symposium Banquet and received a $50 award.
The 2019 Outstanding Presentation Award winners are listed by name, project title, and mentor:
Elizabeth Aikman, “Optimizing Primary Amine Substitution for Gel-Norbornene,” mentored by Jennifer Robinson, assistant of professor of chemical & petroleum engineering
Kayleigh Anderson, “Breaking the Cycle: American Culture, Environmental Problems, and the Societal Construct of Menstruation,” mentored by Ivery Goldstein, visiting instructor of women, gender & sexuality studies
Sara Carlsen, “Parents as Participants: Social Media Use Through a Dual Lens,” mentored by Germaine Halegoua, associate professor of film & media studies
Cienna Cashman, The Lived Experiences of Anti-Fat Prejudice, mentored by Ivery Goldstein, visiting instructor of women, gender & sexuality studies
Adrienne Cox, “The Qipao: How a Manchu Dress Became Chinese,” mentored by Megan Greene, associate professor of history
Julia Davis, “Quality of Life Parameters for Three Medically Complex Infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit,” mentored by Deanna Hanson-Abromeit, associate professor of music
Saron Demeke, “Does Information About Learning Strategies Change Students’ Motivation?” mentored by Marsha McCartney, assistant professor of psychology
Joseph Denning, “Drop the Base: Omission MMN Sensitivity to Morphological Status, Predictability, and their Interaction,” mentored by Robert Fiorentino, associate professor of linguistics
Deanna Diaz, “Utilizing Fluorescent Soluble Antigen Arrays for B Cell Detection,” mentored by Cory Berkland, Solon E. Summerfield Distinguished Professor of Pharmacy
Connor Dougan, “PERIOD, Period: Student Analysis of the Effectiveness of The University of Kansas' and PERIOD's Free Menstrual Products on Campus,” mentored by Ivery Goldstein, visiting instructor of women, gender & sexuality studies
Tyler Duggan, “Sustainability of Human Rights Museum,” mentored by Kapila Silva, associate professor of architecture
Abria Fisher, Kena Flood, Sarah Morrill, “The Developmental Function of Music for Adolescence Ages 13-18 Years,” mentored by Deanna Hanson-Abromeit, associate professor of music, and Katie Martin
Belinda Flores, “Looking Over the Peer: an Analysis of Peer Support in Sexual Violence,” mentored by Ivery Goldstein, visiting instructor of women, gender & sexuality studies
Anna Harder, “A Predictive Model for Determining Epigenetic Transmission of Trauma, Applied to Rwanda Genocide,” mentored by Sandra Gray, associate professor of anthropology
Molly Hatesohl, “Exiled Artists in American Ballet: Chagall and Massine's Aleko, 1942,” mentored by James Moreno, assistant professor of theatre & dance, and John Pultz, associate professor of art history
Daniel Lee, “Person, Party, and Politics: Analyzing the Meanings of ‘Left’ and ‘Right’ in European Contexts,” mentored by Brian Lagotte, assistant teaching professor of global & international studies
Brian Locascio, “Music & Harm – A Preventative Model for Premature Infants in the NICU,” mentored by Deanna Hanson-Abromeit, associate professor of music
Kathleen Meeds, “The Israel-Palestine Conflict in German and American Media,” mentored by Andrea Meyertholen, assistant professor of German studies
Tyler Nguyen, “Biosensors, Biocatalysts, and Beyond: Putrescine Oxidase Immobilization on Gold Nanostructures via Peptide Tags,” mentored by Cindy Berrie, associate professor of chemistry
Autumn Olsen, “Dallas Museum of Sustainable Forests,” mentored by Kapila Silva, associate professor of architecture
Alexis Paige, “Optimization of the Electrophoretic Separation of Nitrated and Non-Nitrated Species,” mentored by Sue Lunte, Ralph N. Adams Distinguished Professor of Chemistry & Pharmaceutical Chemistry, and Kelci Schilly, doctoral student in bioanalytical chemistry
Catherine Pham, “Investigating the Relationship Between Individual Differences and Island Sensitivity,” mentored by Robert Fiorentino, associate professor of linguistics
Heddy Pierce, “Understanding Ideals of Motherhood Amongst Vulnerable Populations: The Implications This Has on Community Building and Identity,” mentored by Ivery Goldstein, visiting instructor of women, gender & sexuality studies
Camila Andrea Mican Rondon, “Systems of Oppression or Emancipation? Understanding the Colombian Education System Through Critical Education,” mentored by Brian Lagotte, assistant teaching professor of global & international studies
Sarah Rooney, “Assessing the Role of Parental Psychological Control in the Relationship Between Alexithymia and Depressive Symptoms in Adolescents in Juvenile Detention,” mentored by Paula Fite, professor of psychology & applied behavioral science
Sophia Sanchez, “Establishing a Viable Animal Model for Social Loss Using Male Prairie Voles,” mentored by Adam Smith, assistant professor of pharmacology & toxicology
Megan Schulte, “Investigating the Gender Difference in Trauma Related Nightmare Experiences,” mentored by Nancy Hamilton, associate professor of psychology
Dania Shoaib, “Mcr is Required for Drosophila Egg Elongation,” mentored by Rob Ward, associate professor of molecular biosciences
Jonah Stiel, “Understanding the Role of Sterically Bulky Diimine Ligands During Electrocatalytic Reduction of CO2 Using [Mn(CO)3] Complexes,” mentored by James Blakemore, assistant professor of chemistry
Rachel Yu Ru Tan, “Malaysia Boleh? Examining the Factors of the Malaysian Brain Drain,” mentored by Brian Lagotte, assistant teaching professor of global & international studies
Chase Toalson, Clark Bee, Hannah Redford, Montanna Hayes, Dotty Gaumer, Dane DeRee, “Carbon Sequestration & the Kansas Land Trust,” mentored by Kelly Kindscher, courtesy professor of ecology & evolutionary biology, and Morgan Okeson, graduate student in geography & atmospheric science
Aldin Tollison, “Modeling Global Water Scarcity in Google Earth Engine,” mentored by Xingong Li, professor of geography & atmospheric science
Aldin Tollison, Ethan Tidwell, Kristy Mo, Raffi Hatutian, “Lake Pleasant: An Expanding Lake in a Drying Region,” mentored by David Rahn, assistant professor of geography & atmospheric science, and So-Min Cheong, associate professor of geography & atmospheric science
Karen Vazquez, “Analyzing Manufactured Housing Damage Caused by Hurricane Irma,” mentored by Elaina Sutley, assistant professor of civil, environmental & architectural engineering
Jack Weiner, “Broadband Viral Immunotherapy via Antibody Recruiting Molecules,” mentored by Mark Farrell, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry, and Suresh Kurhade, postdoctoral researcher of medicinal chemistry
Whitney Young, “Audacity,” mentored by Elise Kirk, associate professor of architecture & design.