Kent State University at Salem held its fall Undergraduate Research Conference, an event that recognizes students for their research and allows them to share what they learned through discussions with the academic staff. This year’s event was more of a hybrid-format, with students presenting in person and through remote technology.
The conference is open to all undergraduates in any discipline and in any for-credit course on any Kent State campus. Faculty judges evaluate the presentations based on originality; significance; evidence of learning about the research and information gathering process; and overall quality.
Dr. Sarah A. Kennedy was the keynote speaker. She is an associate professor of chemistry at Radford University in Radford, Va., and the program director for REALising Inclusive Science Excellence (REALISE). Her research background is in polymer chemistry and structural biology and she also pursues green chemistry products and conducts research on chemical education.
Dr. Rachael Blasiman, associate professor of psychology, serves as chair of the URC on the Salem Campus.
Winners for this year’s URC are:
- Jessica Johnson for “Little One, Big Emotions”
- Olivia Coontz for “Is Happiness Worth It?”
Second place winners -
- Michael Schlegel for Tuberculosis in the Homeless Population”
- Devon Miller for “Cezanne started out with all the tricks: Reading Hemingway’s Big Two-Hearted River as an Impressionist Painting”
Third place winners -
- Abigail Jackson for “Spravato for Treatment Resistant Depression”
- Kasey Jamison for “Long-term Effects of Study Skills Workshops within the Rising Scholars Program”
Photo A: Prize winners from the 2021 Undergraduate Research Conference on the Salem Campus included (left) Kasey Jamison and (right) Abigail Jackson with (center) Dr. Rachael Blasiman and Dean David Dees.
Photo B: Dr. Rachael Blasiman introduced keynote speaker Dr. Sarah Kennedy who joined the conference remotely.
Photo C: Madison Ketchum, a rad tech student, with her research poster.