NEWS
Students present projects and research at the second annual Symposium
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Photos by Allie Stewart/Guilfordian
Edward Markus (above left) presents in the Carnegie Room of Hege Library during the Undergraduate Symposium Feb. 27. Nikki Shah, Medha Gargeya, Danielle Seong, Sam Huff and Thom
as Huff (above middle) present a PowerPoint in King Hall.The Carnegie Room (above right) is abuzz with activity during the Undergraduate Symposium as attendees view the various presentations.
By Liz Farquhar
Staff Writer
On Feb. 17 campus buzzed with activity
from Dana Auditorium to King Hall
as students showed off their research
accomplishments. Their presentations
covered a variety of majors at Guilford,
giving the community a chance to see
students' work.
"The Undergraduate Symposium is a
chance for building the Guilford community
through sharing across the disciplines," said
Assistant Professor of Biology Melanie Lee-
Brown.
"We are generally unfamiliar with what is
considered scholarship in other divisions and
disciplines and the symposium'is a way to
share and celebrate student accomplishments
with each other."
This was the second annual Undergraduate
Symposium (GUS) in Guilford history,
originally created by Brown and Professor of
Chemistry Robert Whitnell.
The first symposium last spring featured
50 presentations and roughly 70 students,
according to Whitnell. This year the number
increased to 68 presentations and around 90
students.
"I think the research symposium was a
wonderful way to showcase the talent and
effort that students at Guilford put into
their work," said senior Anna Finn who
researched the socioeconomic effects of
AIDS on Sub-Saharan Africa. "It not only
shows the passion behind what students
are interested in, but the commitment to
learning about new things, which makes us,
as a college, unique."
For both students and faculty alike the
event takes months of planning.
Last year the sole organizers were Brown
and Whitnell. This year they had help from
professors David Newton, Eva Lawrence,
Lavon Williams, and Heather Hayton.
"We were very fortunate this year, we had
a very good organizing committee," said
Whitnell. "Last year we were inventing on
the fly but this year we knew better."
Students participating in the event began
submitting their research in November and
the committee looked over each submission
to decide which would be displayed. Many
students presented projects from fall-
semester courses.
"The research was a lot of work first
semester," said senior Brittany Bumgarner
who participated with senior Jessica
Casto on a research project exploring the
relationship between coach feedback and
player motivation. "It was nice to share it
with more than just a class of 12."
Students also commented on the useful
practice with public speaking the symposium
allowed for.
"Standing in front of an audience was
definitely more nerve racking for me than
presenting my poster," said Finn. "Once I got
into my presentation, however, I began to feel
more comfortable and confident about what
I was presenting. I spent all fall researching
and compiling my information into a thesis
that I could defend and be proud of."
Many graduating seniors presented at
the symposium, which contributed to their
thoughts about plans for the future.
"I hated research, I never truly understood
what the importance of research was but now
that I have conducted my own research and
was asked to present it at GUS I understand
why it is so important," said senior Sarah
Dechemey, who conducted a study on
memory in connection to music. "Now, Fm
applying to grad schools and looking for
research-based programs."
In addition to the educational
opportunities the event affords students and
faculty, the symposium also gave parents
and community members a chance to see
students' work.
"I am extremely pleased with the event,
it is an extraordinary array of scientific
and thoughtful endeavors," Dr. Stephen
Dechemey, professor at UNC Chapel Hill's
medical school.
Overall, the symposium received much
praise from students, faculty, and attendees.
"Everyone had a great experience and it
is doing exactly what we wanted: getting
faculty and students from across the campus
to mix-it-up so that we can learn more about
each other, more about scholarship in other
disciplines and just to see the cool things
going on around Guilford," Brown said.
"It also gives us the opportumty to forge
new connections across campus in ways that
we may not have previously considered or
imagined."
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