Student Research Day Honors Outstanding Scholarship

Wilson’s 9th Annual Student Research Day was held on Apr. 27. The event consisted of oral and poster presentations throughout the day in Brooks Science Center, Lenfest Learning Commons in the John Stewart Memorial Library, and in Lenfest Commons. More than 35 students presented their research to the Wilson community.

Student Research Day is a time in which the campus as a whole takes time to acknowledge and honor students and their faculty advisors for their research, creativity and innovative opportunities. Being a professional conference, Student Research Day brings recognition to a variety of disciplines.

“I love student research day. It’s a chance to showcase all the incredible work that students have dedicated their time and energy towards, and provides a perfect opportunity to recognize their outstanding achievements. It’s also a great way to give back to our amazing faculty and acknowledge their investment in students! Undergraduate research gives students the freedom to study what they are passionate about and a platform to share their knowledge,” Karis Daniels ‘18 explained.

Research presentations represented various disciplines including biology and chemistry, creative writing, psychology, English, ACP-CMA College Media Convention, the Medical Spanish Mission Trip to the Dominican Republic, Orchesis, environmental studies, and more.

For many students, preparation for Student Research Day is very stressful.

“For me, the most stressful thing was preparing myself to talk in front of a large audience,” Dasia Edwards ‘18 commented.

Student Research Day is also a very large time commitment. Many students have worked for months preparing their projects and creating their presentations.

“In the fall, I spent nearly a month designing my project with my advisor, and then an additional six weeks collecting data. This semester has been dedicated to preparing to present my results. My work is close to six months in the making,” Daniels ‘18 commented.

Although the stress and preparation can be overwhelming, the information provided during the presentation sessions showcases the joy and passion of education and research of students.

At the end of the day, four students were honored by Assistant Professor Tonia Hess-Kling and received funding for research projects for the 10th Annual Student Research Day next spring. The funding for the awards was provided by Highmark and Volvo Construction Equipment.

The 10th Annual Student Research Day will be planned for April 2019.