Student Research Symposium Winners
The Student Research Symposium is Utah State University’s largest showcase of student research. SRS both celebrates student research and improves each student’s ability to communicate their research. Each April during Research Week, SRS provides space and resources for more than 300 graduate and undergraduate presenters to share their research with peers, faculty evaluators and the campus community through experience, evaluation and training.
2024 SRS Winners
Undergraduate Poster
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Davis Haag | Testing resilience of microalgae biofilms when exposed to hydrothermal liquefaction aqueous phase |
| Life Sciences* | Emaline Haroldsen | Searching for Commonalities in Secondary Structure of PRMT Targets with Python Programming |
| Life Sciences* | Elleke Kofford | Effects of Humidity on Native and Non-Native Cavity Nesting Solitary Bees |
| Physical Science | Emma Barnett, Makel Waters, and Emily Ball | Vanilla Flavoring in Nondairy Icecreams |
| Arts & Humanities | Riley Wheelwright-Grammer | Crece la Ola del Cambio: A comparative study of Puerto Rican protest music |
| Social Sciences & Education | Ben Johnson | Variability in Indoor Free Play Physical Activity Over One Week in Preschool-Aged Children |
Graduate Poster
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Pranish Dahal | Understanding the Impact of Matric Suction on Infiltration Behavior in Partially Saturated Soils |
| Life Sciences | Matias Avellaneda | A Model of Changeover Behavior in Two-alternative Choice |
| Social Sciences & Education | Idris Solola & Ravi Sinha | Building a Responsive Teaching Model Using Grounded Theory Approach |
Undergraduate Oral Presentation
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Ryan Lewis | Simulating Low Gravity Particle-Laden Flow |
| Physical Science | Clayton Halper | Non-Destructive Uniformity Measurement of a Photosensitive Gelatin Film |
| Arts & Humanities* | Emma Thackeray | Intentional Rest in Musician's Routine: A Key to Preventing Burnout and Promoting Healthy Performance |
| Arts & Humanities* | Audry Ricks, Adam Bowen, Valerie McGeean, Abigail Tilton | International Perspectives on Managing Performance Anxiety |
| Social Sciences & Education | Abby Julian & Lindy Strand | “We are in a Complete Crisis”: Navigating the Lack of Resources to Mental Health Care for Individuals with IDD |
Graduate Oral Presentation
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering* | Aditya Parik | Fast Prediction of the trajectory and coverage of aerially delivered fire-retardants |
| Engineering* | Abdelrhman Mohamed | Wadjet; Innovative Disease Prevention and Feed Solutions for Egyptian Poultry |
| Life Sciences | Zachary Crump | The Effects of Including Sprouted Barley in the Diets of Feeder Lambs |
| Physical Science | Saroj Burlakati | Exploring Nitrogen Uptake Dynamics of Wetland Plants in Floating Treatment Wetlands |
| Arts & Humanities | Bosede Adejugbe | Risk of Comorbidity Among Black Populations in the U.S.: Testing the Theory of Intersectionality? |
| Social Sciences & Education | Elizabeth Cafferty | Asymmetries in NCAA Division I Tennis Players Compared to Control Group |
Performances
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate | Meryal Hylton | Motivic Development in Schubert's C Minor Impromptu |
| Undergraduate | Miranda Judson, Karli Poulter, Julia Bunce | Integrating Chinese Jianpu Notation into Western Piano Pedagogy |
Exhibits
| Category | Awardee | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate | Rare Books Group | Rare Books “Petting Zoo” |
| Undergraduate | Emma Lovan | Historical Accuracy and Realism in Costuming |
2021 Poster Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Humanities | Shelbi Boehme | Pediatric Rehabilitation Outpatient Clinic |
| Engineering | Emilee Rickabaugh, Brandon Pace, Trent Peterson | Hagfish protein threads as three dimensional in vitro scaffolds for skeletal muscular tissue |
| Life Sciences | Kip Dooley | Combining Nissl (NIS-sel) Staining and Digital Densitometry to Accurately Quantify Oxytocin Receptors in the Human Substantia Nigra |
| Physical Science | Calvin Luu | Determining Transfer Rates of Chlorpyrifos from Alfalfa Leaves to Provisions in Alfalfa Leaf Cutting Bee Nests |
| Social Sciences and Education | Claire Wever, Alyssa Cronin, and Heather Hopkins | Landlord Perceptions of Homelessness in the Bear River Region |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Andres Duque | Extendable and Invertible Manifold LearningWith Geometry Regularized Autoencoders |
| Arts & Humanities | - | - |
| Life Sciences | Shannon Rauter | Evaluating Anemone and Ranunculus Production Strategies in Utah |
| Physical Science | Achal Duhoon | Radiation Survivability of Micro-SD Cards in a Simulated Exposure to Prolonged Low Earth Orbit Space Environments |
| Social Sciences and Education | Sarah Andersen | Development and Validation of a Basic Ground Skills Assessment (BGSA) for Equine-assisted Services |
2021 Oral Presentation Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Humanities | Shelbi Boehme | Pediatric Rehabilitation Outpatient Clinic |
| Engineering | Emilee Rickabaugh, Brandon Pace, Trent Peterson | Hagfish protein threads as three dimensional in vitro scaffolds for skeletal muscular tissue |
| Life Sciences | Kip Dooley | Combining Nissl (NIS-sel) Staining and Digital Densitometry to Accurately Quantify Oxytocin Receptors in the Human Substantia Nigra |
| Physical Science | Calvin Luu | Determining Transfer Rates of Chlorpyrifos from Alfalfa Leaves to Provisions in Alfalfa Leaf Cutting Bee Nests |
| Social Sciences and Education | Claire Wever, Alyssa Cronin, and Heather Hopkins | Landlord Perceptions of Homelessness in the Bear River Region |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Andres Duque | Extendable and Invertible Manifold LearningWith Geometry Regularized Autoencoders |
| Arts & Humanities | - | - |
| Life Sciences | Shannon Rauter | Evaluating Anemone and Ranunculus Production Strategies in Utah |
| Physical Science | Achal Duhoon | Radiation Survivability of Micro-SD Cards in a Simulated Exposure to Prolonged Low Earth Orbit Space Environments |
| Social Sciences and Education | Sarah Andersen | Development and Validation of a Basic Ground Skills Assessment (BGSA) for Equine-assisted Services |
2020 Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts | Holly Stringham | Designing for Mitigation on the Great Salt Lake |
| Engineering | Devin Kunzler | Developing an Effective Drug Delivery Vehicle: Quercetin-loading into ORMOSIL Nanoparticles |
| Humanities | Ellie Thorson | An Attraction to Horror: Understanding the Theatrum Crudelitatum Haereticorum Nostri Temporis |
| Life Sciences | Anna Figgins | Understanding the Role of Small Non-Coding RNA in Bumble Bee Reproduction |
| Physical Science | Scout Jarman | Outlier Detection in Depth of Snow Data |
| Social Sciences and Education | Alexandra Tebbs | Double-Jeopardy or Not? Investigating the Experience of Black Women Entrepreneurs Seeking Small Business Financing |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Amanda Strate | Self-Describing Fiducials for GPS-Denied Navigation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles |
| Humanities | Kelsie Peterson | A part or apart: May Swenson’s Views of a Human’s Place on Earth |
| Life Sciences | Paul Kusama | LEDs on a Martian farm |
| Physical Science | Leslie Kobinsky | Assessing & Protecting Dark Night Skies in El Morro National Monument |
| Social Sciences and Education | Cree Taylor | From Theory to Practice: Establishing the Classroom as the Setting for RaceTalk through the Intentional Analysis and Discussion of Poems by Authors of Color |
2019 Poster Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Humanities | Cameron Blakely | Experiential Learning as Engaged Scholarship: Design of Zion’s Eastern Gateway |
| Engineering | Morgan Bishop | Identification of Murine Fecal Samples According to Diet by Fluorescence from Raman Spectroscopy |
| Life Sciences | Brennan McEwan | Searching for Antiviral Activity as a New Use for Old Drugs |
| Physical Science | Karlee Eck | Effects of Reproductive Maturity on Neuroplasticity in Male Bumble Bees (Bombus impatiens) |
| Social Sciences and Education | Joshua Lyman | How has government regulation affected pharmaceutical innovation? |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Lori Caldwell | Mobile Instructional Particle Image Velocimetry for STEM Outreach and Undergraduate Fluid Mechanics Education |
| Life Sciences | Idowu Atoloye (tie) | Aggregate-Associated Phosphorus Dynamics in Different Dryland Organic Wheat Soils |
| Life Sciences | Ariana Ortolano and Owen Price (tie) | Characterizing Changes in the Oligomeric State of Protein Arginine Methyltransferase 1 as a Mechanism to Regulate Activity |
| Physical Science | Zachary Gibson | Charge Distributions in Electron Beam Irradiated PTFE |
| Social Sciences and Education | Carly Fox and Sharad Jones (tie) | (AGNES) Automated Grader for Narrative Essays System |
| Social Sciences and Education | Aaron Bliesner, Erin Mann and Tiffany Woods (tie) | From Idea to Initiative: Feasibility Study of 100,000 New Trees in Park City |
2019 Oral Presentation Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts & Humanities | Tanner McAlister | From Chod to Feeding Your Demons: A Western Approach to Tibetan Tantra |
| Engineering | Cory Goates | Optimization of Propulsion Systems for Small, Unmanned, Aerial Vehicles |
| Life Sciences | Audree Van Valkenburg | An investigation of intraspecific genotypic variation of Bolboschoenus maritimus (alkali bulrush) |
| Physical Science | Kip Quilter | The Effects of Radiation-Induced Defects on The Electrostatic Discharge of polymers |
| Social Sciences and Education | Emily Shaffer and Sierra Walters | Student Loan Borrowers: Who Figured out Student Loan Monthly Payment Prior to Taking out Student Loans? |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Anna Doloman | Augmenting anaerobic digestion of microalgal biomass |
| Life Sciences | Paul Kusuma | A revised method for calculating phytochrome photo-equilibrium |
| Physical Science | Michael Schultz | Gravitational Anomalies and Elliptic Curves |
| Social Sciences and Education | Tammie Barrett | Culturally Appropriate Education Intervention: What Variables Contribute to Native American Student Success? |
| Arts | Michael Wechter | A Glimpse of Musical Theater |
2018 Poster Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Department |
|---|---|---|
| Arts | Abigail Garbett | Art and Design |
| Engineering | Chase Paterson | Biological Engineering |
| Humanities | Rae Ann Bell | Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology |
| Life Sciences | Riannon Smith and Melena Garrett | Biological Engineering |
| Physical Science | Amanda Cook | Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology |
| Social Sciences and Education | Trenton Judd | Kinesiology and Health Science |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Department |
|---|---|---|
| Engineering | Amir Hossein Farzaneh | Computer Science |
| Life Sciences | Tatiana Soboleva | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Physical Science | Eric McKinney | Mathematics and Statistics |
| Social Sciences and Education | Audrey Juhasz | Family, Consumer, and Human Development |
2018 Oral Presentation Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Department |
|---|---|---|
| Arts | Baileigh Petty | Art and Design |
| Engineering | Hyrum Tennant | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
| Humanities | Landon Graham | English |
| Life Sciences | Jack Kiefer and Paden Thompson | Mathematics and Statistics |
| Physical Science | Sidney Tate | Mathematics and Statistics |
| Social Sciences and Education | Colten Smith | School of Applied Sciences, Technology and Education |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Arts | Michael Wechter | Music |
| Engineering | Farhad Farjood | Biological Engineering |
| Humanities | Kelli Morrill | History |
| Life Sciences | Hannah Nicole Taylor | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Physical Sciences | Brinley Zabriskie | Mathematics and Statistics |
| Social Sciences and Education | Soo Jeong | Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences |
2017 Poster Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Emily Speas | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Physical Sciences | Jonny Britt | Physics |
| Art and Humanities | Meg Turner | Art and Design |
| Social Science and Education | Zak Konakis | Kinesiology and Health Sciences |
| Engineering | Ligia Frangello | Computer Science |
| Engineering | Bethany Jensen | Biological Engineering |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Daphne Rodriguez | Animal, Dairy and Veterinary Sciences |
| Physical Sciences | Heather Jones | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Social Science and Education | Emma Bullock | Teacher Education and Leadership |
| Engineering | Cynthia Hanson | Biological Engineering |
| Engineering | Mohammad Shekaramiz | Electrical and Computer Engineering |
2017 Oral Presentation Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Bret Mossman | Wildland Resources |
| Physical Sciences | Jordan Lee | Physics |
| Arts and Humanities | Jessica Griffeth | English |
| Social Science and Education | Justin Campbell | Psychology |
| Engineering | Trevor Bird | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Jocelyn Cuthbert | Animal, Dairy and Veterinary Science |
| Physical Sciences | Nguyen Vo | Computer Science |
| Art and Humanities | Cody Patton | History |
| Social Science and Education | Camille Wynn | Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education |
| Social Science and Education | Amanda Hagman | Psychology |
| Engineering | Tyler King | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
2016 Poster Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Arthur Wallis | Wildland Resources |
| Physical Sciences | Boston Peine | Mathematics |
| Art and Humanities | Alison Fabricius-Gardener | History |
| Social Science and Education | Justin Campbell | Psychology |
| Engineering | Tyler Marlar | Biological Engineering |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Antra Boca | Wildland Resources |
| Physical Sciences | Camden DeBruler | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Arts and Humanities | Jennifer Wiseman | Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning |
| Social Science and Education | Osanna Rodgers | Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology |
| Engineering | Tyler King | Civil and Environmental Engineering |
2016 Oral Presentation Winners
Undergraduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Alissa Aguilar | Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science |
| Physical Sciences | Zach Cooper | Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science |
| Arts and Humanities | Rachel Telfer | English |
| Social Science and Education | Aubree Thomas | Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology |
| Engineering | Brian McNeil | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering |
Graduate Awardees
| College | Awardee | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Life Sciences | Jordan Frank | Animal, Dairy and Veterinary Science |
| Physical Sciences | Ivan Popov | Chemistry and Biochemistry |
| Art and Humanities | Chloe Hanson | English |
| Social Science and Education | William DeHart | Psychology |
| Engineering | Alan Edlund | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering |