Highlights of the 2014 Symposium: The Oral Presentation Sessions

I have fewer shots from the Oral Presentation sessions, partly because I worry about throwing presenters off by holding up my iphone during their talks, and partly because I often am too caught up in what they're saying to think about taking photos.  Still, I managed a few:

Here, Dr. Michael Schwarz moderates Oral Session I:

Presenters Lauren Fattlar (Communication Studies) and Barbara Mooneyham (Art) met for the first time at URCA, but bonded quickly as they both prepared to present in Oral Session II:

Also from Oral Session II, Peter Kobunski presented his work on lead exposure:

Here, Psychology student Samantha Diemer presents her work on aggressive cues:

Highlights of the 2014 Symposium: The Art

The art pieces featured at URCA are often my favorites from the day and are always popular with attendees!  Here are a few of the pieces that were featured during this year's Symposium:

Karly Beuck exhibited several of her paintings:

Barbara Mooneyham exhibited several of her sculpted pieces:

Marissa Uhrig exhibited these digital art pieces:

Highlights from the 2014 Symposium: Poster Sessions

What a fantastic set of poster/exhibition sessions!  Students from departments across the College of Arts and Sciences presented their work during these sessions, which allowed for a lot of interaction between presenters and attendees.  Here are some of the photos I was able to capture during the day: 

Psychology student Shanna Valenti and her faculty mentor, Dr. Mitchell Metzger:

Theatre student Kelli Lennox:

Psychology students Katlyn Grayson and Nicole Austin:

 Chemistry student William Horn:

Theatre student Kimberly Lennox:

Geology student Mitchell Ramsey with his faculty mentor, Dr. Michael Hudson:

Psychology student Shawna Brough with her faculty mentor, Dr. Curt Ickes:

Symposium attendees discussing the work of student Kelvin Stimpert:

Mitchell Ramsey discussing his work with Associate Dean Michael Hupfer:

Psychology student Mary Moeller discussing her work with Dr. Mitchell Metzger and Dr. Doug Dawson:

 Economics student Kees Edwards showing an attendee how to interact with his exhibit:

Economics students Kenny Bogner and Kees Edwards:

Biology student Rachel Farley discussing her work with an attendee:

Psychology student Shanna Valenti discussing her work with attendees:

Follow URCA on Twitter

URCA is now on Twitter! Follow us @AUURCA for up-to-the-moment news about the Symposium and other URCA business.

The 2014 Symposium Schedule is Complete!

The students, the faculty mentors, the members of the URCA Committee, and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences have worked hard over the last five weeks to polish abstracts and finalize plans.  Now, we are pleased to announce that the schedule for the 2014 URCA Symposium is available!  Click here to view and print the schedule.

Check Out Our New Display!

Next time you're near the AU Library, stop in and check out the URCA display in the case near the elevators on the main floor.  We're hoping the display will serve as a reminder to students to submit their abstracts, and as a way to get everyone excited for this year's event.  Many thanks to the Library staff, especially Reference and Instruction Librarian Kathryn Venditti, for allowing us to use the display case!

Abstract Workshop Set

The Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Symposium Committee will hold an abstract preparation workshop on Wednesday, January 8th at 8:00 p.m. in Schar 103.  Reservations are not necessary.  All students who are eligible to present at this year's URCA Symposium are welcome.  Students should bring drafts fo their abstracts-in-progress to the workshop, where they will receive individualized feedback from a member of the URCA Symposium Committee.

The 5th Annual URCA Symposium will highlight the research, scholarly, and creative activities of students throughout Ashland University's College of Arts and Sciences, and will be held on Tuesday, April 1, 2014.  All students who are declared majors in a program within the College of Arts and Sciences are encouraged to participate in this year's Symposium.  Presenters may choose to give an oral presentation, poster presentation, exhibition, or a performance.  All presentations should have a significant research or creative component; examples include, but are not limited to summer research conducted at AU or elsewhere, results of independent study projects, thesis work, literary readings or analyses, musical or theatre performaces, and exhibitions of artwork.

Students who wish to present at the Symposium must prepare an abstract in Microsoft Word and email that Word document to the URCA Symposium Committee at au.urca@gmail.com.  Instructions for how to prepare a submission, as well as sample abstracts, can be found here on the blog by clicking the navigation tabs along the top.  All abstracts submitted require approval of a faculty sponsor.  The deadline for submitting abstracts is 5:00 p.m. on Friday, January 17, 2014.