Creighton News
Undergrad students present research at BIG EAST tournament
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Creighton students compete on and off the court. While the men’s basketball team plays in the BIG EAST tournament in New York City, five undergraduate students from Creighton will take part in another kind of competition—the second annual BIG EAST Research Poster Symposium.
Before the conference championship game on March 11, students from the 11 BIG EAST universities will go head-to-head. Five teams from each school will present their research projects at Madison Square Garden, and a panel of judges will choose the winners.
The students chosen to represent Creighton in the competition are:
Hannah Ahlsten
- An exercise science major on the physical therapy track, Ahlsten’s poster topic is “Unveiling Mechanisms of Hippotherapy: Is Physiological Coupling The Answer?” Her faculty mentor is Anastasia Kyvelidou, PhD.
David Amorim Caldas
- Caldas will present on “Klotho-deficient Subventricular Adult-neurogenesis.” He’s a neuroscience and medical anthropology major and is mentored by Gwendalyn King, PhD.
Sofia Deatherage
- Deatherage’s research topic is “Keep it in the Family: The Impact of Familial Messages on Young Adults of Ethnic Minority’s Attitudes and Stigma Towards Mental Health.” She’s studying psychology and communications. Her faculty mentors are Amanda Holman, PhD, and Jill Brown, PhD.
Molly Dolan
- Dolan’s poster topic is “Structure and Dynamics of an Interaction between Proteins Involved in Gene Silencing.” She’s a chemistry major and is mentored by Lynne Dieckman, PhD.
Rhiannon McCracken
- McCraken is a biochemistry major who will present on, “Structural and Functional Analysis of Crassostrea gigas OAZ-PK RNA.” She’s mentored by Juliane Strauss-Soukup, PhD.
Not only is this a great opportunity to spread information on something I am passionate about, but I also get to hear other researchers’ passions and their input on mine.
— David Amorim Caldas
With the guidance of their faculty mentors, these and other Creighton students are moving important research forward. Strauss-Soukup, professor of chemistry and biochemistry and associate vice provost for research and scholarship, initiated the BIG EAST Research Poster Symposium last year and continues to lead the event.
The finalists were chosen by the Center for Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (CURAS), which supports and facilitates research across the University, connecting students to research opportunities.
"I am looking forward to hearing about the research my peers are doing at different universities, as well as, presenting my research to professionals in many different disciplines. Also, I have never been to New York, so I am really looking forward to seeing the city," says Dolan.
The five students will travel to New York City on March 10. Travel expenses are covered, and after they present their research, the students will also get to attend the BIG EAST tournament championship game on March 11.
Caldas says, “I am excited to be in an environment full of novel knowledge, and people willing to share their expertise. Not only is this a great opportunity to spread information on something I am passionate about, but I also get to hear other researchers’ passions and their input on mine.”
