April 4 marked the 13th Annual Carolyn and Norwood Thomas Undergraduate Research and Creativity Expo, designed as an opportunity for undergraduate students to showcase their research, scholarship and creative inquiry.
203 presentations were included in the event, making it the largest thus far. 245 UNCG undergraduates participated, with 111 mentors from 42 academic departments and programs.
First, second, and third place winners and honorable mentions were selected in four categories: Humanities and Social Sciences, Education and Behavioral Sciences, Mathematics, Life and Physical Sciences and Performing Arts. The award winners are:
Humanities and Social Sciences
1st Place: Courtney Phillips (Nursing)
“Nurse Practitioner Knowledge and Use of Complementary and Alternative Therapies for the
Management of Chronic Pain: A Pilot Study”
Faculty Mentor: Susan Letvak
2nd Place: Vanessa Enoch (Human Development and Family Studies)
“Trauma and Abuse Experience and Elevated Scalp Hair Cortisol Concentrations Among SE
Asian Refugees in the US South”
Faculty Mentor: Sudha Shreeniwas
3rd Place: Kaitlyn Chaplin (Communication Studies), Ariana Chavez (Classical Studies), and Brianna Rogers (Classical Studies)
“There’s No Place Like Homescreen” (Performance)
Faculty Mentor: Killian Manning
Education and Behavioral Sciences
1st Place: Avila Ramirez Itzel (Psychology)
“Do Ethnic-Racial Socialization Messages Manifest in Technological Communication Between
Romantic Partners of Latinx Heritage?”
Faculty Mentor: Michaeline Jensen
2nd Place: Sarah Ragab (Biology)
“The Transfer of Global Applications of Sport for Positive Youth Development”
Faculty Mentor: Michael Hemphill
3rd Place: Brianna Ferraro (Specialized Education Services)
“From Accommodation to Invitation: Roles Communication Centers Play in Acknowledging and Empowering People with Disabilities”
Faculty Mentor: Roy Schwartzman
Honorable Mention:
Morgan Bryant (Interior Architecture)
“The Ancillary Office: The Effects of Biophilia and Ergonomic Solutions within the Workplace”
Faculty Mentor: Travis Hicks
Aran Garnett-Deakin (Human Development and Family Studies) and Rachel Fuqua (Human
Development and Family Studies)
“A Meta-Analytic Review of the Associations between Marital Dissolution and Anxiety”
Faculty Mentor: Heather Helms
Mathematics, Life and Physical Sciences
1st Place: Ayesha Ejaz (Chemistry)
“Simulating a Microchip-based Stark Guide and Decelerator using Simion”
Faculty Mentor: Liam Duffy
2nd Place: Quashawn Chadwick (Biology & Biochemistry)
“Transgenic Tobacco with Archaeal Heat Stress Resistance”
Faculty Mentor: Ayalew Osena
3rd Place: Ekaterina Ellyce San Pedro (Biology)
“Effect of the Regulatory Light Chain of MyosinII on Glut 4 Translocation to the Plasma
Membrane”
Faculty Mentor: Yashomati Patel
Performance
1st Place: Michael Newman (Theatre), Jordan Speas (Theatre), Steve Williams (Theatre), Auntais Faulkner (Theatre)
“MAMA” (Mindfulness Arts Mindfulness Action)
Faculty Mentor: Denise Gabriel
Emerging Scholars (UNCG Residential College Students)
1st Place: Isabelle Cooper (Environmental and Sustainability Studies)
“An Interactive Map of Holistic Veterinary Medicine”
Faculty Mentor: John Sopper
2nd Place: Ryan Peace (Political Science)
“The Effects of Child Sexual Abuse on Black Men”
Faculty Mentor: Sara Littlejohn
3rd Place: De’Viona Lowery (Consumer Apparel & Retail Studies)
“Cancel Culture: Destroyer of Celebrities but How Does It Affect You?”
Faculty Mentor: Sara Littlejohn
Honorable Mention:
Belle Downing (Community and Therapeutic Recreation)
“How Recreation Therapy Can Improve the Quality of Lives within Human Trafficking
Survivors”
Faculty Mentor: Sara Littlejohn
Sydney Chamberlain (Biology)
“Cannibalism in Food Culture: Why Prions Need Regulation”
Faculty Mentor: Sara Littlejohn
