More than 400 students from colleges, universities and community colleges in North Carolina will participate in the State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium (SNCURCS) which will be held Saturday, December 3, on the campus of UNC-Wilmington. The annual symposium showcases NC undergraduate student research and creative work and provides undergraduate scholars in all fields a forum to share the results of their work through posters, presentations, performances, and works of art.
North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities (NCICU) awarded stipends to seven students to support the research that they will showcase at the symposium. The stipends ranged from $400-$600. The students and their research projects are:
Emma Ahrens, Wingate University senior, Fetal Microchimerism in Sheep: Determining patterns of fetal cell transfer in the ewe during pregnancy and beyond; faculty advisor, Dr. Alison Brown.
Jalen Garner, Catawba College senior, Mining the root microbiome for antibiotic-producing bacteria; faculty advisor, Dr. Amanda Rushing.
Jacob Hiatt, Catawba College senior, Identification of antimicrobial synthetic genes in a novel Pseudomonas strain; faculty advisor, Dr. Amanda Rushing.
Heidi Jensen, Chowan University junior, The fungicidal activity of nanoemulsion particles derived from thymol on belowground pathogens of wheat; faculty advisor, Dr. Torrence Gill.
Kasey McLamb, Catawba College senior, Molecular effects of BPA on invertebrate cell models; faculty advisor, Dr. Erin Witalison.
Hunter Sjobom, Catawba College sophomore, Screening soils near aquatic sources for antimicrobial-producing bacteria; faculty advisor, Dr. Amanda Rushing.
William Roque, Catawba College junior, Characterization of antimicrobial metabolites produced by a novel Pseudomonas strain; faculty advisor, Dr. Amanda Rushing.
“We are pleased to reward the intellect and creativity demonstrated by these undergraduate students,” said NCICU President Hope Williams. “Each year we get to witness the passion and resourcefulness that could lead to game-changing research.”