“This year, people took it to a whole other level,” said Pryia Persaud, SURF Club president and organizer for the Showcase. “Instead of just posters, they created binders and brought all of their research, all of their questions, and everything they found with them to accompany their presentations. (CEDHP) has never really had enough posters and presentations to participate in the University-wide showcase, but now we do and we have our own category for the College of Education and Human Performance. That’s something we have wanted to do since last year and we were able to accomplish that goal this year.”

The spring showcase, held in room 117 in the Teaching Academy this time around, had expanded space available for presenters, and there were more than enough students participating to fill the space.

“We have around 34 presenters this time, and the majority of our presenters come from a research class that has started in the College,” Morgan Futch, graduate assistant for the CEDHP Office of Research tells us. “During the class they learn about research and are then asked as one of their final projects to present here at this poster presentation. And if they are really dedicated or get pretty excited about research, we encourage them to apply for SURE. In the end we’re hoping that we get more of our students involved there because they haven’t necessarily been in the past.”

Posters and projects once again covered a wide range of topics and research areas, from teacher retention and professional development to the benefits and impacts of recess on student success.

“My research project investigates the correlation between free, unstructured recess during the school day and development of leadership abilities or qualities,” student and presenter Meridith Doerstling tells us. “I really appreciated all the time we took in class to share with each other and Dr. Wise, and I got a lot of feedback and was able to refine a lot of what I had. So I felt a lot more confident about what I was able to put on my board and present today at the Showcase.”

The CEDHP Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings takes place twice a year and provides students with opportunities to refine and improve their research before participating in the University’s , a part of the  at �鶹ӳ����ý.

The week kicks off with a day of workshops including Dr. Tim Brown’s Communicating Your Research Workshop- ideal for those planning to present at one of the student research showcase’s later in the week.  For those students who are not yet involved in research but would like to learn more, Dr. Kimberly Schneider will be presenting Getting Started-Undergraduate Research that will review the research programs at �鶹ӳ����ý, how to find a faculty mentor, and more! Finally, the day will come to a close with a workshop for ALL �鶹ӳ����ý students on how to find, apply, and be competitive for National and International Scholarships and Fellowships. This workshop presented by the College of Graduate Studies will offer attendees a look at some of the largest and most prestigious financial awards that students can apply for and how to prepare their applications.

On Tuesday and Thursday, �鶹ӳ����ý students from all disciplines across campus will share their research with the �鶹ӳ����ý Community at the Graduate Research Forum and Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence respectively. Both open-house style events will be held in the Student Union Pegasus Ballroom and are open to everyone. Student presenters will receive faculty feedback, share their work, and compete for cash awards for best in category presentations! These celebrations of student research are also excellent opportunities for students early in their research career to ask questions of others and learn more about their academic disciplines.

Wednesday will feature three workshops ranging from a panel discussion about Planning for Success in Graduate School, a workshop entitled The Library- Your Research Partner for Finding and Organizing Your Literature, and finally a new addition to student research week- Student to Student: Debunking the Myths of Undergraduate Research, which will allow undergraduates the opportunity to converse with current researchers about how they got involved in research and what the experience is like.

Student Research Week is the primetime to highlight the excellence of scholarship at �鶹ӳ����ý and also encourage others who may be interested in getting involved with research.

The week kicks off with a day of workshops including associate professor Tim Brown’s Communicating Your Research Workshop, ideal for those planning to present at one of the student research showcases later in the week.  For those students who are not yet involved in research but would like to learn more, Kimberly Schneider, director of the Office of Undergraduate Research,  will be presenting Getting Started – Undergraduate Research that will review the research programs at �鶹ӳ����ý, how to find a faculty mentor, and more.

The day will come to a close with a workshop for all �鶹ӳ����ý students on how to find, apply, and be competitive for national and international scholarships and fellowships. This workshop presented by the College of Graduate Studies will offer attendees a look at some of the largest and most prestigious financial awards that students can apply for and how to prepare their applications.

On March 31 and April 2, �鶹ӳ����ý students from all disciplines across campus will share their research with the �鶹ӳ����ý community at the Graduate Research Forum and Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence respectively. Both open house events will be held in the Student Union Pegasus Ballroom and are open to everyone. Student presenters will receive faculty feedback, share their work, and compete for cash awards for best-in-category presentations. These celebrations of student research are also excellent opportunities for students early in their research career to ask questions of others and learn more about their academic disciplines.

April 1 will feature three workshops ranging from a panel discussion about Planning for Success in Graduate School, a workshop entitled The Library- Your Research Partner for Finding and Organizing Your Literature, and finally a new addition to student research week: Student to Student: Debunking the Myths of Undergraduate Research, which will allow undergraduates the opportunity to converse with current researchers about how they got involved in research and what the experience is like.  

Student Research Week is to highlight the excellence of scholarship at �鶹ӳ����ý and also encourage others who may be interested in getting involved with research.

The , a semi-annual event in the College, offers undergraduates in every track the opportunity to present current research findings and academic projects related to the field. From school uniforms to teacher training to educational access and more, students explore their particular areas of interest, review current literature, and present their findings to their fellow students as well as a panel of faculty judges.

Pryia Persaud, junior in mathematics, was the organizer for this fall’s showcase, and was overly impressed with the work that her fellow students brought forward.

“The event on the whole came about because we need to start introducing research to the undergraduate students,” Pryia tells us about this year’s event. “What we’re trying to do is bring people in and help them understand both what research is and why it is important, especially in the field of education. �鶹ӳ����ý is all about research, and we want to make sure our college is on track with that focus. We want to make sure that we have more participants attending the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence, and we want to make sure we’re promoting research possibilities as much as we can within the College of Education and Human Performance.”

As for her experience running this fall’s event, she said “When it is all complete it’s extremely rewarding to see what everyone has put together and the different ideas they have regarding what needs to be researched or what problems need to be looked into.”

Future opportunities for undergraduate CEDHP students include presenting education research at regional conferences and continuing to explore current topics in numerous education fields. Learn more about the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Findings at the link above, and visit the to learn more about campus-wide opportunities for students.

The student researcher recorded the cranes’ movements, patterns, nesting locations, food sources, and other information to establish a baseline of understanding about the birds and how to help provide for their protection on campus. She worked on the project through �鶹ӳ����ý’s Research and Mentoring Program at the Arboretum, and presented her findings at the recent Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence.

Zimmerman said she found 16 birds living on the campus, including one pair she named Bonnie and Clyde that live northwest of the CFE Arena. Although not migratory, some of the birds apparently wander during summers, when the campus population sometimes dips down to two birds, she said.

Even though twice a week she traveled an observation route that snaked around and through the 1,415-acre campus, she said she couldn’t have had such a detailed account of the birds without the help of others.

Last fall she enlisted the help of “citizen scientists” and asked them to help photograph sightings of the birds for her study. In all, she amassed 560 photos of the cranes, more than 400 of them submitted by �鶹ӳ����ý students and employees from their cellphones.

“That was critical to help the study,” she said.

The species is known for living around urban areas, and the birds are listed as threatened because of loss of habitat, mostly because of development. The heron-like birds stand about 4 feet tall with a patch of bald, red skin on top of their heads, and they usually are seen in small family groups or pairs.

“I thought they would be more repelled by people and traffic, but they weren’t,” Zimmerman said.

Scheduled for Tuesday, April 2, 2013, in the Student Union, the Graduate Research Forum is an excellent opportunity for you to showcase your research and creative projects in poster format while receiving valuable feedback from faculty judges. Cash awards of $800 for best poster submission in each category are given, and all participants receive university-wide recognition. Current �鶹ӳ����ý graduate students from all studies and disciplines are encouraged to participate.

Brandon Lojewski, a previous Graduate Research Forum winner, took what he learned from the Forum and went on to win a $100,000 competition for his “green” research-based company. “Winning the Graduate Research Forum supported and substantiated my research, proving that this research is not only potentially commercializable, but it is also academically important,” shares Lojewski. Winning the Graduate Research Forum gave him the boost he needed, encouraging him to pursue his research further, and he was rewarded greatly for it.

If you have a research or creative project that you would like to share with the world, submit your proposal today! All you need is your abstract of 250 words or less, along with your name, contact information, and the title of the presentation. There is no cost for submissions. Proposals must be received by Monday, February 11, 2013. Late submissions will not be accepted.

Don’t wait—submit your proposals today and share some of the success of former Graduate Research Forum winners!

For more information on the Graduate Research Forum and submission guidelines, please visit www.graduate.ucf.edu/ResearchForum or email researchweek@ucf.edu.

�鶹ӳ����ý’s Student Research Week is a time to celebrate the research and creative projects of �鶹ӳ����ý students. From April 1 – 4 at the �鶹ӳ����ý Student Union, you can check out the remarkable cutting-edge research – many times using the most advanced modern technology – that students are undertaking to explore community challenges and help solve real-world problems. Research presentations will be displayed during the Graduate Research Forum and the Showcase of Undergraduate Research Excellence (SURE). Student Research Week also features a great assortment of helpful professional development workshops and The State of STEAM, a unique art exhibit containing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) inspired artworks. All events are free and open to the public. For more information and a complete schedule of events, please visit .

Starting with just three students enrolled in the Class of 2006-2007, now the College of Nursing’s HIM students account for 20 percent of the entire Class of 2009-2010 and span three �鶹ӳ����ý campuses (Orlando, Cocoa and Daytona).

Established in 1989, HIM is the oldest and most prestigious undergraduate research program at �鶹ӳ����ý. Designed to encourage students to undertake original and independent work in their major field, each student selected into the HIM program must research, write, defend and publish an original honors thesis that serves as the capstone project of their undergraduate career. The research is then eligible to be presented in competitive research events such as �鶹ӳ����ý’s Showcase for Undergraduate Research Excellence (SURE).

For more information on how to enroll in the College of Nursing’s Honors in the Major program, contact assistant professor and HIM coordinator, Dr. Victoria Loerzel, at victoria.loerzel@ucf.edu.

The College of Nursing’s Honors in the Major (HIM) students swept all four awards given in the Health Sciences category at the Showcase for Undergraduate Research Excellence (SURE) on April 1, 2010. Out of 22 entrees in the Health Sciences category, 10 were from the College of Nursing, and four won awards.

Jamie Bigler, who was mentored by assistant professor Dr. Victoria Loerzel, won first place. Her research explored, “Interventions to Improve Psychological Sequelae in Women with Ovarian Cancer.”

Corrine Caswell-Riley collaborated with assistant professor Dr. Pamela Ark in exploring, “Nursing Interventions for Adolescent Substance Abuse Use.” Caswell-Riley placed second.

Lydia Watkins and Maureen Woodman were awarded honorable mention in the category. Watkins, a student on �鶹ӳ����ý’s Cocoa campus, worked with nursing instructor Stephen Heglund on “Improving Nonverbal Communication Between Nurses and Deaf and Hard-Hearing Children,” and Woodman worked with nursing instructor Betsy Guimond and associate professor Dr. Maureen Covelli on “Fertility Awareness-Based Methods of Avoiding and Achieving Preganacy: An Effective Means of Family Planning and Promoting Women’s Empowerment.”

Established in 1989, HIM is the oldest and most prestigious undergraduate research program at �鶹ӳ����ý. Designed to encourage students to undertake original and independent work in their major field, each student selected into the HIM program must research, write, defend and publish an original Honors thesis that serves as the capstone product of their undergraduate career. The research is then eligible to be presented in competitive research events such as SURE.

SURE is hosted annually by the Office of Undergraduate Research. The event provides an outlet for undergraduate students to present their research and to practice their communication skills to a broader audience. The Showcase demonstrates how student research builds upon and enriches the �鶹ӳ����ý undergraduate experience. Visit for more details.

Contributing writer: Kristin Soto, �鶹ӳ����ý College of Nursing communication intern