Pittsburg State's Research Colloquium sees high student turnout
Pittsburg hosts Spring Artwalk, celebrates area artists
Pittsburg approves higher recoverable costs for Creekside Villas
Pittsburg to host Art Festival on Saturday
Pittsburg State highlights construction careers for future workers
Kansas courts engage college students with live hearings
The Research Colloquium is described by Pittsburg State University as an event that allows students and faculty to share ideas, celebrate discoveries, and enjoy new perspectives.
'We proudly witnessed record-breaking participation, reflecting an extraordinary level of academic engagement and enthusiasm,' said Associate Vice President of Research and Support Ram Gupta.
Event organizers say this year's event had the highest number of participants in the last ten years, reaching a number of nearly 160 entrants. Gupta said the event highlights the vibrant research culture and intellectual curiosity thriving across departments. For the students, it sharpens essential skills like public speaking, critical thinking, and effective communication — all vital for future professional and academic success.
Gupta also says interests were diverse, including:
David Mendez of St. Mary's Colgan High School presented finding on the effect of music on the development of a child.
Maya Craven of Joplin High School presented her findings on how the use of sheep wool pellets—a discarded item—could be used to aid water conservation in areas of drought.
History major Makenzie Coomes (not pictured) outlined the factors that contributed to the success of the university under the leadership of President William A. Brandenburg.
Biology major Rylan Mason, who summarized her work to document native and non-native plants in Bates County, Mo.—an under-surveyed region where she has found 36 county records.
'This is a space where mentorship flourishes, creativity thrives, and students are empowered to become the next generation of thinkers, problem-solvers, and leaders,' Gupta said of the event.
Pittsburg State tells us more than 20 esteemed judges were present to choose winning presentations, both poster presentations and oral presentations in high school undergraduate, and graduate levels in several categories:
Overall poster presentation winners
Graduate:
Josh Ortolani (Synergistic Long-Term Protection of Inorganic and Polymer Hybrid Coatings for Free-Dendrite Zinc Anodes)
Dharmikkumar Patel (Mechanically Robust, Self-Healing, and Reprocessable Geraniol Based Epoxy Vitrimer by Dynamic Boronic Ester Bonds)
Undergraduate:
Jayme Barkley (Hyperbranched Polyesters Containing Natural Antibacterial Compounds)
High School:
Christian Cavener (A Novel Analysis of the Redshift Dependence of the Masses of the Supermassive Black Holes of a Sample of Quasars)
Overall oral presentation winners
Graduate:
Khadija Ceesay (Beyond the Poster: Unveiling the Realities of War and the Trauma of Soldiers in Literature from WWI to Vietnam)
Undergraduate:
Trevor Bohnenblust (Market Augmentation of the U.S. Soybean Crush Spread)
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