UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER OF THE YEAR & UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH SYMPOSIUM
Thursday, Apr 14, 2022
Florida Atlantic University Office of Undergraduate Research and Inquiry awards various recognitions towards the end of the spring semester. Most recently, OURI announced Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for all FAU colleges and the 2022 Oral/Performing Arts Symposium winners.
The FAU Office of Undergraduate Research and Inquiry recognizes one student from every college as the Undergraduate Researcher of the Year . This year, of the nine colleges at Florida Atlantic University, FAU High School students earned two Undergraduate Researcher of the Year awards . Jaimie Yap, a junior at FAU High School, is the 2021-2022 Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts & Letters, with guidance from her faculty mentor Carol Mills. Satviki Singh, a senior at FAU High School, is the 2021-2022 Undergraduate Researcher of the Year for the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, with guidance from her faculty mentor Vivian Merk. Singh also earned the Northern Campuses Award for 2022 Undergraduate Researcher of the Year.
To be eligible, students must have participated in at least two semesters of documented faculty-mentored undergraduate research within the past calendar year and agree to present an oral presentation at the 12th Annual spring Undergraduate Research Symposium .
The 12th Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium showcased undergraduate students at FAU engaged in research, scholarship, and creative activities. Students representing all disciplines, colleges, and campuses of FAU involved in undergraduate research and scholarly activity presented their findings through poster/visual arts presentations or oral/performing arts presentations.
"We are fortunate to have enormous opportunities and support for undergraduate research at our university," said Tricia Meredith, Ph.D., Director of Research at FAU Lab Schools. "The Undergraduate Research Symposium provides these high school students a medium to share their dedication to learning and exciting discoveries with the wider university community. Their participation and performance at the symposium truly highlights their position as the next generation of researchers."
Nicholas Pizzo, a recent FAU High School grad, won first place in the Basic Sciences Oral/Performing Arts category with his presentation, The Role of the Drosophila Attracting Homolog in Insulin Signaling . Sydney Richner, a senior at FAU High School, earned second place in the Behavioral, Educational & Social Sciences Oral/Performing Arts category with her presentation titled Establishing Criminal Background Questions on University Applications as Harmful to Justice-Involved Applicants and Scoring State University System of Florida Universities' Diction . Sarah Thomas, a senior at FAU High School, earned second place in the Health & Medical Sciences Oral/Performing Arts category with her presentation titled Culture Conditions for the Recall of Preexisting Memory B and T cells to Childhood Vaccine Antigens within Peripheral Blood .
The Office of Undergraduate Research and Inquiry (OURI) serves as a centralized support office of faculty and students engaged in undergraduate research and inquiry across all colleges and campuses. OURI offers and supports university-wide programs such as undergraduate research grants, annual undergraduate research symposia, undergraduate research journals, prestigious fellowships and scholarships, and the Undergraduate Research Certificate.