Colorado State University undergraduates recently showcased a range of scholarly work across disciplines at the annual Celebrate Undergraduate Research and Creativity showcase hosted by CSU’s Office for Undergraduate Research and Artistry, or OURA.
This year’s event was held at the Lory Student Center on April 18.
“CURC really allows students at any stage of their creative journey to share what they are working on with the campus community,” said Louise Allen, program director for OURA. “We have outstanding submissions representing final work, as evidenced by the award winners highlighted here. I get really excited for the students who present new work that they are just starting. CURC provides a great opportunity for these students to practice presenting and get feedback from others on works in progress. Many of this year’s CURC award winners have presented at past showcases.”
In addition to OURA, this year’s award sponsors include CSU’s Energy Institute, the Graduate School, the College of Liberal Arts, the Data Science Research Institute and the Office of the Vice President for Research.
The winners are listed below, and more information can be found on the CURC website.
Best In Show
Community Engaged Learning Poster
Karen Rodriguez and Alejandra Aparicio Miranda
College of Liberal Arts
“Underserved Audience Extension Internship/Fellowship in Douglas County”
Mentor: Eric Ishiwata
Oral Presentation
Sandrín Molina and Ella Smith
College of Liberal Arts
“Being Trans in Public: a CSU Case Study”
Mentors: Nikoli Attai and Caridad Souza
Research Poster
Kayla Fairweather
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Macrophage Stimulation with TLR Agonists Induces a Pro-Inflammatory Tumoricidal Response”
Mentors: Nicole Ehrhart
Emily Perkins
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Establishing molecular mechanisms of glial-mediated response in a chronic pain in vitro model”
Mentor: Katriana Popichak
Performing Arts
Andrew Rutten
College of Liberal Arts
“Echoes of Mastery: Exploring Mangani’s Bass Concerto”
Visual Arts
Ana Mriglot
College of Natural Sciences
“Aspen’s Gaze”
Film
Giovanna Paterno
Warner College of Natural Resources
“DIY Music Communities of Fort Collins“
Mentor: Frank Boring
Creative Writing
Izabelle Hood
College of Liberal Arts
“Burnt Songs”
Mentor: Dan Beachy-Quick and Matthew Cooperman
Excellence in Data Science Research
Emma Hoopes
College of Agricultural Sciences
“Hyperspectral Imaging and Machine Learning for Plant Health Assessment”
Mentor: Phuong Dao
Sebastian Lawton
Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering
“Human Cells in Data: Predictors for Nuclear Shape“
Mentor: Ashok Prasad
Excellence in Diversity, Inclusion and Social Justice
Jaylin Nichols
College of Health and Human Sciences
“Different Minds: Supporting Neurodivergent Students in Higher Education”
Mentor: Aimee Walker
Ian Edwards-Clancy and Link Warren
Warner College of Natural Resources
“Growing Food Security at Colorado State University”
Mentor: Sylvia Lee
Excellence in Energy and Climate Solutions
Madzie Boyles
Warner College of Natural Resources
“Measuring Climate Vulnerability in Houston, Texas”
Mentor: Elizabeth Tulanowski
Kay Willock
Warner College of Natural Resources
“ATS Biofuel Viability in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed”
Mentors: Jason Quinn and David Quiroz
Excellence in Liberal Arts Research
Ali Niaz
College of Liberal Arts
“The Rocket Scientist vs. The Journalist: A Battle Within Culture”
Mentor: Jenny Fischer
Lauren Banas
College of Liberal Arts
“Proposal: S.A.V.E.D Space Curriculum”
Highest Honors
Hannah Butkus
College of Natural Sciences
“Expression and Hypoxia Sensitivity of ZO1 in Deer Mice Placenta”
Mentor: Kathryn Wilsterman
Kristin Weninger
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Urinary Tract Escherichia coli Infection as an Etiological Factor in Neurodegenerative Pathologies”
Mentor: Julie Moreno
Ashlynn Madril
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“A Shellfish Journey: Characterizing an Inhibitory Receptor in Crustacean Molting”
Mentor: Donald Mykles
Eilee Murray and Brittani Meis
College of Agricultural Sciences
“Changes in Soil health in Relation to Management in Dryland Agroecosystems”
Mentor: Meagan Schipanski
David Crosby
College of Natural Sciences
“Controlling Electron Flux, Energy Production, and Energy Conservation in vivo Through Protein-Protein Tethering”
Mentor: Sere Williams
Zoe Atkinson
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Gene-targeted mice expressing cervid prion protein efficiently peripheralize CWD prions to extraneural tissues”
Mentor: Glenn C. Telling
Johanna Merkel
College of Agricultural Sciences
“Efficacy of Fusarium spp. isolates in the management of wheat stem sawfly”
Mentor: Punya Nachappa
Clarissa Hernandez Jeppesen
College of Health and Human Sciences
“Promoting Nutrition”
Mentor: Lauren Shomaker
Paris Kiehl
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Inactivating probiotic-based rotavirus vaccine to study effect of lactic acid on immunoprotection”
Mentor: Gregg Dean
College Honors
Emily Wilson
College of Agricultural Sciences
“Associations between human and novel object approach test outcomes and health status in preweaned Holstein heifer calves”
Mentor: Catie Cramer
Lauren Benfield
College of Agricultural Sciences
“Longitudinal Analysis of Climate Adaptation Strategies for U.S. Dairy Farms”
Mentor: Jasmine Dillon
Phuong Nguyen and Joshua Chavez
College of Business
“Uncertain Language in Earnings Conference Calls and Analyst Forecast Dispersion – A Preliminary Study”
Mentors: Xinran Wang and Wenrui Zhang
Ellie Shyu
College of Health and Human Sciences
“Biological Age and Sex as Determinants of Skeletal Muscle Extracellular Vesicle Secretion”
Mentor: Daniel Lark
Bailey Kelly, Maya Lee and Autumn Pivonka
College of Health and Human Sciences
“Price and warning labeling impacts on red meat consumption among adult consumers in the U.S.”
Mentor: Colleen Burke
Bridget Brown
College of Health and Human Sciences
“Mechanical Testing of Kombucha Bacterial Cellulose to Assess Potential Applications in the Apparel Industry”
Mentor: Yan Li
Alex Mccraw
College of Liberal Arts
“For Dear Life”
Mentor: Joanna Deoxy
Sophie Stern, Matthew Silalahi, Annie Hessler and John Howe
College of Liberal Arts
“We The Creators”
Mentor: Jaime Jacobsen
Alexandra Lanucha, Ben Ballinger and Sol Rivera
College of Natural Sciences
“Coral Health and Color”
Mentor: Deedee Wright
Jason McDonald
College of Natural Sciences
“ChIP-seq for Hyperthermophilic Archaea: Understanding the Metabolic Guardian of Thermococcus kodakarensis”
Mentors: Brett Burkhart and Tom Santangelo
Alessandra Donev
College of Natural Sciences
“Minimum Sequence Requirements of Prion Like Domains in Yeast for Stress Granule Localization”
Mentor: Eric Ross
Karissa Coleman
College of Natural Sciences
“SPN-4 promotes 3UTR-dependent lin-41 mRNA clearance during the oocyte-to-embryo transition in Caenorhabditis elegans”
Mentor: Erin Osborne Nishimura
Anna Galaeva
College of Natural Sciences
“Development, Synthesis, and Characterization of [VO(3tBu-HSHED)dtb] as a potential anticancer agent: Preparation for Toxicity testing”
Mentors: Debbie C. Crans and Eric Ross
Rean Savi
College of Natural Sciences
“The Role of USP48 in Deubiquitylating H2A C-Terminal Ubiquitilation Catalyzed by BRCA1/BARD1”
Mentor: TingTing Yao
Jana Norris Oliver
College of Natural Sciences
“Verbal Overshadowing Effect: Application Beyond Crime Scenes and Line-ups”
Mentor: Haley McCoy
Claire Lundstrom
College of Natural Sciences
“Genetically Encoded Biosensors to Detect Ubiquitination in Live Cells”
Mentors: Tingting Yao and Robert Cohen
Sydney Johnson
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Gut microbial products, m-tyrosine and 3-(3-hydroxyphenyl)-3-hydroxypropionic acid, promote inflammation in autism-like cell model”
Mentor: Katriana Popichak
Evan Hurtado
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Development of a Sheep Brain Atlas”
Mentor: Richard McCosh
Genova Mumford
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“An In-Vivo Exploration of the Impact of the IKK Kinase complex on prion-induced inflammation”
Mentor: Julie Moreno
Michelle Galvan
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Investigating SARS-CoV-2 Evolution and Transmission in Lions, Tigers, and Hyenas at the Denver Zoo”
Mentor: Laura Bashor
Lauren Bennett
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“Evaluating the presence of Chronic Wasting Disease in free-range White-tailed deer in Arkansas”
Mentor: Nathaniel Denkers
Miles Hopkins and Jake Lonergan
College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
“White Matter Content and its Correlation to Activity Levels Throughout Healthy Aging”
Mentor: Agnieszka (Aga) Burzynska
Chloë Brekhus
Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering
“Development of an Automated Bone Transport Device”
Mentor: Ben Gadomski
Kate McGill
Warner College of Natural Resources
“A Comparison of Observed and Modeled Soil Moisture”
Mentor: Avery Driscoll
Elliot Batta
Warner College of Natural Resources
“Examining the Creation and Impact of Queer Counterspaces in Undergraduate Biology Fields”
Mentor: Sarah Eddy
Shelby Mead
Warner College of Natural Resources
“Microclimates under solar panels in agrivoltaic systems drives soil microbe community composition”
Mentor: J. Alexander Siggers
Amelia Anderson
Warner College of Natural Resources
“Wild horses in the west: Generating maps and learning modules for four K-12 curriculum levels”
Mentors: Sarah King and Stacy Lynn
Riley Dils
Warner College of Natural Resources
“On the Pulse: Investigating Fish Temperature Tolerance”
Mentor: Tawni Riepe
