April 20, 2018

Forty-five Susquehanna University students recently returned from Oklahoma from the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR), where they presented research on topics ranging from biology to psychology.

Susquehanna has participated in NCUR for more than 15 years, sending more than 300 students to present their work in varying fields, including biology, chemistry, ecology, earth and environmental science, history, math, neuroscience, philosophy, political science and psychology.

The Council on Undergraduate Research has recognized Susquehanna as a leader in encouraging student research. In 2017, it named Susquehanna among the top 10 universities and colleges nationwide for sending the most students to NCUR that year—54 total.

Student research presented at the March conference included:

• Why the NIH and CDC Give Substantial Assistance to Some Public Health Crises and Not Others, by senior Brooke Grill, a biology major from Halifax, Pa., under the mentorship of Kirk Harris, assistant professor of political science.
• Who Will be the Apex Predator When Climate Change Affects Local Streams, by senior Savannah Rhoads, an ecology major from Selinsgrove, Pa., under the mentorship of Jonathan Niles, director, Susquehanna’s Freshwater Research Initiative.
• Self-Reported Health of Paternal Figures of Children With and Without Disabilities, by senior Annamarie Rudderow, a psychology major from Blandon, Pa., under the mentorship of Helen Kiso, assistant professor of psychology.

Susquehanna is one of more than 400 institutional members of the Council on Undergraduate Research. This year’s conference was held at the University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond, Okla.