3/20/2017 - Jackson, Miss.

Students from all eight of Mississippi's public universities will share their research and creative activities on topics ranging from healthcare to cultural heritage to environmental issues with legislators and state leaders at Posters in the Rotunda, which will be held in the Rotunda of the State Capitol on Thursday, March 23. The students will show how their research solves some of Mississippi's most pressing problems and benefits the citizens of the state.

The event provides opportunities for legislators to visit with students from their districts, allows students to network with each other as they learn about work on other campuses, and showcases the cutting-edge research conducted by undergraduates that benefits the residents of Mississippi.

"Posters in the Rotunda epitomizes both the diversity and high quality of the scholarship being done by students and their faculty mentors," said Dr. Marie Danforth, Chair of the Steering Committee for the Drapeau Center for Undergraduate Research at The University of Southern Mississippi and coordinator of the event. "This year, we've been able to expand the event to include more undergraduates from each university. Two students representing Mississippi INBRE, a statewide program focusing on biomedical research, are also participating."

Modeled after the Posters on the Hill event in which students from across the country share their work in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Mississippi's Posters in the Rotunda event is similar to ones held in 17 other states. The posters will be on display in the Rotunda and hallways of the State Capitol from 7:30 a.m. until 9:30 a.m.

Scheduled speakers include Governor Bryant and Lieutenant Governor Tate Reeves, with introductions given by Dr. Gordon Cannon, Vice President for Research at The University of Southern Mississippi.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 633 designates March 23, 2017 as "Undergraduate Research Day in Mississippi" to emphasize the value of scholarly inquiry and the application of research to the education of future leaders. The resolution has been approved by both the Senate and Mississippi House of Representatives.

"I am so pleased that the Posters in the Rotunda event has been expanded to include even more students for its second year," said Dr. Glenn Boyce, Commissioner of Higher Education. "This is an excellent program that highlights the value of undergraduate research and the impact university research has on solving Mississippi's most pressing problems. Participating in undergraduate research projects provides a great experience for the students, strengthening their academic, leadership and presentation skills and preparing them for research on the graduate level."

The students participating in the Posters in the Rotunda event and the titles of the research projects include:

• Afua Antwi-Boasiako (Alcorn State University): Selective Sensing of Breast Cancer Cell Using Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy
• Kayla Bailey (Mississippi Valley State University): Interaction of Biodegradable Nanoparticles with Bovine Serum Sibumin
• Jarett Bell (University of Mississippi): Evaluating the Land Use Land Cover Change in the Coastal Watersheds of Mississippi
• Haley Bender (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Cherish Burrell (Alcorn State University): Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) in Sediments from Lower Stretches of the Mississippi River
• Jackson Coole: (Mississippi State University): Using GITLAB in Computer Science Programming Courses
• Erin Crater (University of Southern Mississippi): Photon Upconversion via Triplet-triplet Annihilation in Diphenylanthracene Based Copolymers
• Cassidy DeGreen (Mississippi University for Women): Comprehensiveness of Sex-Trafficking Survivor Recovery Assistance Programs in the U.S.
• Menelik Gatachew (Jackson State University): Using GITLAB in Computer Science Programming Courses
• Fleshia Gordon (Mississippi State University): Sweet Potato Leather
• Nathaniel Greene (University of Mississippi): Giving Wings But Keeping Them Clipped: The Relationship Between Overprotective Parenting and Student Psychological Well-Being During the Transition to College
• Tamra Harrison (Mississippi University for Women): Children's Guide to Columbus
• Kristina Hong (Delta State University): Game-Based Student Response Systems and Academic Performance
• John Hood (University of Southern Mississippi): Diastereoselective Synthesis of 2,4,6-Trisubstituted Piperidines via aza-Prins Cyclization
• Brittany Hulsey (Delta State University): Paleocommunity of Rancholabrean Age Megafauna Found Along Lower Mississippi Delta Gravel Bars
• Tembra Jones (INBRE/Tougaloo College): Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist Reduces Lipopoly-saccharide-Induced Brain Injury and Improves Neurobehavioral Performance in Neonatal Rats
• Dana Shondrika Jones (INBRE/William Carey University): Activity of Plant-Derived Antimicrobials Against Antibiotic Resistant Pathogens
• Nahu Merawi (Jackson State University): Using GITLAB in Computer Science Programming Courses
• Rebekah Lee (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Jasmine Liddell (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Kenzye Murden (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Victor Opurum (Mississippi Valley State University): Visualization of Atomic Level Material Structure Using Qt 41
• Kiersten Page (Delta State University): Using VARK Modalities to Increase Retention in Organic Chemistry
• Patricia Perry (Jackson State University): Using GITLAB in Computer Science Programming
• Heather Poole (University of Mississippi): Improving Health of Rural Mississippians through Farmers' Markets
• Jenedria Price (Alcorn State University): Depression, Alcohol Abuse and Suicidal Ideation in College Students: A Study Conducted by ASU-SPARK Project at Alcorn State University
• Maya Rex (University of Southern Mississippi): Racial Bias in Elementary School Children: Effects of Skin Color and Facial Features
• Elizabeth Roshelli (Mississippi State University): Populations in Flux: An Analysis of Broadcast and Web-based News Presentations of the Migration Crisis in Russia
• Jermarlius Rushing (Mississippi Valley State University): School Desegregation in Mississippi - It Goes On and On
• Ciarra Smith (Mississippi State University): Anxiety-Related Behaviors in Juvenile T. gondii-Infected Mice
• Ernest Smith (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Centurie Stewart (Jackson State University): Spring Break Kick-Off: STD/HIV Education and Sexual Health Kits Dissemination Initiative
• Britton Strickland (University of Southern Mississippi): The Functional Significance of Branch Points in Mirtrons
• Sarah Sutton (University of Mississippi): Spectroscopic and Computational Study of Chlorine Dioxide/Water Interactions
• Ariel Walker (Alcorn State University): The Effects of Foot Arch on Tibia Force Through the Leg During an Underbody Blast Event
• William Weeks (Delta State University): Electrospinning Alginate-Based Nanofibers
• Egypt Williams (Mississippi Valley State University): Government Assistance and the Increase in One-Parent Households

More information on the Posters in the Rotunda event is available on the website: postersintherotundams.org.

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The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning governs the public universities in Mississippi, including Alcorn State University; Delta State University; Jackson State University; Mississippi State University including the Mississippi State University Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine; Mississippi University for Women; Mississippi Valley State University; the University of Mississippi including the University of Mississippi Medical Center; and the University of Southern Mississippi.

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