Office of Undergraduate Education

Award winners announced for 2022 Undergraduate Exhibition

The Undergraduate Exhibition returned to the HUB-Robeson Center in 2022. Students also participated in an online format. Credit: Brittani Kline / Penn StateCreative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Thirty undergraduate students were awarded for their research posters, oral presentations, performances and engagement posters during the 2022 Undergraduate Exhibition for Research, Inquiry, and Creative Activity.  

This year’s exhibition — which was both virtual and in-person — featured the undergraduate work of 282 Penn State students, who were judged by volunteer Penn State faculty, staff, graduate students and community members. Each year, Undergraduate Education and University Libraries recognize the top-scoring students in different categories. Some awards come with a cash prize. 

2022 Undergraduate Exhibition for Research, Inquiry, and Creative Activity winners 

Gerard A. Hauser Award 

Abriana Cain, College of Health and Human Development, “The effect of physical activity and energy restriction on tumor hypoxia and blood vessel normalization in a triple negative breast cancer model” 

University Libraries Undergraduate Research Award for Excellence in Information Literacy 

The John Sr. and Kimlyn Patishnock Undergraduate Research Award: Excellence in Information Literacy 

Geneva Flarend, Eberly College of Science, “The Effect of Stress on Opioid Use Behaviors: A Review of Preclinical Literature” 

First Place 

Chyvonne Jessick, College of Agricultural Sciences, “Manganese and Soil Carbon Dynamics Under Saturated Soil Conditions” 

Second Place 

Melody Munitz, College of the Liberal Arts, “The Effects of Spatial Distance and Empathy on Emotional Responses to Theatrical Events” 

Third Place 

Rachel Blansfield, College of the Liberal Arts, “The Association Between Adult Attachment Style and the Therapeutic Alliance: A Meta-Analytic Study” 

Honorable Mentions 

Kathleen Cardone, College of Health and Human Development, “G-Quadruplex Formation Within SLC6A3, a Potentially Relevant Finding to Substance Use Disorder” 

Nicole Lookfong, Penn State Harrisburg, “Cannabinoid Pharmacology in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)-Like Fear-Memory Behavior” 

Natalie Babitzke, Eberly College of Science, “Investigating the role of a HECT-type E3 ubiquitin ligase, PiUPL1, in regulating the stability of SLF proteins involved in self-incompatibility in Petunia Inflata” 

Emma Cohen, College of the Liberal Arts, “Seat Security and Tweet Extremity: An Analysis of Congress Members’ Tweets” 

Glenn Hubbard, College of Information Sciences and Technology, “Using Citizen Science to Generate Meaningful Research Questions” 

Sopida Pimcharoen, Eberly College of Science, “Developing Supramolecular Heparin-Peptide Materials as Injectable Anticoagulant Depots” 

Arts and Humanities 

First Place 

Leah Mullen, College of Arts and Architecture “those closest to the earth will burn first” 

Second Place 

Emma Lutz, College of the Liberal Arts, “Migrating Along the Pipeline: How political instability shapes mass emigration out of the Northern Triangle” 

Third Place 

Sarah Esslinger, College of Arts and Architecture, “A Letter from Sullivan Ballou” 

Business and Entrepreneurship 

First Place 

Vanshika Madaan, College of Agricultural Sciences, “Emergence & Challenges of Corporate Sustainability” 

Engineering 

First Place 

Emma Uy, College of Engineering, “Biofilm Growth in Changing Conditions” 

Second Place 

Himani Vommi, Penn State Brandywine, “Exploring Effectiveness of HIDS for Machine-Learning Data Defense” 

Third Place 

Morgan Prichard, College of Engineering, “Mass Timber Buildings: Impact of Connections on Embodied Carbon” 

Health and Life Sciences 

First Place 

Mia Peifer, Abigayle Nafus, Juan-Diego Hernandes Estupinan, Eberly College of Science, “C. Elegans as a Model for Purine Metabolism Disorders” 

Second Place 

Tiffany Hatfield, College of Agricultural Sciences, “An Analysis of the Parental Brain Hypothesis in Stickleback Fish” 

Third Place 

Sophia Mucciolo, Eberly College of Science, “Host selection: how milkweed species impacts population establishment of a specialist aphid” 

Physical Sciences 

First Place 

Thomas Thomas, Eberly College of Science, “The effect of parasitic wasp (Aphidius colemani) odor cues on nymph production and host-plant selection of aphids (Myzus persicae). 

Second Place 

Chyvonne Jessick, College of Agricultural Sciences, “Assessing the Extent of Bird-window Collision Mortality on the Pennsylvania State University Park Campus” 

Social and Behavioral Sciences 

First Place 

Jacquelyn Stochel, College of Health and Human Development, “Assessing Concreteness Rating Data in Older Adults” 

Second Place 

Kaylee Foor, College of the Liberal Arts, “Disparities by Race and Ethnicity in Anxiety and Depressive symptoms and the role of Stressors related to Education” 

Third Place 

Viviane Krug, College of the Liberal Arts, “Judicial Voting Behavior and the Deliberate Indifference Standard” 

Oral Presentation and Performance 

First Place 

Matthew Masciulli, Eberly College of Science, “Lipoprotein Structure and TLR detection in Bifidobacterium” 

Engagement 

Grant Zemanek, Eberly College of Science, “Can Habitat Management Help Non-Target Species?” 

Peter T. Luckie Awards for Outstanding Juniors 

Arts and Humanities 

Sarah Esslinger, College of Arts and Architecture, “A Letter from Sullivan Ballou” 

STEM 

Aayushi Patel, Penn State Harrisburg, “Exploring the Effect of Selenium on Cannabis sativa (industrial hemp) and cannabinoids derived from Cannabis sativa (industrial hemp)” 

Social and Behavioral Sciences 

Glen Hubbard, College of Information Sciences and Technology, “Using Citizen Science to Generate Meaningful Research Questions” 

The Undergraduate Exhibition is coordinated by Penn State Undergraduate Education

Last Updated May 4, 2022