YORK, Pa. — Two students from Penn State York took first place at the 12th annual Penn State Eastern Regional Undergraduate Research Symposium on Saturday, April 22, at the York campus. The event featured 38 projects from across eight campuses.
View photos from the event here.
The winners were chosen by a panel of faculty judges, who weighed each project by:
- Creativity
- Thorough background and understanding
- Professionalism and critical thought
The winners are:
Arts and Humanities
1st Place – Xiomara Larkin
- Campus: York
- Mentor: Joy Giguere
- Project Title: "Lebanon Cemetery"
2nd Place – Katherine Joyce
- Campus: Schuylkill
- Mentor: Harold Aurand
- Project Title: "Life, Liberty, and the 'Pirates of the Caribbean'"
Biological Sciences and Health
1st Place – Hannah Wicker
- Campus: York
- Mentor: Jessica Petko
- Project Title: "Alternative Splicing of the Circadian Regulatory Gene Period in the Common House Spider, Parasteatoda tepidariorum"
2nd Place – Jonathan Perez
- Campus: Lehigh Valley
- Mentor: Jacqueline Mclaughlin
- Project Title: "Aquatic Health of the Dunabe Basin: Assessment of Select Areas Within the Brăila Islands, Romania"
Physical Sciences, Mathematics, Information Sciences, and Engineering
1st Place – Gracie Clare Guerin
- Campus: Brandywine
- Mentor: Anna Sigmon
- Project Title: "Metal Complexes of Flavonoids: Their Synthesis, Characterization, and Potential Medicinal Properties"
2nd Place – Dennis Bromley
- Campus: Brandywine
- Mentors: Marina Skyers and Samantha Pezzimenti
- Project Title: "Golden Hexagons and Honeybees"
Social Sciences and Business
1st Place – Gianna Gomes
- Campus: Lehigh Valley
- Mentors: Jennifer Parker, Andjela Kaur, and Teresa Kistler
- Project Title: "Uncovering the Link Between Autism, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and Socioeconomic Status: The Protective Influence of Family Resilience"
2nd Place – Lexie Berry
- Campus: Brandywine
- Mentors: Joshua Marquit
- Project Title: Meta-Analysis: "The Impact of Deployment on the Mental Health and Well-being of Children in Military Families"
This event was made possible by the Eastern Regional Steering Committee, Andy Landis, Robert Farrell, Susan Conway, Jamaira Unangs, Makenzie Nolt, Anne Vardo-Zalik, Emerson Petko, campus maintenance, campus security, student volunteers and faculty judges.
Questions about this year’s Eastern Regional Symposium? Contact Jess Petko at jac554@psu.edu.