2021 Top Scholars and Finalists

Undergraduate Research Conference

Nelson Rusche College of Business

Top Scholar

Rachel Rucker
"County Level Changes Alone Predicted Biden Win in Both Pennsylvania and Wisconsin"
Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Phelps, Economics and Finance

Finalists

  • Johanna Bruhn
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Charlotte Allen, Management & Marketing
  • Johanna Bruhn, Parker Bailey, and Michael Armstrong
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Joe Ballenger, Management and Marketing
  • Veda Mize
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Robert McDermand, Management and Marketing
  • Chelsie Rodriguez and Autumn Romine
    "
    Faculty Sponsor: Joe Ballenger, Management and Marketing

James I. Perkins College of Education

Top Scholar

Emily Latta
"The Effects of Pre-Workout Caffeine Supplementation on Post-Exercise Hypotension"
Faculty Sponsor: Dustin Joubert, Kinesiology and Health Science

Finalists

  • Caleb Garcia
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Dustin Joubert, Kinesiology and Health Science
  • Haley Houston
    "Piaget vs. Vygotsky: Their Effectivity in Teaching"
    Faculty Sponsor: Yuan He, Education Studies
  • Amy Kitzman and Sarah Shingler
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Sarah Straub, Education Studies
  • Kenzi Payne
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Heather Samuelson, Kinesiology and Health Science
  • Erica Pinkham
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: William Davis, Education Studies
  • Kelly Tatum
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Sarah Straub, Education Studies
  • Brooke Ward, Michaela Gensler, and Shayla Gardner
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Sally Ann Swearingen, Human Sciences

College of Fine Arts

Top Scholar

Jay Teamer
"The Underrepresentation of Black and African-American Composers in the Standard Music History Curriculum"
Faculty Sponsor: Margaret Fay, School of Music

Finalists

  • Carson Cook
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: CC Conn, School of Theatre
  • Mason Cullen
    "Highway Hypnosis"
    Faculty Sponsor: Amanda Breitbach, School of Art
  • Nicolas Gagne
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Eden Collins, School of Art
  • Jasmin Limqueco and Jeremiah Armstrong
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: David Campo, School of Music
  • Alexis Nunes
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Abby Held, School of Music
  • Gracie Palmore
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Margaret Fay, School of Music
  • Gabriela Saldivar
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Maggie Leysath, School of Art

Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture

Top Scholar

Kasey Jobe
"Song Diversity in East Texas Bachman鈥檚 Sparrow (Peucaea aestivalis)"
Faculty Sponsor: Christopher Schalk, Forestry

Finalists

  • Andrew R. Fenley
    "Accuracy Assessment of Pecan Tree Locations"
    Faculty Sponsors:  David Kulhavy, Yanli Zhang, I-Kuai Hung and Daniel Unger, Forestry
  • Madison Gartman
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Candis Carraway, Agriculture
  • Keenon Lindsey
    "Relational Database for SAF Certified Forest Management Bachelors Programs in the U.S."
    Faculty Sponsors: Yanli Zhang, David Kulhavy, Daniel Unger, and I-Kuai Hung, Forestry
  • Chance J. Robinson, Alexander Hanks, Cameron Lane, and Dane Hopson
    "Comparison of Particulate Matter Concentrations in the Miller Science and STEM Buildings"
    Faculty Sponsor: Sheryll Jerez, Environmental Science
  • Emmie Schubert, Paige Graham, Amy Rambo, Jacqui Murguia, and Breanna Duran
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor:  Sheryll Jerez, Environmental Science
  • Jordan Stanford
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Candis Carraway, Agriculture
  • Jordan Stanford, Sydney Matlock, Samantha Montes, and Courtney Sims
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor:  Sheryll Jerez, Environmental Science, and Carmen Monta帽a-Schalk, Biology

College of Liberal and Applied Arts

Top Scholar

Amelia Kleiber
"'It Raineth Every Day': Overcoming Challenges by using Performance Pedagogy to Teach Shakespeare鈥檚 Twelfth Night"
Faculty Sponsor: Elizabeth Tasker-Davis, English and Creative Writing

Finalists

  • Abigail Adams
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor:  Janice Cho, Mass Communication
  • Jordan Butts
    "Gun Regulations and Gun Homicides: More Statistics, Less Persuasion"
    Faculty Sponsor: Lee Payne, Government
  • Megan Bynum (Best Freshman Paper)
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Gretchen Patterson, History
  • Kelly Ford
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Leslie G. Cecil, Anthropology, Geography, and Sociology
  • Jade Gordon
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Randi Barnes-Cox, History
  • Nicole Hale
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Carrie Butler, Social Work
  • Madison Montague
    "The Perfect Serial Killer Storm"
    Faculty Sponsor: Gretchen Patterson, History
  • Reese Murphy
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Elizbeth Spradley, Languages, Culture and Communication

College of Sciences and Mathematics

Top Scholar

Lucas Kahn
"Microplastics: A New Reported Item in Stomach Contents of Fishes in Local Streams in East Texas"
Faculty Sponsor: Carmen G. Monta帽a-Schalk, Biology

Finalists

  • Joseph Amell and Andrew Henry
    "Geochemical Analyses Across the Upper and Lower Formation Boundaries of the Jurassic Louann Salt, Gulf of Mexico, USA"
    Faculty Sponsor: Julie Bloxson, Geology
  • Hannah E. Beckett
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Donald Burt, Biology
  • Sarah Glaesemann
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Alyx Frantzen, Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Matthew Murphy
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Matibur Zamadar, Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Khang Nguyen
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Bidisha Sengupta, Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Olivia Plaza
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Beatrice Clack, Biology
  • Hannah Trauger
    ""
    Faculty Sponsor: Michele Harris, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Regional Colleges

Top Scholar

Deshona Jernigan, Psychology
"Analyzing the Development of Artificial Organs for the Benefit of Patients on the Transplant Waitlist"
Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College

Finalists

  • Jordan Booth, Psychology
    "Academic Embeddedness: How Does the Number of Classes Taken Affect Engagement? A Comparative Study Between Honors and Non-honors Students"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Breanna Barr-Shearin, Psychology
    "Setting the Standard: Does the Accessibility of Human Health Care Affect the Frequency of Veterinary Visits?"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Annalee Cook, Psychology
    "Different Art Mediums and Their Stress Reduction"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Julissa Plancarte, Sociology
    "The Link Between Mental Illness and Deviant Behavior"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Sarai Salgado, Psychology
    "Helicopter Parenting"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Melanie Torres, Psychology
    "The Perception of Student on Alcohol"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College
  • Sarah Wofford, Psychology
    "How Do the Factors That Inspire an Invention Affect Its Salability?"
    Faculty Sponsor: Ryan Button, Tyler Junior College