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Students shine at Capitol research event More than 100 undergraduate researchers and faculty advisers from across the University of Wisconsin System shared research findings with university representatives, elected officials and members of the public during an April event at the Wisconsin State Capitol. The event, “Posters in the Rotunda: A Celebration of Undergraduate Research,” showcased the undergraduate research efforts of students from 15 UW System campuses and featured a short program of speakers who acknowledged the student work. Cora Marrett, UW System senior vice president for academic affairs, thanked the chancellors, state officials and elected representatives who attended the event. “Our proudest accomplishments are represented by the faculty and students in this room, all of whom work together to foster creative discovery, scholarship and expression, and, in so doing, make extraordinary contributions to our state and nation,” said Cora Marrett. David Walsh, vice president of the UW Board of Regents, said undergraduate research is an important opportunity for students to work as part of a team, to ask new questions, initiate ideas and make discoveries. “These skills will be necessary for these students throughout their working careers,” Walsh said. “Collaborative research gives students the practical experience that makes an impact on potential employers and graduate school recruiters. Businesses consistently say they look for new workers who have had hands-on experience.” Dr. R. Corby
Hovis, lead program director for research experiences for undergraduates
in the division of undergraduate education for the National Science
Foundation, said the kind of UW System research on display at the
event helps fulfill the NSF’s mission to encourage the advancement
of science and engineering through people, ideas and skill sets.
NSF also supports undergraduate research as a way to shift teaching from lecture-hall presentations to hands-on, active learning, Hovis said. Stan Davis, deputy chief of staff for Gov. Jim Doyle, thanked the students for their contributions and presented the governor’s proclamation of the week of April 26 as Undergraduate Research Week in Wisconsin. “These exhibits show exactly the kinds of contributions that the university and students make to the state,” Davis said. Mike Salmela, a senior at UW-River Falls, thanked the university and state officials for their attendance and support of undergraduate research at all UW campuses. Undergraduate research helps students understand more about how to apply knowledge learned in the classroom toward real-world scientific problems, Salmela said. ”My favorite thing about performing research is the chance to possibly see something that nobody else in the world has ever seen,” he said. “Besides undergraduate research helping myself, I have seen what it has done for my classmates. I have seen how much they have learned, how much they enjoyed it, and I have seen it help them get closer to their career goals.”
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