This week, more than three dozen Scripps students will explore the intersections between science and society as they present findings from months of research. No two discussions are alike; one team will explore the Palestinian dairy industry, while the legacy of photographer Dody Weston Thompson is a topic one room over. One student has focused attention on the technical and social aspects of lobotomies in the 20th century, while another challenges the brain with elliptic curve cryptography. Now in its second year, the Fall Undergraduate Research Symposium is as varied and fascinating as the Scripps College community.
“We thought the symposium was the best way to highlight our outstanding student research,” says Associate Dean of Faculty Gretchen Edwalds-Gilbert. Initially built around a Mellon grant given to the College to support undergraduate research in the fine arts, humanities, and social sciences, the event also includes presentations by students who received Johnson, Scripps Environmental Analysis, Hsu, and Esterly awards.
“I am very excited to present,” says Vittoria Mollo ’15. “I am excited to hear what people will have to say about my research; I usually learn the most when I am able to bounce my ideas off others.”The highly competitive grants allow students the freedom to pursue directed research early in their college careers. They are also paired with Scripps faculty as mentors throughout the process; last year, Class of 2014 alumna Theresa Iker’s work on the Nevada divorce ranch culture with Professor Matt Delmont led to an editorial in The Huffington Post and coverage from a number of online news outlets.
“It’s an excellent forum for highlighting the research our students are conducting so early on in their careers,” says Vicki Klopsch, executive director of Career Planning & Resources. “In many cases, organizations want students who have had prior research experience. Summer research offered through the Keck Science Department and similar institutions offers them the chance to get started earlier than most.”
Faculty, students, and the larger Scripps community are invited to attend the symposium on Friday, September 12; an opening reception and remarks by Dean of Faculty Amy Marcus-Newhall precede the first of two sessions beginning at 11:00 am. A full schedule of speakers and topics is available here; for more information, please contact the Dean of Faculty Office at (909) 607-9100.
“Undergraduate students at research institutions rarely have real research opportunities,” says Edwalds-Gilbert. “Faculty mentor graduate students and maybe post-docs, but not undergrads; we’re in a completely different situation – one very advantageous to liberal arts colleges and our students – no matter what career path they follow.”