Cook Lahti Scholars Symposium

Monday & Tuesday, April 22-23, 1:10–4:30 PM
Biology Department Senior Project Symposium, various rooms in Steffee Hall of Life Sciences
The Department of Biology is pleased to host its 26th Annual Senior Project Symposium to celebrate the biological research accomplishments of the Class of 2024. All members of the college community are invited and welcome to attend. Juniors, sophomores, and freshmen who are majoring or intending to major in Biology are especially encouraged to attend and participate. Follow this link for the full schedule of Biology Senior Presentations.

Monday, April 29, 4:30–6:00 PM
Global Health Studies Senior Poster Celebration, Carr Hall Lobby, 238, and 239
Please join The Department of Global Health Studies and members of the 2024 graduating class during their annual Senior Project Symposium to celebrate the research accomplishments of the Class of 2024. All members of the college community are invited and welcome to attend.

Are you a first or second year student interested in opportunities to engage in research, internships, civic engagement, or other Allegheny opportunities like these? Would you like to talk with students, faculty, or staff who have participated in such opportunities in the past? If so, please complete this Google Form to RSVP for the Scholars Symposium Mentor Breakfast. The Mentor Breakfast is a casual, catered breakfast where first year and second year students can mingle and talk with graduating seniors, professors, and representatives from the Maytum Center for Student Success about how to get involved in these opportunities at Allegheny.

Session 1: Academic Posters. During this session, students from across all years and disciplines will present research projects and creative activities that they have completed during the 2023-2024 academic year. Stop by the Campus Center lobby to view the outcomes of these projects and chat with our student scholars.

Session 2: During this session, Senior comp students majoring in the Art Department will be in the Allegheny Art Galleries along with representative pieces. Please pop by and view their work during this morning session.

A celebration for the Allegheny Community will take place on Brooks Walk from noon to 1:15. There will be a ceremony near Reis Hall at noon. Speakers will include President Cole, Provost Haddad and VP for Advancement Matt Stinson. They will be sharing news about exciting projects that will be taking place at Allegheny in the coming months.

Lunch will be provided free of charge. There will be food trucks on Brooks Walk and tables and chairs in Brooks Circle. In the event of inclement weather, the food trucks will be on the walkway near Carnegie Hall and seating will be in Schultz Dining Hall.

Dr. Ishita Sinha-Roy, Professor (Department of Communication, Media, and Performance)
Professor Sinha-Roy will deliver the Faculty Keynote Address, titled “iWonder” in which Professor Sinha-Roy will provide a brief reflection on how dead people, photobombing in India, Grounds for Change (GFC), and (un)zipping, have produced great research. Following Professor Sinha-Roy’s remarks, the following three seniors, nominated by their respective programs, will give brief presentations describing highlights from their senior projects.

India McCruter
Major: Political Science
Minor: Philosophy
Hometown: Columbus, OH

Title: “The Care of Justice”

Abstract: The goal of The Care of Justice is to theorize what role, if any, compassion has in how Americans approach achieving racial justice to support the health and viability of the United States democracy. The project utilizes the Brown v Board of Education Supreme Court decision as a founding ideal and principle of achieving racial justice in the educational structure. Through further analysis, the degree of racial education disparities suggests that the intentions of the Brown v Board of Education decision have in the long term failed due to the political interests that led to the decision. The work of Care of Justice proposes that to ultimately achieve racial justice compassion must be a part of the political approach of citizens who want a healthy and sustainable democracy.

Ankitha Pamula
Major: Neuroscience
Minor: Economics
Hometown: Athens, PA

Title: “Sleep Quality & Cell Phone Use: A Survey Performed In Allegheny College Students”

Abstract: Sleep is increasingly important for the brain and mental and physical well being. Unfortunately, there are many variables which contribute to worsening sleep quality. My research focused on determining if problematic cell phone use has any correlation to sleep quality. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Problematic Use of Mobile Phone (PUMP) scales were paired together in a survey and distributed to Allegheny College students. Data collected from 68 students was analyzed statistically and found to have a statistically significant moderately positive correlation between the PSQI and PUMP scores. This moderate positive correlation indicates some influence of phone use on sleep quality, but not as the sole factor. Other factors that may influence sleep quality are stress, socioeconomic status, academic achievement, physical activity, and smoking.

Lirona Wainer-Yaffe
Major: English (Literature)
Minors: Political science and psychology
Hometown: Rehovot, Israel

Title: “How Maxwell Perkins’s Relationships Inform Contemporary Approaches to Cultivating Successful Author-Editor Relationships in U.S Book Publishing”

Abstract: In order to answer my research question, “What is a successful author-editor relationship?” I examined the author-editor relationships of Maxwell Perkins and three of his authors – F. Scott Fitzgerald, Thomas Wolfe, and Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings – by analyzing and closely reading their correspondences, as shared in Editor to Author: The letters of Maxwell Perkins (Wheelock 1950), and Max Perkins: Editor of Genius (Berg 1978). It was imperative that I investigate more than one relationship, since each author-editor relationship is unique. It is impossible to glean what constitutes a good editor, or what informs a successful author-editor relationship, from one single example. Not only do different editors take different approaches, but the same editor may also take varying approaches to each distinct author-editor relationship they are part of. My exploration of Perkins’s relationships with Fitzgerald, Wolfe, and Rawlings individually illuminated the differences, and the consistencies, in Perkins’s navigation of author-editor relationships, thereby revealing when his conduct formed patterns, standards, and methodologies that could be adapted so that they are useful to today’s editors in cultivating successful author-editor relationships

For the past 18 years, Allegheny College has held a Senior Project Poster Symposium to highlight work from nominated students across all departments and programs. At this session, you can learn about research and scholarly activities from graduating seniors in the humanities, natural and social sciences, interdisciplinary pursuits, as well as seniors that have participated in internships, civic engagement projects, and international experiences. More information about this event will be provided in April. Light refreshments will be provided.

At this special ceremony, student prizes are announced and awarded by representatives of all the departments and programs at Allegheny College. In addition, the valedictorian of the 2024 graduating class will speak.

We invite you back to the Main floor of the Pelletier Library after the Honors Convocation for one last chance to mingle, look at posters, chat with colleagues, and to celebrate student success and scholarship during the 2023-2024 academic year. Light refreshments will be provided.

Please join us in the theatre for a screening of senior project films conceived and produced by students across several academic programs:

Kyle Chandler: “Rescue II” (Narrative)
Emmalee Brammer: “(re)collection” (Experimental)
Sasha Holguin: “Felt the Power” (Educational)
Willie Knight: “YES” (Documentary)
Trevon Worship: “Allegiance” (Narrative)

The Department of Biology is pleased to host its 25th Annual Senior Project Symposium to celebrate the biological research accomplishments of the Class of 2023. All members of the college community are invited and welcome to attend. Juniors, sophomores, and freshmen who are majoring or intending to major in Biology are especially encouraged to attend and participate. Follow this link for the full schedule of Biology Senior Presentations.

We invite graduating students who have been accepted into Graduate and Professional Schools to join Allegheny College Administration in a celebratory reception recognizing their achievements and celebrating next steps in their educational journey. If you are a graduating student, please contact Dean Jonathon May (jmay@allegheny.edu) to RSVP.

Are you a first or second year student interested in opportunities to engage in research, internships, civic engagement, or other Allegheny opportunities like these? Would you like to talk with students, faculty, or staff who have participated in such opportunities in the past? If so, please complete this Google Form to RSVP for the Scholars Symposium Mentor Breakfast. The Mentor Breakfast is a casual, catered breakfast where first year and second year students can mingle and talk with graduating seniors, professors, and representatives from the Maytum Center for Student Success about how to get involved in these opportunities at Allegheny.

During this session, students from across all years and disciplines will present research projects and creative activities that they have completed during the 2022-2023 academic year. Recognizing that the outcome of scholarship doesn’t always fit nicely on an academic poster, we’ll have student projects being presented concurrently in various locations in the Campus Center — be sure to check out all of the different venues during this session!

Opening Performance. Be sure to get to the Campus Center lobby right at 11:00 so that you can listen to an Allegheny College student vocal ensemble as they kick off the Student Spotlight Session with a vocal performance!

“The Tipsy Waltz and Wedding Duet” from La Pericholé
Music by Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)

La Pericholé – Laura Haney, soprano
Piquillo – Matthew Dugan, tenor
Don Andrès – Ryan Sesler, bass
Company – Olivia Alexander, Jacob Beaudoin, Madison Boring, Graham Carr, Tony Ennis, Evelyn Griffith, Grant Haggard, Rae Robison

“The Battle of Jericho”
Music arranged by Moses Hogan (1957-2003)

Allegheny College Choir
Evelyn Griffith, soprano

Session 1. We invite you to join and casually browse through the Campus Center lobby to view posters poster by, and converse with, Allegheny students across all academic years and disciplines about the work that they did during the past academic year. We’ll have posters from students who did summer research, internships, independent studies, and capstone projects from our Bonner Program.

Session 2. Swing by CC301 & 302 to chat with students that are part of the Global Citizen Scholars Cohort V. For the past three semesters, this cohort has been working on an oral history project focused on less commonly heard voices during the COVID pandemic and explores how pre-existing inquiries in society were exacerbated or made more visible during the pandemic. Students that are part of this project will be sharing a website that they have been working to create that contains with all of the interviews that they conducted.

Please join us during this session to hear from this year’s Keynote Speaker (Dr. Lauren French) as well as 3 graduating seniors. These students were nominated by their respective department or program and selected by the Director of URSCA to share brief oral presentations about their Senior Comp work.

Keynote address by Dr. Lauren French, Associate Professor of Biology, on “Building Confidence and Breaking Down Barriers with Collaborative Research”

Student: Erin Magnus
Major/Minor: Philosophy Major; History Minor
Title of Talk: Cybernetic Self-Curation
Abstract: My project explores the possibilities for self construction and presentation in the twenty-first century. Through an examination of identity construction spanning from the beginning of the modern period in the sixteenth century to the present day, I argue for a new understanding of self-presentation that is rooted in the material conditions of the digital era. These conditions are shaped by the internet as a public, cooperative worldwide network, as well as influenced by late-stage American capitalism. Online activity facilitates the creation of virtual selves, social media in particular providing a framework for people to curate their own identities and present themselves to others. I propose curation as a way to conceive of selfhood. This account of selfhood holds the potential to imagine new forms of embodied existence that go beyond the problems of a modern, unitary self. Additionally, in conceiving of themselves as curated selves, people become engaged in a liberatory project where humans are not at odds with digital technology, but rather learn to exist with it. This project contributes to ongoing conversations in philosophy by exploring ways persons may conceive of themselves, providing a framework for understanding selfhood in the context of digitized capitalism.

Student: Lilly Noel
Major/Minor: Global Health Studies Major; Music Performance Minor
Title of Talk: The Relationship Between Maternal Education and Child Health Outcomes Relating to Diarrheal Disease in Ghana
Abstract: Maternal health and education affect child health outcomes relating to diarrheal disease in Ghana. Risk factors such as the mother’s education level, socioeconomic status, geographic location, and access to care impact diarrheal disease prevalence and child health outcomes. Standard Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) from 2003 and 2014 showed an increase in family planning methods usage in rural populations and a decrease in urban areas. Additionally, the surveys showed an increase in family planning as educational attainment increased. Higher educational attainment was also associated with decreased child diarrhea prevalence. Between 2003 and 2014, there was an increase in individuals seeking treatment in government hospitals, health centers, and drug stores. The highest prevalence of child diarrhea was found to be in breastfeeding children. The trends concluded that maternal education had a significant impact on diarrheal prevalence whereas family planning usage did not show as significant an impact.

Student: Raina Semenick
Major/Minor: Chemistry Major, Studio Art Minor
Title of Talk: Development of a Self-replicating Molecular Scaffold Utilizing Dynamic-Covalent Chemistry and Chalcogen Bonding
Abstract: Exploring self-replicating molecular systems which are not DNA-based are important to the pursuit of exobiotic life. This can be achieved by covalently attaching two complementary compounds to form a larger, self-complementary template molecule. We designed and synthesized a new molecular scaffold that utilizes sulfur interactions as part of its replication mechanism. The key scaffold-forming step acts through dynamic equilibrium. The synthesis of the dynamic template molecule and the subsequent kinetic studies to confirm self-replication are presented.

For the past 17 years, Allegheny College has held a Senior Project Poster Symposium to highlight work from nominated students across all departments and programs. At this session, you can learn about research and scholarly activities from graduating seniors in the humanities, natural and social sciences, interdisciplinary pursuits, as well as seniors that have participated in internships, civic engagement projects, and international experiences. More information about this event will be provided in April. Light refreshments will be provided.

At this special ceremony, student prizes are announced and awarded by representatives of all the departments and programs at Allegheny College. In addition, the valedictorian of the 2023 graduating class will speak.

We invite you back to the Main floor of the Pelletier Library after the Honors Convocation for one last chance to mingle, look at posters, chat with colleagues, and to celebrate student success and scholarship during the 2022-2023 academic year. Light refreshments will be provided.

Please join us in the Gladys Mullinix Black Theatre for a screening of senior project films conceived and produced by students across several academic programs:

Garrett Baker:  A Walk in the Park (Experimental Documentary)
Barry Crentsil: Untitled (Experimental Narrative)
Owen Isham: How does it Sound? How Does it Feel? (Documentary)
Christina Kljunich: Roma Tomatoes (Experimental Narrative)
Jessie Nunoo: Between My Hair and Me (Narrative)
Russell Rohan: A Long Road to Home (Documentary)
Samantha Russell: Appreciating French Creek (Documentary)
Dawson Thomas: Music Box (Narrative)

The Department of Biology is pleased to host its 25th Annual Senior Project Symposium to celebrate the biological research accomplishments of the Class of 2022. All members of the college community are invited and welcome to attend. Juniors, sophomores, and freshmen who are majoring or intending to major in Biology are especially encouraged to attend and participate. Follow this link for the full schedule of Biology Senior Presentations.

Are you a first or second year student interested in opportunities to engage in research, internships, civic engagement, or other Allegheny opportunities like these? Would you like to talk with students, faculty, or staff who have participated in such opportunities in the past? If so, please complete this Google Form (will be live in April) to RSVP for the Scholars Symposium Mentor Breakfast. The Mentor Breakfast is a casual, catered breakfast where first year and second year students can mingle and talk with graduating seniors, professors, and representatives from the Maytum Center for Student Success about how to get involved in these opportunities at Allegheny.

During this session, students from across all years and disciplines will present research projects and creative activities that they have completed during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Session 1. Student Posters (Campus Center Lobby). Students from Business and Economics, Philosophy, English, Environmental Science and Sustainability, and Biology will present posters associated with the scholarship that they’ve conducted during the 2021-2022 academic year. In addition, students that are part of Professor Carter’s Oil and Gas Geology course will present the work that they’ve completed as part of a class project as well as students that are part of the Bonner Program.

Session 2. Empowering Women – Community-Based Visions for Change, Global Citizen Scholars (2nd Floor of Campus Center). Students from Professor Ishita Sinha Roy and Professor Caryl Waggett’s Global Citizen Scholars (GCS) class of 2024 cohort will present their capstone experience from their engagement with the GCS program.  They will provide an overview of the program theme, a brief showcase of their domestic service-learning projects with Women’s Services locally, and will highlight case studies of efforts to empower women through access to health, access to education, and wealth generation (women’s cooperatives and other examples of income creation).  These case studies were derived from programming with partner community-based organizations in Ghana, India, and Costa Rica and contextualized with background research on the specific topic and region.  Students will reflect on the role of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in effecting change in women’s lives both domestically and in communities around the globe.

The Music Department hosts an annual recital to showcase work by members of the graduating class.  Join senior class singers and instrumentalists as they perform solo and collaborative selections from their performance studies.

At this session, Professor Ben Slote, Professor of English at Allegheny College, will start off this special session with some reflections on what undergraduate research has meant to him. Following Professor Slote’s opening remarks, three seniors (nominated by their respective departments/programs), will give eight minute presentations describing their senior project experiences. The 2022 Student Keynote Speakers are:

Tianna A. Clay (Double Major in ESS and Community & Justice Studies), who will present “Global BIPOC Climate Activism vs. Mainstream Environmentalism.” Abstract: This project draws attention to the shortcomings of mainstream environmental movements. Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) youth climate activists throughout the globe, especially those coming from majority-world countries, are all too often ignored and discredited for their contributions to environmentalism by mainstream environmental movements, along with elite media and academic institutions that partake in environmental discourse. The fact that many of these BIPOC climate activists are also experiencing the climate crisis more quickly and severely than those from relatively white, wealthy, and Western countries shows the risk(s) and violence that can be tied to erasure, oppression, and marginalization. As a result of various forms of globalized systemic oppression, white activists (particularly those from wealthier, industrialized countries), receive more attention, credit, and coverage relative to the climate work they are doing compared to other climate activists that are working out of majority-world countries and small-island communities. White voices from wealthy countries are given precedence over those of global BIPOC climate activists, and so are their contributions and concerns relative to climate change discourse and decision making. These omissions result in the deliberate erasure of environmentalists who do not readily conform to mainstream ideas surrounding environmentalism that are rooted in globalized forms of white supremacy. This project employs a case-study approach to examine the implications of these shortcomings, paired with an analysis of the strategies being utilized by climate activists and groups in various parts of the world to combat these oppressive systems today. These case studies can be used by climate activists across the globe who are working to uphold climate justice within their own communities in their battle against oppressive institutions and corporations.

Aubrey Hall (Political Science Major, Communication & Cultural Studies Minor), who will present “The Workplace as a Site for Political Sensemaking: Toward a Reimagined Civic Competence.” Abstract: Studies of political sensemaking have neglected the workplace as a site of experiencing and understanding the political world. Based on a series of semi-structured interviews and participant observation at a small family-owned restaurant in Colorado, I examine how sensemaking takes place among coworkers. I find that workers carve out time and space for political talk even when it’s difficult, and that political talk serves a function in the social context of the restaurant. I also find that they use shared work experiences to make political conclusions and understand their coworkers’ perspectives, and that in doing so they exhibit a kind of civic expertise which is not being captured, let alone measured, by the mainstream public opinion canon. My findings indicate that the perspectives of working people could stand to greatly enhance the portrait of the ideal democratic citizen.

Ariana Suggs (English major, Psychology minor), who will present “This Body is Glory”. Abstract: The title of my senior project is “There is a Well.” The well is a meaningful landmark in my memories from childhood. It symbolizes a container for those memories, but also refers to the act of welling. The welling is synonymous with my culminating realization of who I am through exploring my ancestry, childhood, faith, body, and mental health. I did research on Black theology which gave me a vantage point from which to assess how I view my body and how generational trauma factors into that. My minor is psychology, so I also included elements on how trauma and memories can leave lasting impacts on our bodies. Moreover, I close read other poets who inspired the style and some subjects of my poems and preface. There are so many elements of who we are—who I am. And I tend to box myself into one facet of my identity, which overlooks all the other facets that make up who I am. Why should I reduce who I am to one dimension when one dimension is not a complete portrait of me? In many ways the work of this senior project has placed me on the path to step into my full self—to reconcile this body back to glory.

For the past 16 years, Allegheny College has held a Senior Project Poster Symposium to highlight work from nominated students across all departments and programs. At this session, you can learn about research and scholarly activities from graduating seniors in the humanities, natural and social sciences, interdisciplinary pursuits, as well as seniors that have participated in internships, civic engagement projects, and international experiences. More information about this event will be provided in April.

At this special ceremony, student prizes are announced and awarded by representatives of all the departments and programs at Allegheny College. In addition, the valedictorian of the 2022 graduating class will speak.

We invite you back to the Main floor of the Pelletier Library after the Honors Convocation for one last chance to mingle, look at posters, chat with colleagues, and to celebrate student success and scholarship during the 2021-2022 academic year. Light refreshments will be provided.

Olivia P. Mailliard
DREAMS
Double Major in FDS and ASI

Jacob Opie
The Case DePomme with Stubblefield and Greenhow
Communication Arts Major
Double Minor in Writing and WGSS

Hirotaka Doi
Allegheny College Esports Team
Communication Arts & Integrative Informatics double major

Shyler Kreitz
Animation Changed My Life
FDS Major and Education Minor

Jordan Pierce
Circle of Obsidian
Communication Arts Major and Political Science Minor

Madison Sherman
Women in Streams
Environmental Science Major and Communication Arts Minor