Scholars Forum Student Researchers Honored During Reception and Awards Program April 22

Outstanding IUP undergraduate and graduate student researchers were honored April 22 during the IUP Scholars Forum Awards Brunch held in Sutton Hall's Blue Room. The awards event is sponsored by IUP Research and Innovation and the IUP Research Institute.

A total of 26 awards were presented during the event, which recognized student researchers who were chosen by faculty, managers, employers, and alumni judges for prizes for their presentations at the Scholars Forum held on April 8.

The Scholars Forum -in its twenty-first year-is an annual part of IUP's Research Appreciation Week. A total of 130 IUP undergraduate and graduate students and 54 area high school students participated in the Scholars Forum, which included 86 research posters and 24 individual in-depth research podium presentations. Posters and podium presentations included a diverse array of topics, representing student work from every academic college at IUP.

"The quality of scholarship and innovation showcased this year was exceptional," Associate Vice Provost for Libraries and Research Support Services and Scholars Forum coordinator Kelly Heider said during the event. "Our award recipients distinguished themselves within a highly competitive group, earning top marks from the judges. These honors recognize not only academic achievement but also the dedication and determination that drove each project," Heider said.

Heider thanked the sponsors of the awards, the outstanding efforts of the Scholars Forum planning team, the judges and volunteers, and the faculty mentors.

"To our faculty mentors, thank you for your dedication, encouragement, and guidance. Your mentorship is the foundation of student success and the heart of the Scholars Forum," she said.

Vice Provost for Research and Innovation and Interim Dean of the College of Health Sciences Hilliary Creely also thanked the faculty research mentors for their "time, expertise, and patience, sometimes in heroic quantities."

"You invite students into the real work of discovery and creation," Creely said. "You read drafts, ask hard questions, encourage second-and third-tries, and remind students that confusion is not failure, but part of the process. The generosity of your mentorship shapes lives, not just projects.

"And to our student award recipients: congratulations. Truly. Today we celebrate not only the outcomes of your work, but the process behind it-the revisions, the setbacks, the problem-solving, the persistence, and the moments when something finally clicked. You have contributed original knowledge and insight to your fields, and that is a significant achievement.

"At IUP, we are guided by clear priorities: fostering student success, advancing scholarly excellence, engaging with our communities, and preparing graduates to lead, serve, and innovate. Research and creative activity sit at the heart of all of these goals," she said.

"The awards we celebrate today recognize excellence-but they also reflect possibility. They show what can happen when we champion mentorship, support discovery across disciplines, and trust students to do meaningful, consequential work," Creely said.

About the Awards

Dean's Award

The college deans support the Dean's Award, which is presented to both an undergraduate and a graduate researcher. The top-ranked undergraduate and graduate projects within each college (poster or paper) receive a $250 gift card; this award is evenly divided among copresenters.

Outstanding Poster

This award is supported by the IUP Research Institute. The Outstanding Poster Award is given to the top-ranked poster in each college. If the Dean's Award has been given to the top-ranked poster, the Outstanding Poster Award will be awarded to the second-highest-ranked poster. Winning presentations receive a $125 gift card. This award is divided evenly among copresenters.

Outstanding Podium Presentation

This award is supported by the IUP Research Institute. The Outstanding Podium Presentation Award is given to the top-ranked podium presentation in each college. If the Dean's Award has been given to the top-ranked podium presentation, the Outstanding Presentation Award will be awarded to the second-highest-ranked podium presentation. Winning presentations receive a $125 gift card, which is divided evenly among copresenters.

Excellence in Data Analysis Award

Sponsored by the Applied Research Lab, this award recognizes students who demonstrate exceptional data analysis skills in their poster presentations. This award has both an undergraduate and a graduate category. Judges will give special attention and preference to posters with completed results or findings. Results or findings will be judged based on organization, clarity, and the appropriateness of the analytical technique(s) used. Graduate students are additionally judged on their presentation of how their results or findings contribute to the scholarly literature. Winning presentations receive a $150 gift card, which is divided evenly among copresenters.

IUP Libraries' Research Award

IUP Libraries is dedicated to providing researchers with the resources, spaces, and services necessary to enable them to carry out high-quality research and inquiry. The IUP Libraries' Awards for Undergraduate and Graduate Research were created to recognize excellence in scholarly work based on a foundation of careful background research and literature review in projects submitted to the Scholars Forum. If chosen to receive a library research award, students will receive a certificate and a $150 gift card.

Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Award

Sponsored by Women in STEAM and the Women in STEM Summit, this award recognizes a high-scoring poster and podium presentation with at least one group member who identifies as a woman in STEM. This award has an undergraduate and a graduate tier. Winning presentations receive a $100 award (split between copresenters).

Award Recipients for 2026

Dean's Award (tie)

• Graduate Writers in the Digital Age: Navigating Reddit for Academic Writing Development
  • Presenters: Dalia Seifallah, Lamia Dawood, and Farheen Mahmood
  • Mentor: Dana Driscoll
• Muslim Mothering as a Site of Resistance and Empowerment: An Autoethnographic Study
  • Presenters: Dalia Seifallah and Nafisah Ahmad Sulaiman
  • Mentor: Gloria Park

Outstanding Podium Presentation

• What are Nursing Students' Knowledge, Attitudes, Social Norms, and Perceived Controls Regarding Environmental Health in Patient Practice: Using the Theory of Planned Behavior to Inform and Improve Communication Messaging for a Health Care Provider Audience
  • Presenter: Susan Schrack Wood
  • Mentor: Steven Kleinman

IUP Libraries Research Award (Graduate Level)

• IUP RA Perceptions: Stress, Burnout, Self-Esteem, and Self-Efficacy
  • Presenter: Jenna Sorensen
  • Mentor: David Berberich

Dean's Award (Graduate Level)

• Is the Efficiency of AI Worth the Ethical Concerns in the Insurance Industry?
  • Presenter: Aaron Burkhart
  • Mentor: Yaya Sissoko

Dean's Award (Undergraduate Level)

• The Macroeconomic Forces that Affect Equity Returns and Why They Vary Across Equity Sectors
  • Presenters: Ryan Little and Tyler Blystone
  • Mentor: James Jozefowicz

Outstanding Podium Presentation

• Keystone Crimes: Understanding the Reasons for Crime in Pennsylvania Counties
  • Presenters: Saniya Metcalf-Harris and Kaitlyn Donaldson
  • Mentor: James Jozefowicz

Outstanding Poster Presentation

• The Effects of Intermediate Punishment on Recidivism
  • Presenter: Jackson White
  • Mentor: Brandon Vick

IUP Libraries Research Award (Undergraduate Level)

• The Attendance Curveball: Examining What Drives Fans to MLB Ballparks
  • Presenters: Nate Kociela and Jackson White
  • Mentor: James Jozefowicz

Excellence in Data Analysis

• Justice for All? Evaluating Public Defender Effectiveness in Pennsylvania
  • Presenter: Kelly Szolek
  • Mentor: Angel Alcantara

Dean's Award (Graduate Level)

• Virtual MTSS: Measuring Success and Lessons Learned Implementing a Comprehensive Program
  • Presenter: Anthony Grande
  • Mentors: Lynanne Black and Courtney Leone

Dean's Award (Undergraduate Level)

• Impact of Service Duration on Victim Services Satisfaction in Pennsylvania
  • Presenter: Reia Sanchez
  • Mentor: Alex Heckert

Outstanding Podium Presentation

• Eliciting Behavioral Change in College Students: An Evaluation of Outcomes of a Motivational Interviewing and Wellness Coaching Program
  • Presenter: John Ograh
  • Mentor: Christian Vaccaro

Outstanding Poster Presentation

• Examining Satisfaction Rates with Victims' Services Programs Across Age Groups
  • Presenter: Lauren Connor
  • Mentor: Christian Vaccaro

Three-Minute Thesis Judges' Choice Award

• College Students' Expectations from Their Instructors in Today's Classroom
  • Presenter: Amar Mmoud
  • Mentor: Jacqueline McGinty

Dean's Award (Graduate Level)

• R.I.S.E. and Shine: Energizing the Nursing Classroom
  • Presenter: Christopher de la Victoria
  • Mentor: Kristy Chunta

Dean's Award (Undergraduate Level)

• The Effect of Phosphene Characteristics on the Perception of Letters Designed to Simulate Prosthetic Vision
  • Presenters: Caleigh Robb, Elizabeth Ashe, Bailey Bevington, and Julia Marshall
  • Mentor: William Farrell

Outstanding Poster Presentation

• I-sharing with Friends and Strangers
  • Presenter: Caylyn Shirey
  • Mentor: Anson Long

Dean's Award (Graduate Level)

• The John and Julia Hopkins House: Excavating Black History in Gettysburg's Third Ward
  • Presenter: James Duke
  • Mentor: Benjamin Ford

Dean's Award (Undergraduate Level)

• Rebalancing the Ribbon: Correcting Dataset Imbalance in AI-Driven Breast Cancer Detection
  • Presenter: Megan Seaman
  • Mentor: Samuel Grieggs

Outstanding Podium Presentation (Graduate Level)

• Eastern Whip-poor-will Response to Prescribed Fire in Managed Oak Forests
  • Presenter: Nicholas Logan
  • Mentor: Jeffrey Larkin

Outstanding Podium Presentation (Undergraduate Level)

• Legacy in Limbo: Energy Transition and AI Data Centers in a Former Appalachian Coal Town
  • Presenter: Abigail Trimble
  • Mentor: Amanda Poole

Outstanding Poster Presentation (Graduate Level)

• Vessel Technology and Function at the Chester Field Shell Ring Site
  • Presenter: Savannah Weinrich
  • Mentor: Andrea Palmiotto

Outstanding Poster Presentation (Undergraduate Level)

• Expanding the Available Data for Green Spiny Lizards (Sceloporus hondurensis complex)
  • Presenter: Serena Aumick
  • Mentor: Josiah Townsend

Excellence in Data Analysis

• Assessing the Presence of Ruffed Grouse (Bona umbellus) in Managed Forests and Shrublands in the Western Great Lakes
  • Presenters: Caroline Sandman, Kathryn Schaeffer, and Nicholas Logan
  • Mentor: Jeffrey Larkin

Three-Minute Thesis People's Choice Award

• Brown's Farm: A 19th and 20th Century African American Farmstead
  • Presenter: Abdul Jones
  • Mentor: Ben Ford

Women in STEM

• Assessment of Microplastic Contamination in Stream Sediments of the Stoney Run Watershed
  • Presenter: Toni Venslosky
  • Mentor: Katherine Farnsworth
• An Analysis of Microwear of Tyrannosaurid Teeth
  • Presenter: Jenna Conrad
  • Mentor: Eric Morschhauser

In 2022, IUP was designated as a Doctoral University-High Research Activity (R2) by the National Center for Postsecondary Research's Carnegie Classification in recognition of its commitment to research and student success; this ranking was reaffirmed in February 2025.

IUP is one of only two public universities in Pennsylvania and one of only 97 public universities with this ranking in the United States. More than 3,900 colleges and universities are included in the ranking system.

Since its founding in 1875, IUP has evolved from a teacher-training institution into a doctoral research university recognized for its commitment to student success and achievement. As IUP celebrates its 150th anniversary during the 2025-26 academic year and through the Impact 150 comprehensive campaign, the university honors a legacy of educational excellence while looking to its next 150 years of student success, innovation, leadership in healthcare education, and public service.