By Rebecca Wyatt, OU Web Writer

In keeping with the framework of the university, the Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost’s Office offers undergraduate students the opportunity to complete in-depth research and submit it for presentation at professional conferences as part of the Undergraduate Student Research Scholars Program.

The program, which began in the winter 2002 semester, provides undergraduate student researchers with $1,000 to support an independent research program under the supervision of an OU faculty mentor. In addition, researchers whose work is accepted for presentation can request up to an additional $500 for travel to the conference.

Also available is the DaimlerChrysler Undergraduate Student Research Award, which provides $3,000 for selected students in the School of Business Administration, School of Engineering and Computer Science, and students in communication, human resource development and mathematics.

“This is really a unique possibility for students,” said Ron Olson, interim vice provost for research.

Many universities have a number of graduate students conducting research and the undergraduate students don’t have the opportunity to work with faculty and explore research possibilities.

For OU junior Dan Walshaw, a fall 2004 undergraduate student research scholar, the opportunity was invaluable. As a music composition major, Walshaw would like to pursue a graduate education in orchestral conducting. For him, practicing means using experienced musicians who can read a conductor allowing him to focus on conducting, advanced score preparation, rehearsal techniques and performance issues.

Walshaw used the research funds to hire professional musicians for rehearsals and a public performance of Stavinsky’s Octet for Wind Instruments. 

“Being in front of an ensemble like that is something most people, even in their graduate programs, don’t get to experience,” Walshaw said. “At any university, this is something that is hard for an undergraduate to do.”

Walshaw said the experience taught him how to interact with musicians at a higher level and how to get the sound he wants out of the ensemble.

Students in the program must select an OU faculty member to act as a mentor for the research project. The faculty mentor helps students obtain background work, analyze data and provide overall advice as the student requires it.

Greg Cunningham, associate professor of music and Walshaw’s faculty mentor, said he was really able to see Walshaw grow in ways that he wouldn’t have been able to without the experience.

“Because of the high level of performers that he was able to bring in, he was able to really immerse himself in conducting,” Cunningham said.

As part of his project, Walshaw had a final performance with the ensemble in March. Prior to the performance, Cunningham met with Walshaw on a weekly basis to go over conducting techniques. Cunningham also observed and videotaped Walshaw’s rehearsals and provided feedback.

Cunningham said the opportunity for undergraduate research is a unique opportunity, especially for someone like Walshaw who needs the experience for graduate school. He said this opportunity sets Walshaw’s undergraduate education apart from others.

“If students have a particular interest in research, this is a great program,” Cunningham said.

Student researchers must work on the proposed project for at least one semester and submit a final research report within one year. Students do not receive class credit for the research project.

Undergraduate Student Research Scholar Program applicants must submit an electronic application and proposal and the mentor must submit an evaluation of the applicant. There is no limit to the number of students who can receive the funding.

“I want the maximum number of students to have this experience,” Olson said.

Students interested in applying for the Undergraduate Student Research Scholars program or the DaimlerChrysler program have three opportunities throughout the year. Students who would like to start a project in January should apply by the first Monday in November; to start a project in May, students should apply by the first Monday in February; and those who would like to start in September should apply by the first Monday in April.

Projects are chosen based on the student’s academic strength and the quality of the proposed research project. 

For more information on the Undergraduate Student Research Scholars Program, visit the Grants, Contracts and Sponsored Research Web site or call (248) 370-2552 or e-mail olson@oakland.edu.

2004-2005 Undergraduate Student Research Scholars

Fall 2004

• Don Whitt, “The Role of Culture and Language in the International Workplace,” faculty mentor Dikka Berven, modern languages and literature
  
  
•  Jerry White, “Warm and Cold: An Exploration of Film and Video Aesthetics, Their Mutability, and Ramifications for Narrative Filmmakers,” faculty mentor Andrea Eis, art and art history
  
  
• Daniel Walshaw, “Conducting Recital: Igor Stravinsky’s Octet for Wind Instruments,” faculty mentor Greg Cunningham, music, theatre and dance
  
  
• Dean Trajkov, “Parental Relationship, Decision-Making and Risky Behaviors Among College Students,” faculty mentor Sylvie Lombardo, psychology
  
  
• Diana T. Semma, “Caspase Activation by Linoleic Acid Derivatives,” faculty mentor Arthur Bull, chemistry
  
  
• Timothy Ross, “The Study of Influences in Social Networks,” faculty mentor Eddie Cheng, mathematics and statistics
  
  
• Emily Pinto, “The Goals of Life: Perspectives from Emergent Adulthood,” faculty mentor Robert Stewart, psychology
  
  
• Jason Gorski, “A Framework for Interaction Between Sensor Networks and Robots,” faculty mentor Imad Elhajj, computer science and engineering
  
  
• Kristyn Gardner, “Comparative Foraging Biology of Two Sympatric Paper Wasps, the Native Polistes Fuscatus and the Invasive Polistes Dominulus,” faculty mentor George Gamboa, biological sciences
  
  
• Courtney Fons, “The Hook-Up: An Analysis of Sexual Encounters in Emergent Adulthood,” faculty mentor Robert Stewart, psychology
  
  
• Michael Duchene, “A Distributed Circuit Architecture to Execute High-Level Software Without a Microprocessor Using Parallel Processes,” faculty mentor Darrin Hanna, computer science and engineering
  
  
• Sarah Darnall, “Foreign Influence in Late Anglo-Saxon England,” faculty mentor Jace T. Crouch, history
  
  
• Marisa Dregansky, "Heterologous Expression of Tgarp,” faculty mentor, Andrew Goldberg, Eye Research Institute
  
  
• Douglas Widman, “Detection of Streptococcus Mutans Clarke Using Recombinant Antibody Fragments,” faculty mentor Gabrielle Stryker, biological sciences
  

Winter 2005

• Christopher Mick, “Producing a Musical for Dummies,” faculty mentor Mike Mitchell, music, theatre and dance
  
  
• Matthew Edwards, “Generation of Retinal Pigment Epithelium from Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells,” faculty mentor Rasul Chaudhry, biological sciences
  
  
• Nicole Hoffmeister, “Decision Making Among Adolescents Infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Qualitative Approach,” faculty mentor Sylvie Lombardo, psychology
  
  
• Wynter Sari, “Predator Induced Changes in Behavior, Morphology & Life History of Amphibians: Do Amphibian Larvae Use Heterospecific Chemical Cues to Assess Predation Risk,” faculty mentor Keith Berven, biological sciences
  

Spring 2005

• Christopher Kowal, “Boys are Stronger; Girls are Smarter: Understanding Children's Perspective of Genderization,” faculty mentor Jennifer Heisler, rhetoric, communication and journalism
  
  
• Nick Bewick, “Synthesis of a New Family of Fluorous Phosphines,” faculty mentor Roman Dembinski, chemistry
  
  
• Jason Gorski, “Distributed Data Fusion for Sensor Network and Mobile Robot Interfacing,” faculty mentor Imad Elhajj, computer science and engineering