Rider to Showcase Student Research, Scholarship

Rider University will host an all-day event to celebrate student research and creativity during its annual Independent Scholarship and Creative Activity Presentation (ISCAP) Day on May 6 on the Lawrenceville campus, 2083 Lawrenceville Road.

More than 30 students will present their work, both conducted within class and in independent study. Presentations will include a lecture about professional baseball in New Jersey, a documentary about a Civil Rights photographer and poster sessions about Parkinson’s disease and body image and anxiety. Student presentations will take place during two concurrent morning sessions, held from 9:30 to 11:15 a.m. in Fine Arts 110 and Fine Arts 147. A poster session will follow from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Bristol Myers Squibb Science and Teaching Learning Center Rooms 316 and 317. Light lunch will also be available.

During the afternoon session, held from 2 to 4:30 p.m. in Sweigart Hall Auditorium, the 2009-2010 Undergraduate Research Scholars Awards recipients will be honored. Each year, the URSA Committee presents $5,000 research scholarships to Rider students in the Colleges of Business Administration; Liberal Arts, Education and Sciences; Continuing Studies and Westminster College of the Arts. The new scholars will discuss their proposed projects and what they expect to discover. 2008-09 URSA Scholars will also present their findings.

“The purpose of the day is to celebrate and recognize student research and creativity,” explained Dr. Nadia S. Ansary, assistant professor of Psychology and chair of the URSA (Undergraduate Research Scholarship Award) Committee. “It is also intended to showcase the original work that Rider students are completing under their faculty members’ guidance.”

The Undergraduate Research Scholar Awards program was established to enhance collaborative work between students and faculty and to heighten the intellectual atmosphere on campus. Students can work directly with faculty on joint research projects or on independent projects under the supervision of a faculty member.