Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, & Creative Activities

2026
Schedule of Events

At the conclusion of each spring semester, all Allegheny Community members are invited to gather to celebrate student research, scholarship, and creative activities on campus. This year, we celebrate the 20th year of the Senior Project Poster Session and also the 10th Anniversary of the The Cook-Lahti Scholars Symposium. The 2026 Cook-Lahti Scholars Symposium will take place in various locations throughout the day on Tuesday, April 28th. In addition, there are a number of Affiliated Scholars Symposium events that are taking place in the days leading up to the main event.

Please view the schedule of events below and keep in mind that this website will be updated as we add, revise, and finalize details… so please be sure to check back frequently.

For more information, please contact Dr. Matthew Venesky (mvenesky@allegheny.edu), Director of URSCA.

Affiliated Events

April 20th and 21st
Biology Department Senior Project Symposium, various rooms in Steffee Hall of Life Sciences
The Department of Biology is pleased to host its 27th Annual Senior Project Symposium to celebrate the biological research accomplishments of the Class of 2026. 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.

April 24th
History & Philosophy, International Studies, and Public Humanities Symposium and Celebration, CREATE Lab
Join with faculty and History & Philosophy, International Studies, and Public Humanities students of the Class or 2026 in a symposium and celebration of their research and scholarship. Students majoring (or taking a Minor in one of these programs), or interested in these programs, are welcome to attend. Please contact Prof. Ribeiro (aribeiro@allegheny.edu) for more information about this celebration.

Scholars Symposium — April 28

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.

Academic Poster Session. Students from across all years and disciplines will present research projects and creative activities that they have completed during the 2025-2026 academic year. Stop by the Campus Center lobby to view the outcomes of these projects and chat with our student scholars.

Allegheny Art Galleries. Senior comp students majoring in the Art Department will be in the Allegheny Art Galleries along with representative pieces. Please swing by and view their work during this morning session.

Join us in this special session to listen to a selection of 3 graduating seniors as they given a brief oral presentation about their Senior Comp Projects. These students were nominated by members of their Department/Program and selected by the Director of URSCA to share the outcomes of their Senior Comp.

Opening Speaker: Dr. Richard J. Cook
On the 10th anniversary of the Cook-Lahti Scholars Symposium, President Emeritus Dr. Richard Cook will open this Keynote session with some thoughts and reflections on student-faculty engagement and scholarship.

Kathryn Sorice
Bridging Belonging and Access: ADA Compliance and Student Well-Being at Allegheny College
MAJOR: Psychology, MINOR: Community and Justice Studies

ABSTRACT: Institutional ableism in higher education shapes how campus spaces are designed and used, often creating barriers for disabled individuals. These inaccessible environments can negatively affect psychological well-being by signaling that disabled people do not belong. Universal design for learning offers a way to reduce these barriers by improving physical access, course design, and overall inclusion. An accessibility audit of Allegheny College identified several physical barriers across campus. Based on these findings, this paper recommends changes to future audits, faculty training, course design, and the removal of physical barriers to improve accessibility and inclusion.

Nickel Spartz
Antibiotic Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus: Exploring D-Phe and Scientific Communication as Solutions to a Health Crisis
MAJORS: Biochemistry and Spanish, MINOR: Theatre

ABSTRACT: Mismanagement of antibiotics has drastically increased bacterial resistance across the globe. To prevent another world-altering pandemic, the general public must be educated on best practices for antibiotic use. This study combines an investigation of Staphylococcus aureus, a common multidrug-resistant human pathogen, with an analysis of scientific communication styles in two popular scientific books, one from Spain and one from the U.S. The texts differed in narrative structures, included topics, and implied readers, but contained similar  communication strategies such as removal of scientific jargon, accessible analogies, signposting, and reinforcement of main ideas. Growth assays of S. aureus demonstrated that addition of a biofilm disruptor molecule did not decrease biofilm density or increase antibiotic susceptibility in the studied bacterium. A translation of the biochemical results from English to Spanish was generated using the identified cross-cultural communication strategies to provide an accessible text for a non-scientific audience.

Anna Westbrook
“The stakes could not be higher:” An analysis of strategic state-level tort climate lawsuits
MAJOR: Environmental Science and Sustainability, MINOR: Political Science

ABSTRACT: The climate crisis is one of the most significant existential threats humanity has ever faced. Despite the urgent need for rapid, effective climate legislation to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the U.S. federal government has failed to deliver. In response, “climate federalism” has emerged, wherein subnational governments pursue their own climate policies, sometimes in the form of a novel legal strategy known as “strategic private climate litigation.” A subset of this litigation involves efforts to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for their role in causing climate change by alleging violations of state-level tort law and seeking monetary damages for climate change adaptation and mitigation measures. This senior comprehensive project conducts a comparative case study analysis of three prominent cases to reveal the future of state-level tort climate litigation, concluding that the legal strategy is a viable path forward for combating climate change, but only if used strategically and in moderation.

For the past 20 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 2026 graduating class will speak.

Please join us in the theatre for a screening of Beyond the Boundary: The Obuya Academy, a documentary produced by Devika Desai (class of 2026). In addition to this senior film, there will be a screening of the documentary on The Campus newspaper, which is produced by a group of students celebrating the 150th anniversary of the newspaper.