Academic excellence and student scholarship creativity will be on display during Austin College’s 2022 Student Scholarship Conference on Thursday, March 24, through Saturday, March 26.
THURSDAY
The conference begins March 24 with the Elevator Speech competition at 7 p.m. in Wright Campus Center’s Pouch Club. Following the competition, the VEX Robots will be in action in the Pouch Club at 8 p.m.
FRIDAY
On Friday, March 25, at 1:30 p.m., the first set of research Poster Presentations will begin in Mabee Hall of Wright Campus Center. At 3:45 p.m., Oral Presentations of research will begin in various classrooms of Wright Campus Center. At 5:30 p.m., a theatre reception begins before the 7:30 curtain time of the Melanie Marnich play These Shining Lives, directed by Olivia Trusty ’22, which continues through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in Beardsley Arena Theatre of Ida Green Communication Center. A performance by The Improv Troupe follows every show.
SATURDAY
Saturday morning, the second Poster Session begins at 9 a.m. in Mabee Hall. An Honors Panel discussion will follow at 11:15 in Wright Campus Center’s Living Room. An Alumni Panel will assemble at 1 p.m. in Wright Campus Center’s Living Room for a discussion of their own research experiences and their involvements after graduating from Austin College. Alumni participants are Seth Howard ’20 (Economics); Rachael Newsom ’18 (Classical and Modern Languages); and Rebekah Urban’18 (Psychology).
The second session of Oral Presentations, held in Wright Campus Center classrooms, begins at 2:15 p.m.
On Saturday at 4 p.m., the Music Department presents “L’Estro Armonico: Vivaldi’s Harmonic Whim,” a Lecture Recital by Andrew Kim ’22, violin, and Andres Hernandez ’22, violin, assisted by Timothy Jenkins on piano. The event is in Craig Hall’s Recital Hall.
At 5 p.m., in Dennis Gallery of Betsy Dennis Forster Art Studio Complex, students will present “Raise Your Voice,” a program sponsored by Suspension Literary Magazine and Alpha Psi Omega, which celebrates groups of marginalized writers and artists. This year, the group has decided to celebrate women and non-binary artists of color. The program includes a reading from nine students who are within the categories of women and non-binary individuals of color. The students will read a combination of original work or pieces from other writers who are meaningful to them. Mid-program, students will acknowledge the artists whose work is on display in the gallery. At the end of the program, the performers unite in a reading. After they bow, the audience throws flowers at them. The event is all about giving a platform to voices that need to be heard, said Sonia Charales of Suspension. A reception is set to begin at approximately 6 p.m., after the performance art.
The scholarship conference represents a collaborative endeavor by faculty to provide a forum for students to share discoveries and creative expression in their respective areas of study, encompassing all academic divisions of the College. Dr. Renee Countryman, professor of psychology and holder of The William Richardson Chair for the Center for Research, Experience & Artistic and Transformative Education, is coordinating the conference.
Opportunity for undergraduate research, presentation, and performance is a priority at Austin College, Countryman said, adding that this conference brings a spotlight to the wide variety of accomplishments of students.