Scholars strut their stuff at NU’s Undergraduate Research Conference

A new generation of scholars, scientists and researchers are set to share their work and collaborate with their peers this weekend as Nipissing University hosts the seventh Annual Undergraduate Research Conference March 21-22.The event features 44 papers and 26 poster presentations by Nipissing students as well as students from other Ontario universities.
The Undergraduate Research Conference opens Friday with a keynote address by Jim Harris in the Weaver Auditorium (B200) at 7:00 p.m. Harris is a leading thinker on change and leadership and was one of the first seven Canadians personally trained by Al Gore to present the slide show for An Inconvenient Truth. He is also one of just 12 Canadians licensed to publicly teach Dr. Stephen Covey’s work, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Some of Harris’ publications include A Crisis is a Terrible Thing to Waste, Blindsided and The Learning Paradox. His talk will challenge attendees to think about change and lifelong learning in the 21st century.
Following Friday’s keynote address, student researchers will present their research posters in the Education Centre Hallway, from 8:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Saturday morning’s events kick off with a keynote by Dr. Richard Wiggers from the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario, at 9:00 a.m., in room A246. Wiggers will speak about opportunities for today’s university graduates based on current research. He will remind participants that making life decisions based on evidence is vital and that, despite what we hear in the public media, employment prospects for new grads are not as dismal as we might be led to believe.
During Saturday’s lunch hour, the conference welcomes a special guest panel featuring a dynamic duo of doctoral students from Northern Ontario: Professors Rob Graham from Nipissing University and Cindy Peltier from Laurentian University. In addition to sharing some of their own research, Graham and Peltier are sure to inspire attendees to pursue education and a spirit of inquiry in all facets of their personal and professional lives.
Student research presentations will be taking place throughout the day on Saturday, running from 9:45 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. in classrooms surrounding A246.