By: Katie Farkas
Each spring semester, the Adelphi community holds the Adelphi University Scholarship and Creative Works Conference to celebrate and showcase the high quality of work being done by Adelphi students. This day-long event includes formats such as oral and poster presentations of scholarly work, computer game demonstrations and performances.
“Students have the opportunity to share their hard work with their peers, faculty members and visitors,” said Nate George, co-chair of the conference. “In taking part in the conference, the students are able to build presentation and communication skills and learn to defend the work they have done.”
This year the event will take place virtually on Tuesday, April 27 from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm. All of the traditional formats (e.g., talks, posters, creative exhibitions, etc.) will still be offered through a digital conference hosting platform. The keynote address will be given by Emily Graslie, known for her work on the Brain Scoop YouTube channel.
“In many ways, we hope to recreate the traditional conference experience as best we can in this new virtual format,” George said. “While we all wish that a celebration such as this could be in person, we are also excited about the opportunities that a virtual conference provides.”
For the first time, George said they will be welcoming back alumni whose presentations were canceled last year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We are excited to provide them this platform that they so deserve and in doing so, to fold in the broader Adelphi community, an element we hope to expand on in the future. We are also embracing a more `roundtable’ approach to oral presentations, as opposed to larger audiences, which we hope will facilitate more in-depth conversations between our presenters and the attendees,” George said.
Although the conference is going to look a little different this year, there are numerous benefits for the participating students. George said one significant benefit is learning how to communicate your work to an audience beyond your chosen field.
“As a developmental psychologist, I have to be able to discuss my work with the parents, educators and policymakers who affect the everyday lives of children,” he said. “Similarly, a biologist or chemist may need to work collaboratively with those in the medical field or engineers who can help to develop manufacturing protocols for new innovations. And the author of a script has to speak about the value of their work with producers, marketers and others who can help to create and promote their project. Because this conference brings together the diverse interests and expertise of our community, it provides a platform through which students can hone this skill. We also encourage students to present works in progress, which has the added benefit of getting feedback that can be used to strengthen their work in their remaining years at Adelphi.”
Sophie Meyers, a former student participant in the conference and now a graduate student in SUNY Oswego's M.S./C.A.S. School Psychology program, said, “Presenting my research, entitled `False Memories and the Misinformation Effect: Impacts on Classroom Learning’ at the conference has made me more confident and comfortable when public speaking. This is helpful for me in both my courses and my future career. It also pushed me out of my comfort zone, which is benefiting me now because graduate school is full of new experiences and new things that learn that require you to step out of your comfort zone.”
Meyers added: “I would absolutely recommend that other students participate in the research conference. I got so much out of presenting at the research that has helped me and will continue to help me reach my goals. It was a fun experience that not everyone gets to have, and a bonus is that it looks really good on a resume.”