Undergraduate Symposium to showcase student work

CHRISTINE GRAF ASST MANAGING EDITOR ACG724@CABRINI EDU

The Undergraduate Art, Scholarship and Research Symposium scheduled for April 15, brings an opportunity for students all over the campus to showcase their work to administration, faculty and other students across different disciplines.

“Students do things like perform theater, display art, create posters, explain research, read language pieces and show video projects to the entire campus community who typically do not see their work,” Dr. David Dunbar, associate professor of biology and chair of the symposium committee, said.

“That is the beauty of the symposium. It incorporates all disciplines, and we get to see the different aspects students get involved with inside and outside of their majors,” Dunbar said.

The symposium will take place on Tuesday, April 15. All classes before 4:30 p.m. are canceled. Therefore, students and faculty are encouraged to support the event through participation and attendance in sessions throughout the day. Students who wish to participate must be sponsored by faculty member and submit a proposal that will be approved by the Institutional Review Board.

“Students build camaraderie between departments,” Dunbar said, “which is the main goal of a liberal arts education, making that connection across disciplines.”

Allison Superneau, senior biology and Spanish major, also feels that there is more to the symposium than presentations.

“It also works as career development for students. It is practice in public speaking and also is something to put on a resume and in a portfolio,” Superneau said.

“It could open up other opportunities for students outside of Cabrini by getting practice presenting work here in a place they are comfortable in, which later could lead to bigger presentations.”

Faculty and administration also get to see the projects Cabrini students have been working hard on. “You definitely see professors’ enthusiasm in seeing students do other works and can tell they are impressed,” Superneau said.

Dunbar explains how impressed he was when the cast and crew of the theater spring show presented a seminar on the processes involved in taking a script and bringing it alive in front of an audience in last year’s symposium.

“I think it offers the audience a chance to know what can happen behind the scenes in performance art, which is often something that audiences don’t understand,” Dr. Thomas Stretton, assistant professor of education who also is in charge of the theater at Cabrini, said.

Dr. Jerry Zurek, English and communication professor, is having his SEM 300 class, Working for Global Justice, present their projects they have been working on all semester.

“I’m honored to be able to share the reality of world issues to the Cabrini College campus. I feel more students need to be aware of global injustices,” Brittany Mitchell, junior communication major, said.

“I think it is a great idea to incorporate projects into the curriculum for the symposium,” Superneau said. “When professors are involved more students can present.”

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