Undergraduate academic achievements and research will be recognized at the annual Undergraduate Research Conference at Stephen F. Austin State University from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 7, in Regent's Suite A and the Twilight Ballroom of the Baker Pattillo Student Center.

More than 50 students from the university's six colleges will share research and projects from the previous academic year. Project topics represent a diversity of SFA student scholarship and include examinations of rural poverty, research on the benefits of green tea for overall health, a geospatial analysis of population change in Texas, a study of the student investment center's returns and a Nacogdoches Public Library mural project.

"One of the things we are most proud of at SFA is the extent of meaningful engagement between faculty and students," said Dr. Richard Berry, provost and vice president for academic affairs.


"The breadth and depth of undergraduate research on our campus is an impressive indicator of how much student-teacher interaction is going on. It all makes for a greatly enhanced educational experience for our undergraduate students."

Six University Scholars selected from each college will present an in-depth analysis of their research findings in the Twilight Ballroom. University Scholars include: John Ramsey and Chris Boatman, Nelson Rusche College of Business; Michelle Carr and Bridget Livingston, James I. Perkins College of Education; June Parker, College of Fine Arts; Halden Packard, Arthur Temple College of Forestry; Zachary Overfield, College of Liberal and Applied Arts; and Katie Mitchell and Sherri Dornak, College of Science and Mathematics. Students from all six colleges also will present their research through poster presentations and demonstrations in the Twilight Ballroom.

The conference is open to the public. For a detailed list of participants and their research topics, visit www.sfasu.edu/honors/urc/index.asp. For more information about the conference, contact Dr. Leslie Cecil at (936) 468-3980 or e-mail cecillg@sfasu.edu.