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SPARK, which was launched last year by UK’s Center for Health Equity Transformation (CHET) and Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences (CCTS), is a year-long community-engaged program for undergraduates focused on research related to health equity.

Awards in each category are: First Place: $350; Second Place: $200; and Honorable Mention, if applicable. Entries are judged on originality, clarity of expression, scholarly or artistic contribution, and the validity, scope and depth of the project or investigation.

Cultivating students’ presentation and research communication skills, competitors were challenged to present their research in five minutes, using only one static slide, in front of a panel of three judges and a virtual audience.

A Chellgren Fellow, she been very active in undergraduate research at UK working with the school’s groundbreaking EduceLab: A Digital Restoration Initiative headed up by UK Alumni Professor Brent Seales, chair of the Department of Computer Science.

Since arriving at UK, Hornback has participated in UK Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering’s research on “smart” polymeric sorbents for PFAS removal from contaminated water systems under the leadership of J. Zach Hilt, Gill Eminent Professor of Chemical Engineering.

The University of Kentucky Society of Postdoctoral Scholars (SOPS) hosted their first Research Pitch Competition where 19 postdocs and fellows showcased their research with one-minute elevator pitches.

Prendergast says statistics show that less than five percent of undergraduate neuroscience students in the U.S. are Black or African American, but at UK nearly ten percent of undergraduate neuroscience majors identify as Black or African American.

This student-nominated award recognizes UK faculty members who demonstrate an outstanding commitment to mentoring undergraduate researchers, providing exceptional undergraduate research experiences, as well as supporting and promoting the undergraduate research initiatives on campus.

“The Appalachian Center is thrilled to support these student researchers that represent nine departments across four colleges. We look forward to learning from their work as they continue to produce cutting-edge research in and on the region.”

Any full-time UK undergraduate student of any major who has completed at least one semester of research with a faculty mentor is eligible to apply for a Summer Research Fellowship.