Numerous students ‘speaking’ to the Capitol

This is the second year for UTM students to be involved with Posters at the Capitol.  

The goal for this event is to expose undergraduate research from across the state to state legislators.

It all started on Feb. 1, 2006, when Tennessee joined several other states wanting to educate their legislators about their students research on campus.  

Sixty-one undergraduates from six Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) universities and three UT campuses will present their research through posters at the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville today, Feb. 8.

The TBR universities are Austin Peay (APSU), East Tennessee State (ETSU), Middle Tennessee State (MTSU), Tennessee State (TSU), Tennessee Tech (TTU), and the University of Memphis (U of M).

The participating UT campuses are UT Chattanooga, UT Knoxville and UTM, which has the  largest number of participants in the event.

"It's usually seven students across the state participating but in our case we are sending 10 because other universities did not fill up their open slots, and I received a call saying that our alternates can participate as well," said Dr. Rich Helgeson, professor and dean, College of Engineering.

The students from UTM are Justine Steele, Lee Elliot, Paul Jones, Allie Proctor, Amanda Cain, Cayce Wood, David Foley, Darrell Banks, Kris Newsom, Hannah Quarles, and Kimberly Foley.

"The event is important because our students get exposure and are allowed to present their research in a formal poster session which is a good experience for them.  This experience allows them to network, and is also good for the University of Tennessee at Martin because we also get exposure that will help us get state funding for the schools, and we are able to see other schools' research as well," said Ann Gathers, assistant professor of Biological Sciences and faculty mentor for student Justine Steele.

"I feel that it is important because it conveys what we are doing on the campus to people who ordinarily wouldn't have the opportunity to know what we are doing, and it's important for our students because they are meeting our state legislators. It also helps representatives and taxpayers to see what we are doing and how we are contributing to science," said Dr. Michelle Merwin, professor of psychology, and also a faculty mentor for Justine Steele.

This event has greatly influenced the student participants.

"Honestly, I could not believe it and I feel deeply honored to have the opportunity to actually be recognized for myself and my research team. I feel that I can achieve my highest goals in life," said UTM student David Foley.

"When I first found out I was attending, I thought it was just another casual poster presentation and did not realize the precedence at the time. Now I am excited to meet with the politicians and present my research that I have been working on for almost two years. This will be great practice to better my formal speaking skills and to interact in a political and professional environment," said student Lee Elliot.

"I felt accomplished, my hard work, long hours, and dedication paid off. It was an honor to receive the invitation for such a prestigious event. This is a rare opportunity to present my own research in a professional and political environment. This has shown me that if you work hard enough and push yourself to go above and beyond, anything is possible.  

"My research professor, Dr. Robbie Montgomery, was the driving force behind me attending the event. She asked me to work on collecting more data and present the research; so interacting with your professor, not just in class but outside of class as well, really helps with any situation. The more involved you are within your field of study the more professors tend to notice a hard-working student."     

This event will help students present their research to the legislator in an educational fashion while giving all the universities more exposure.