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From the sciences to the arts, Liberty students showcase projects during Research Week

During the week, presentations have been on display throughout the Jerry Falwell Library. (Photo by Brooke McDuffee)

Liberty University’s Research Week, held April 11-16, has turned out to be the largest since its inception in 2017. With over 280 presentations from students in various degree programs, the event continues to be an opportunity for them to display their research to the rest of the university.

“Research Week allows residential, online, undergraduate, and graduate students an opportunity to showcase their research, scholarship, and creative works to the Liberty community while competing for awards with cash prizes in poster, oral, three-minute thesis, juried art, and performing arts venues,” said Darren Wu, associate director for the Center for Research & Scholarship. “More importantly, this research symposium allows our students an incredible opportunity to refine their presentation skills and build their resumés for professional careers and/or graduate programs.”

The center is co-hosting the event, along with the Jerry Falwell Library and the Graduate School. Presentations are on display throughout the library (in the Carter Learning Commons, Scholars Lounge, and on the Terrace level) where students and professors can observe them, while online presentations are virtual.

Almost 80 faculty from several different departments have volunteered to serve as judges, and cash prizes will be given to every first-place presentation.

Research Week keynote speaker and Dean of the School of Health Sciences Dr. Heidi DiFrancesca talks with students following her Monday morning address. (Photo by Chase Gyles)

“I think Research Week explains to a lot of people who don’t know much about research that research is a very small part of a very big thing,” said junior Biomedical Sciences major Rebekah Walker, whose research this year pertains to synthetic DNA creation. “My one part is so miniscule in comparison to the rest of what everyone else is studying, and I may not be discovering the cure for cancer, but potentially this small part of my research could have a big impact later on.”

The week began on Monday morning with keynote speaker and Dean of the School of Health Sciences Dr. Heidi DiFrancesca addressing participants in the lower atrium of the Jerry Falwell Library. She encouraged them to continue to passionately pursue their career ambitions and remember that an opportunity like Research Week can be a springboard into their future.

“My experiences have certainly shaped my career, and doors have opened for me because of those experiences,” she said.

DiFrancesca, whose own research background focused on molecular cancer biology and the prognostic and diagnostic value of a specific enzyme (steroid sulfatase) as it relates to hormone-dependent breast cancers, shared how the Lord has used her passion for research to deepen her relationship with Him.

After spending a great deal of time in research, she began to grow in her admiration for her Creator.

Photo by Brooke McDuffee

“I began to really understand the nature of God in a very different, and for me, a profound way,” she said. “My relationship with Him became more personal and it was strengthened.”

“I would encourage you to allow God to reveal Himself and His character to you through your studies and your research,” she added. “Our understanding of faith is deepened when we apply the insights of our disciplines to God’s Word and our world. And our understanding of our discipline should, at its deepest levels, be informed by faith. This will connect you to Him in a profound way and will strengthen your calling and His purpose for you and who He has destined you to be.”

After delving into stories from her days of studying and from her distinguished career which included working as the Executive Director of Academic Affairs for Johns Hopkins University’s Bloomberg School of Public Health, associate dean for the School of Natural Sciences at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, and running an undergraduate research lab at McMurray University in Texas, DiFrancesca explained how an exciting future is possible for all of the students involved in this year’s Research Week.

“Great achievements begin with small opportunities like the ones you have been given,” she said. “The work that you do in your research can be applied to the discovery, dissemination, and the translation of knowledge and of education. Engaging in research, I believe, is an essential part of your success both here and beyond.”

Awards were presented at a special ceremony with Provost and Chief Academic Officer Scott Hicks on Thursday, April 28, from 9:30-11 a.m.

 

Research Week 2022 first-place winners

View this year’s

Research Week Winners 2022

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