Researchers Converge at Northeastern State University-Broken Arrow

Researchers Converge at Northeastern State University-Broken Arrow

BROKEN ARROW For one entire day, athletic rankings, enrollment figures and institutional statistics faded into the background as more than 1,100 academic minds from across the state converged on Northeastern State University-Broken Arrow for the 10th annual Oklahoma Research Day, Friday, Nov. 14.

This is a red letter day for the state of Oklahoma, noted Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education Chancellor Dr. Glen Johnson. Gov. Brad Henry has declared 2008 the Year of Creativity and this may be the largest gathering of creativity in the state of Oklahoma this year.

This was NSUs first year to host Oklahoma Research Day. The universitys Broken Arrow campus will welcome the event again in 2009, during Northeasterns centennial celebration.

We are celebrating creativity, discovery and the power of imagination. They're alive and well in this room, NSU President Dr. Don Betz said in his welcoming remarks. None of us can do what we need to do alone, everyone has a stake. Students, you are the reason we get up and do what we do everyday.

Oklahoma Research Day is a consortium event coordinated by Oklahoma's Regional Universities to provide students and faculty the opportunity to present research to their colleagues. According to Dr. Tom Jackson, dean of the NSU Graduate College and coordinator of the event, this year represents the largest number of abstracts submitted for Oklahoma Research daymore than 600 were received from 47 universities and institutions across Oklahoma and the region, as well as from Australia, Brazil, China and Greece.

Northeastern faculty, undergraduate and graduate students accounted for more than 130 of the abstracts presented in Arts & Music, Business, Education, Liberal Arts, Math & Science categories. Topics covered a wide range, including Dr. Erik Terdals Ethonomedical Research with the Maya in Belize, Elizabeth Reeves and Helena Kamericks exploration of Life From the Eyes of An Individual With Special Needs, Kelly Prices review of The Meth Mouth Epidemic, and Wii, Lets Move with Dance, Dance Revolution, presented by Dr. Shae Lee Foutch and Marna Casteel.

The solutions to all problems depends on creating new knowledge, said Dr. Kelvin Droegemeier, associate vice president for Research at the University of Oklahoma, keynote speaker for the event. The times when academic programs blast ahead is when times are tight. People are forced to think more creatively.

Higher education institutions must provide a creative environment and be willing to nurture human capital, he added.

We all must consider whether there will be enough jobs or enough money, but you cant be constrained by that, he told the group of student and faculty researchers.

Founded in 1999, Oklahoma Research Day has been hosted by the University of Central Oklahoma the past nine years. Now in its tenth year, Oklahoma Research Day has grown in numbers and in stature with contributions from all of Oklahoma's institutions of higher education including many collaborative contributions from national and international academic and research institutions.

Oklahoma Research Day is funded by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, Oklahoma Experimental Program for Stimulating Competitive Research (EPSCoR) - National Science Foundation, Idea Network for Biomedical Research Experience (INBRE) - National Institutes of Health and the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) and the Oklahoma Regional Universities.

11/14/2008

Published: 2008-11-14 00:00:00