The Committee on Engaged Learning is pleased to announce $68,457.26 in Odyssey
funding to 13 projects, all of which focus on connecting classroom learning
with practical applications and/or professional development or career
exploration. Since 2005, the Committee on Engaged Learning has awarded
$4,907,451.60 in competitive Odyssey grants to support 1,505 projects by
ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ students and faculty.
Global Awareness Projects
Jennifer Dearolf
Exploring the Belize Coral Reef
In May, Dr. Dearolf and students from her Marine Biology class, along with
Dr. Vidal-Torreira, Associate Professor of Spanish, will visit Ambergris
Caye, an island off the cost of Belize, where they will explore the coral
reef and study its organisms while learning from marine biology
professionals, assessing the success of conservation efforts, and
collecting data for a research project.
Chloe Stevenson ‘25
Culturally Immersive Shadowing Experience in Spain
Supervised by Jennifer Dearolf
Chloe will join a pre-med clinical shadowing program in Spain for three
weeks this summer where she will have the opportunity to experience
different medical and cultural settings while practicing her Spanish
language skills.
Professional and Leadership Development
Keeley Ausburn ‘24
Professional Field Experience: Arkansas 6th District Court
Supervised by Kimberly Maslin
Through this summer experience, Keeley will assist judges with research
and writing projects and observe a range of court proceedings which she
expects will grow her understanding of judicial decision-making and of
non-litigation careers in the judiciary.
Cameron Deal ‘24
Professional Field Experience: Sports Management
Supervised by Buck Buchanan
Cameron will spend the summer working with the ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ and Mayflower High School football teams and coaching staff to better understand the day-to-day operations of careers in sports management.
Cade England ’24 & Alex Price ‘24
Professional Field Experience: Costa Rica Conservation
Supervised by Maureen McClung
Cade and Alex will spend the summer working at the Children’s Eternal Rainforest in Costa Rica where they will conduct research and participate in service work with a special focus on the amphibian population in the area while gaining a better understanding of the working life of conservation biologists as they prepare to choose their own careers in conservation.
Kobi Greer ‘24
Photography Summer Session at Penland School of Crafts: Wet-Plate Collodion
Supervised by Maxine Payne
Kobi will participate in a wet-plate collodion summer session which will expand her skills in photography and prepare her for her senior year capstone as an Art major and for post-graduate opportunities.
Yaritza Hernandez ‘24
Official ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ Internship: Advanced Allergy and Asthma Clinic
Supervised by Jennifer Dearolf
Yaritza expects to increase her understanding of medical terminology, etiquette, and protocols while shadowing a specialist doctor in this summer internship at a small clinic.
Hannah Wheeler ‘25
Official ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ Internship: The Funk Heritage Center
Supervised by Anne Goldberg
Through this summer internship, Hannah will have the opportunity to document historical artifacts in writing and photography in and to record this documentation in a standard museum software program, skills that will contribute to her development as a museum professional.
Special Projects
Lauren Seckington ‘23
The Parliament of the World’s Religions
Supervised by Emmy Corey
In August, Lauren will attend the 2023 Parliament of World’s Religions after which she will prepare a journalistic paper and photo essay capturing her experience and learnings, including exploration of religious studies and interfaith work careers.
Daniel Edquist-Whelan
Model United Nations 2023
Dr. Edquist-Whelan and 23 students will prepare for and attend the American Model UN (AMUN) conference in the Fall where the College will field teams to represent two countries, an experience which develops students’ skills in research, policy-oriented writing, public speaking, caucusing and negotiating, and other professional competencies.
Undergraduate Research
Eliana Oden ‘25
Physics of Volleyball
Supervised by Todd Tinsley
Eliana will spend the summer studying the trajectories of volleyballs, specifically with serving, using 2-dimensional data from video cameras to reconstruct 3-dimensional information about the flight of the ball.
John Schaller ‘25
Replication of G-quadruplex DNA by Translesion Polymerases
Supervised by Julie Gunderson
John will participate in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program where he will work on a biomedical research project exploring DNA replication under the guidance of Dr. Eoff and in collaboration with other students.
Shamindri Tennakoon
Undergraduate Research in Paleobiology: Fossil Mollusks Across Time and Space
Over the summer, Dr. Tennakoon and two students will conduct paleobiological research to better understand the evolutionary history of fossil mollusks and will visit the Florida Museum of Natural History where the students will have the chance to gain experience in curatorial methods, expand their dataset, and begin making professional connections.