ECU Honors Takes Orlando: Southern Regional Honors Conference 2016

By: Erika Dietrick, Undergraduate Director of Marketing and Communications

In April, Associate Dean Kevin Baxter accompanied five ECU Honors College students to the annual Southern Regional Honors Conference (SRHC) in sunny Orlando, Florida.

SRHC is an excellent forum for sharing common practices in honors. Honors College senior and student employee Megan Woodlief presented Planning a Large Scale Honors Commencement Reception in which she shared her experience directing all logistics associated with one of our largest events of the year.

Megan’s talk on our end-of-year celebration for seniors was complimented with a focus on incoming freshman. Mr. Kevin Baxter presented Strategic Enrollment Management and Honors, providing an overview of ECU Honors recruitment practices.

Editor-in-Chief of The East Carolinian and Honors College senior Ryan Clancy created a poster connecting college journalism courses with journalism careers. His poster, titled Convergence Skills as Demanded by Newspaper Employers and Taught by University Journalism Programs, offered applicable knowledge for preparing university students for the newspaper industry.

The sciences were also strongly represented by three outstanding presentations in chemistry, health, and biology, respectively. In fulfillment of the Senior Honors Project, Honors College senior Kate McPherson presented a poster titled Palladium Catalyzed C-C Coupling Reaction from a Computational Quantum Mechanical Perspective, and Honors College senior Sarah Judy presented research titled The Effects of Coal Ash Containment Pond Runoff on pH and Microbial Respiration in River Sediments.

Last but certainly not least, Honors College sophomore Sahiti Marella presented A comprehensive study of the positive and negative effects of folic acid on embryonic and adult life. Her research suggests that folic acid is not only an essential prenatal vitamin supplement for the reduction of neural tube defects, but also a pivotal nutrient in the development of complications embryonically and in adulthood.

The Harry Potter themed conference paid tribute to nearby Harry Potter World. Each participant was placed in one of the four Harry Potter “houses” (Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Hufflepuff) to promote camaraderie and friendly competition. Between panels and socials, the group enjoyed visits to Universal Studios (including Harry Potter World!) and various Disney locations.

Outstanding host cities, opportunities to network, and a supportive platform to communicate research with other honors communities are just a few of the reasons SRHC remains a must-attend conference for the ECU Honors College.