Southeastern McNair Scholars present at fall conferences

McNair Scholars from Southeastern Oklahoma State University have been research presenters at multiple conferences in recent weeks.

The Annual Advancing Indigenous People in STEM (AISES) National Conference was held in San Antonio, Texas, in early October. This unique, three-day event focused on educational, professional, and workforce development for Indigenous peoples of North America and the Pacific Islands in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) studies and careers.

The McNair Scholars program sponsored three McNair Scholars for this conference in which each presented their Summer Research Institute projects:

• Wren Pettett delivered his oral presentation on "Mycoremediation of Nitrate Using Pleurotus Ostreatus: A Microcosm Experiment". Pettett is a senior Fisheries and Wildlife major from Atoka.

• Makinsy Ringels' research titled "Parameters That May Relate to U.S. Native American Suicide Rate: A Retrospective Study of 1999-2020 CDC Suicide Data", placed third for undergraduate poster presentations. Ringels is a Biological Health Sciences major from Mead.

• and Amanda Keeling's research titled "Beyond Violence: Exploring the Correlation Between Economic Hardship, Racial Identity, and Domestic Abuse" was judged in a poster presentation. Keeling is a Criminal Justice major from Durant.

The McNair Scholars Program was also represented at the University of New Mexico's McNair Scholars Research Conference in Albuquerque, N.M., in September. Undergraduate research scholars from all majors are able to participate in this conference, allowing for a broad range of topics.

Four Southeastern McNair Scholars presented their Summer Research Institute projects, which included:

• Keeling's poster presentation titled "Beyond Violence: Exploring the Correlation Between Economic Hardship, Racial Identity, and Domestic Abuse".

• Melissa Kocher's poster presentation titled "A Comparative Study on the Effectiveness of Welding Helmets in Reducing Respirable Particulate Exposure". Kocher is a senior Occupational Safety and Health major from Arlington, Texas.

• Madison Saunders' poster presentation titled "Neurodiversity in Workplace Safety". Saunders is a senior Occupational Safety and Health major from McKinney, Texas.

• and Pettett's oral presentation on "Mycoremediation of Nitrate Using Pleurotus Ostreatus: A Microcosm Experiment".

The McNair Scholars Program at Southeastern is designed to provide 25 underrepresented, low-income, and first-generation students with mentoring from staff and faculty, academic counseling, tutoring, and opportunities to conduct and present research. Through seminars, lectures, and a summer research institute geared to providing information on applying to graduate school, teaching assistantships, and developing a research-based thesis, SE's McNair Scholars will be prepared to successfully complete graduate school studies. Scholars are encouraged to continue through the attainment of the Ph.D.

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