Celebration of Excellence

The Celebration of Excellence is a month of applauding the academic and creative work by the Norwich community.

CoE Schedule Hero Image

Message From the Program Director

Welcome to our 23rd spring celebration of student research! This year, we expand our celebration to the whole month of April so we can highlight even more research our students have completed in labs, studios, libraries, archives, outdoors, and classrooms, on campus and beyond. We hope you’ll make time to attend many of the events showcasing student research, from the multidisciplinary poster session on April 10 to the many program-specific events going on at other times throughout the month, because we know that student research is worth celebrating.

Research takes a lot of time and hard work: it challenges students to think creatively and critically, identifying unanswered questions and using their skills and resources to move toward an answer. Research is experiential: it lets students apply the knowledge and talents they have learned in the classroom to solving problems and expanding our collective knowledge. Research ensures that our students’ education is relevant: it helps students build workforce skills and understand cutting edge topics at the forefront of their academic or professional field.

Research also takes a community. We learn from each other and support each other throughout the research process, and it is only fitting that we come together to celebrate the products of all that hard work. So, let’s celebrate the countless hours of work that went into each of these projects and share the knowledge we have gained. Let’s thank the students for sharing their work with us, and the mentors, classmates, roommates, staff, parents, and others for the support they provided along the way.  And let’s take this opportunity to learn something new from our student researchers!

Enjoy the showcase!

Allison Neal, PhD
Undergraduate Research Program Director

All of April - All Over Campus

Student Research Showcase Competition

For a chance to win a prize, send a selfie of you at these events to undergraduateresearch@norwich.edu. Every event you attend increases your chances of winning!

Include the name of the event with your photo. We may share your selfies on social media; if you don’t want your photo shared, please let us know. Students, faculty, and staff are all encouraged to participate!

Schedule of Events

  1. April 8

    2-3:30 p.m. | Todd Multipurpose Room, Kreitzberg Library
    The Bamberg Witch Panic of 1628
    HI 322: Colloquium on Crime and Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe
    Questions? Contact Professor Emily Gray at egray1@norwich.edu.

     

     

  1. April 10

    8-9 a.m. | Mack Hall 105
    Criminal Justice Senior Seminar Presentations on Human Trafficking Research
    Presentations by Ben Fairbanks and Maddox Reed
    CJ 410 Section 2, Senior Seminar in Criminal Justice
    Questions? Email Professor Connie Hassett-Walker at chassett@norwich.edu.

    9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Kreitzberg Arena
    Engineering Convocation
    This event is for the Senior Capstone Project Teams to make presentations and then have an interactive poster session.
    Questions? Email Professor Karen Supan at ksupan@norwich.edu.

    4:30-6 p.m. | Plumley Armory
    Student Research Showcase Poster Session and Award Ceremony
    Sponsored by the Undergraduate Research Program
    Questions? Email Professor Allison Neal at aneal1@norwich.edu.

  1. April 11

    2-6 p.m. | Mack Hall Auditorium
    Department of Health and Human Performance Senior Capstone Presentations
    HHPR 450 Evidence Based Healthcare
    Questions? Email Professor Lucas Van Horn at lvanhorn@norwich.edu.

    Keynote Presentation by Major Brandon Roberts
    MAJ Roberts is a Research Physiologist in the Military Performance Division at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine. Using a combination of cell culture, animal models, clinical trials, and field studies he investigates how the body responds to exercise, injury, extreme environments, and the effects of pharmaceutical and nutritional interventions. His mission is to optimize Warfighter health and performance.

    Summary: This presentation will explore how research in exercise and health science has shaped doctrine, policies, strategies, and performance optimization in military, athlete, and tactical populations. We will cover how research has driven updates to body composition standards, ration formulations, drug and supplement usage, cognitive enhancement, and occupational safety. This discussion will also highlight the critical role of research in shaping readiness and sustaining peak performance in austere environments.

  1. April 17

    1-2 p.m. | Location TBD
    HI 404 Later Roman Empire Senior Capstone Presentations
    HI 404 History Capstone Seminar
    Questions? Email Christine McCann at cmccann@norwich.edu.

  1. April 18

    Noon-1 p.m. | Science Complex U195
    The Westy Symposium for Undergraduate Research in Earth and Environmental Sciences
    Questions? Email Laurie Grigg at lgrigg@norwich.edu.

  1. April 22

    9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | South Instruction Room, Kreitzberg Library
    Nursing Capstone Leadership Poster Presentations
    The Nursing Capstone Leadership Poster Presentations are associated with NR 441 Nursing Capstone.
    Questions? Email Professor Llynne Kiernan at kllynne@norwich.edu or Professor Jessie Wood at jwood3@norwich.edu.
     

Awards & Special Thanks

The Office of Academic Research (OAR) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Summer Research Fellowships and Summer Apprentices. These outstanding student scholars have been selected to receive research grants and fellowships, marking the beginning of their journey towards impactful academic exploration.

Weintz Research Fellow - ❈ 

 

2025 Summer Apprentices 
 

Friends of the Kreitzberg Library Awards 
The Faculty Senate Library Committee is pleased to announce the winners of the annual Friends of the Friends of the Kreitzberg Library Awards for Outstanding Student Research. These exceptional individuals have been recognized for their exemplary research prowess and academic pursuits.

Archival Undergraduate Researchers 
 

Advanced Undergraduate Researchers: Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (HASS) 
 

Emerging Undergraduate Researchers: Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (HASS) 
 

Advanced Undergraduate Researchers: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) 
 

This program would not have been possible with the support and participation from the Norwich University community, especially:

Dr. Karen Gaines 
Dr. Tara Kulkarni 
Dr. Lea Williams 
Dean Aron Temkin

2024-25 Research Committee

Dr. Allison Neal 
Dr. Jean-Sebastien Gagnon 
Dr. Laurie Grigg 
Prof. Preseley McGarry
Dr. Kyle Pivetti
Dr. Karen Supan 
Prof. Zachary Siebold 
Dr. Kathryn Warrender-Hill

We extend sincere gratitude to Cristy Boarman, and Megan Liptak from the Office of Academic Research for their unwavering support in making this event a success.

Questions? Contact Us

Questions about student research? Contact us at undergraduateresearch@norwich.edu.