MARCUS fosters interdisciplinary exchange
Posted on October 15, 2012 by Staff Writer
Kate Macklin ’13 presents her environmental research.On Saturday, Oct. 13, students from across Virginia gathered at Sweet Briar for the College’s 14th annual Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference of Undergraduate Scholarship (MARCUS).
Since its inception in 1999, the conference has attracted students from colleges throughout Virginia and surrounding states. MARCUS provides an atmosphere of lively inquiry in which the student researchers are the experts, presenting to an audience of their peers. The conference is purposely interdisciplinary, with an emphasis on the intersection of disciplines across the liberal arts spectrum.
The daylong event featured presentations and poster sessions by 100 students. Among the 12 Sweet Briar students were Courtney Selvage ’14, Hannah Male ’13, Jessica Murphy ’13, Phoebe Jiang ’14, Kate Fanta ’15, A-Joo Kim ’13, Rachael Stein ’13, CJ Campbell ’13, Lydia Ethridge ’15, Caitlin Playle ’13, Turina Lewis ’14 and Kate Macklin ’13.
Other presenters came from Hampden-Sydney, Randolph, Roanoke, Lynchburg, Randolph-Macon and Mary Baldwin colleges, as well as Virginia Military Institute and James Madison, Hollins, George Mason, Washington and Lee and Christopher Newport universities.
In keeping with the event’s interdisciplinary focus, topics covered a range of themes, from “Transcendentalism and the Development of the American Identity” (Charles Lein, James Madison University), to “Effects of Teaching Style and Cell Phone Interruptions on Learning” (Kristi Holt, Roanoke College), to “Modeling of the 2012 Tour de France” (Brian Ramsey, Lynchburg College).
