McNair Scholars attend, present at conference in Maryland

Eight Henderson State University McNair Scholars, McNair staff, and a mentor participated recently in the 20th National Conference for McNair Scholars and Undergraduate Research at the University of Maryland College Park. The conference showcased scholars research, offered networking opportunities, and featured former participants who have excelled in their profession.

HSU scholars who presented during the conference included:

• Raven Morris, a senior music education major from Texarkana, Texas, who presented her finding on “Multicultural Music Education: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Current Practices in Texas and Arkansas.”
• Eric Gaither, a senior criminal justice major from Bismarck and recipient of a graduate assistantship in the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, presented an oral presentation on “Social Obstacles: Stigma’s Influence on Identity Recidivism.”
• Destiny Amos presented her poster on “Musical Preference as an Indicator of Neurotic Tendencies.” Amos is a psychology major from Emerson.
• Matthew Chapa presented his poster on “A Drug Repositioning and Diversification Strategy for Discovery of Compounds with Anti-Cancer Activity.” He graduated from Warren and is a biology major.
• Rachel King presented her poster on “Ambiguous Nucleosides that Heighten the HIV Error Load: Using Viral Mutagenesis to Develop Antiviral Agents.” She graduated from Pocahontas and is a biochemistry major.

HSU scholars who also attended the conference were:

• Emren Akdamar, a senior music education major from Benton.
• Kaitlyn Hall, a senior sociology major from White Hall, and a recipient of a graduate assistantship in sociology at the University of Mississippi.
• Nathan Price, a senior psychology major from Magnolia, and recipient of a graduate assistantship in psychology at the University of Maryland.

Dr. Susan Aldridge, director of the McNair Program, and Dr. Aneeq Ahmad, professor and chair of the Department of Psychology, served as moderators for the oral presentations. Jarrod Bray, McNair Scholar coordinator, also attended the conference.