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Graduate School

Graduate Student Successes

This article highlights some current student successes:

  • 2016 Research and the State Awardees
  • Graduate Student Council GTA Teaching Award winners
  • Notable Scholarly Achievement Newsletter

 

10 Kansas State University graduate students earn honors at Research and the State

Winners of the 2016 Research and the State

Winners of the 2016 Research and the State event at Kansas State University, from left: Catherine Hill, Sam Emerson, Ryan Schmid, Matthew Galliart, Jack Lemmon and Josh Weese. Not pictured are Regina Enninful, Md. Zahidul Karim, Tri Tran and Zheng Zhao.

Research on diets high in fat and sugar, the effects of early-season and late-season grazing in the Flint Hills, and why computation thinking is important at the elementary level are the focus of some of the winning research presentations by Kansas State University graduate students who were selected to represent the university at the 14th Capitol Graduate Research Summit, Feb. 28, 2017, at the State Capitol in Topeka.

Ten students were chosen to present their work in Topeka based on their research presentations at Research and the State Nov. 2 in the K-State Student Union.

Research and the State involved 48 participants from four colleges and 20 departments. The event was sponsored by the Graduate Student Council, the Graduate School, the Office of the President and the Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President. Each winner received a $250 award.

“The winners of Research and the State showcase the outstanding research being conducted at K-State and will communicate the value of their research to the state legislators when they present at the Capitol Graduate Research Summit in February,” said Carol Shanklin, dean of the Graduate School. “This event is one of the many opportunities that the Graduate School and the Graduate Student Council collaborate to enhance our students’ ability to communicate their research to the public.”

At the Capitol Graduate Research Summit, the 10 students will have the opportunity to present and showcase their research in front of the Kansas Board of Regents and Kansas legislators. The annual statewide summit for Kansas legislators features current research of graduate students at Kansas State University, the University of Kansas, the University of Kansas Medical Center, Wichita State University, Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University. A university professor and an industry representative will judge the poster and student presentations. The top presenter from each university will be awarded a $500 award.

The following Kansas State University graduate students were selected to present at the Capitol Graduate Research Summit:

• Jack Lemmon, master’s student in animal sciences, Allen, for “Effects of intensive late-season sheep grazing following early-season steer grazing on population dynamics of sericea lespedeza in the Kansas Flint Hills.” His faculty advisor is KC Olson, professor of animal sciences and industry.

• Matthew Galliart, doctoral student in biology, Hutchinson, for “Experimental natural selection of big bluestem ecotypes across the Great Plains: A novel test for the strength of local adaptation.” His faculty advisor is Loretta Johnson, professor of biology.

• Josh Weese, doctoral student in computer science, Macksville, for “Bringing computational thinking to K-12.” His faculty advisor is William Hsu, associate professor in computer sciences.

• Ryan Schmid, doctoral student in entomology, Kingsley, Iowa, for “Protecting Kansas wheat: Assessment of a novel Hessian fly monitoring strategy.” His faculty advisor is Brian McCornack, associate professor of entomology.

• Catherine Hill, doctoral student in psychology, Katy, Texas, for “Diet-induced impulsivity: the effect of high-fat and high-sugar diets on the mechanisms of impulsive choice.” Her faculty advisor is Kimberly Kirkpatrick, professor of psychological sciences.

• Sam Emerson, doctoral student in human nutrition, Midlothian, Texas, for “Characterizing the inflammatory response to a high-fat meal in healthy adults: A Systematic review.” His faculty advisor is Sara Rosenkranz, assistant professor of food, nutrition, dietetics and health.

• Md. Zahidul Karim, doctoral student in civil engineering, Bangladesh, for “Characterizing soil erosion potential using electrical resistivity.” His faculty advisor is Stacey Tucker-Kulesza, assistant professor of civil engineering.

• Zheng Zhao, doctoral student in biological and agricultural engineering, China, for “Developing multiplexed detection of blood exosomal markers for diagnosis of ovarian cancer.” His faculty advisor is Mei He, assistant professor of biological and agricultural engineering.

• Regina Enninful, doctoral student in agronomy, Ghana, for “Characterization of parents of sorghum mapping populations exposed to water-deficit stress during the vegetative stage.” Her faculty advisor is Krishna Jagadish, associate professor of agronomy.

• Tri Tran, doctoral student in civil engineering, Vietnam, for “Determining surface roughness in erosion testing using photogrammetric method.” His faculty advisor is Stacey Tucker-Kulesza, assistant professor of civil engineering.


Master’s and doctoral graduate students selected for university’s Graduate Student Teaching Excellence awards

Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2016

Amanda Martens

MANHATTAN — Two Kansas State University graduate students are recipients of the Graduate Student Council Award for Graduate Student Teaching Excellence.

Sponsored by the Graduate Student Council, this award recognizes graduate teaching assistants who have excelled in classroom teaching and promotes awareness of the important contributions graduate students make to the scholarship of the university. The recipients will represent the university as the doctoral and master’s nominees for the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools, or MAGS, Excellence in Teaching Award.

The doctoral graduate teaching assistant award winner is Amanda Martens, doctoral student in psychological sciences, Shelby, Iowa. Martens’ adviser is Don Saucier, university distinguished teaching scholar and associate professor of psychological sciences.

The master’s graduate teaching assistant award winner is Allyson Koziol, master’s student in English, Lincoln, Nebraska. Her adviser is Philip Nel, university distinguished professor of English.

Allyson Koziol

Both award recipients say they enjoy teaching.

“Students will email me articles or relay information about their own lives that are applicable to class material,” Martens said. “That is my favorite part because it shows me that not only are they paying attention in class, but they are applying what they learned to their own lives and the world around them. As a teacher, there is no better feeling than watching your students connect the dots and sharing their excitement over it with you.”

“I believe that the strongest part of my teaching, and perhaps why I was chosen, is my ability to connect with my students on a personal level, through communication in the classroom,” Koziol said. “To communicate with my students, it is important that I am as open with them as I can be, while still retaining the teacher persona.”

A master’s student and a doctoral student are selected for the Graduate Student Council Award for Student Teaching Excellence each year. Each award recipient receives a $500 scholarship, and his or her name and department are engraved on a perpetual plaque to be displayed in the student’s department until the next award is given.

“Allyson and Amanda exemplify the quality and dedication of K-State graduate teaching assistants who are committed to facilitating their students’ success,” said Carol Shanklin, dean of the Graduate School. “Both Allyson and Amanda are outstanding teachers who will be very competitive as K-State nominees for the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools Excellence in Teaching Award.”

The MAGS Excellence in Teaching awards were created to recognize the importance of excellence in teaching and mentoring as a component of graduate education and the preparation of graduate students for future service as college and university faculty. Martens and Koziol will compete for a $750 honorarium that will be presented at the 73rd annual MAGS meeting, April 5-7, 2017, in Indianapolis. One master’s student and one doctoral student are selected for the MAGS award.

Since the MAGS Excellence in Teaching Award was established in 2011, Kansas State University has had four winners.

The Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools is a regional affiliate of the Council of Graduate Schools. The association’s member colleges and universities are accredited institutions of higher education in the central U.S. that offer graduate programs leading to masters, specialist and doctorate degrees.


 

Notable Scholarly Achievement Newsletter

The Awards and Recognition Committee of the Graduate Student Council honors graduate students who’ve made notable scholarly achievements from March 15, 2016 to October 15, 2016. Such accomplishments include receiving awards at conferences, research forums, teaching awards, etc., or students who’ve made exceptional contributions to the research knowledge-base or other scholarly contributions to their discipline.

Read the December 2016 newsletter here.