Barrett Scroggs, doctoral student in Life Span Human Development and graduate teaching assistant, traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania this past summer to present his research at the International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development conference.
Scroggs presented the research he co-authored with Saily Baley and Dr. Bronywyn Fees , “The impact of participation in creative drama on empathy levels during Emerging Adulthood,” at the 
conference’s poster session. He also engaged with other researchers and practitioners in behavioral development and learned from presentations by keynote speakers within the discipline.
“The major highlight of the conference was g
etting the chance to present my research,” said Barrett Scroggs. “My poster was presented with other posters related to social cognition on the first full day of the conference. Many people stopped by my poster because they had read the title and were interested in what creative drama was and how it played a part in my research study.”
Scroggs’ research interest focuses on emerging adulthood, the stage of lifedirectly after adolescence that encompasses individuals between 18-29 years old. This poster focused on the ways in which emerging adults can develop empathy skills using creative drama, a form of theatre of which the goal is not to perform a scripted play in front of an audience, but, instead, to develop creative and imaginative skills using drama and theatre.
In addition to spending time at the conference, growing academically and professionally, he explored Vilnius.
“The ten days that I spent in Lithuania were an exciting whirlwind,” said Barrett Scroggs. “I was able to experience a brand new culture while traveling in Europe for the first time ever. I passed on information about my research to others in the field and made excellent connections with others with similar interests. I have already received emails from others at the conference who want to know more about my poster.”
Read Barrett Scroggs’ entire story about his travel to Lithuania.
Scroggs’ trip to Vilnius was made possible because of the financial support from the College of Human Ecology and the department of Family Studies Human Services and a travel award from the Graduate Student Council.
The Graduate Student Council Travel Awards Program is a competitive program that provides partial funding to graduate students who are presenting their research and scholarly endeavors at national and international travel. Participation in professional meetings/conferences provides our graduate student the opportunity to share their research with others in their field and to network with key leaders and scholars resulting in greater visibility for K-State and enhances the graduate student experiences.
“For the past three years, the Graduate Student Council has observed a significant increase in the number of applicants for the GSC Travel Grant program,” said Tucker Jones current GSC president. “Due to the increase in applications this year, the award amounts ($750 for international and $500 for domestic travel) are insufficient to cover the costs incurred by graduate students to present their work.”
With the help of donors like you, Barrett, and many other graduate students can participate in professional meetings and conferences and grow professionally while they are a student at K-State.
If you are interested in providing some financial support to the Graduate Student Council, please type or write in the code C26503 on the Foundation’s giving page that can be found here.