Research on campuses across the country traditionally has been something graduate students are recognized for, but as the 150 college juniors and seniors presenting projects at West Virginia's Capitol on Thursday can attest, there has been a push for more attention at the undergraduate level.
"By doing this kind of research, we can identify problems," said Courtney McDonald, a psychology student at West Virginia University. On Thursday, she presented information on how childhood adversity is linked to mental illness and drug abuse later in life at Undergraduate Research Day. The event gives the state's lawmakers a chance to see what studies college students are producing.
McDonald, who is a first-generation student from Berkeley County, said her research connects her with real world problems she'd like to help correct.
And it's that kind of thinking higher education leaders want to foster.
"It's important for our state to engage students with research opportunities," said Paul Hill, chancellor of the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission. "It can lead to problem solving and innovation."
Hill went on to say society benefits from high-quality research.
"Whether we probe the universe, study our origins or learn about language," he said.
But colleges want to do more than include undergraduates in research projects, they also want to promote study beyond science labs.
"It just isn't test tubes and experiments," said Jerome Gilbert, president of Marshall University, which partnered with West Virginia University to sponsor the 13th Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol.
"Research can be anything that advances the knowledge of the world," Gilbert went on to say, adding that it connects students with what they're learning and gives them a deeper understanding of a subject.
Gilbert, who has been Marshall's president since January, has promoted undergraduate research in recent weeks as part of a plan to improve the Huntington-based college. He said research provides many benefits for students, and studies tend to back that claim up.
According to the Council on Undergraduate Research, which promotes student-faculty collaborative study, research can enhance learning through mentoring relationships, increase retention of knowledge and help students become critical thinkers while fostering creativity and intellectual independence.
Undergraduates who have access to and participate in research also tend to enroll in graduate programs. Those who don't, Gilbert said, are better prepared for a future career.
Hill said he agrees with Gilbert and that outlook on research needs to expand.
Several of West Virgina's public and private universities were represented Thursday. About 150 students presented 110 research projects with subjects ranging from the affect Marcellus Shale drilling has on local streams to how people in Appalachia pronounce vowels.
Undergraduate Research Day is set up like a high school science or social studies fair. Students displayed their projects on poster boards and stood anxiously nearby waiting to explain their methodologies and findings. The science behind the projects, however, was a little more complex than the typical papier-mache volcano.
One student presented preliminary findings on how prescribed opioids can alter human DNA. Another looked at how the Syrian hostage crisis has affected the presidential race in America.
Many projects involved issues West Virginia faces.
Because childhood adversity, mental illness and drug abuse is a problem in West Virginia, McDonald said she wanted to look into it further. She also was motivated by her upbringing and how she overcome adversity.
According to her research, someone who faces childhood adversity is 47 percent more likely to suffer depression later in life and 38 percent more likely to use drugs. While her research is still in the early stages, she said she wants to take a deeper look on how to prevent that from happening.
Reach Samuel Speciale at sam.speciale@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-7939 or follow @samueljspeciale on Twitter.