WP Student Showcase Gives Students An Opportunity To Shine
William Penn University nursing student Kristina Morgan discusses her project at the student showcase.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – William Penn University students had an opportunity to showcase their talents and academic findings on Thursday, during the Student Research and Creative Arts Symposium (SRCAS).
The event, held inside the Penn Activity Center [PAC], had 110 presentations and 102 students participating. The SRCAS is held each year as a way to highlight educational achievement in a fun and engaging manner. This year’s symposium featured several related events, operating under the common theme, “Community Working Together”. Attendees saw first-hand what practicum students in the following areas of study have researched this semester: APCS, Biology, Business, Exercise Science, Fine Arts, Human Services, Nursing, Psychology, and Sociology. Something new for this year was the Fringe Festival, a fine arts festival held around the symposium.
“The ultimate purpose is to get students acquainted with discussing their own work in front of other people,” said William Penn Professor James North. “What better atmosphere than in front of their peers?”
“We give them an opportunity to present their work. They can take that on to a higher level,” says North.
Nicole Harrison used the opportunity to discuss her project concerning water quality in Iowa, Mahaska County in particular. Harrison found studying the local watershed and erosion issues interesting, and she studied the Des Moines River, Muchakinock Creek, South Skunk River, the Muskunky Marsh, and the Rose Hill Marsh.
“What I found was that they didn’t have any lead, silver, or mercury, but there could be other contaminates in them.”
Harrison said that her water collection showed, “strangely high PH,” saying that the level should be around 6.5, but she discovered one location that went to 8.2. Many area residents may have thought the Muchakinock Creek would be the culprit for the highest PH reading. Harrison said that her data pointed to the South Skunk River having the highest PH.
Harrison said that exploring prairie strips near the waterways may help to reduce the contaminants finding their way into the rivers and streams.
Sharon DeKock spoke about the Nursing program that is in its first 5 years at William Penn University. DeKock said that William Penn offers an RN or BSN [Bachelor of Science Nursing] program, and her role during the showcase was to demonstrate best practice, which is an expectation for a BSN.
The best practice showcase for the BSN students was to implement performance improvement by looking at problems in their organization and determining what needs to be fixed, or what practice can be changed for the better. That is done through research, along with a nursing theory framework to base their concepts on, before exploring how to implement the solution.
The showcase allows students to have real-world experience before stepping into those roles in their future jobs.
