Seventh Annual Atlanta Research Conference to Showcase Student and Faculty Scholarship

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ATLANTA – Mercer University's seventh annual Atlanta Research Conference will take place on April 8, 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m., to showcase work by students and faculty from the Cecil B. Day Graduate and Professional Campus and Regional Academic Centers.

“The annual Mercer Atlanta Research Conference showcases outstanding student and faculty research projects. The conference highlights the excellent quality and breadth of the research programs on the Atlanta campus and demonstrates Mercer's expanding research focus,” said Dr. Wayne Glasgow, senior vice provost for research and dean of graduate studies.

Following the opening ceremony, poster presentations and concurrent speaker sessions will be offered throughout the day until 2:30 p.m. A keynote address and student awards ceremony will take place during lunch from 12:30-1:45 p.m. All events will be held in the Atlanta Administration and Conference Center.

The conference's keynote speaker will be Dr. John C. Knapp, who serves as the 12th president of Hope College in Holland, Michigan. His address is titled “Academic Ghostwriting: Is it Ethical?”

Dr. Knapp previously served as founding director of Samford University's Frances Marlin Mann Center for Ethics and Leadership and held an endowed professorship in ethics and teaching in several of the university's colleges.

Additionally, this year's Monroe F. Swilley Jr. Student Research Award will be presented to Penfield College student Danielle Render. The award, which includes a $250 cash prize, recognizes a student who best incorporates the use of the University Libraries' collections and services and demonstrates active critical thinking.

Render, a master's-level student in the Department of Counseling, will present a poster presentation on “The Prince Charming Effect: Portrayals of Men in the Media Inducing Implicit Biases in Women.”

Presenters will represent Penfield College, the College of Pharmacy, the Georgia Baptist College of Nursing, the College of Health Professions, McAfee School of Theology and Tift College of Education.

Dr. Kenyon Knapp, associate professor of counseling and coordinator of the doctoral program in Penfield College, organized the inaugural conference in 2011 “out of a desire to encourage and inspire both students and faculty to become more involved in research activities, as well as provide a venue where they can share their findings.” The conference, which has steadily grown over the past six years, received 99 proposals this year.

This year's conference planning committee, chaired by Dr. Cameron Miller, assistant professor and chair of human services and psychology in Penfield College, included Dr. Sheena Brown in the College of Health Professions, Dr. Nadar Moniri in the College of Pharmacy, Dr. Chris Holmes in McAfee School of Theology, Dr. Kevin Jenkins and Dr. Pamela Larde in Tift College of Education, Florence Tang in Swilley Library, Dr. Maura Schlairet in the Georgia Baptist College of Nursing, and Dr. Morgan Kiper Riechel, Dr. Wesley Barker, Dr. Vik Baskaran, Dr. Laurie Lankin, Dr. Kevin Williams Dr. Arla Bernstein, Dr. Feng Liu and Dr. Kenyon Knapp in Penfield College.

For more information, contact Dr. Miller at miller_c@mercer.edu.