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The Undergraduate Summer Scholar Program offers Dominican’s highest level of undergraduate research funding support. URSCI Summer Scholars receive a stipend of $3000 and a tuition waiver for two academic credits of undergraduate research (e.g., PSYC 495). The duration of the program is 8 weeks. Any Dominican undergraduate student in good standing who has completed their sophomore or junior year can apply to be a Summer Scholar. Sponsoring faculty members must be full-time members of the undergraduate or graduate faculty at Dominican University. Mentors receive a $500 stipend for their oversight of the student's project.

Scholar selection is based on the student’s academic merit and the quality of the proposed scholarly project. Scholarship recipients are required to present their independent scholarly and creative work at the annual SI (Scholarship & Ideas) Expo the following April.

More information can be found on Canvas. Self-enroll in the Canvas course to learn more.

Mo Malinowski (Mentor: Judith Singleton, Sociology) URSCI Award
Inequality of Perinatal Health Outcomes in Chicago.

Metzli Flores (Mentor: Frank Spidale, Graphic Design & Art) URSCI Award
Dominican Portraits

Melanie Palencia (Mentor: Persis Driver, Psychology) * Daniel Beach Summer Research Scholarship
Exploring the Development of Latine Students‘ STEM Identity in a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) 

Haven Barnes (Mentor: Mickey Sweeney, English) URSCI Award
Magic and Metaphysics in Bede’s “Ecclesiastical History of the English People 

Diana Wittrock (Mentor: Irina Calin-Jageman, Biology) *O’Hanlon Summer Scholar Grant and Title III
Epigenetic regulation of maintenance genes in long-term sensitization

Claudia Sosa (Mentor: Yamunadevi Puraikalan, Nutrition) URSCI and Title III Award
Development and objective evaluation of cake using dehydrated dragon fruit powder 

Cassidy Martyn (Mentor: Christopher Anderson, Biology) URSCI and Title III Award
Surveying adult and larval Odonate biodiversity to investigate the accuracy of the Illinois Odonate Survey

Carys McFaul (Mentor: Robert Calin-Jageman, Psychology) URSCI and Title III Award
Role of Inhibitory Neurons in Active Forgetting in Aplysia Californica

Angela Borek (Mentors: Khalid Razaki, Anne Drougas, Accounting)
Sustainability: Financial Accounting, Cost, and Cost Management Aspects

Bianca Leon (Mentor: Patrick Homan, Political Science)
Italian Democracy in Jeopardy? Giorgia Meloni and her relationship with neo-fascist organizations

Callum Moran (Mentor: Frank Spidale, Graphic Design/Art)
Explorative Self-Portraits

Cesia Villatoro (Mentor: Tracy Caldwell, Psychology)
How Do People Understand the Value of “Retail Therapy”?

Kaya Paluch (Mentor: Tracy Caldwell, Psychology)
Sexist Video Games Predict Benevolent Sexism (But Not Hostile Sexism): A Replication Study

Kevin Moore (Mentor: Sophia Duffy, Psychology)
Experiences of Trauma and Structures of Meaning 

Nina M. Blaise (Mentor: Persis Driver, Psychology)
An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis of STEM Peer Led Team Leaders’ Perceived Roles

Cali J. Carlson (Mentor: TJ Krafnick, Psychology
The Subclinical Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Women in Mid-Adulthood

Irving Castaneda (Mentor: McKinley Johnson, Fashion)
Minority Style: A Fashion Exploration of the Design Contributions Made by Men of Color to Menswear

Corey Lang (Mentor: Tracy Caldwell, Psychology)
The Effects of Educational Videos on Attitudes Toward Autism

Natalia Prato (Mentor: Tina Taylor-Ritzler, Psychology
The Effect of Sense of Community on Academic Outcomes of Transfer Students: A Replication and Extension of Townley et al. (2013)

Corinne E. Roemer (Mentor: Amartya Chakrabarti, Chemistry
Synthesis of ZnS Quantum Dots as an Environmentally Benign Experiment 

Prayer Childress (Mentor: Professor Tracy Caldwell, Psychology)
The Dispersion of Undergraduate Teaching Opportunities for Minority Students and Women: A Literature Review

Elise Ndoe Gouag (Mentor: Sophia Duffy, Psychology)
Childhood Trauma and Antisocial Behavior and Trauma: A Meta-Analysis

Lance Grunert (Mentor: Persis Driver, Psychology)
Applying the Self-Determination Theory to Enhance the Impact of Undergraduate Teaching Assistants on Students' Motivation and Achievement

Jamie Pena (Mentor: Zomary Flores Cruz, Biological Sciences)
Identifying the role of oxyR in Vibrio fischeri

Chelsea Zhao (Mentor: Yuanqing Li, Accounting, Finance, Entrepreneurship)
A Study of Successful Attributes of Small Businesses during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Lesley Arroyo (Mentor: Persis Driver/Psychology)
Speech-Language Pathologist’s Efficacy and Beliefs in Assessing Bilingual Children

Katherine Carper (Mentor: Christina Perez, Sociology)
Even Sickness has Privilege: Racial Inequalities in Health within Chicago

Kristen Garcia (Mentor: Sophia Duffy, Psychology)
Complex Trauma, Coping, and COVID-19: Understanding the Associations between Forms of Trauma and Coping among College Students

Gabriela Giza and Alison Laton (Mentor: Tracy L. Caldwell, Psychology)
The Connotation of Obesity and Its Effect on Body Satisfaction

Daisy Rivera (Mentor: Yuanqing Li/Accounting, Finance, Entrepreneurship)
The Power of Responsiveness During Crisis in the World of Business - Take Covid-19 as Example