Arts and Sciences | Business and Industry | Events | Featured | Health Education and Human SciencesApril 07, 2025

18th Annual Research Symposium Slated for April 11

Written By: Ian Silvester

The University of Arkansas – Fort Smith will host its 18^th Annual Student Research Symposium from noon to 2 p.m. Friday, April 11, 2025. Student-led research across all academic disciplines will be presented at the Boreham Library, the Breedlove Building, and the Pendergraft Health Sciences Center.

The symposium will feature oral, poster, music, and visual arts presentations. It will give UAFS students a platform to present their individual or group research findings to peers, faculty, and the wider community. The organizing committee says the symposium fosters an environment that promotes learning and discovery.

Oral presenters will each have a 30-minute time slot, including a brief question and answer period. These presentations will take place on a strict schedule in rooms throughout the Health Science building. Poster presenters will display their research on freestanding posters in the atrium of Boreham Library, answering questions from judges and engaging in short discussions about their research. In the arts, studio art students will display professionally mounted, matted, and framed art pieces throughout the symposium, while music performances, recorded in advance, will be showcased in the same format as the oral presentations.

Dr. Shadow Robinson, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, highlighted the symposium as a way for students to challenge their academic and research abilities. “These presentations represent the academic diversity of UAFS’s programs and the intellectual excellence of our students,” Robinson said.

The symposium schedule features various presentations on various topics, from dental hygiene and engineering to geoscience, literature, and arts.

Highlights include the use of artificial intelligence related to electrical engineering and automation as it relates to security for “Intelligent Intrusion Detection System” and in dental hygiene with “The Future of AI in Dentistry.” In history, “Defending Arkansas Civil Rights: Scipio Africanus Jones and Fighting Racism from Within Arkansas” presents the history of one of Arkansas’ first Black lawyers and his impact on the state’s understanding of civil rights. In the field of computer science, “NumaWare: Process Automation Through Computer Vision and Robotics” explores the use of an autonomous robotic system to improve efficiency, productivity, and safety in warehouse operations, while the project “Microplastics in Karst Waters from the Hiawatha National Forest in Upstate Michigan” dives into the geoscience of pollution, even in water systems believed to be untouched.

The UAFS community and the public are encouraged to attend the symposium, engage with the presenters, and explore the depth and breadth of research conducted at the university.

To view the entire program with descriptions of all projects, visit https://uafs.edu/academics/academic-resources/symposium/_documents/symposium-booklet.pdf

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• Student Research Symposium
• College of Business and Industry
• College of Health Education and Human Sciences
• College of Arts and Sciences