Comm studies majors present posters at Oklahoma Research Day

By Alyssa Sperrazza, News Editor

Seniors Lindsi Skinner and Emma Patton set up their research posters science-fair style for the 2017 Oklahoma Research Day on March 3. Both communication studies majors presented their honors theses’ studies in Enid, Oklahoma.

“Oklahoma Research Day is a premier annual event celebrating student and faculty research, creative and scholarly activities,” Professor of Communication Studies and

Chair Division of Communication Arts, Dr. Vickie Ellis said.

This year’s Oklahoma Research Day was hosted by Northwestern Oklahoma State University. The event welcomed students and faculty from a numerous amount of universities, showcasing research from all areas of study.

“The event has grown in numbers and in stature with contributors from all Oklahoma’s institutions of higher education,” Ellis said, “including many collaborative contributions from national and international academic and research institutions.”

Along with Skinner and Patton, Dr. Kaylene Barbe attended the event.

“Hanging out with Dr. Barbe and Lindsi is always a blast,” Patton said. “Going on a road trip was super fun. The conference had a fairly casual but scholarly atmosphere, and getting to speak to people about my research was such a privilege.”

Besides presenting research, students and faculty could use the time to connect with others in similar fields of study.

“The event seeks to encourage networking among researchers and interchange of ideas among those studying and researching in their respective academic disciplines,” Ellis said.

Thanks to networking during the event, Skinner said she hopes to further her research through publication.

“Oklahoma Research Day was an awesome experience,” Skinner said. “I even met a sweet lady who put me in contact with the Oklahoma Senior Journal. This could be an avenue for publication for my research. It was so exciting.” 

Both Skinner’s and Patton’s research will be presented at OBU later this spring.

Skinner’s research is titled “Wisdom for the Ages: An Analysis of Internet Marketing on Nursing Home Websites.” She presents on April 5.

Patton’s research is titled “A Study on the Old Soul: Spiritual Communication of Elderly People with Memory Loss.” She presents on April 6.