At an award ceremony on April 23, The University of Alabama recognized the top presentations from the 2026 Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference. The conference, held April 14-15 in the Bryant Conference Center, showcased student research and creativity in 11 categories.
The conference helps students polish their communication skills as they present their work to peers, faculty and staff.
“This year was the 20th URCA conference and the largest URCA that we have had on record,” said Leanne Caroll, undergraduate research program director at the Capstone Center for Student Success. “With over 615 abstracts selected for presentation and 875 presenters, it was an amazing two-day event that showcased outstanding research happening with undergraduates at The University of Alabama. We are incredibly proud of the work that they have done.”
Also: See some of the 2026 participants and learn more about why they participate.
2026 URCA Conference Winners
Apparel/Textiles/Interior Design/Visual Arts
Reconstructing the Career of an American Designer Largely Absent from Fashion History: Greta Plattry
Thalia Cosyleon
Mentor: Dr. Marcy L. Koontz
Maison Vermont Embroidery: Discovery and Creative Documentation
Thaïs Drewelow
Mentor: Dr. Marcy L. Koontz
The Art of Immersion in Disney Imagineering
Minnie Ruzycki
Mentor: Dr. Laurl Self
Business/Accounting/Finance/Management/Economics
The Porch Project: Assessing the Efficacy of Student-Led Social Capital as a Public Health Intervention for Geriatric Loneliness
Brayden Fuentes
Mentor: Dr. Peter Brummond
Buy Now, Default Later: Is Unreported Buy Now, Pay Later Debt Hiding the Next Financial Crisis?
Brian Pupecki
Mentors: Dr. Paul Drnevich, Dr. Fred Wei
Bursting Bubbles: Historical Parallels to the Trillion-Dollar AI Infrastructure Boom
Payton Jones
Mentor: Dr. Paul Drnevich
Communication and Information Sciences/University Libraries
Unbound: Tools and Techniques for Disabled Bookmakers
Everest Wood, Alexandra Hasamear
Mentor: Kyle Holland
Muted but Not Silent: Black Female Students’ Responses to the Silencing of Strong Black Woman Communication at Predominantly White Institutions
Brooklyn Woods
Mentor: Dr. Anneliese Bolland
The Performance of Power: Patriarchal Masculinity in Nonverbal Communication
Elizabeth Carden, Ainsley Anderson
Mentor: Dr. Jaclyn R. Shetterly
Pink Flamingos and the New Hollywood Audience
Addison Lusco
Mentor: Dr. Landon Palmer
Engineering/Computer Science
Probing Deactivation and Diffusion of Beta Zeolites Used for Ethanol Upgrading
Leila Nasri
Mentor: Dr. James W. Harris
Scalable Frontal Polymerization for Rapid Manufacturing and Repair of Carbon Fiber Composites
Stefan Tudoreanu
Mentor: Dr. Easir Papon
Cellulose as a Sustainable Matrix for Volatile Flavorant Preservation via Supercritical CO₂ Processing
Katherine Hall, Eli Newsom
Mentor: Dr. James Sheehan
Health Science/ Human Performance/Nursing/Nutrition
Premature Stroke in Young Adults: An Investigative Analysis of Epidemiological Data
Addison Hudnall
Mentors: Dr. Yanyu Xiong, Dr. Sharlene Newman
Epigenetic Reprogramming of Tumor-Associated Macrophages for Trained Immunity in a TLR7 Agonist-Induced Model
Kylie Buchanan
Mentor: Dr. John Victor Napoleon
Oral Paclitaxel Nanoparticles for Long Term Ovarian Cancer Management
Melaina Munson
Mentor: Dr. Meenakshi Arora
Humanities
Denny Chimes and the Carillon Tradition: A Historical and Acoustic Exploration
Luke Turner
Mentor: Dr. Kevin Woosley
Increasing Access to Maternity Care in West Alabama
Kameron Marple, Izzy Franchione
Mentor: Dr. Holly Horan
Generational Differences in Medically Pluralistic Health Belief Among the Aqkaq People of Northern Thailand
Audrey Erickson
Mentor: Dr. Courtney Helfrecht
Interdisciplinary Studies
Rural Youth and the Interlocking Legal, Educational, and Social Challenges of the Juvenile Justice System
Sofia Davila
Mentor: Dr. Darren Surman
The Role of Law in Shaping Urban Communities: Governance, Development, and Social Outcomes
Woods Hobbs
Mentor: Dr. Darren Surman
Phenomenological Literature Review of a Wicked Problem: Suburban Education
Natalie Robinson
Mentor: Dr. Darren Surman
Life Sciences
Genetic Variation in Autism-Related Behavioral Syndromes in a Hermaphroditic Fish
Allison Donald, Brianna Marflak, Kaylee Smith, Madison Gibson, Averie Howell
Mentor: Dr. Ryan Earley
Investigating Nucleic Acid Modifications in the Brain of the Fly Model of Epilepsy
Reese Geister
Mentor: Dr. Stanislava Chtarbanova
Alterations in GABAergic Signaling in the Hyperexcitable Drosophila NaV Channel Mutant paraShu
Aubrey Gray, Reid Schuback, Victoria Hand, Zach Goldman
Mentor: Dr. Atulya Iyengar
Performing Arts
The Crazy Women: A Poetic Response to the Criminalization of Motherhood
Mya Ortiz
Mentors: Casey Looper, Dr. Benjamin Pyle
The Collaborative Spirit Performance
Brooklyn Woods, Kaden Stone
Mentors: Casey Looper, Dr. Benjamin Pyle
Detours from Sanity
Ella Seaton
Mentors: Casey Looper, Dr. Benjamin Pyle
Physical Science/Mathematics
Searching for Patterns in Cluster Scattering Coefficient Sequences
Mary Couture
Mentor: Dr. Kyungyong Lee
A Green Canary for the West Antarctic Ice Sheet: Cranton Bay, with Abundant Plankton Remains, as a Recorder of Changing Ocean and Climate Forcings
Megan Hansen
Mentor: Dr. Rebecca L. Totten
Machine Learning for Accelerated Metal Oxide Thermochemical Predictions
Kathleen Butler
Mentor: Dr. Małgorzata Makoś
Proteomic Analysis of Decellularized Glioblastoma Organoids
Mason Pentes
Mentor: Dr. John (Yonghyun) Kim
Social Sciences/Education/Human Development
Childhood Trauma and Neurovascular Stress Reactivity in Young Women
Liviy Tole
Mentors: Dr. Matthew Cribbet, Dr. Sharlene Newman
Tuning In: Listening to Global Perspectives
Emily Adcock
Mentors: Newlin Humphrey, Dr. Lane McLelland
Pre-Service Teachers Report Satisfaction and Stress-Management Benefits from an App-Based Mindfulness Intervention
Kaitlyn Schroeder, Sim L. Hartsfield
Mentors: Dr. Summer Braun, Dr. Alison Hooper