Dr. Ken Nikels
308.865.8843
Fifty-four research projects by 65 students from the University of Nebraska at Kearney are being presented this week at the National Conference of Undergraduate Research (NCUR) at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.
“NCUR gives students an opportunity to present research papers aimed at their specific discipline and tell other interested students about what they learned,” said Dr. Ken Nikels, UNK dean of Graduate Studies and Research.
The students and their projects are listed below, alphabetically by students’ hometowns:
Arapahoe – Angela Leising – Bela Bartok and Mikrokosmos: Practical Applications for Today’s Piano Teacher. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Valerie Cisler.
Aurora – Donna Buschkoetter; Ellinwood, Kan. – Jeremy Sharp; and Jansen–
Dawn Rosenthal – Families and Terrorism: A Cultural Perspective. Faculty
Adviser: Dr. Sylvia Asay.
Bellevue – Adam Ecklund – Past and Present Effects of the Nebraska Ordinance Plant on the Surrounding Community. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van
Ingen.
Blue Hill – Laura Curry; Kearney – Chris Hays and Katie Johnson; andHoldrege
Janel Schemper – Adoption of Information Technology in Small Towns and
Villages. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Srivatsa Seshadri
Boelus – Jeff Wrehe – The Desperation of War: Kamikazes and the American
Perspective. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van Ingen
Cambridge – Sara Ridpath – The Fight Against HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. Faculty Adviser: Dr. William Aviles
Clay Center – Jenna Fitzke – Gender Differences in Sexual and Emotional
Jealousy: Private v. Public Knowledge. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Richard Miller
Elm Creek – Lance Gunderson – Grasshopper Densities Among Different Crops Along the Platte River, Nebraska. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Kerri Skinner
Gering – Jack Kreman – Tax Abatement in Nebraska. Faculty Adviser: Claude
Louishomme
Gibbon – Pam Schoenrock and Imperial – Beth Bremer – The Case for the Re-Importation of Prescription Drugs: State Sovereignty versus Federal
Regulations. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Peter Longo
Grand Island – Adam Clemans – Analysis of a Police Gang Unit. Faculty Adviser: Dr. James Gilbert
Grand Island – Kristen Halpine – The Effects of Collectivist or Individualist
Orientation, Group Membership, and Level of Risk on Bystander
Intervention. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Richard Miller
Grand Island – Justin Sevenker; Page – Anna Thompson – A Survey of
Nebraskan Dialects. Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Damon
Halsey – Terra Atkins – The Myths and Misconceptions of the Homesteader: The Story of William “Bill” Robb, 1847-1924. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van
Ingen
Hastings – Zach Nelson – Civil Rights in Secular and Sectarian Life.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Peter Longo
Holdrege – Christina Bartels – The Civil Rights Movement and Passage of the
Civil Rights Act. Faculty Adviser: Claude Louishomme
Holdrege – Dawn Belle Isle – Well Water Quality and Health Study. Faculty
Adviser: Dr. Wayne Briner
Johnson Lake – Nolan Jurgens – Programming Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance in C++. Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Hastings
Johnson Lake – Nolan Jurgens; Kearney – Matthew Culver, Brandon Hauff
and Jay Powell. Utilizing Case-Based Reasoning and Automatic Case Elicitation to Develop a Self-Taught Knowledgeable Agent.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Hastings
Kearney – Bryce Abbey – The Effects of Rehydration with a Glucose Polymer on Performance in College Wrestlers. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Kate Heelan
Kearney – Monti Adams – The Unsuccessful Brainwashing of the American
People. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van Ingen
Kearney – John Brewster – The U.S. Initiative for Latin America: An Analysis of U.S. Democracy Programs and Their Effects in Latin America.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. William Aviles
Kearney – Abby Brunt and Jennifer Murray – Exploratory Behavior in Mice as an Effect of Plural Rearing. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Joseph Benz
Kearney – Matthew Culver and Dustin Kozal. Controlling Resource Intensive
Processes Through Intelligent, Automated Computational Steering.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Sherri Harms
Kearney – Courtney Gill – Determining the Spread of Purple Loosestrife Using
Annual Rings. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Kerri Skinner
Kearney – Brandon Hauff – Bringing Artificial Intelligence to the Masses.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Hastings
Kearney – Dustin Kozal – Developing a Decision Support System for Drought
Assessment. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Sherri Harms
Kearney – Ryan Krueger – A Prediction Equation for Estimation of
Cardiorespiratory Fitness Using a Precot Elliptical Exercise Machine.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Kate Heelan
Kearney – Jennifer Murray and Abby Brunt. Effects of Mixed Family Status on
Exploratory Behavior in Rats. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Joseph Benz
Kearney – Chelae Sowl and Olga Stasishena. The Reactions of Collectivists and Individualists to Mortality Salience When Evaluating Cultural Threats.
Faculty Advisers: Dr. Richard Miller and Dr. Peter Longo
Kearney – Johna Stephens – Self-Esteem in a Cognitive Restructuring Program: Is the McCook Work Ethic Camp Successful? Faculty Adviser: Dr. Beth Wiersma
Kearney – Joshua Tolin – Social Capital of Citizens and Trust of Other People.Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Anderson
Lexington –Wadad Maloley – Humanitarian Intervention: Lessons from Lebanon And Somalia. Faculty Adviser: Dr. William Aviles
Lexington – Joel Martin – Adaptive Management: Finding Compromise Between Agriculture and the Environment in Surface Water Use.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Steele Becker
North Platte – Michele Harp – Addressing the Impact of Fostering on Biological Children of Foster Parents and their Families. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Maha Younes
North Platte – Amanda Mollet – When Does God Really Mean God?
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Diane Duffin
Ogallala – Klinton Holscher – E-Commerce Advantages for Industrial Distributors.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Stanley Lightner
Omaha – Anthony Razor – GI Joe: A Rural Nebraskan’s Experience in the
International Theater of WWII. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van Ingen
O’Neill – Corey Schneider; Ogallala – Klinton Holscher; and Wakefield – Ross Gardner – Consumer Consumption Behaviors for Spray-on Truck Bedliners.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Srivatsa Seshadri
Overton – Brady Shafer; Columbus -Chris Rutten; and Hartington – Ross Sudbeck – Collegiate Business Textbooks.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Srivatsa Seshadri
Page – Anna Thompson and Grand Island – Justin Sevenker – Nebraskan
Dialects: The Effects of Spanish Language Contact on the Language
Abilities of Native English Speakers of Nebraska. Faculty Adviser:
Dr. John Damon
Pierce – Alissa Seier – Orphan Train Riders to Nebraska: A Prelude to Child
Welfare Services. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Sandra Cook-Fong
Ravenna – Michael Rasmussen – Identifying Markets for Personal Grooming
Services. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Srivatsa Seshadri
Ravenna – Cynthia Waskowiak – Rethinking Abortion: The Fetal Homicide Bill.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Peter Longo
Scottsbluff – Naomi Schemm – Patterns in Journalistic Sentence Complexity:
1896-1996. Faculty Adviser: Dr. John Damon
Sidney – Andrea Kennedy – Effects of Attribution and Failure on Confidence and Performance. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Theresa Wadkins
Ulysses – Michelle Rerucha – Who’s At Risk? Impacts of the Central Platte River on West Nile Virus. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Steele Becker
Valparaiso – Becky Karel – Primo Levi: Slowly Revealing Himself.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van Ingen
Wayne – Jeff Ensz – The Elevation of Education to a U.S. Fundamental Right:
A German Perspective. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Peter Longo
Wayne – Heather Stauffer – What War Meant for Us: Two Working Nebraskan
Women During WWII. Faculty Adviser: Dr. Linda Van Ingen
York – Nat Auxier – Attracting and Retaining a Quality Workforce in Central
Nebraska. Faculty Adviser: Dr. David Palmer
COLORADO
Lakewood – Jeffrey Small – Can You Do That In Public?
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Peter Longo
KANSAS
Ellinwood – Jeremy Sharp – Families and Terrorism: A Cultural Perspective.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. Sylvia Asay
COLOMBIA
Bogota – Miguel Rojas – The Japanese New Army.
Faculty Adviser: Dr. William Aviles
