University of North Georgia

Nine research teams participated in the University of North Georgia's (UNG) Faculty Undergraduate Summer Engagement (FUSE) program funded by the Center for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (CURCA). FUSE is a two-month program that immerses students in a collaborative project with a faculty mentor in their field. The projects are designed to be accessible to all disciplinary backgrounds by being an initial pilot project or by being a manageable segment of a larger ongoing project. All students and mentors in the project hold biweekly meetings during the summer where groups share their progress and can answer questions about their work.

Albany Zavarce is the first UNG student chosen as a STEMNetX Fellowship recipient and was awarded a one-week paid fellowship in Pennsylvania. She encourages women to explore opportunities in STEM.

Two University of North Georgia (UNG) students were named National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship selections. Both women are First-Generation college students. They will head to the NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland, at the end of spring semester. Katia Gonzalez-Adame, a senior pursuing degrees in mathematics and chemistry, will work in the Materials Measurement Laboratory. Brittney Meza, a junior pursuing a degree in computer science, will work in the Information Technology Laboratory.

UNG junior Rylee Chafin has been selected for the prestigious NASA Student Airborne Research Program. The eight-week internship will be held in Richmond, Virginia, this summer.

UNG students who showed promise, demonstrated creativity, displayed excellence, served others and exceeded all expectations had their moment in the spotlight during the annual Student Awards events held in April.

The University of North Georgia (UNG) finished fifth overall in the 76th annual Ted Cameron National Collegiate Poultry Judging Contest, which was held April 2-4 at Mississippi State University. UNG also took fourth place as a team in the market products category and fifth place in the breeds portion of the event.

Four University of North Georgia (UNG) students presented their research at the Conference on the Americas, held Feb. 21-22 at the University of Georgia (UGA). One of the students won an award.

Twenty students and four faculty members from the University of North Georgia's (UNG) Department of Kinesiology attended the annual meeting of the Southeast Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine (SEACSM) from Feb. 20-22 in Greenville, South Carolina. Five of the students presented research posters at the event.

Students gave 69 poster presentations and 24 oral presentations at the University of North Georgia's (UNG) 30th Annual Research Conference (ARC), held March 21 in the Cottrell Ballroom at UNG's Dahlonega Campus. That includes many projects that included multiple students. Six of those students won awards.

Student Tyler Simpson and his research mentor, Dr. Levi 'Zane' Miller, won a Best Poster Award at the American Chemical Society Southeast Undergraduate Research Conference.

Four University of North Georgia students presented their research at Posters at the Capitol on Feb. 25. The event, which included 40 research projects from 16 universities across the state, provided students a forum to share their work with state legislators, lobbyists and the general public. Posters were selected from the Georgia Undergraduate Research Conference and similar events for their high quality and general interest in them.

University of North Georgia (UNG) Cadet Connor Moore presented his cybersecurity capstone research in December at the International Conference on Modern Educational Technology (ICMET) in Tokyo, Japan.

A record-breaking nine Center for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (CURCA) mini grants were awarded to University of North Georgia (UNG) students for the 2024-25 year. Each project will receive $1,000 to fund supplies and will be presented at either UNG's Annual Research Conference March 21 at the Dahlonega Campus; another CURCA-sponsored event; or a disciplinary conference or published. "The only way we can break the record of number of projects that we fund is because the Provost's office works with us," Dr. Diogo Pinheiro, CURCA assistant director and associate professor of sociology, said. "We wouldn't have the funds to support all nine without that help."

UNG graduate student Andrew Clements and faculty member Dr. Bryson Payne presented their research at the Information Systems & Computing Academic Professionals conference in Baltimore, Maryland, in November.

University of North Georgia (UNG) student Marshall VandenOever capped off his time as the 2023-24 UNG Presidential Fellow for the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress (CSPC) by winning a writing award. He earned the Donald B. Marron Award for Best Historical Analysis for his paper entitled "The Presidency and Labor: A Policy of Pragmatism."

UNG students who showed promise, demonstrated creativity, displayed excellence, served others and exceeded all expectations had their moment in the spotlight during the annual Student Honors and Awards Day events held April 9-11.

University of North Georgia (UNG) senior Chandler Mayfield won the SHAPE America Major of the Year Award, given by the Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE).

University of North Georgia (UNG) junior Fatima Santillan is the university's first Public Policy and International Affairs Junior Summer Institute (PPIA JSI) fellow. The award will allow her to attend a rigorous seven-week fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley's Goldman School of Public Policy.

University of North Georgia (UNG) students Atticus Tomcho and Mary Dickens teamed up with their adviser, Dr. David Patterson, to win the best poster award in the Earth Sciences section at the 100th annual Georgia Academy of Sciences Conference. Tomcho and Dickens are each pursuing a degree in biology.

Twelve students and four two faculty members from the University of North Georgia (UNG) attended the Georgia Chapter of The Wildlife Society (GA TWS) annual meeting held March 2-3 in Macon, Georgia. Three student groups won awards.

University of North Georgia (UNG) junior Riley Rowland received the Southeastern Regional Conference of the American Chemical Society (SERMACS) 2023 Undergraduate Poster Award in October in Durham, North Carolina.

UNG held the Annual Research Conference on March 24 at its Dahlonega Campus. The conference had more than 100 student submissions and five winners.

UNG students who showed promise, demonstrated creativity, displayed excellence, served others and exceeded all expectations had their moment in the spotlight during the annual Student Honors and Awards Day events held April 4-6.

Ashley Tunnell and Ethan Holtzclaw were recognized for their literary works by the Southern Literary Festival and will get to read their winning publications at the festival.

Four University of North Georgia students presented their research at Posters at the Capitol in Atlanta on Feb. 27. Posters at the Capitol is a yearly event put on by the Georgia Undergraduate Research Collective to promote undergraduate research to legislators.

UNG senior and biology major Jared Oenick, recipient of the inaugural Scientist.com STEM Research NIL Award shown here with Dr. Ryan Shanks.

Anna Moller, Student Government Association president at the University of North Georgia (UNG), is the university's first Rhodes Scholarship finalist.

A dozen University of North Georgia (UNG) undergraduate students have the opportunity to take part in projects funded by Faculty Undergraduate Summer Engagement (FUSE) research grants. The programs run from May 31-July 22 and cover a variety of academic disciplines.

Twelve University of North Georgia (UNG) students are taking a major step in their academic journey this summer thanks to Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Another will participate in an opportunity through the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience at Emory University.

Four University of North Georgia (UNG) students pursuing degrees in cybersecurity had their research accepted for the inaugural Cybersecurity Research in Undergraduate Programs (CyRUP) Conference held April 6-8 at Norwich University, and one of them won an award.