SURF to celebrate 25 years of undergraduate research TODAY

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Students, faculty, and staff stepping into the Great Hall on Tuesday, April 24, will undoubtedly feel the energy and excitement as hundreds of students and faculty share their latest findings at SURF, the Spring Undergraduate Research Forum. Adding to that buzz will be the fact that 2018 marks 25 years that Elon students, their mentors, and a broad range of faculty have come together to display the fruits of their research collaborations.  

A celebration of undergraduate research at Elon, SURF offers the opportunity for students and faculty from across all disciplines and departments to take part. Through undergraduate research, students are undertaking investigations that provide the opportunity to make original intellectual and creative contributions to their disciplines. It is a significant mentored experience, with students working closely with a faculty member on a unique project starting at the conception of their inquiry and continuing through to public presentation.

On SURF day, students present about their undergraduate research and creative endeavors within a supportive environment on campus. With classes suspended for the day, the entire campus community enjoys the ability to discover the work of these students in poster presentations, oral presentations, and symposia.

Initially called the Student Undergraduate Research Forum, Elon’s first undergraduate research event was held in Carlton Building on a Friday afternoon in 1993. Kathy Lyday, professor of English and Honors Program director, and Dean of Sciences Roz Reichard organized Elon’s first SURF, with 19 students and 13 faculty members from seven departments taking part.

“We started SURF because we thought it would be a good idea for the honors students to have experience presenting research before graduate school,” Lyday recalls. “We wanted research extended and expected in the arts as well as the sciences.”

Early SURF supporters also wanted the Honors Program to be more closely aligned with scholarship, not only for the significant academic impact and personal experience of participating in mentored research but for its capacity to enhance futures of students beyond college. This was coupled with the growing desire to encourage undergraduate research for all Elon undergraduates, not just those in the Honors Program.

As one of Elon’s Experiential Learning Requirements, undergraduate research is a valued part of the academic experiences of students. Engaging in undergraduate research and SURF has clear benefits for students. Students delve deeper into their disciplines, work closely with faculty mentors, develop their research skills, and learn how to present their work to a broad audience.

It was in 1995 that Elon formally established its undergraduate research program. The Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) started three years later, and Professor of Psychology Maurice Levesque became the university’s first undergraduate research program director in 2001. In 2006, SURF became a part of CELEBRATE! Week and was moved to Tuesdays.

“As a high impact practice, undergraduate research enhances the student experience in many ways, including increased understanding of the field/discipline, hands-on experiences resulting in enhanced expertise, development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and fostering a passion for curiosity,” said Provost Steven House.

Of at least equal importance are “the relationships that develop among students and faculty while conducting undergraduate research — in exchanging ideas, testing hypotheses, conducting research, and constructing knowledge,” House notes. These close relationships “are an integral component of the Elon experience.”

The university has supported the growth of undergraduate research at Elon through the years as participation has swelled. The group participating next month will be far larger than the 32 who came together in Carlton Building on that Friday afternoon 25 years ago for the first SURF. Just last year, SURF saw 130 oral presentations and 89 poster presentations with 247 students, and 142 faculty members from 31 departments taking part.

But the day is not meant for only the student researchers and faculty mentors. The university encourages the whole of the campus community to participate in the events of the day. During poster sessions, The Great Hall will be packed with students, faculty, and staff engaging with student researchers about their projects. And throughout the day, rooms will be packed by those in attendance to hear students present their research and creative work.

Lyday notes that SURF today “brings the entire campus community into this celebration of scholarship and creative activity” because of the increased time and attention given to SURF by the university community.

​The benefits of the SURF experience resonate with the hundreds of students who have taken part since the program first launched. “SURF provided me with the unique opportunity to present my UR to a supportive and engaged Elon community, greatly preparing me for the professional conferences that I presented at during my time at Elon and as a graduate student,” said Cecily Basquin ’16, now a graduate student in clinical psychology at UNC-Charlotte.

Join the entire Elon community in the celebration of the 25 years of SURF, an important Elon Experience that continues to grow each year. SURF starts off at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, April 24, with the first of two poster sessions in the Great Hall. The second poster session of the day gets underway at 4:10 p.m., with oral presentations, performances, and readings taking place between these two poster sessions.

The final schedule will be posted on the SURF website — https://www.elon.edu/u/academics/undergraduate-research/surf/