UW-Parkside Students Present at Research in the Rotunda

Published: March 15, 2024

UW-Parkside RITR ParticipantsMADISON, Wis.— On March 6 over 150 undergraduate student researchers from across the Universities of Wisconsin, along with their faculty advisers, shared their research findings with state legislators, state business and nonprofit leaders, UW alumni, and other supporters at the UW’s 20th annual Research in the Rotunda (RITR) event in the State Capitol. The University of Wisconsin-Parkside was represented by seven groups of outstanding undergraduate student researchers, most of which had two or more student presenters.

Dr. David Higgs, UW-Parkside’s Faculty Coordinator for Undergraduate Research, explains that the annual RITR event is a valuable opportunity for student researchers to refine their presentation skills. “The UW-sponsored Research in the Rotunda is an important annual event that gives undergraduate students at all UW-System institutions the chance to present and discuss their various independent research and scholarly work with Wisconsin State Legislators and head Administrators of the different institutions,” Higgs explains. 

The innovative undergraduate research from UW-Parkside students featured at Research in the Rotunda, the UW’s signature event, focused on a variety of important topics, including:

  • Title: Sorption of Anionic Dye Alizarin Red S from Solution by Carbonate Mineral Dolomite | Name: Anna Bowman* | left to right: Madeline Herbrechtsmeier, Elise Zevits, and State Representative Greta Neubauer.Faculty Mentor: Zhaohui (George) Li | This presentation is also part of the Freshwater Collaborative UW-System Group.
  • Title: Microwave-assisted synthesis of fluorescent 8-aryl-7-deazaguanines| Names: Madeline Herbrechtsmeier and Elise Zevitz | Faculty Mentor: Ilirian Dhimitruka
  • Title: An EEG Investigation of Sleep Quality, Memory, and Executive Function | Names: Jose Herrera, Pasquale Chianello, Tyler Helgesen and Christopher Weiss | Faculty Mentor: Melissa Gregg
  • Title: Monitoring Bumblebee PopulaTons on UW-Parkside's Campus | Names: Abby Lentz, Natalie Meyer, Nicholas Winter, Hannah Palmen and Hailey Fee | Faculty Mentor: Jessica Orlofske
  • Title: Parent-Child Weight and Diet Talk: The Impact of Body Image and the Parent-Child Relationship | Names: Dijana  left to right: Governor Tony Evers, Hailey Fee, Natalia Meyer, and Abby Lentz.Mitrovic, Erik Johnson, Jacob Munter, and Athena Garay | Faculty Mentor: Erin Hillard
  • Title: “Walk this way” or that way? Analyzing shoulder range of motion | Name: Caleb Neill | Faculty Mentor: Christopher Noto
  • Title: Disentangling How Projections from the Ventral Pallidum to the Shell of the Nucleus Accumbens Regulate Non-Homeostatic Feeding | Names: Zach Wilson and Markie Peroutka | Faculty Mentor: Ignacio Rivero Covelo

Research in the Rotunda is a celebration of undergraduate research, which has the potential to inform public policy while helping students progress toward graduation and gain employment. It is sponsored by Kwik Trip, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, BioForward, the Wisconsin Technology Council, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, and the UW-Milwaukee Research Foundation. The event is supported by the Wisconsin Department of Administration and the UW-Madison Memorial Union.

Dr. Higgs explains that this impactful event helps open doors and expand opportunities for students. “It can have a significant positive impact on the student presenters, through the experience of formally presenting the projects they have worked long and hard on to this distinguished audience. It also allows the students and each institute to interact and network with their peers at other UW institutions. Many of these students go on to present their work at other state and national conferences,” Higgs states.


The University of Wisconsin-Parkside is committed to high-quality educational programs, creative and scholarly activities, and services responsive to its diverse student population, and its local, national, and global communities. We are a dynamic learning community grounded in academic excellence and focused on student success, diversity, inclusion, and community engagement. The campus serves as a premier comprehensive public institution and a destination of choice, serving as a focal point of local, regional, and global progress.


Media contact:

Derek Fye
Communications Manager
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
Fye@uwp.edu | (262) 771-5419

left to right: Ignacio Rivero Covelo (UWP faculty), Dijana Mitrovic, Eric Johnson, Jacob Munter, Athena Garay, and Erin Hillard (UWP faculty research advisor for this group).


 

Zach Wilson


 

Dr. David Higgs and two student Researchers


 

President Rothman and two UW-Parkside student researchers


 

Chancellor Akey listens to UW-Parkside's students' research presentations
Caleb Neill


 

Dr. Ilirian Dhimitruka, Madeline Herbechtsmeier, and Elise Zevitz


 

Dr. Jessica Orlofske with UW-Parkside student researchers


 

UW-Parkside representatives at the RITR


 

Elise Zevitz and Madeline Herbechtsmeier
Hailey Fee and Hannah Palmen


 

UW-Parkside RITR Students


 

Annie Bowman


 

Abby Lentz (Left) discusses her research


 

Elise Zevitz, Madeline Herbechtsmeier, and Dr. Higgs
Scroll to top