Apr 29, 2011 – 63rd Annual Undergraduate Research Conference at the College of St. Elizabeth

The Sixty-Third Annual Undergraduate Research Conference organized by the College of St. Elizabeth Student Chapter of the ACS and their advisor, Sister Marion José Smith occurred on Friday April 29, 2011. The event was held at the College of St. Elizabeth in Florham Park, NJ. Eight undergraduate students from four different universities were hosted by the College of St. Elizabeth Chemical Society as they presented their research for an audience of students and faculty from the North Jersey area. The three judges, Dr. Anne Kelly (BMS), Dr. Allen Jones (ACS Trenton Section) and Mr. Bill Suits (ACS North Jersey Section) were presented with a tough decision as they judged the student presentations and selected the top three undergraduate students. Each presenter represented their university and gave sight to the remarkable research opportunities students in the North Jersey Section are provided with.

First Place and the Jean Asell Duranna Award was awarded to Ms. Beatrice Markiewicz from Fairleigh Dickinson University who was mentored by Dr. Alexey Teslja, for her research conducted at the Brookhaven National Laboratory during the summer of 2010. Her impressive presentation was based on her research investigating Cavity Ring Down Spectroscopy.

Mr. Robert Perkins from Fairleigh Dickinson University was awarded with the second place award for his presentation based on the binding/staining effects of cresyl violet on nucleic acid molecules. His notable research was conducted under the direction of Dr. Amber Flynn Charlebois.

The third place award went to Ms. Jessica G. Dickinson for her presentation on her research accomplished also at Fairleigh Dickinson University under the advisement of Dr. Amber Flynn Charlebois. Jessica presented her research on HPLC analysis of protein structure modification.

The award certificates were formally presented to the selected student presenters at the North Jersey Section’s Annual Awards Dinner held on Tuesday May 17, 2011 in Lenfell Hall on the Fairleigh Dickinson University campus in Madison, NJ.

Award Winners and Judges

Research Conference winners and judges: Front row: Dr. Anne Kelly, Jessica Dickinson, Robert Perkins and Beatrice Markiewicz. Back row: William Suits and Dr. Allen Jones