Congratulations to the Top 10 Student Finalists and the Top 3 Overall Winners of the 2nd annual 5-Minute Fast Track Research Competition!

The students competed in two preliminary rounds and were selected as a Top 10 finalists to advance to the final round of competition. The Final Championship round was held on Wednesday, October 23 in the WT Young Library Auditorium. The students had five minutes and one static slide to present their research to an audience and panel of judges that included Provost David Blackwell, Dr. Marilyn Campbell, and Carol Street. The students were competing for cash prizes ($750 – 1st place; $500 – 2nd place; $250 – 3rd place).

The Top 3 Overall Winners include:

• 1st place: FRANCES SALISBURY – Biology major, junior | Research Area: Sleep and Alzheimer’s Disease | Faculty Mentor: Bruce O’Hara (Biology)

• 2nd place: MALIK APPLETON – Pre-Pharmacy major, senior | Research Area: Neuropharmacology | Faculty Mentor: Keith Pennypacker (Center for Advanced and Translational Stroke Science)

• 3rd place: EMILY KEATON – Sociology, Philosophy, English major, senior | Research Area: Sociology, Appalachian Studies | Faculty Mentor: Edward Morris (Sociology)

The 5-Minute Fast Track Research Competition is an academic competition that cultivates undergraduate students’ presentation and research communication skills, and challenges them to describe their research within five minutes using a single slide. The 2019 5-Minute Fast Track Research Competition was sponsored by The Chellgren Center for Undergraduate Excellence and the UK Office of Undergraduate Research.

At the University of Kentucky, research is a great opportunity provided to students and undergraduate research is central to creating a well-rounded student experience. The Office of Undergraduate Research is dedicated to providing coordination, leadership, and support for research endeavors at the undergraduate level.