Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

A free and responsible press serving the UMass community since 1890

Massachusetts Daily Collegian

ComCol funds undergraduate research

Goodell Hall Maria Uminski/Collegian
Maria Uminski/Collegian

The Commonwealth Honors College at the University of Massachusetts has funded over $67,000 in undergraduate research projects this year, according to a Monday release from UMass’ Office of News and Media Relations.

 Twenty-five Research Assistant Fellowships were given out to sophomores and juniors this year, aiding them in garnering experience in their academic fields and giving them a hands-on foundation for future research. In addition, 46 students received Honors Research Grants to cover the cost of materials and events pertaining to their final Capstone Experience research projects. For their Capstones, which count for six credits, ComCol students engage in research on a given question, then generate a thesis or project, or take part in community activities. According to the news office release, students’ Capstones ultimately yield a “substantive scholarly document and a public presentation.”

The release highlights two students in particular, junior Ekaterina Shaikouskaya, an animal science and pre-veterinary major working with associate professor Janice Telfer on proteins found in chickens, duck-billed platypuses and humans, and Kasey Duclos, a psychology major working with assistant professor Rebecca Spencer on research related to whether afternoon naps help learning and memory formation in preschoolers.

The Honors College awarded Shaikouskaya, a Milford, Mass. native, a $1,000 grant, which she said in the release she plans to use for lab equipment and supplies.

“What’s great about having these funds is that now we can try different things, like a different method for a certain procedure,” she said in the release.

Duclos, a senior and a local from Greenfield who is treasurer of the University’s neuroscience club, according to its website, believes her work could generate some new findings in research on children’s brain development.

“There has been research on nap benefits on anther age groups, but preschool-age children have yet to be studied,” she told News and Media Relations. “It will be interesting to find out if napping will be beneficial toward preschoolers’ learning at this stage of life.”

Shaikouskaya’s work deals with analyzing why the three animals all maintained one common protein.

“As unrelated as they are, all these animals retain the scavenger receptor cysteine-rich protein domain that we are studying, suggesting that the proteins are very important to those animals’ survival,” she said.

Both Shaikouskaya and Duclos said they appreciated the opportunity to take such an active role in field work so early on in their academic careers.

“I have learned a lot from the hands-on work we do at the lab,” said Shaikouskaya. “It feels great to be able to observe and actually do the things you learn about in class and only read about in textbooks.”

– Collegian News Staff

Leave a Comment
More to Discover

Comments (0)

All Massachusetts Daily Collegian Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *