QUINCY UNIVERSITY TO HOST SIXTH ANNUAL ACADEMIC SYMPOSIUM

Quincy University will host its sixth annual Academic Symposium April 19 – 21 at the Connie Niemann Center for Music, South Auditorium, QU North Campus, 1700 Seminary Rd. This event is free and open to the public.

Students will present their original research April 19 and April 20 from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Multiple poster presentations and special media presentations will be displayed Friday, April 21 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Presentations will be in the Connie Niemann Center for Music, South Auditorium except for one senior retrospective exhibition in Gray Gallery in Brenner Library scheduled at 1:30 p.m. on April 20.

The QU Academic Symposium will feature the work of 51 undergraduate students, with the support of 13 mentors, representing the following schools: School of Science & Technology, School of Humanities, School of Fine Arts and Communication, School of Education and Human Services and the Oakley School of Business. The Academic Symposium includes 14 platform presentations and 19 poster and special media presentations.

Academic Symposium awards presentations will begin at 1 p.m. on April 21.

During lunch on Friday, April 21, two keynote speakers will address presenters and attendees: Bridget Brengle, MA, Senior Associate Scientist in the Bioassay and Impurity Testing Group at Pfizer, and Maureen Dolan, PhD, Director of Biotechnology Program and Associate Professor of Molecular Biology at Arkansas State University.

Bridget Hunkins Brengle ’19 will present From Sonic Hedgehog to Pharmaceutics (and everything in between). Brengle will talk about her undergraduate research under Dr. Michele Combs while a student at QU, how her research took her to Washington University and what she studied there, and what her career entails working as a scientist at Pfizer.

Brengle graduated from Quincy University with a major in Biology. The day after graduation, she began as a research technician at Washington University-St. Louis. A love of scientific outreach and career development changed her path in her third year of her Developmental, Regenerative, and Stem Cell Biology program. She completed her master’s work and began at Pfizer in November of 2022 where she combines her talents at the bench and passion for medical science.

Dr. Maureen Dolan ’87 will present Interdisciplinary Student-driven Undergraduate Research Launching Plastic-eating Waxworms into Space. Dolan will talk about her research project with a team of Arkansas State undergraduate researchers testing if Galleria mellonella larva, commonly known as the waxworm, may offer a solution to plastic waste buildup in space. The results of their study could pave the way for novel, more sustainable methods of plastic waste management not only for long-term space travel to the Moon or Mars but also for here on Earth.

Dolan graduated from Quincy College in 1987 with a double major in Biology and Chemistry. She earned her MS in Biochemistry from Iowa State University and a PhD in Molecular Biology & Biochemistry from the University of Florida. Her non-traditional research career path has opened opportunities to be involved in developing new and innovative DNA-based tests for the food industry, and bioengineering plants to become “living factories” for making protein-based medicines used to improve the health of agriculture animals and people.

The Academic Symposium aims to prepare academically talented students for professional schools, to reward academic achievement, to provide an opportunity for academic competition among students and to offer a platform for interaction among major programs.
For more information, contact Caitlin Deskins, PhD, at deskica@quincy.edu.

Founded in 1860 by Franciscan friars, Quincy University is a small Catholic university
emphasizing the sciences, liberal arts and the professions. Quincy University offers undergraduate, graduate and adult education programs integrating practical experience and Franciscan values. Faculty and advisors work with students to design customized success plans to help them graduate on time, find their passion and prepare them for life. QU is a member of NCAA Division II for intercollegiate athletics. For more information, please visit www.quincy.edu or contact the Office of Community Relations at (217) 228-5275 or communityrelations@quincy.edu. Quincy University. Success by Design.