When Rahel Tafese spent a day shadowing a sales representative for a company called BioRx, she learned a lot about treatments for immune deficiency, but more importantly, she made connections that will help her as she figures out what path she will take within the health professions.

Tafese, a first-year student from Maryland, participated in Wake Forest’s new job shadow program with Wake Forest alumni offered through a course in the counseling department called “Options in the World of Work.”

“It was amazing,” said Tafese, who is thinking about majoring in health and exercise science.  “Several of the physicians and pharmaceutical company representatives I met offered the opportunity for me to shadow them as well. Where else would I get that kind of connection?”

Forty Wake Forest alumni in North Carolina offered an insider’s view of their work to current students. On the flip side, alumni find out what it is like to be a student today.

“It’s a fun way to stay in touch with the Wake Forest family,” said Eric Hill (’88), who arranged Tafese’s visit to BioRx, the company he co-founded. “It doesn’t require a lot of effort to give a student access to a real business environment. I would encourage other alumni to do this.”

In addition to connecting students with sales representatives in the Winston-Salem area, he has offered to arrange for students to visit the company’s operations center in Cincinnati, Ohio.

“This program has been successful in more ways than we imagined,” said Department of Counseling instructor Heidi Robinson, who directs the series of College to Career courses. “Students are experiencing all different industry and career settings:  consulting, sales, finance, education, medical practices. And, our alumni provide each opportunity.”

One student spent a day with a chaplain in an Iredell County hospital.  Another shadowed an orthodontist. Robinson partnered with Lori Sykes, who works on the employer relations team in the University’s Office of Personal and Career Development (OPCD). Wake Forest’s Alumni office helped recruit local alumni to participate.

“Job shadowing opens up possibilities,” Sykes said.  “It opens a student’s mind to hear from an alumnus who received a history degree, but works in private wealth management. Making that connection to someone who has been in their shoes before can make a huge difference in how they see their future.”

For some younger students, who have no idea what career they want, just seeing a day in the life of someone in the work world is valuable.  For others, who are already focused on a particular career, shadowing that professional either makes them confident about their choice or makes them take a broader look at what else is out there.

“Either way, it’s very beneficial for the student to do that earlier rather than later,” Sykes said.

Opportunities were listed in the OPCD’s recruiting system on a first-come, first-served basis. As soon as it was posted, Nick Syris signed up to job shadow Cameron Kent (’79), a news anchor for WXII-TV.

“I met everyone from producers, to the traffic reporter, the weather director, the sports director, to the people who run the station’s website and handle the technical aspects of the news station,” said Syris, a first-year student from Florida. “Three hours felt like three minutes.  I loved the adrenaline rush I got from watching a show go live.”

Robinson said job shadowing gives students three things:

• Confidence to reach out to other people and ask for job shadow opportunities on their own as they explore possible career interests.
• Competence in skills – preparing thoughtful, well-researched questions, reflecting on experiences, writing thank you notes – professional qualities that will be essential as they prepare to enter the job market after they graduate.
• Clarity about the kinds of work environments that excite them and align with their talents and gifts.

Written reflection helps students understand the value and relevance of the job shadow. They process it. Each student submitted written reflections to Robinson addressing three questions:  “What (they did)?”  “So what?” and “Now what?”

For sophomore Abby Rogers, spending two days observing accountants in different roles from procurement to internal and external reporting, confirmed she had chosen the right major for her—accounting—and fueled her enthusiasm for the accounting profession. “Shadowing took me out of my comfort zone and forced me to ask questions,” Rogers said.

At the end of his day shadowing Kris Downing (’93 MBA), director of business strategy and partnerships at the Center for Creative Leadership, Grey Miller was invited to apply for a summer internship. Miller is a sophomore from Morganton, N.C., who plans to major in communication with a minor in entrepreneurship.

“For me as an alumna, I found it refreshing to spend time with a college student and I had a renewed sense of pride in the work I do,” said Downing, who gave Miller the chance to sit in on research meetings and a conference call with a potential client. “It was very rewarding to share a portion of my day with an attentive, interested Wake Forest student.”

When students are home during summer break, they can feel confident seeking opportunities on their own, Robinson said.  “All this experience will translate into being better prepared and making better decisions when it is time to choose a major, select courses, and, of course, once it’s time to interview for that internship or full-time job.”

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this might not be the case for a honeybee.

Just ask David Hale (’15), a sophomore biology major. Hale has been studying the relationship between brain structure and cognitive function in honeybees since the summer after his freshman year.

He explains that as a honeybee ages, a pair of structures in its brain called mushroom bodies grow larger. Larger mushroom bodies may give older bees an advantage over their younger counterparts when it comes to learning and memorizing new things like the color of certain flowers. In nature, this would help older honeybees remember which flowers have more pollen, making them better foragers for the hive.

Hale went to biology professor and honeybee expert Susan Fahrbach to see if she would help him design a scientific study to investigate the phenomena.

With Fahrbach’s guidance, Hale designed a basic IQ test to see if older bees’ enlarged mushroom bodies make them more adept at associating color with reward.

After collecting bees of different ages and fitting them into a harness fashioned from a drinking straw, Hale exposed his tiny subjects to bursts of blue or green light from a projector to simulate different colored flower patches.

A flash of blue light signaled a sugary reward. A flash of green light signaled no reward. Hale put each bee through 20 trials and then reversed the experiment. His results showed that of the 64 bees that completed the test, older ones proved more capable at associating color with reward. The younger bees, the ones less than 10 days old, weren’t yet ready to learn.

Hale said putting together the experiment under Fahrbach’s guidance was the most challenging aspect of his collegiate career to date. His mentor took an available, yet hands-off approach, which allowed Hale to learn from his own mistakes.

“Instead of telling me what to do, professor Fahrbach told me to think outside of the box and come up with my own solution to the problems at hand,” Hale said.

From Honeybees to Humans: Meeting of the Minds

It is exactly this outside the box thinking that will be showcased at the Eighth Annual ACC Meeting of the Minds Undergraduate Research Conference, taking place April 4-6 at Wake Forest.

The three-day event, funded in large part by revenue from athletic events such as the ACC football championship, will showcase the work of nearly 100 undergraduate researchers from 12 ACC member schools.

“We are breaking down barriers between a group of the nation’s leading universities so that students from across the ACC can learn from one another and grow through shared experience,” said Richard Carmichael, professor of mathematics at Wake Forest and the University’s Faculty Athletic Representative.

Susan Fahrbach in the lab with David Hale.

Undergraduate REsearch and Creative Activities (URECA) Center, the Office of the Dean of the College and the Office of the Provost are organizing and sponsoring the event, which rotates from campus to campus each year.

“We are proud to celebrate the mentored or independent scholarship of such talented students from Wake Forest and other ACC institutions renowned for their commitment to scholarly and creative work and their dedication to outstanding undergraduate education,” said Jacquelyn Fetrow, Dean of Wake Forest College.

The URECA Center provides student grants (summer fellowships include $4,000 plus housing) and an administrative umbrella for mentored, undergraduate research and encourages and supports high-quality programs of great impact. Shannon Mihalko, associate professor of Health and Exercise Science and Co-Director of the URECA Center, said the program supports undergraduate scholars in all disciplines of Wake Forest College.

This year’s “Meeting of the Minds” also represents the first-ever ACC-sponsored event including the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Louisville.

“The expectation for undergraduates to participate in research has become standard for admittance into good graduate schools,” said Dale B. Billingsley, vice provost of Undergraduate Affairs and Enrollment Management at the University of Louisville. “Starting early is a really good thing to do for students who will be participating in research events like this for the rest of their careers.”

Josh Courtney, an English and political science major, will showcase his work analyzing linguistic trends in the writing of first-year Wake Forest students. He said working with his mentor Laura Aull, an assistant professor of English, not only gave him a realistic idea of what it is like to do research but also has him considering a PhD in linguistics after graduation.

“You don’t realize the amount of time and effort that goes into this kind of work until you do it,” Courtney said, adding that professor Aull is helping him to get his work published in an academic journal.

If you are going to attend

A complete schedule of events is available on the conference website. Wake Forest faculty known for their dedication to undergraduate research will give keynote addresses.

Friday’s keynote speaker will be Miles Silman, Professor of Biology and Director of the Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability at Wake Forest. A leader in the sustainability movement, Silman has taken dozens of undergraduate students to the Amazon rainforest, where his work centers on understanding species distributions, biodiversity, and the response of forest ecosystems to climate and land use changes over time.

Saturday’s keynote speaker will be Christina Soriano, Associate Professor of Dance. Her mentee, senior Cynthia Huang, will dance to demonstrate their collaborative work on composer John Cage, which Soriano will address in her presentation called “Choreographing Cage: A model for undergraduate scholarship in the arts.”

Maggie Payne is helping to develop a new generation of flexible electronics.

A junior physics major, Payne is part of a team of researchers at Wake Forest University’s Organic Electronics group studying the relation between the physical structure and electrical properties of organic semiconductor crystals. The team’s work is contributing to advances in organic semiconductor technology that could one day lead to video screens that bend like paper and electronics sewn into clothing.

Payne grows crystals in the lab and applies them to semiconductors to test how well they conduct electricity. She said modeling and theoretical findings predict the compounds she is growing could have a variety of electrical properties ranging from bipolarity to superconductivity.

Payne said she owes her early involvement in cutting edge research to her mentor, Oana Jurchescu, an assistant professor of physics and director of the research team. “Dr. Jurchescu has inspired me as a strong female physicist,” Payne said. “Working in her lab group is one of the best experiences I have had at Wake Forest.”

Jurchescu mentors many graduate and undergraduate students like Payne, who are interested in conducting research on organic semiconductors and pursuing careers in science. Her work both in the classroom with students and in the lab was recently recognized with a $400,000 National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the most prestigious national award the NSF offers a few select junior faculty who excel as teacher-scholars. Jurchescu said her team will use the money to elucidate the intrinsic characteristics of single crystals and provide feedback for the development of novel, high-tech electronics and thin film devices.

(From left) Jurchescu with graduate students Jeremy Ward and Katelyn Goetz in the Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials.

Current technology utilizes inorganic semiconducting materials like silicon, which are expensive and limited in their application because they must be processed in a vacuum at high temperatures. Compared to these materials, organic semiconductors are less expensive, easier to process, and more versatile. “Fast deposition at up to a hundred feet per second may allow their production in large volumes and at low cost per unit area, an introduction of ‘electronics everywhere,” Jurchescu said.

Examples of the potential technology include transparent solar cells on building windows, car roofs and bus stations, electronic displays in previously inaccessible spaces, and wearable electronics due to the organic plastics’ thin, lightweight and conformal nature.

The NSF CAREER Award recognizes and encourages excellent teaching, mentorship and community outreach. In line with these objectives, Jurchescu will offer a new course focused on carbon-based materials and devices, tentatively scheduled for the 2014-2015 academic year. She will give demonstrations on nanotechnology to children at Nanodays at Sciworks, a science and environmental center in Winston-Salem, and host research projects in her lab for motivated high school students and students from Forsyth Tech Community College as well.

Additionally, Jurchescu will continue to mentor Wake Forest students like Payne, who said she owes her decision to follow a career path in physics to her mentor.

“She not only has an extensive understanding of the material but is equipped with the skills of communicating her knowledge,” Payne said. “She may or may not know this, but Dr. Jurchescu’s Electronics course was the reason I became a physics major. She is a role model to me a both a woman and a physicist.”

“Inside out: Wake,” a temporary public art installation, is on display on Wake Forest’s Manchester Plaza through April 4.

Students organizing “Inside out: Wake” chose five upperclassmen from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds who also “embody the well-rounded Wake Forest community and…Pro Humanitate ideals.” The faces of the five students chosen are displayed in a 70′ x 10′ print as an artistic expression of the Wake Forest experience. 

The purpose of the project is to encourage students to see the campus community through lenses different from their own while inviting dialogue that supports an inclusive environment.

International “Inside Out” is a large-scale participatory art project that transforms messages of personal identity into pieces of artistic work. Everyone is challenged to use black and white photographic portraits to discover, reveal and share the untold stories and images of people around the world. The exhibitions are documented, archived and viewable virtually at Inside Out Project.

Student organizers, Kovi Konowieck and Lindsay Hudson Ortyn, are available for interviews.

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About Wake Forest University

Wake Forest University combines the best traditions of a small liberal arts college with the resources of a large research university. Founded in 1834, the school is located in Winston-Salem, N.C. The University’s graduate school of arts and sciences, divinity school, and nationally ranked schools of law, medicine and business enrich our intellectual environment. Learn more about Wake Forest University at www.wfu.edu.

The Institute for Public Engagement at Wake Forest University has launched a new Public Engagement Fellows program to bolster support for students interested in pursuing careers in public service, public policy or public administration.

The inaugural class of 15 fellows will explore career paths in public sector work and receive guidance and mentoring as they develop individual plans to integrate their academic learning with relevant, real-world experiences.

Steven Virgil, professor of law and director of the Institute for Public Engagement, says the Public Engagement Fellows program is an extension of the University’s academic, research and service missions to anchor Wake Forest in the community. “We have a unique responsibility to our students who are looking forward to using their education as a force for good, whether that be as advocates for social equity, health and well-being or the environment. There are unsolved problems and unmet needs that the students in our fellowship program are eager to address.”

Careers in the public sector include positions in government, nonprofits, international development and education.

Junior Gurdeep Singh, a classics and sociology double major, says he is working toward a career where he can have an active role in public policy. “When I heard of this new program created to give students an opportunity to explore policy from their own unique perspective, I rushed to join,” Singh says. After graduation, he plans to pursue both a law degree and a public policy degree. “Ultimately I hope to alleviate the effects of social stratification and give the poor greater opportunities for economic success.”

During their remaining time as undergraduates, Public Engagement Fellows will receive personal guidance in selecting classes and extra-curricular activities tailored to help them meet their post-graduate goals.  They will have access to programming and networking opportunities on campus, in the local community and during visits to Raleigh and Washington, D.C. Fellows will also develop and maintain an online web portfolio where they can keep track of their academic, personal and professional goals.

“There is no single career path for work in public service,” says Virgil. “Ironically, the public sector is not as visible and easily understood as the private sector. Wake Forest is responding to a definite need in helping students identify opportunities and find pathways into the public sector that connect with the issues they care about.”

The Institute for Public Engagement promotes the common good and sets a standard of university-wide excellence in public engagement, collaboration, interdisciplinary teaching and research. The Institute prepares students for civic leadership and supports innovative relationships among faculty, students, administration, staff, alumni and the broader community.

For most students, evenings in December mean studying for the next week’s exams and looking forward to a holiday break.

But Marika Dillard (’13) and 15 other juniors and seniors are also thinking further ahead to their plans after graduation.  They are enrolled in CNS 320: Strategic Job Search Processes and spent a recent Friday night preparing themselves for life after college with mock interviews for graduate school programs or job opportunities.

Dillard, a philosophy major, plans to pursue a Master’s Degree in Social Work, so she welcomed the structured practice for upcoming admissions interviews.

“My mentor encouraged me to see interviewing as a conversation between you and the interviewer. This tip really helped me because it made the interview less of a threat and more about a mutual relationship,” said Dillard. “While in the interview, time goes by really fast, making it easy to get caught up in the moment. An instruction as simple as ‘breathe and talk slowly’ means so much when you are in the actual process.”

CNS 320: Strategic Job Search Processes is the third in a popular series of four “College to Career” elective courses offered by the Department of Counseling.

In addition to interviewing skills, Instructor Heidi Robinson taught students how to develop their 30-second pitch, target résumés and cover letters for specific opportunities, build connections through networking, and manage their digital personae.

“The liberal arts curriculum at Wake Forest provides a strong foundation for whatever path students choose in the future,” said Robinson. “Empowering them to market a combination of their skills, values and interests help them find a fulfilling life in the future.”

Given that 92 percent of the class of 2011 were either employed or in a graduate or professional school within six months after graduation, Wake Forest students are well positioned for success.

Senior Jung Ho Kim (’13) is taken to his interview.

But for history major Jung Ho Kim (’13) and his classmates, the experience means so much more than just finding a job.

“I gained the abilities to be confident, poised, collected, and knowledgeable in tackling all of my future personal and professional goals and endeavors,” said Kim. “These abilities I’ve gained will provide me with the necessary framework for approaching the job market effectively and efficiently by tailoring my strengths, values, attributes, and interests in the actual job search.”

“College to Career” course offerings are expected to expand over the next few semesters, and resources offered through the Office of Personal and Career Development (OPCD) can also help students feel prepared for today’s changing job market.

Regardless of how students go about preparing themselves for life and work after college, Dillard, who also serves on the OPCD Advisory Council, shared her greatest lesson learned.

“The most important things to remember are follow your passion and find a career that ‘fits’ you and your values.”

The first showing is always the most difficult.  Last April, when Wake Forest senior Jawad Wahabzada (’13) premiered his documentary “Children of Kabul” at RiverRun Film Festival, it was to a packed crowd filled with so many faces, he felt a little intimidated.

“I remember getting goose bumps at seeing all the people enter, and then getting goose bumps again when they began applauding at the end of the movie,” Wahabzada said.

The first screening can set the stage for future events.  “The promotion seems to drive itself once you’ve entered a couple film festivals,” said Wahabzada, who hopes to see his documentary screened internationally.  “We’re looking at festivals that focus on social issues, and they seem to notice your film more when it makes appearances at other events.”  In September, he and Wake Forest documentary film graduate Jon Bougher presented their documentary at BUSTER – Copenhagen International Film Festival, and both plan to attend Meters Fest in Moscow this October.

Wahabzada’s early years in Kabul are certainly an influence on the subject of his documentary – an intimate twenty minute look into the struggles of underprivileged Afghani children.  As a young child, he spent time working in a rug factory to support his family.

This summer, Wahabzada continued to affect change by making his film available for sale to the general public to raise additional funding for Afghan children in need, particularly those who appeared in his film.  He worked closely with MYPART Foundation, a non-profit started by Wake Forest students and alumni.  With proceeds from both a DVD and online streaming release, Wahabzada generated enough capital to give the four subjects of his documentary a proper education – all currently attend school in Kabul and are no longer forced to work for survival.

For the average student, a college course load is a full-time responsibility; add onto this the task of promoting a documentary on a global scale and the workload increases dramatically.  Wahabzada, said for him the trick is to focus on courses that are beneficial and enjoyable. “When you balance film-work and schooling … if you do something you love it’s a lot easier to navigate.”

His mentor, Cindy Hill, associate director of the Documentary Film Program, has helped guide Wahabzada through his time here at Wake Forest.  Through countless office hours and e-mails, he has learned much about his interest in telling stories through video.  “Almost everything I know about filmmaking is because of her.  I take a bit away every time we talk.”

With the assistance of Hill and Bougher, Wahabzada was able to get his first taste of professional filmmaking, but he credits his comprehensive liberal arts education with providing a stable foundation from which to create.  Independent study courses offer students like Wahabzada the ability to utilize their interests and past experience in exploring different avenues of education.

Primarily though, he wants to return his education to others.  “I want to provide Americans with a first-hand account of life in Afghanistan,” says Wahabzada. “There are many issues that go unnoticed by those in the West – from women’s rights to old traditions … all have unique stories that should be brought to light.”  “Children of Kabul” works to expose the truth behind one of these stories, and its personal connection makes it all the more relevant.

When Josie Hug stepped into the group gathered around Ray Kuhn, the William L. Poteat Professor of Biology, a hug is exactly what she got, along with cries of “You’re family now!” As the newest graduate student in Kuhn’s immunobiology lab, Hug has joined a close-knit group that spans generations — something she might not have known comes part and parcel with her work with Kuhn.

While researching how chytrid fungus, related to mass frog extinctions, infects and penetrates frog skin, she’s working side by side with a professor who has been keeping in touch with all his students since his arrival at Wake Forest in 1968. More than 30 of his former students, plus their spouses or significant others, gathered in Clemmons last month to celebrate their mentor’s 70^th birthday and their shared experiences as his research partners.

More information

Former students sign a photo of Ray Kuhn, taken when he first arrived at Wake Forest.

• See a photo gallery from the event »

Bob Crawford (BS ’69, MA ’73) in Kuhn’s first class of undergraduate and later graduate students, said Kuhn’s work blazed new discoveries in the field, not the least of which was a name for their work. “I am still under the belief that our lab coined the term immunoparasitology, after Ray returned from a California seminar on immunology and told us all we were going to be immunologists, then had us get to work on a new model system, the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi.”

Crawford says his work with what seems like every infectious agent known to man – parasites, bacteria and viruses – culminated with being awarded Distinguished Scientist status and assigned to be the director of the biodefense division at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology at Walter Reed. “I remembered how much Ray had taught me and how much I had always wanted to be like him as a scientist and mentor.”

Many of the former students in the room bonded not only in the lab, but during the three-day Fancy Gap Immunoparasitology Workshop, created by Kuhn in 1974 and still held every October in the University’s lodge off the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia.

Paul Thomas (BS ’99), who now has his own immunology lab at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, remembers going to the workshop as a sophomore, where he was encouraged to share his project work with respected leaders in the field, something he says is rare for students at other schools. “Sometimes mentors in our field, particularly PhD mentors, might feel a little tension with their graduate students, a little competition, but there was never any of that with Ray. He wanted us to do well and treated us all equally.”

“Ray fostered a community,” said Cheryl Davis (PhD ’88), Kuhn’s first female PhD student, who teaches biology and immunology and is the Distinguished Professor of Biology at Western Kentucky University. “It was an exciting time to work in his lab, with so many grants and projects. But he would also bring us together for fun and camaraderie. Look around this room – there are generations of former students here. The fact that he’s still in contact with all of us and still bringing us together to have fun gives you a sense of the kind of mentor he is.”

Max Grogl, who is now a Colonel in the U. S. Army and Director of Experimental Therapeutics at Walter Reed, came to Wake Forest directly from Colombia. “Ray picked me up at the airport and took me home. He basically adopted me – he became my second dad.” Grogl, who earned his PhD in 1983, has fond memories of learning to perfect his English by listening to Kuhn play country music on his guitar. “He’s such a good human being, such a character. He loves what he does. It’s fun to him, the work he’s doing, so he teaches his students the same way. I could have been in Alaska or Argentina – but I would have come here to celebrate this reunion and his birthday.”

“Wake Forest let Ray have the freedom to create something special,” said Dianne Ritter (PhD ’88) who, like Davis, is one of Kuhn’s first female students. Like the other alumni in the room, Ritter said Kuhn’s lab was a catalyst for experimentation. His students overwhelmingly describe Kuhn as a supportive mentor, but don’t think he held their hands in the lab.

“Ray had a way of letting you fall on your face with the science. But he was there to pick you up. He let me go through all the trials and tribulations as I figured out a project, so I could find the answers.” Ritter, now principal research scientist at Pfizer, says her experience in Kuhn’s lab helped her advise her own daughter about graduate school. “I told her when she was looking at grad school to pick a person, not just a school. Find a mentor.”

Undergraduate research has been a longtime cornerstone of Wake Forest’s commitment to academic excellence.

“Our goal is to provide undergraduate students the opportunity to engage in mentored or independent scholarship,” said Rebecca Alexander, an associate professor of chemistry who serves as co-director of the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (URECA) Center.

The URECA Center provides student grants (summer fellowships include $4,000 plus housing) and an administrative umbrella for mentored, undergraduate research and encourages and supports high-quality programs of great impact.

More information

Mubhij Ahmad talks with professor Eric Carlson about his research.

• See a photo gallery from the event »

Alexander leads by example as a faculty mentor. Mubhij Ahmad, a senior in her research group, joined her lab during his first year on campus. His research has explored the genetic sequence of a VSV, a virus in the same family as rabies and Ebola.

With Alexander’s guidance, Ahmad has studied intricate details of mitochondrial RNA structures, learned new lab techniques, and refined complex methods for RNA extraction – opportunities not always possible in a regular class or lab setting.

“Allowing students to work closely with faculty on scholarly research is central to our teacher-scholar model at Wake Forest, and it’s taking place in a variety of settings and across all disciplines,” said Shannon Mihalko, an associate professor of health and exercise science who co-directs the URECA Center with Alexander.

During Family Weekend, 135 students presented the findings of their mentored scholarship at Undergraduate Research Day. Students gave oral and poster presentations on research on important, timely issues, such as:

• Gundeep Singh, a junior sociology major, gauged sympathy for the poor demonstrated by President Barack Obama and GOP Presidential candidate Mitt Romney. His advisor was Steven Gunkel, a lecturer in sociology.


Amanda Cain discusses her research.

• Amanda Cain, a senior health and exercise science major, evaluated the role of the brain in over-eating. With the guidance of associate professor of psychology Wayne Pratt, she looked at what behavioral and motivational impact stimulating or blocking the hormone serotonin would have.
• Tayler Bungo, a senior psychology major, studied the relationship of brain activity to post traumatic stress disorder diagnosis and severity among veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. She conducted her research with neuropsychologist Jared Rowland and neurobiologist Dwayne Godwin from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.


Gerson Lanza talks about the Brazilian influence in modern tap dancing with dance professor Nina Lucas (right).

• Gerson Lanza, a senior history major, focused on demonstrating how the culture and traditions of people of Brazilian heritage have shaped tap dancing today. With director of dance and associate professor Nina Lucas as his mentor, Lanza found that the popularity of tap, an American cutting edge art form, is evolving quickly due to influence of Brazilian attributes such as Maracatú, Forro and Bossa Nova.

In November, several Wake Forest students will present at the State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium. In April, Wake Forest will host the ACC Meeting of the Minds Conference to celebrate undergraduate academic scholarship and research with students from all ACC schools.

Coaching students to present and share their findings at conferences and events provides valuable experience for faculty. It is also particularly helpful for students who plan to attend graduate school or become a researcher full-time. It’s just one of the many rewards students and faculty gain from the experience.

“Acting as a mentor for undergraduate scholarship is an extension of a faculty member’s other commitments, such as classroom teaching or academic advising,” said Mihalko. “But the heart of the URECA Center is one of faculty-student engagement. Supporting mentored scholarship is not something we have to do, it’s something we love to do.”

Read more about Undergraduate Research Day in the Old Gold & Black or learn more about the URECA Center.

When the Potter’s House, a  local community service agency, found that young men volunteering with their programs were too old to participate in free summer activities, too young to get paying jobs, and unable to afford costly enrichment programs, they asked Wake Forest for help addressing this need.

The result: Shelley Sizemore, assistant director of Campus Life and Service, and Matthew Williams, program coordinator for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, worked with Wake Forest students, faculty, and staff to coordinate a pilot mentoring program this summer called WAKE ME!. The new mentorship pilot engaged participants, ranging from ages 14 to 16, to think about college, careers, and giving back to the community.

WAKE ME! provided an enriching environment for young minority men through faculty and college-student mentorships, service learning, and educational seminars that enhanced understanding and exposure to higher education and the professional world.

“I think kids need a positive role model,” said Wake Forest junior and WAKE ME! college mentor Khiry Sutton, who spent three to four hours a week getting to know the participants as he toured them around campus and introduced them to Wake Forest students and faculty.

The mentorship component of the program established a network of support between participants and Wake Forest faculty, staff and students. Teens participated in campus tours, classroom shadowing, and recreational activities with their college student mentors twice a week. Each teenager was also paired with a Wake Forest faculty or staff member, who shared personal stories and career advice each week.

“Faculty and staff really want to be involved in the community, but they often do not have time during the school year,” Sizemore said. “During the summer, we have the opportunity to engage them in this way and provide a strong mentorship piece to our participants.”

Educating teens during the break is especially important, as research indicate young students often experience declines in academic skills during the summer months. Minority males, in particular, are at a greater risk of lagging behind their peers and disconnecting from school altogether.

To combat these risks, Sizemore and Williams created a curriculum that enhances student cultural enrichment through a series of seminars with Wake Forest and Winston-Salem professionals in academic exploration, leadership, and creativity. Seminar topics included everything from planning for college to taking responsibility and gaining focus.

While participants took advantage of the opportunity to learn more about college, leadership, and creativity, they also gave back to their local communities as they volunteered with Campus Kitchen, a food recycling program. As the students learned about sustainability, nutrition, and food waste, they also directly served their communities as they prepared, cooked, and delivered meals to those in need.

“A lot of growth comes from the idea of pro humanitate,” said Wake Forest senior and college mentor Abrams Jamassi. “We’re all connected by our capacity to give back. While our mentees are being given an opportunity, they are also giving back and learning the importance of service.”

Though WAKE ME! was a pilot program this summer, coordinators are considering an expanded program in 2013.