Skip to main content

Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Events + Publications

In support of our mission to maintain a supportive environment for research, scholarly and creative endeavors, ORSP offers a number of events!

Faculty/Academic Staff Forum

The Faculty/Academic Staff Forum, started in 1992, highlights research performed by faculty and staff at UW-Eau Claire, UW-Eau Claire-Barron County, and Mayo Clinic. Presentations run on select Wednesdays from 12:10-12:50pm in Vicki Lord Larson Hall 1142 (CETL Lobby) and via Zoom. (Passcode: 977780).

Faculty/Academic Staff Forum Spring 2024 Series

Faculty/Staff Forum Spring 2024 Series

Presentations run on select Wednesdays from 12:10-12:50pm in Vicki Lord Larson Hall 1142 (CETL Lobby) and via Zoom. (Passcode: 977780).

Past presentations can be viewed on our YouTube page.

  • February 14 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"What is the Appropriate Timing for Surgery in Aortic Regurgitation?"

Dr. Vidhu Anand, Mayo Clinic

View the recorded presentation here.

  • February 21 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Designing Surveys for Research"

Dr. Jeff Goodman, Psychology, Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Dr. April Bleske-Rechek, Psychology

Dr. Justin Patchin, Criminal Justice, Political Science

Dr. Peter Hart-Brinson, Sociology, Communication and Journalism

View the recorded panel here.

  • February 28 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Non-Deal Roadshows in Mergers & Acquisitions: Value Effects & Financing Choices"

Dr. Dylan Howell, Accounting and Finance

View the recorded presentation here.

  • March 6 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Food Environments and Healthy Students: Food Preferences and Dietary Behaviors Within the Context of the Campus Food Environment"

Dr. Briana Rockler, Public Health and Environmental Studies

View the recorded presentation here.

  • March 13 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Family Needs and Experiences Within the Context of Substance Use Disorder: A Mixed Methods Study"

Dr. Sonja Meiers, Nursing

  • March 27 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"The Relevance of Executive Equity Compensation Design in Loan Pricing Decisions: Evidence from Private Loans"

Dr. Emrah Ekici, Accounting and Finance

  • April 3 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Inter-University Interprofessional Education: Implications for Faculty & Students"

Dr. Abby Hemmerich, Communication Sciences and Disorders

  • April 10 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Problematizing 'Professional': Expanding the Conceptualization of the Term to Normalize Neurodivergent Experiences"

Dr. Kristine Knutson, Communication and Journalism

Faculty/Academic Staff Forum-Fall 2023

September 20 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Harnessing the Power of Light: Absorbing and Emitting Light with Organic LEDs"

Dr. Elizabeth Radue, Physics and Astronomy

View the recording here.

September 27 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Institutionalizing Suffering: Examining the Relationship between U.S. Immigration law and Social Desire"

Dr. Kati Barahona-López, Sociology

October 4 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"The Relationship between Physical Literacy and Physical Activity in Individuals with a History of ACL Reconstruction"

Dr. Rachel Kleis, Kinesiology

View the recording here.

October 11 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Cigarette Butts to Pods: How Youth Tobacco Use Evolved over Time"

Dr. Pravesh Sharma, Mayo Clinic

View the recording here.

October 25 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Conflicts between Expatriates and Host Country Nationals During the Acculturation Process"

Dr. Longzhu Dong, Management and Leadership Programs

November 1 (CETL Lobby, 1142)

"A Tantalizing Tale of Numerical Sequences"

Dr. aBa Mbirika, Mathematics

View the recording here.

November 8 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Keys to Research Mentorship: A Panel of Exceptional Faculty and Research Mentors"

Dr. Elizabeth Glogowski, Materials Science and Biomedical Engineering

Dr. Jeanette Olsen, Nursing

Dr. Lee Anna Rasar, Music and Theatre Arts

Dr. Nga-Wing Anjela Wong, Education for Equity and Justice

November 15 (CETL Lobby, VLL 1142)

"Confucian and Stoic Perspectives on Forgiveness"

Dr. Sean McAleer, Philosophy and Religious Studies

View the recording here.

Recent presentations are listed below; in many cases, a recording is available for viewing. Older presentations can be found on our YouTube channel.

Fall 2022 - Spring 2023 Forum

Dr. David Shih (English) February 15

"Writing a Memoir in Essays: A Reading from Chinese Prodigal: A Memoir in Eight Arguments" 

David Shih will discuss the process that led to the development of his first book, a memoir in essays entitled Chinese Prodigal: A Memoir in Eight Arguments, to be published in August 2023. He will begin by describing how the book developed from his earlier blogging days and need to write for the general public about race and racism in a way he hadn’t yet seen. His book belongs to an emerging genre popular among writers of color that combines memoir with cultural criticism. He will finish with a short reading from Chinese Prodigal.

Dr. Andrew Sturtevant (History) February 22

"Pontiac's Other War: Imperial and Indigenous Politics, 1701-1766"

My research seeks to situate Pontiac’s War, a war waged by Native Americans in the Great Lakes Region against British in the 1760s, in two distinct frames. In the first of these frames, Pontiac’s War, the Odawaa leader Pontiac and his allies waged an anti‐imperial war against the British Empire. In the second, Pontiac’s other war, Pontiac continued a long‐running power struggle with the Odawaa’s rivals, the Wyandots, and sought to advance Odawaa interests. The project argues that these parallel conflicts unfolded in tandem, and that conflicts like Pontiac’s War must be understood in both imperial and Indigenous contexts. 

Mykola Haleta (Art & Design) March 1

"Pattern Systems and Visual Illusions"

Mykola Haleta gives a brief presentation into his family history, influences, research, work and play.

Dr. Sudeep Bhattacharyay (Chemistry and Biochemistry) March 8

"Supercomputer Simulations Reveal How a Simple Redox Chemistry is Behind COVID-19 Severity"

Work in my research group took a dramatic turn during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. In collaboration with Dr. Hati and her research students, we started investigating the main players behind COVID-19 severity. We noted several disulfide bridges on the tip of the viral spike protein surface that binds to our cell surface receptors. Disulfide bridges are formed during elevated oxidative stress in our body. Eventually, our students used supercomputer simulations to show that the oxidation-reduction chemistry at the center of the spiraling oxidative stress is causing severity of the disease. The effort resulted in three highly cited peer-reviewed articles in 2020-2021.

Dr. Ann Aschenbrenner (Nursing) March 15

"Forgiveness, Civility, and Personality"

Incivility in nursing education and practice is an ongoing problem that persists in spite of a variety of interventions designed to improve it. Forgiveness and personality characteristics are concepts that have not been studied together with civility. The study aim was to describe the relationships among civility, forgiveness, and personality characteristics, agreeableness and emotional stability, in nursing education and practice. Multiple linear regression was used to test if forgiveness and personality characteristics significantly predicted civility. Forgiveness and personality characteristics were predictive of civility. These findings can be used to support an innovative intervention designed to improve forgiveness. With improving forgiveness, civility improvements may follow.

Dr. Trond Bergestuen (Management and Marketing) March 29

“A Multinational Study of the Relationship Between Independent Manufacturers’ Representatives and Their Principals”

Dr. Bergestuen in collaboration with the International United Commercial Agents and Brokers surveyed independent manufacturers' representatives (IMRs) in Europe and the USA. Almost 2,000 IMRs responded to the survey, making it the most extensive survey of IMRs ever conducted and the first multinational survey focusing on IMRs. The objective of this research was to explore key variables that affect the relationship between commercial agents and their principals and make these relationships successful, and identify similarities and differences in the way the IMR role is executed in different countries.

Dr. Kyle Whipple (Education for Equity and Justice) April 5

"Faculty and Staff Retention: The Importance of Social and Professional Safety Nets"

As part of a CoEHS leadership fellowship, I researched recruitment and retention of faculty and staff and what makes employees happy. This presentation will share what I found in that research and the team building exercises the emergent Department of Education for Equity and Justice took on two years ago.

Dr. Josephine Kipgen (Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Sexuality Studies) April 19

“Reproductive Politics in India: The Case of Sex-Selective Abortion”

Dr. Kipgen discusses her book manuscript, Reproductive Politics in India: The Case of Sex-Selective Abortion, which explores the full context within which sex-selective abortion (SSA) occurs in India. Using qualitative research methods within a feminist methodology, she examines the historical forces, government policies, reproductive laws and technologies, and gender regimes shaping SSA. Specifically, she will discuss the core findings – the social and institutional determinants that create conditions for SSA, the potential for women’s agency within a reproductive practice perceived as anti-feminist and antithetical to gender justice, and the gendered portrayals of women seeking SSA in the Indian media. 

Fall 2022 Forum

Dr. Jennifer Muehlenkamp (Psychology) September 21

"Coping with COVID and UWEC Student Self-Harm: Risks and Resilience"

Concerns about how the COVID pandemic impacted student mental health abound and current narratives emphasize the toll the pandemic has taken. Part of this talk will share longitudinal data collected before, during, and after the pandemic on UWEC student well-being and engagement in self-harm behaviors. Data sharing potential growth in resilience due to the pandemic will also be shared and how such resilience also impacted student mental health. Thoughts on how the narrative of the pandemic’s effect on mental health will be discussed.

Dr. Ezgi Akar (Information Systems) September 28 

"Let's Get United and #ClearTheShelters: The Factors Contributing to Users' Network Centrality in Online Social Networks"

This study explores the factors contributing to online users' network centrality in a network on Twitter in the context of a social movement about the "clear the shelters" campaign across the United States. First, we extracted users' various features and network centralities (betweenness, closeness, eigenvector, in-degree, and out-degree) from a Twitter network of 13,270 users and 24,354 relationships. Then, we developed a research model and tested the impact of various user-related features on users' network centralities.

Dr. Wayne Carroll (Economics) October 5 

"The Economic Progress of Hmong Refugees in the U.S."

Hundreds of thousands of Hmong refugees arrived in the U.S. starting in 1975. Using large, richly detailed U.S. Census microdata samples, we can describe the economic progress of Hmong Americans over the subsequent forty-five years. Most Hmong refugees arrived with low levels of education and English language fluency, so it was difficult to find work at first, and many took low-skill jobs at low wages. Over time, Hmong refugees achieved slow but steady economic progress, with their median household incomes rising to the level of native-born families after about 2000. Second-generation Hmong Americans have far surpassed their refugee parents in socioeconomic status.

Dr. Nora Mitchell (Biology) October 12

"Diversity of Native Wiscon-sunflowers" 

Wild sunflowers are an excellent system for studying ecology and evolution. Here I discuss the diversity of the sunflower family and what we can learn from this charismatic group of plants. I will then discuss some specific examples of our work examining patterns of trait diversity and genetic diversity in some of our regional species.

Dr. Amanda Profaizer (Music and Theatre Arts) October 19

"Historical Costume Patterning"

In 2021-2022, Amanda Profaizer (Professor) and Abby Alvarez (Student) worked on a collaborative summer research project. Through this funding support, Abby had the opportunity to learn graduate level and industry professional skills in costume patterning and construction. Abby also researched historical costume patterning techniques to assist with the design and development of half-scale costume patterns covering at least five major historical periods. In addition to the above tasks, Abby served as the cutter/draper where she patterned five complete costumes used in the UWEC theatre production of Silent Sky, historically set in the 1890’s and in 1911 specifically.

Dr. Xinruo (Emma) Wang (Accounting and Finance) October 26

"Share Pledge and Earnings Persistence: Evidence from China"

This study examines the effect of share pledge on earnings persistence and the mechanism explains the effect using Chinese data. We find that both the existence of share pledge and the percentages of pledged shares are negatively related to firms’ earnings persistence and the results are robust to the Heckman two-stage model and propensity score matching method. Our results indicate that firms with share pledge are more likely to engage in earnings management, ultimately resulting in diminished earnings persistence. We further find that the negative effect of share pledge on earnings persistence is mitigated when firms have good disclosure quality or are subject to better audit monitoring.

Dr. Jason Beckermann (Mayo Clinic) November 2

"Optimizing Outcomes in Trauma Resuscitation"

It is well known that hemorrhage secondary to injury is the leading cause of potentially preventable death.  We will review the history of blood transfusion for treating trauma patients.  Current strategies to improve transfusion at Mayo Clinic Health System will be discussed.

Dr. David Tschida (Communication and Journalism) November 9

Communicating Heritage Tourism and the Environment on Minnesota’s 'North Shore'”

Grand Portage National Monument is located on the Grand Portage Indian Reservation on Minnesota’s shores of Lake Superior. The reconstructed trading post and museum recognizes the relationship between the Anishinaabe and the British fur traders in late 1700s. The heritage tourism and increased visitation to the community it encourages compliments and clashes with the other “North Shore” tourism practices in significant ways for the monument and the community. This presentation explores the material rhetoric of/communication for the intersection of heritage and environmental tourism occurring at the monument and along the North Shore.

Dr. Kaishan Kong (Languages) November 16

"Building a World Classroom Between UWEC and Malaysia"

This presentation will share a global collaborative project that brings students from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the United States and students from Taylor’s University in Malaysia together to explore culture and identities through virtual exchange. The purpose of this collaborative class project is to extend language education beyond the classroom and broaden students’ cultural awareness through interacting with peers from different linguistic and cultural backgrounds. The presenter will share the design of the project, activity examples, videos of students’ communication and feedback from the students.

WiSys Grant Webinar Series

Tips and techniques for grant-seeking organized by WiSys.  

Celebration of Excellence in Research and Creative Activity (CERCA) 

UW-Eau Claire's annual Celebration of Excellence in Research and Creative Activity (CERCA) gives undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to present the results of their research and creative activity. The event highlights student research accomplishments and contributions to the academic community. 

The next CERCA event will be held April 22-25, 2024. 

Celebration of Scholarship (formerly the Authors Celebration)

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire faculty and staff are deeply involved in scholarly research and creative activity. Despite heavy demands in teaching, advising, and service within and beyond the university, they persist in scholarly engagement. The Celebration of Scholarship (formerly the Authors Celebration), which was first held in 2006, honors the scholarly output of faculty and staff at UW-Eau Claire by featuring a select number of scholars with major scholarly achievements as well as grants seekers and sabbatical recipients. 

The publications shown here represent only a fraction of UW-Eau Claire faculty and staff publications. To see a more complete listing of UW-Eau Claire faculty, staff, and student publications, please see the Report on Publications and Other Scholarly Activity.

2023 Celebrated Authors

Xinruo (Emma) Wang- Accounting and Finance 

Heather Ann Moody and Matthew Meyer (Philosophy and Religious Studies)- American Indian Studies 

Jack Reardon (Economics)- Barron UWEC

Nicolas Wheeler- Biology 

Jennifer Smith- Biology

Stephen Drucker- Chemistry & Biochemistry 

Mary Worley- Communication and Journalism

Rebecca Jarzynski- Communication Sciences & Disorders 

Jim Seliya- Computer Science

Amber Wilson- Criminal Justice 

Divya Sadana (Arts and Sciences)- Economics 

Susan Tily- Education for Equity & Justice 

Papia Rozario- Geography & Anthropology 

Robert Lodge- Geology and Environmental Sciences 

Mary Beth Tusing (Psychology)- Human Development Center

Ezgi Akar- Information Systems 

Ali Ahmed- Information Systems 

Rachel Kleis- Kinesiology

Fabiola Varela-García- Languages 

Fabiola Varela-García- Latin American and Latinx Studies

Frances Hawes (Health Care Administration, CHAASE)- Management & Leadership

Mckenzie West- Mathematics 

Robert Gough (History) and Greg Kocken- McIntyre Library 

Jeffery Crowell- Music & Theatre Arts 

Sonja J. Meiers- Nursing 

Kristen Abbott-Anderson- Nursing 

Sean McAleer (Public Health and Environmental Studies)- Philosophy and Religious Studies

Scott Whitfield- Physics & Astronomy 

April Bleske-Rechek- Psychology

Briana Rockler- Public Health & Environmental Studies 

Sarita Jayanty Mizin (English)- Race, Ethnicity, Gender & Sexuality Studies

Peter Hart-Brinson (Communication and Journalism)- Sociology 

Past Celebration of Scholarship (formerly Authors Celebration)

Sabbatical Information Sessions

These sessions offer UW-Eau Claire faculty opportunities to learn more about the sabbatical process (May) and to workshop their sabbatical applications (August). 

We want to hear from you

Please enter your name

Please enter a valid email address

Please enter a valid phone number

Please enter a message