Big ideas will be spotlighted at annual Celebration of Student Academic Excellence

UB will hold its 15th annual Celebration of Student Academic Excellence on April 25 in the Center for the Arts. Everyone throughout the university community is welcome to attend and honor the significant scholarly achievement that occurred throughout this academic year.

The event will kick off at 1 p.m. in the Center for the Arts atrium with the Outstanding Research, Scholarship and Creativity Poster exhibition, showcasing students’ innovative ideas and work under the guidance of UB faculty. Those in attendance will get a glimpse into the future of each field represented.

“Having hosted this event the past 15 years, I am amazed how projects and ideas morph into reality and inventions rather quickly,” said Tim Tryjankowski, director of the Center for Undergraduate Research & Creative Activities (CURCA).

“Just a few years ago, students were making the computer talk for stroke patients, and now we have Siri on our phones and Alexa on our nightstands. There were projects aimed at making real tools on our printers, and now we have 3-D printers making synthetic body parts for surgeries. If you want to know what the future holds, come see into it at the Center for the Arts atrium on April 25.”

Each student taking part in the poster exhibition will be available to talk about their research from 1-3 p.m. They will also present their work to judges for consideration for a UB Undergraduate Award for Excellence in Research, Scholarship and Creativity. Projects identified as contributing to the university’s collective mission to address global challenges through sustainability research will also be given a Sustainability Badge.

After the poster exhibition, President Satish K. Tripathi and Provost Charles F. Zukoski will host a celebration ceremony at 3:30 p.m. in the Mainstage Theatre.

The ceremony will recognize recipients of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence, the Outstanding PhD Dissertation Award and the Clifford C. Furnas Scholar-Athlete Award, among others. Nominees for prestigious national and international awards, such as the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, the Critical Language Scholarship and the British Marshall scholarship, will also be recognized.

The UB team building the U.S. exhibits for the 2019 Prague Quadrennial will also be highlighted in the ceremony with a short film.

More information on the event, including award info and recipients and nominees, can be found on the Celebration of Academic Excellence website. Those attending are asked to register by April 17.