Seven undergraduates selected for
prestigious research scholar group

Seven students in the College of Architecture have joined a select group of Aggies with their acceptance into the Undergraduate Research Scholars program at Texas A&M.

"This prestigious university program assists students in conducting an undergraduate thesis and includes a $300 award, special seminars and access to experts and other mentoring services," said Mark Clayton, professor of architecture. Clayton added that the college is supplementing the monetary award to the students with a $600 contribution.

"The college is strongly committed to research at every level and is particularly proud of these students for taking this path so early in their careers," said Clayton.

The program gives students an opportunity to present their work to the research community as authors, provides experience for graduate or professional school and makes students more competitive for national fellowships.

The students and their research topics are:

• Ky Coffman, "Fabrication Techniques for Architectural Form-Making";
• Dayna Finley, "Unmet Housing Needs in Texas During Katrina-Rita, 2005";
• Patrick Hurst, "Architectural Form for the Year 2050";
• Grace Koy, "Increasing Sustainability on a College Campus";
• Ashley McGarity, "Automating the Calculation of Total Cost of Ownership for Residences Using BIM Technology";
• Alexandria Norman, "Unmet Needs for Emergency Organizations During Disaster: FEMA, Red Cross and Salvation Army Referrals in Texas During Katrina-Rita, 2005"; and
• Courtney Rice, "Applying Evidence-Based Design to a Campus Health Clinic."

Koy is publishing the progress of her project on a blog, available at http://universallygreen.blogspot.com

"Over the next semester," she wrote, "I will post my findings as well as easy ways to go green in your everyday life."

"I am very excited about these projects and expect them to produce results that are publishable in conferences or journals," said Clayton. "It will be amusing in the next few years to attend conferences and have the work of our undergraduates mistaken for the work of faculty. These students will make names for themselves and Texas A&M University for advanced research."

To qualify, students must have completed at least 60 hours of undergraduate coursework, 24 of them at Texas A&M, have a 3.0 GPR or higher, and the approval of their department head.

Undergraduate research scholars partner with an Aggie faculty member consulting research to serve as an adviser, submit a proposal of approximately 1000 words, participate in a research project for a designated length of time, submit a manuscript of the study's results in a format suitable for publication in a professional research or scholarly periodical, and present the results in a public forum.

For more information about the university's undergraduate research scholars program, visit http://ugr.tamu.edu/

- Posted: Nov. 23, 2009 -