A Texas A&M Student will be $1K Richer, Thanks to University Libraries & the Knauss VRSC
By Marketing and Communications | 04-05-2023
First-ever research poster contest provides opportunity to Aggie students
The University Libraries and the Don & Ellie Knauss Veteran Resource & Support Center sponsored the first ever Veteran Research Showcase that offers a $1,000 scholarship opportunity for Aggie veteran students who create posters about their current research endeavors.
Through Thursday, April 6, viewers vote for their favorite research poster. The leading vote getter will be named the $1,000 scholarship winner.
The week-long showcase began March 31 with a live poster presentation at the Sterling C. Evans library. The student veterans, representing a mix of disciplines and academic levels, answered questions from members of the Aggies and larger Bryan-College Station communities.
Veteran Kelly Rathbun, who is working on a Texas A&M University master’s degree in toxicology, presented on testing bio-solids with a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometer. The lab she works for is also part of the Office of the Texas State Chemist and they test industry materials, such as fertilizers.
“The whole goal of my research is to inform consumers and protect them,” Rathbun said.
As part of her study and research process, Rathbun frequently uses online Libraries’ tools, the Business Library Collaborative and Commons quiet study spaces, and the embedded writing center for thesis assistance.
The research on display is international, as well as local. Tyler Eutsler, undergraduate urban planning student, spent a summer in the Netherlands studying social vulnerability and policy in relation to land use and zoning.
Eutsler noted that, across many different cities and countries, different offices in the same municipality will often look at the same piece of land and create contradictory plans. For example, the same section of land, on some maps is zoned as a high flood risk, while on other maps, it is zoned as a good space for further development. He looked into other methods by which local land use and zoning may be assessed.
Gerry Hince, a retired colonel from the U.S. Army and current state commander of the American Legion, Department of Texas, attended the Veteran Research Showcase to show her support.
“Texas A&M University and the surrounding Bryan-College Station community support veterans better than any other community that I have lived in,” Hince said. “And the Libraries are a mirror of that.”
The Libraries are proud to have helped sponsor this year’s Veteran Research Showcase and look forward to supporting more to come.
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
Article by Ivy Mestrovic | Media Contact: Matthew Kennedy, matthew.kennedy@tamu.edu
About Texas A&M University Libraries
Comprised of five unique libraries, the Texas A&M University Libraries are a hub of resources, spaces and professionals supporting the success of research, learning and teaching at Texas A&M University. The Libraries’ priorities are to advance student success and to be a partner in innovative research while providing a respectful physical and digital home to all students, staff, faculty, and researchers.
To learn more visit library.tamu.edu.