A three-minute timer loomed over 36 graduate students competing for a spot in the Vice President for Research Fellowship on Feb. 12, 2018.

The 16 participants in the 3 Minute Challenge who were selected to become VPR fellows will receive $4,000 in scholarship and travel support. Fellows will also participate in professional development workshops, mentorship, leadership and engagement opportunities over the 2018-19 academic year.

As students quickly summarized their research, judges from across the university and from local industry scored on criteria associated with the content and comprehension of the presentation, as well as students’ effective engagement and communication skills.

Talented and dedicated

“CSU students are extremely talented and dedicated, and it was my distinct privilege to witness their success at the 3 Minute Challenge,” said Ellen Fisher, assistant vice president for research and lead coordinator of the Fellows program. “Every one of the graduate students who participated demonstrated intense passion and outstanding ability to communicate their research to a broad audience.”

This initiative was created in 2016 by the Office of the Vice President for Research, Research and Scholarly Success Initiative (RSSI) to support excellence in graduate research and scholarly works and to promote cross-college and cross-department collaborations. Participants in the 3 Minute Challenge were selected from the CSU Graduate School’s Graduate Student Showcase.

“Our goals for the VPR Fellowship program are to provide a transformative leadership experience and to help prepare the next generation of diverse, innovative, creators for future stages of their careers in the global marketplace,” said Alan Rudolph, vice president for research.

The 2018-19 VPR Fellowship Cohort

A.J., Brown, College of Agricultural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Mitigating Adverse Effects of Soil Salinity on Global Crop Production: New Approaches to Irrigation and Water Table Management”

Cody Carrell, College of Natural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “3D-Printed Rotational Manifold for Point of Care Salmonella Detection”

Jimikaye Courtney, College of Health and Human Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Rescuing our Rescuers”

Nora Flynn,  College of Agricultural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Making the Most of Colorado Water with Sustainable Farming Practices”

Maybellene Gamboa, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology

• 3 Minute Presentation: “A Roadmap for Reintroductions to Resurrect our Lost Ecosystems”

Mohammadhasan Hedayati, Walter Scott Jr., College of Engineering

• 3 Minute Presentation: “A Slick Solution to a Sticky Problem – Blood Clots on Implant Surfaces”

Elle Holbrook,  College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Man’s best friend: integrating human and animal big data to understand disease”

Ashlie Johnson, College of Natural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “In the Eyes of a Child: A Deeper Look into Food Advertising for the Children of Nepal”

Sarah Leichty, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology

• 3 Minute Presentation: “On the cutting edge of tillage research:  Stabilizing soil carbon for resilient farming”

Frank Marrs, College of Natural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Who influences whom in environmental politics?”

Clifton McKee, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Bad roommates? Inferring bacterial interactions in coinfected individuals”

Brian Mitchell, College of Agricultural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Does Fruit Cluster Pruning Improve Organic Tomatoes in High Tunnels?”

Kayla Nuss, College of Health and Human Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Assessing the heart rate and energy expenditure accuracy of the Apple Watch Series 1 and the Fitbit Charge HR”

Alyx Shigenaga, College of Agricultural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Agriculture in a Changing Climate: Preventing Heat-Induced Plant Disease Susceptibility”

Ingrid Slette, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Don’t forget your roots: gaining a deeper understanding of ecosystem responses to drought”

Maggie Weinroth, College of Agricultural Sciences

• 3 Minute Presentation: “Fingerprinting: The Hunt for Superbugs in Livestock”