11th Annual Spring Research Day 2026

Presented by the College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) & the College of Nursing and Health Professions (NHP)
Wednesday, April 15th & Thursday, April 16th

Payden Academic Center

About the Program

Every year we showcase the research and discovery of our Trinity scholars at our annual Spring  Research Day. Students in STEM, social science, the humanities, and new this year- nursing and health professions, will present their research at interactive and engaging poster and oral presentation sessions.

This year Spring Research Day will be held over two days, complete with activities, presentations, and resources for all to enjoy.

Agenda

Wednesday, April 15:

10 am: Poster Display in Payden Lobby

3 pm: Opening Session in AC 103

 Special Presentation:

 Look in Your Own Backyard!: 

Spotlight on Faculty  Research at Trinity

4 pm: Student Poster Presentation in Payden Lobby

 

Thursday, April 16:

10 am: Poster Display in Payden Lobby, cont’d

9:30 am- 12:00 pm: Oral Presentations from CAS and NHP scholars in AC 101

12:00 pm- 1:00 pm: Undergraduate Research Faculty Lunch & Learn in AC 102

4:00 pm- 6:00 pm Graduate Research Symposium in AC 101

 

“Look in Your Own Backyard!”: Spotlight on Faculty Research at Trinity

 

Lee, JenniferJennifer Lee, PhD

Dr. Lee is an Educational Psychologist by training, with a particular research interest in developing teacher candidates into change agents, knowledge producers, and reflective practitioners committed to improving teaching and learning in urban classrooms and other diverse settings. It is Dr. Lee’s vocation to achieve this through her coursework, where she supports teacher candidates to develop action research proposals for execution during student teaching, and in her research projects, where she trains current educators across the K-12 and higher education settings to deploy evidence-based instructional strategies and practices that show promise to increase student engagement in the learning environment.

 

Osborne, RichardRichard Osborne OTD, MS, OTR/L

Dr. Richard Osborne is an Occupational Therapist with 28 years of experience in the field. Currently, Dr. Osborne serves as the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator at Trinity Washington University. Dr. Osborne has worked in pediatrics, home health, school-based services, acute and subacute rehabilitation, and as a rehabilitation director.  He has collaborated with fieldwork providers over the last four years to develop and improve fieldwork provider competence and assist in fieldwork education. Dr. Osborne’s research program focuses on “Resilience with Generation Z Occupational Therapy Students: Identifying Strategies to Support Fieldwork Educators.” His overall goal is to help the community understand strategies that can be utilized and implemented when delivering fieldwork education to Generation Z students. These strategies focus on building resilience with the students during their fieldwork education experience to assist with fieldwork success and competence.

 

Wellens, KaitlinKaitlin R. Wellens, PhD

Dr. Wellens is an Evolutionary Biologist that teaches Biology and Data Analytics classes at Trinity. One of her primary goals as a professor is to provide students with hands-on research experience to create analytical thinkers who are prepared for a wide range of future careers in STEM. Dr. Wellens’ research focuses on mother-infant relationships and infant development. Since graduate school, she has studied wild chimpanzee behavior as a model for understanding the evolution of our own social dynamics. At Trinity, she has continued this work but also broadened it to include public health topics such as workplace policies around breastfeeding. Dr. Wellens is also passionate about STEM education research as she has been a part of the STEM program’s HHMI inclusive excellence grant and the new virtual reality research. Lastly, Dr. Wellens has mentored numerous data analytics students in their own research projects about topics they are passionate about (check some out at Spring Research Day!). She loves helping students find their confidence and voice in research that is meaningful to them and she looks forward to working with some of you in the future!

How to Participate

All academic disciplines are welcome! If you participated in a summer research internship, worked on an undergraduate research project in class, or have worked with a faculty member to conduct research, you are welcome to present your work. In order to present, you must do the following:

  • Speak with the faculty member with whom you conducted undergraduate research to see if it is okay for you to present your work. Your abstract must be approved by the faculty mentor BEFORE you can submit the Abstract Submission Form.
  • Work with your mentor to complete and submit the attached Abstract Submission Form by Friday, March 6, 2026.
  • Prepare a research poster  and submit for presentation by Friday, April 3, 2026.

Submissions

The abstract submission deadline closes on Friday, March 6, 2026.

The deadline for submitting research abstracts expired March 6, 2026. Thank you for your participation in this year's Spring Research Day. We look forward to hearing more about your research.

Posters

The poster submission form must be submitted by Friday, April 3, 2026

The deadline for submitting research posters expired, April 3, 2026. Thank you for your participation in this year's Spring Research Day. We look forward to hearing more about your research.

We want all of our students’ posters to be fabulous as well as professional. Take advantage of the training workshops, organized by the Library, to help you design and make your academic research poster.