The College of DuPage Library's Eighth Annual COD Library Student Research Symposium took place Monday, May 11, 2026, 4:30 pm, in the COD Library. The Symposium showcased exemplary COD student research, such as papers, posters, and presentations. The evening concluded with the Participation and Awards Ceremony.

This year's award winners:

  • First Place: Eddie Contreras, A Three-Criteria Framework for U.S. Immigration Reform: Humane Treatment, Resource Reallocation, and Proportional Fallback. $750.00
  • Second Place: Taryn Prater, When Healing Becomes Horror: Medical Malpractice and Institutional Fear. $500.00
  • Third Place: Ana Paula Andrada, Shaped by the Feed: Big Data, Identity and Power. $250.00
  • Original Research Award: Tim Gaumer, A Prehistoric Presentation of Osteoarthritis (degenerative joint disease) in the Marine Reptile Tylosaurus. $750.00
  •  

    Honorable Mention: Three awards of $100.00 each

  • Tim Gaumer, Alzheimer's Disease as a Systems Problem.
  • Abigail Hendricksen, Ramen: A History of the Globally Loved Delicacy.
  • Abdul-Rahman Kassak, BDNF Signaling Dysfunction in College-Aged Males: MAPK/ERK Contributions to Mood, Cognition, and Motivation.

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Schedule
2026
Monday, May 11th
4:30 PM

Welcome and Opening Remarks

Laura Burt-Nicholas, College of DuPage
Ken Orenic, College of DuPage
Muddassir Siddiqi, College of DuPage
Lisa A. Stock, College of DuPage

Library Upper Floor

4:30 PM - 4:50 PM

5:00 PM

Alzheimer's Disease as a Systems Problem

Tim Gaumer, College of DuPage

Library 3114

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

Evaluating and Improving Wayfinding at College of DuPage

Rishi Vithani, College of DuPage

Library 3114

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

Ramen: A History of the Globally Loved Delicacy

Abigail Hendricksen, College of DuPage

Library 3152

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

Shaped by the Feed: Big Data, Identity and Power

Ana Paula Andrada, College of DuPage

Library 3104

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

Spinning Away from Coal, Into a New ‘Generation’ of Power, Literally

Coushatta Darbonne, College of DuPage

Library 3104

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

The Postmodernist Search for Purpose with Hong Kong Cinema

Ryley Salazar, College of DuPage

Library 3152

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

The Roadblocks to Climate Action: Partisanship, Corporate Influence, and Strategic Political Framing in U.S. Environmental Policy

Hannah Campbell, College of DuPage

SRC 3104

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

The Russo-Japanese Conflict

Liam King, College of DuPage

Library 3152

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

5:00 PM

Tutoring, Motivation, and the Elusive Quick Fix: Original Research at College of DuPage

Tim Gaumer

Library 3114

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM

6:10 PM

A Three-Criteria Framework for U.S. Immigration Reform: Humane Treatment, Resource Reallocation, and Proportional Fallback

Eddie Contreras, College of DuPage

Library 3152

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

BDNF Signaling Dysfunction in College-Aged Males: MAPK/ERK Contributions to Mood, Cognition, and Motivation.

Abdul-Rahman Kassak

Library 3114

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Capitalism and Identity: Tracing Economic Foundations in 20th Century Liberation Theory

Mohammed Ayman, College of DuPage

Library 3152

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Demasking Schizophrenia

Elizabeth Marszalek, College of DuPage

Library 3114

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Discovering Women in History

Meg Thompson, Dupage

Library 3104

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Ethicality Versus Legality: What is Ethical Political Rhetoric?

Devin Larimer, College of DuPage

Library 3152

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Graf St. Genois d'Anneaucourt: Body as Commodity

Sofie Geraci, College of DuPage

Library 3104

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

Rewriting First-Year Writing Instruction: Neurocognitive Frameworks for Multilingual Students

Justina Rodriguez Carrozzo, College of DuPage

Library 3114

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

6:10 PM

The Importance Altamaha-ha In South of Midnight

Meridian Sutton, College of DuPage

Library 3104

6:10 PM - 7:10 PM

7:20 PM

From Slavery to Today: Black Women in Medicine

Trinity Mcwillie Johnson, College of DuPage

Library 3104

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

Medusa: A modern retelling and feminist synthesis

Maggie (Margaret) Brophy, College of DuPage

Library 3152

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

Neuroplasticity and Hippocampal Impacts Associated with Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Rumaysa Aliniazee

Library 3114

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

The Effects of Water Quality on the Physiological Responses of Daphnia Magna

Sara Al Shekha, College of DuPage
Alexis Avila-Hernandez, College of DuPage

Library 3114

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

The Hierarchy Between Humans and Other Natural Living Beings

Amilia Zdenahlik, College of DuPage

Library 3104

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

There's Nothing Tragic About Being Fifty: An Introduction to Hagsploitation

Kayla Brabant, College of DuPage

Library 3152

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

Uncovering the Impact of YouTube's Hidden Algorithm on Its Users

Oscar Perez, College of DuPage

Library 3152

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

7:20 PM

When Healing Becomes Horror: Medical Malpractice and Institutional Fear

Taryn Prater, College of DuPage

Library 3104

7:20 PM - 8:20 PM

8:30 PM

Presentation of Awards

Laura Burt-Nicholas, College of DuPage
Ken Orenic, College of DuPage

Library Upper Floor

8:30 PM - 8:45 PM