A Festival of Ideas

Spring welcomes the Festival of Scholars to campus. During this annual event, California Lutheran University’s undergraduate and graduate students unveil novel discoveries from their individual or collective research through an abstract and/or poster presentation.

Posters and abstracts come from students enrolled across the university’s five units, including the College of Arts and Sciences, home to several disciplines participating in this year’s event. Around 40 students from the College’s Social and Behavioral Science Division, which spans Communication, Criminology and Criminal Justice, Political Science, Psychology and Sociology, will participate in a poster session to spotlight their research on diverse topics analyzing human behavior.

“The Festival of Scholars empowers our students to build their knowledge in a particular area through performing research and working directly with experienced faculty mentors,” said Dean of the College Timothy Hengst, MA. “It also gives them the chance to present their findings to other students, faculty and the larger Cal Lutheran community, whether they involved interviews, surveys or applying a theory to a real-world scenario.”

Salient points

Studies reveal students who participate in undergraduate research receive higher grades, are more likely to earn their degrees and are better prepared to continue their education or launch their careers. Cal Lutheran undergraduates have opportunities year-round to partake in research, including the festival, the Student Research Symposium and regional conferences.

This year’s Festival of Scholars is the third venue where senior Grace Schifrin will present her research into what influences young adults’ attitudes about sexuality and sexual behaviors. A recipient of a Culver Behavioral Science Summer Research Fellowship, Schifrin began investigating this topic last summer with her fellow psychology major Jordyn Todd. Her abstract with Josh Blank at the festival reviews responses from an anonymous online survey involving 46 young adults who identify as LGBTQ+.

“This research project helped me understand how even though LGBTQ+ people might have more understanding of sex and gender roles and sexual pleasure, there is still a disconnect for some people when having to discuss these topics with younger siblings or peers,” said Schifrin.

This is the first time that political science major Julia Luis has participated in the festival and publicly presented research. Her Capstone class with her faculty mentor Haco Hoang, PhD, inspired her to examine book bans that have occurred across the country over the past few years.

“It was shocking to discover that some of my favorite books that I read in high school were on the list of banned books in Florida and Texas,” said Luis. “It was important for me to delve deeper into the rationale behind the legislative policies and the impact on education, students, librarians and educators.” 

Dual major Matthew Bauer scrutinized another salient issue impacting Americans – political polarization. His internship last fall in the Speaker’s Office in the House of Representatives in Washington D.C. motivated him to uncover the deep divisions between the nation’s two primary political parties.

“Having a front-row seat (literally) during this historic time made it brutally evident that American politics has become polarized to the point of serious dysfunction. If the federal government is unable to pass even the most basic legislation, its ability to maintain stability and efficiency is compromised,” said Bauer, who will earn degrees in political science and criminology and criminal justice in May. He believes his analysis of this subject would give him insights into how American politics has deteriorated and allow him to offer recommendations to alter this course.

Discovering their own voices

During their projects, students collaborate with professors who have conducted research in their fields. This allows students to get feedback throughout every step of the research process and overcome the hurdles inherent in student research.  Nicole Talarico, PhD, teaches in Cal Lutheran’s Psychology Department and currently mentors five students, including Schifrin, Blank and Todd. Talarico provides them with hands-on experiences with every part of research: developing the question, performing an extensive literature review, assisting in completing an institutional review board (IRB) application and other aspects.

“As a faculty mentor, I assist students in overcoming the challenges of conducting data analyses. This can be intimidating for some students. In order to make students feel at ease, I will work with them one-on-one and guide them through the process of analyzing the data in SPSS [Statistical Package for the Social Sciences] and being able to interpret the output and write up their findings in a results section.”

Luis thanks her mentor for helping her to surmount the obstacles involved in her project like knowing when to stop gathering information. “Dr. Hoang has significantly helped me discover my voice as a researcher. At times, I would feel like I hit a roadblock when puzzling together my abstract and findings,” she said. “ I’d take a visit to Dr. Hoang’s office to talk it out with her and with her expertise, I would get back on track.”

Similarly, Hoang guided Bauer through his research, particularly in writing his interview questions shared with eligible voters, media professionals and the staff of elected officials and writing the abstract.

“It required me to plan out and foresee the rest of the project while developing research questions,” he said. Yet Hoang repeatedly assured Bauer that he was on the right path with his research, which eased his concerns about the process.

Putting their ideas into practice 

Schifrin credits Talarico and two of the courses she completed at Cal Lutheran for readying her for the festival. “Dr. Talarico has been such a great help with refining and presenting our abstract and research through providing hands-on editing and setting up mock presentations for us,” she said. “And I would definitely say that my research statistics class and research methods class helped prepare me to utilize those skills in the research as well as fully understanding what I was looking at within the data.”

Talarico notes that her role as a mentor also impels her to encourage students to participate in regional conferences involving the social sciences.

“Currently, students are working on drafts of their posters they will present at the Festival of Scholars as well as this month’s Western Psychological Association convention,” she said. Schifrin, Todd and other psychology majors will showcase their individual work at this five-day event in San Francisco. After Schifrin earns her degree next month, she will continue her studies in social work.

Both Luis and Bauer will go directly to the workforce after graduating. Luis eventually wants to serve “on the front lines of policy-making and making a positive impact on my community” in local government in Oxnard,  while Bauer will either return to the nation’s capital or begin a career in law enforcement.

Regardless of their post-graduation plans, the Festival of Scholars has equipped participating students with newfound skills and meaningful experiences.

“Even if they’re not planning a career in research, students can highlight their research-related experiences when they meet with potential employers or peers to underscore they understand the value of collaboration,” he said.

This year’s Festival of Scholars runs April 22-28.