Fourth Annual Research Showcase Program
Join us for a presentation featuring the latest in faculty, staff and student research and scholarly activities (both in progress and recently completed).
Keynote Presentation
We are excited to announce our joint keynote presentation ‘Immigrant Settlement Experiences in Central Alberta’ from Dr. Choon-Lee Chai and Dr. Jones Adjei.
Keynote Overview: Immigration has long been essential to Canada’s economic development, population growth, and nation-building. Immigrants' success hinges on their successful settlement and integration into Canadian society. In this presentation, Dr. Choon-Lee Chai and Dr. Jones Adjei will share their experiences conducting collaborative research with immigrant settlement service provider organizations in Red Deer to support new immigrants.
While substantial research has been conducted in larger Canadian cities, less focus has been paid to small centers like Red Deer, which received fewer immigrants. Yet, having more immigrants settling in small and rural communities remains a crucial government strategy to address population decline and to stimulate economic growth. Our collaborative research with immigrant settlement service provider organizations is among the first of its kind in Red Deer and Central Alberta.
Over the past decade, we have completed significant collaborative research with the Central Alberta Immigrant Women’s Association, Care for Newcomers, and Red Deer Local Immigration Partnership. These research projects provide critical settlement information to settlement service provider organizations, enhancing their understanding of settlement services and program needs to support immigrant success to the primary immigrant settlement program funder, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
In all these research projects, we actively engaged RDP students, many as paid research assistants. This created a research environment that provided students with unique learning experiences, strengthened our practical knowledge and helped to fulfill community needs in a small center, Red Deer, and more broadly Central Alberta region where more and more immigrants are making it the place they call home.
Schedule
| 4:45-5:00pm | Opening Remarks |
| 5:00-5:30pm | Keynote Speakers – Dr. Choon-Lee Chai and Dr. Jones Adjei |
| 5:30-6:15pm | Refreshments by RDP Cook Apprentice Program |
| 6:15-7:20pm | Concurrent session 1 (4 breakout sessions) |
| 7:20-7:30pm | Break |
| 7:30-8:35pm | Concurrent session 2 (3 breakout sessions) |
| 8:40-8:45pm | Event Closing |
Concurrent Session 1 – 6:15 to 7:20 pm
Poster Displays - Cenovus Energy Learning Common
Microplastic Abundance and Categories in a Marine and a Freshwater System on the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica
Presenter Name: Arynn Sideritsch
Research Team: Anne Dempsey (School of Trades & Technology), Arynn Sideritsch (Student)
A Bioacoustics Survey to Monitor Bat Biodiversity at Half Moon Bay, Sylvan Lake
Presenter Name: Campbell Skelton
Research Team: Sally Stuart (School of Trades & Technology), Campbell Skelton (Student)
AI Taking on the Role of the Programmer in Video Game Production - Building a Playable Game Level
Presenter Name: Peter Fiala
Research Team: Peter Fiala (School of Arts and Education)
Holistic Approaches to Health and Wellness – Room 2905
Attitudes and Perceptions Toward eHealth and mHealth Technologies Among Older Adults in Central Alberta
Presenter Name: Irina Sheridan
Research Team: Dr. Greg Wells (School of Arts and Education), Dr. Reiko Yeap (School of Arts and Education), Irina Sheridan (Student)
From Sonic Ethnographies to Applied Research: A Trajectory of Sound Studies
Presenter Name: Dr. Stacey Bliss
Research Team: Dr. Stacey Bliss (Division of Applied Research)
Investigating the Impact of MindfulU on Student Well-Being
Presenter Name: Jocelyn Wynnychuk
Research Team: Dr. Anomi Bearden (School of Arts and Education), Jocelyn Wynnychuk (Student)
Session Moderated by Heather Dirks, Dean School of Health & Wellness
Rethinking Education and Learning – Room 2906
Growing Our Roots: Exploring the Home Language and Literacy Environment within the Context of Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Being
Presenter Name: Dr. Lois Maplethorpe
Research Team: Dr. Lois Maplethorpe (School of Arts and Education), Yvonne Peebles (Red Deer Child Care- Wichinahin Kohopikiwan Cultural Learning)
Grading Ruins Everything
Presenter Name: Alysse Bowd
Research Team: Alysse Bowd (School of Arts and Education)
The Use of AI in Enhancing Student Scholarly Writing
Presenter Names: Carnelle Raigne Symes, Peggy Follis
Research Team: Carnelle Raigne Symes (School of Health & Wellness), Peggy Follis (School of Health & Wellness)
Session Moderated by Robbie Halonen, Dean School of Arts & Education
Thriving in Transition: Mindfulness, Place and Resilience – Room 2920
The Effects of a Course-Based Mindfulness Intervention on College Student Perfectionism, Stress, Anxiety, Self-Compassion, and Social Connectedness
Presenter Name: Dr. Anomi G. Bearden
Research Team: Steven Prosser (RDP alumni - Bachelor of Science in Nursing - Collaboration with University of Alberta), Anomi Bearden (School of Arts and Education), Akeem Vincent (RDP alumni - Bachelor of Arts in Psychology), Carmella Wallace (RDP alumni - M. A., Bachelor of Arts in Psychology), Blaire Turnbull (RDP alumni - M. A., Bachelor of Arts in Psychology)
Comfort and Discomfort: International Students’ Perception of RDP as a Place
Presenter Names: Abby Gale Layon, Dr. Choon-Lee Chai, Ericka Geneblazo, Akua Appiah
Research Team: Abby Gale Layon (Student), Dr. Choon-Lee Chai (School of Arts and Education), Ericka Geneblazo (RDP alumni – Bachelor of Arts in Psychology), Akua Appiah (Student)
Correlates of Low Resilience, Physical and Mental Well-Being Among Black Youths in Canada
Presenter Name: Dr. Folajinmi Oluwasina
Research Team: Prof. Andre M.N Renzaho (Western Sydney University, Australia), Prof. Tolulope Sajobi (University of Calgary, Canada), Prof Bukola Salami (University of Calgary, Canada), Prof. Jo Anderson (University of Toronto, Canada), Prof. Delores Mullings (Memorial University, Newfoundland, Canada), Prof. Ambikaipakan Senthilselvan (University of Alberta, Canada), Prof. Kwame McKenzie (University of Toronto, Canada), Prof. Cecile Rousseau (McGill University, Canada), Dr. Hayley Hamilton (5Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Canada)
Session Moderated by David Pye, Dean School of Trades & Technology
Concurrent Session 2 – 7:30 to 8:35 pm
Exploring the Frontiers of Technology – Room 2905
Exploring the Co-design Process in the Creation of a Sensory Stimulation Assistive Technology
Presenter Name: Ashley Mast
Research Team: Dr. Greg Wells (School of Arts and Education), Ashley Mast (Student)
IIoT and Data Analytics in Action: Transforming RDP’s Alternative Energy Lab Building into a Living Lab for GHG Reduction
Presenter Name: Akshun Chauhan, Shehan Herathge
Research Team: Akshun Chauhan (Energy Innovation Center), Shehan Herathge (Energy Innovation Center), Debjyoti Sen (Centres for Manufacturing & Energy Innovation)
Not-so-easy Shake, Make, and Bake: Finding the Right Recipe for 3D Printing with Silicon Carbide Powder
Presenter Name: Dr. Kyle Nicholson
Research Team: Dr. Jie Zheng (University of Alberta), Cass (Haoyang) Li (University of Alberta), Dr. Tonya Wolfe (Division of Applied Research), Dr. James Hogan (University of Alberta), Dr. Kyle Nicholson (Centre for Innovation in Manufacturing - Technology Access Centre)
Session Moderated by Heather Dirks, Dean School of Health & Wellness
The Psychology of Optimizing Well-Being - Room 2906
Effects of HeartMath Heart Lock-In Practice on RCMP Officers’ Heart Rate Variability and Well-Being
Presenter Names: Jude Danyau, Nicole Schmid
Research Team: Dr. Anomi Bearden (School of Arts and Education), Dr. Stephen Brown (School of Arts and Education), Jude Danyau (Student), Nicole Schmid (Student), Becky Wylie-Jardine (School of Arts and Education), Supt. Holly Glassford (Red Deer RCMP), Lisa Armstrong, (Community Researcher)
The Effect of Stoicism on Mental Well-Being
Presenter Name: Sam Darby
Research Team: Dr. Stephen Brown (School of Arts and Education), Sam Darby (Student)
Being Kind to Yourself: Investigating the Effects of Self-Compassion on Self-Oriented Perfectionism in Post-Secondary Students
Presenter Name: Hannah Antonishyn
Research Team: Shannah Engert (School of Arts and Education), Hannah Antonishyn (Student)
Session Moderated by Jeff Wigeslworth, Associate Dean School of Arts & Education
Bears and Bees – Room 2920
Identification of Vertebrate Prey within Black Bear (Ursus americanus) Scats
Presenter Name: Taylor Eaton
Research Team: Sandra MacDougall (School of Trades & Technology), Taylor Eaton (Student), Ramona Maraj (Parks Canada)
Summer Dietary Analysis of Omnivores: Intraguild Interactions Between Coyotes (Canis latrans) and Black Bears (Ursus americanus) in Elk Island National Park
Presenter Name: Kiara Mickey
Research Team: Sandra MacDougall (School of Trades and Technology), Kiara Mickey (Student), Ramona Maraj (Parks Canada)
To Bee or Not To Bee: Increasing Efficiency in The Exploration of Native Bee Diversity
Presenter Name: Felix Beever, Sanjana Sharma
Research Team: Anne Dempsey (School of Trades & Technology), Felix Beever (RDP alumni - Bachelor's in Biological Sciences), Sanjana Sharma (Student), Dave Prescott (Red Deer River Naturalists)
Session Moderated by David Pye, Dean School of Trades & Technology