Welcome to the

Office of Undergraduate Research

Current Opportunities:

Please scroll down to see which opportunities are compatible with your major, field of interest, or future career objectives, then contact Dr. Capilouto for an appointment.

Opportunities below are open to all majors!

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Title of Opportunity: Understanding how mentoring can help young adults with special health care needs transition from pediatric to adult health care

Division / Department: Human Development Institute

Faculty Mentor: Kathy Sheppard-Jones, Ph.D.

Contact: Kathleen.sheppard-jones@uky.edu

Position Type: Academic Credit (1-3 hours) or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013 & Spring 2014

Description: Transition from adolescence to the adult world is a complex and daunting process for any young adult. This process is more difficult for young adults with special health care needs. They have to transition from a system where they were entitled to services to a system where they have to strongly advocate for services. The Human Development Institute (HDI), in collaboration with the KY Commission for Children of Special Health Care Needs, is creating a youth mentoring forum for young adults with special health care needs focusing on transition issues. Young adults will be matched with adults with special health care needs who have successfully transitioned from high school to the adult world. HDI will provide both the mentors and mentees a variety of supports. As a part of the project, ongoing data will be collected from both mentors and mentees through a variety of instruments. We are looking for a student who will help us in the data collection, analysis and reporting. The student will specifically help us examine data related to how the mentoring process helped the mentee navigate the complex world of adult health care.
HDI The qualifying student must be willing and able to 1) complete the mandatory IRB training which is available on-line for free, 2) be available to meet with the Faculty mentor weekly and attend project staff meetings 3) have access to a computer and internet. 4) be available to attend all key project activities

Prerequisite: None

Last Updated: 10/04/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Quality of Life Outcomes for Adults with Developmental Disabilities

Division / Department: Human Development Institute

Faculty Mentor: Kathy Sheppard-Jones, Ph.D.

Contact: Kathleen.sheppard-jones@uky.edu

Position Type: Academic Credit (1-3 hours) or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013 & Spring 2014

Description: Description: Service quality can be measured in a variety of ways. In this ongoing effort, quality of services and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities is assessed using a participant-driven model. This project conducts interviews with individuals receiving services and people who know them well. Items reflect various domains, including relationships, access to services, community participation, choice, rights, satisfaction, employment and health and wellness. Student(s) involved in this project will receive interviewer training and conduct consumer interviews. Students may also enter project data and participate in data analysis.

Prerequisite: Open to HHS & CSD majors

Last Updated: 10/04/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Cellular Mechanisms of Lymphedema

Division / Department: Physical Therapy / Rehab Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Deborah G. Kelly / Esther Dupont

Contact: (859)218-0592

Position Type: Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013, Spring 2014, & Summer 2014

Description: Lymphedema is a condition that is most often associated in the Western world with cancer treatment. The condition includes swelling of the affected limb(s). The condition is chronic and permanent but with the correct treatment, can be managed like other chronic diseases. Current treatment includes light manual techniques and the cellular mechanisms behind the success of the treatment are not well understood. We are currently developing an animal model for mimicking the manual treatment of lymphedema. Students participating in this project will learn about cellular responses involved in the application of manual techniques used to treat lymphedema.

Prerequisite: None

Last Updated: 10/01/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Establishing a Context for Communication Interaction

Division / Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders/Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Robert C. Marshall PhD

Position Type: Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013 & Spring 2014

Description: Many persons with aphasia experience a level of social isolation that makes it difficult for them to 'practice' interactive communication. This project explores the benefits of twice weekly home visits as a means of providing topical information to a person with aphasia to observe the impact on individual and group communication interaction. Student(s) involved in this project will receive training on the techniques and strategies to use when interacting and providing information to an individual with aphasia. Student(s) will complete 1-2 home visits per week to a person with aphasia (living locally) and provide brief documentation of the hour exchange.

Prerequisite: Human Health Sciences Major or Communication Sciences and Disorders Major

Last Updated: 9/17/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Developing a Reference Library for Aphasia Treatment

Division / Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders/Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Gilson Capilouto, PhD / Robert C. Marshall PhD

Position Type: Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013 & Spring 2014

Description: Organizing and maintaining a library of evidence for intervention with persons with communication disorders is critically important for the working clinician. This project involves learning how to search for evidence using a variety of search engines and how to organize and manage a library of materials using reference management software. The interested student must be skilled at using a computer and have 2-3 hours per week to devote to the project. Some initial training will be required.

Prerequisite: Human Health Sciences Major or Communication Sciences and Disorders Major

Last Updated: 9/17/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Developing a Reference Library on Executive Function

Division / Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders/Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Gilson Capilouto, PhD / Robert C. Marshall PhD

Position Type: Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013 & Spring 2014

Description: Organizing and maintaining a library of evidence for intervention with persons who have communication disorders is critically important for the working clinician. This project involves learning how to search for evidence using a variety of search engines and how to organize and manage a library of materials using reference management software. The interested student must be skilled at using a computer and have 2-3 hours per week to devote to the project. Some initial training will be required.

Prerequisite: Human Health Sciences Major or Communication Sciences and Disorders Major

Last Updated: 9/17/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Comparison of professional and naïve listeners’ ratings of discourse competence

Division/Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders / Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Gilson Capilouto, PhD / Katie Maddy

Contact: katie.mccomas@uky.edu

Position Type: Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability: Fall 2013

Description: Currently, there is limited research in the area of discourse production of individuals with non-aphasic brain injury (NABI). Further research is needed to examine what makes a good and effective communicator. The purpose of the current study is two-fold. First, we will examine the relationship between professional and naïve listeners’ ratings of discourse production of individuals with NABI and healthy controls. Second, we will explore the current state of knowledge and practices of SLPs in the assessment and treatment of discourse production deficits for NABI. The student will assist in the transcription and analyses of quantitative and qualitative data. The student will acquire experience in aspects of the research process including, but not limited to, data collection, data analysis and data interpretation.

Prerequisite: Communication Sciences and Disorders major preferred but not required. Students must have good typing skills for data transcription.

Last Updated: 8/27/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Patient Outcomes Following Orthopedic Knee Surgery

Division/Department: Rehabilitation Sciences / Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine

Faculty Mentor: Jennifer Howard, PhD, ATC or office (859) 218-0839

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013 and Spring 2014

Description: Patient centered outcomes are becoming increasingly valued for the practice of evidence based medicine, and as a result the need for clinical research that includes the patient perspective is growing. We have an ongoing patient outcomes database that is a collaboration between the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences in the College of Health Sciences and the UK Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. We are looking to expand our data collection to an additional sports medicine physician and to use previously collected data for the development of patient education materials. Students will have the potential to be involved in active data collection at our outpatient sports medicine clinic, and will interact with physicians, patients, athletic trainers, and other clinic staff.

Prerequisites:

Any in major in good standing with a minimum of a 3.25 GPA. Must have dependable transportation to travel to off campus clinic (just outside of New Circle). Ideal students will have the ability to commit at least 1 regularly scheduled half day a week to collect data in the clinic.

Date Posted: 7/3/13

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Title of Opportunity: Play Opportunities for Encouraging Cognitive and Communication Growth

Division/Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders/Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Gilson J. Capilouto, Ph.D. or office (859) 218-0555

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013

Description: Adequate play opportunities are necessary for cognitive development, as well as the development of communication, language and literacy. This is a joint research project that includes multiple disciplines (CSD, PT, Infant/Toddler Development) with the common aim of developing family friendly materials focused on age-appropriate play activities Birth - 2 years. The student will assist with a series of literature searches targeting developmentally appropriate activities and materials for the developmental domains of interest and work with the researchers to develop materials for distribution to families attending the UK NICU Graduate Clinic. Some local travel will be required.

Prerequisites:

Human Health Sciences Undergraduate

Date Posted: 8/15/13

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Title of Opportunity: Clinical Nutrition Volunteer Research Opportunity

Division/Department: Clinical Nutrition/Clinical Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Travis Thomas, PhD, RD or office (859) 218-0863

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Currently no opportunities, please check back for potential Spring availability

Description: Volunteer Opportunity to Assist with Clinical Nutrition Research Assist graduate student coordinators with data entry, filing and assist with misc. research tasks. Please inquire for more details.

Prerequisites:

At least 3.0 GPA; prefer health related major.

Date Posted: 8/15/13

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Title of Opportunity: Integrating Oral Cancer Screening in Primary Care

Division/Department: Clinical Sciences/ Clinical Leadership and Management

Faculty Mentor: Karen O. Skaff, Ph.D. or office (859) 218-0585

Position Availability:

       Currently no opportunities

Description: This is an opportunity for an undergraduate student to volunteer on a IRB approved survey research project. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived need to raise awareness in three groups: 1) physician faculty preceptors 2) practicing physician assistants and 3) students about their role in integrating oral health and primary care by performing oral cancer screenings. The volunteer will be added as key personnel requiring IRB Human Subject Protection training. The volunteer will gain experience on a small research team and expand his/her knowledge in interpretation of survey research. The tasks will include 1) a review and summary of responses of perceptions & practices related to oral cancer screening as part of routine examinations and 2) assist in the preparation of an abstract.

Prerequisites:

The College of Health Sciences student must be able to work in excel and be dependable.

Last Updated: 8/23/13

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Title of Opportunity: Video Self-Monitoring as a Teaching Tool for Undergraduate and Graduate SLP Students

Division/Department: Communication Sciences & Disorders

Faculty Mentor: Joneen Lowman

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Summer and Fall 2013

Description: Research indicates that learning of new skills is enhanced when the learner can observe himself/herself engaging in the target behavior. This self-observation is referred to as video self-monitoring. Previous research of video self-monitoring has been conducted with pre-service teachers and paraprofessionals but not with undergraduate and graduate students majoring in speech-language pathology. This summer video self-monitoring will be utilized with undergraduate and graduate students participating in a summer enrichment program for kindergarten students. I am seeking a student to assist me in the analyses of videos as part of the research study. The qualifying student must be willing and able to 1) complete the mandatory IRB training which is available on-line for free, 2) be available to meet with me daily then weekly from June 24 – August 2 and in the fall, and 3) have access to a computer and internet. As video self-monitoring is applicable across disciplines, an interest in speech-language pathology is not a requirement.

Prerequisites:

Any major in good standing with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA.

Date Posted: 3/29/13

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Title of Opportunity: Orofacial Sensorimotor Assessment in Healthy Adults

Division/Department: Communication Sciences & Disorders

Faculty Mentor: Richard Andreatta/ Nicole Etter

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013

Description: Motor control theories in limb studies indicate that maintaining skilled behaviors requires consistent, accurate, and precise feedback from sensory endings. This study is designed to begin to evaluate the sensation-production relationship during skilled speech-like behavior across the adult lifespan. Speech is a highly-skilled behavior requiring tactile and auditory feedback to learn and maintain. In this study, healthy adults (18 years +) will complete two testing protocols: 1) vibratory sensation threshold testing on the lips and 2) skilled speech-like force accuracy testing. We are looking for a student who is willing to help in subject recruitment and scheduling, laboratory testing/assessment with training and guidance, and/or data analysis.

Prerequisites:

Any major in good standing with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA.

Last Updated: 8/27/13

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Title of Opportunity: Cellular mechanisms of skeletal muscle atrophy

Division/Department: Physical Therapy/Rehabilitation Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Esther Dupont-Versteegden, Ph.D., (859) 218-0592

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013

Description: Skeletal muscle atrophy is a condition that is associated with aging, muscle diseases, disuse and various other ailments and directly affects the quality of life of afflicted individuals. In my laboratory we study the cellular and molecular mechanisms of skeletal muscle atrophy and the recovery from atrophy after a period of disuse. Students will be able to learn different cellular pathways involved in muscle atrophy and growth and will measure different components of molecules involved.

Last Updated: 8/27/2013

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Title of Opportunity: Social Network Analysis After Stroke

Division/Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Currently no opportunities. Please check back for potential Spring availability.

Description: The focus of this project is to study the change in the social network after an individual has had a stroke. This will be done from the perspective of the spouse or significant other. We study this through a questionnaire format, initiated when the patient has been admitted to the hospital for a stroke. This questionnaire will provide us information about the individual’s social network and social activities before the stroke. Then we will complete similar follow up questionnaires via phone several months after the stroke. In this project, students will be able to assist with screening patients for recruitment, obtaining consent to participate, providing the questionnaires to the significant others, and gathering the information via phone. We are looking for students that have a strong work ethic, good organizational skills, motivation, and excellent interaction skills. Students who are interesting in working in a medical setting in the future will enjoy this opportunity to be in a medical setting and interact with patients.

Date Posted: 8/21/13

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Title of Opportunity: Shared Book Learning as a Strategy for Language Development

Division/Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders

Faculty Mentor: Donna S. Morris, (859) 218-0554

Position Type:  Academic Credit

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013 and Spring 2014

Description: This one-credit hour research experience will provide students with an opportunity to actively engage in service learning and develop their clinical skills relative to shared book reading (SBR). SBR has been shown to contribute to concept and language expansion, development of literacy skills (functions of print, word recognition, etc.). Students will be involved in a supervised, structured SBR experience at the Child Development Center of the Bluegrass that includes an opportunity to observe effective SBR, learn strategies for improving language and literacy through SBR, and considerations in selecting the books to use for SBR. We are looking for students that have a strong work ethic, good organizational skills, are highly motivated, and demonstrate excellent interaction skills.

Prerequisites:

Must be registered for CSD 481 in the same semester you plan to receive credit for HSE 595

Last Updated: 8/27/2013

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Division/Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders/Dept. of Rehab Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Joseph C. Stemple, joseph.stemple@uky.edu

Position Type:  Academic Credit or Volunteer

Position Availability:

       Fall 2013 and Spring 2014

Description:

In older individuals, changes in the laryngeal muscles may compromise voice quality, impairing the ability to communicate and diminishing the ability to remain socially active and engaged. This project examines the muscle biophysiological changes that occur as a function of exercise and training using a well-accepted animal model for aging. We are using chronic electrical stimulation as a fictive endurance "exercise" program in aging rat laryngeal muscle to characterize the morphological, metabolic, and functional changes consequent to the fictive exercise model. Students will acquire experience in various aspects of the research process including, but not limited to, experimental procedures, data collection, data analysis, and data interpretation. Students will be trained to run the daily experimental protocol (morning/afternoon) and will help with data processing and analysis (histology, histochemistry, and immunohistochemistry).

Prerequisites:

Student must be able to commit 5-8 hours per week. Any major in good standing with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA.

Last Updated: 8/27/2013

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Knee and hip injury biomechanics

Division/Department: Physical Therapy/Dept of Rehab Sciences

Faculty Mentor: Brian Noehren, PhD

Phone: 859-218-0581

Position Type:  Academic Credit

Position Availability: Fall 2013

Description:

We are focused on understanding the underlying mechanisms  in several common injuries that occur in the lower extremity.  We use a variety of methods to answer our questions such as 3D motion capture, strength assessment and clinical measurements.  We also use and develop computer code to process and analyze the data we collect. Students working in our lab serve in a variety of capacities such as observing clinical evaluations, assisting in data collections and processing data.  The undergraduate students working in our lab gain an understanding of anatomy, common clinical assessment techniques, and  joint mechanics. Leadership opportunities also exist for students who return for a second semester to develop and present an abstract at a regional or national conference and to help train and supervise newer students.  We are looking for students who have a good attention to detail, strong work ethic, are interested in a future career in a medical field and enjoy working in a team environment.

Prerequisite: Must be current Junior or Sophomore with at least a 3.4-3.5 GPA; prefer students interested in PT school, but open to any post professional med desires.
Last Updated: 8/27/13   

* If interested, click here to request an appointment.