Western students first in program history to present at Research Conference

SEATTLE – Western Colorado University faculty and students made school history last month as the first Western Communication Arts students to present at an undergraduate research conference.

Seniors Chris Doucet, Clark Thompson and Katie Lyons attended the 16th Annual Seattle Undergraduate Scholars Research Conference on February 22 to present their research, titled “An Analysis of Media Distribution and Consumption Through Music Streaming Services.”

For Doucet, the experience was an inspiring one.

“It was amazing to see people from so many schools,” he said. “Some students have been preparing for this for their entire college careers. Students were presenting on everything from the ethics of Instagram on tourism to racism in South African rugby. Everyone was extremely honored to be there, and we got the opportunity to connect with students from so many bigger schools.”

Doucet, Thompson and Lyons say it was exciting to represent Western’s academic achievement among a number of larger institutions in the western United States.

“We were proud to represent Western considering so many of the colleges represented there were much bigger and from bigger states. To see our names in the schedule and have our own space was an honor. Not too many undergraduate students get to feel this way,” Doucet said.

The conference encouraged undergraduate scholars to showcase their own original research. To learn more about research opportunities at Western, visit their page.