SCW Conference

More than 160 research presentations--ranging from the link between parental involvement and academic self-efficacy in college students, the developmental effects of e-cigarette use by teens, to the acute health effects of Northern California wildfires—were presented at Dominican University of California’s fifth annual Scholarly and Creative Works Conference, April 17.

SCW2019, free and open to the public, featured a collection of presentations, posters, art work, and dance and choral performances by Dominican’s graduating undergraduate seniors and graduate students throughout campus.

Dr. Veronica Fruiht, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology whose research focuses on the impact of mentoring on first-generation students, delivered the keynote address titled “A Strong Case for Weak Ties: How Mentoring Shapes Who We Believe We Can Become."

The talk  focused on how mentoring relationships with people who are at the periphery of a student’s social networks are vital for helping students learn to believe in themselves and expand their views of what is possible.

The talk drew from recent research on mentoring to understand how role modeling, professional sponsorship, coaching, and positive regard from people who step outside their normal roles in students’ lives to support and mentor them can help students succeed as scholars, creators, and citizens.

The student research reflects the wide range of Dominican’s academic disciplines. Titles included:

• Parental Influences and Self-Efficacy in College Students
• Spatial analysis of the acute health effects of Northern California urban wildfires
• Corporate Social Responsibility and Minor League Baseball: The Pacific Association
• Language, Emotional Intelligence, and Culture
• Vaping Culture Among College Students in the Bay Area
• Management of Compassion Fatigue and Secondary Traumatic Stress in Mental Health Professionals
• Help Prevent Bullying in Elementary Schools
• Mental Health Disparities for Latino Immigrants & Its Impact on Psychological Well-Being
• Developmental Influences, Addiction, and Physiological Effects of Electronic Cigarettes within Young Adults

SCW2019 Complete Schedule

The annual conference was established in 2014 to provide a unifying, campus-wide celebration of original research and creative work developed by Dominican students. Approximately 758 undergraduates and graduates have participated to date, with another 162 presenters due to present this year.

“The conference aligns with Dominican’s focus on creating and developing meaningful relationships with students and faculty and providing multiple learning experiences, such as a major research project, an internship, a service learning program, or other forms of applied learning,” says Michael Pujals, Scholarly Communications Librarian. Pujals organized the event along with William Phillips, a professor in the Department of Psychology, and Gienna Gonnella and Mojgan Behmand in Academic Affairs.

Following the conference, papers are published on the University’s digital repository, Dominican Scholar. Through Dominican Scholar, student and faculty work is downloaded all over the world. In the past year alone, papers by Dominican students and faculty have been downloaded almost 190,000 times.

SCW2019 is being held in Guzman Lecture Hall and Guzman Hall classrooms from noon until 8 p.m. In addition, Art and Design students will display their exhibits in the San Marco Gallery in Alemany Library on April 26