2024 Interdisciplinary Research Conference

Opening Remarks (Coffee & Pastries)

Dr. Can Saygin (UTRGV Senior Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate College)

Panel I: Art & Science Research Experience for Undergraduates

Organizer and Chair: Gina Palacios (Associate Director/Assistant Professor, School of Art & Design, UTRGV)

Participants: Romeo Di Loreto (Assistant Professor, School of Art & Design, UTRGV), Ivan Davila (Lab Manager, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UTRGV), Clarrissa Sifuentes (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Studio Art), Luz Rodriguez (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Visual Communication Design), Volker Quetschke (Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs, Department of Physics and Astronomy, UTRGV)

Paper I: “Environmental Equity Disparities: A Study of Marginalized Colonia Communities in the Rio Grande Valley”

Presenter: Dean Kyne (Associate Professor of Sociology, UTRGV)

Chair: Rommel Johnson (Associate Professor, School of Rehabilitation Services and Counseling, UTRGV)

Keynote Address: “Research Across Silos- We Are Community”

Speaker: Rhonda BeLue (Lutcher Brown Endowed Distinguished Professor and Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Partnerships, College for Health, Community and Policy, The University of Texas San Antonio)

Chair and Moderator: Cinthya Saavedra (Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley)

Panel II: Community Heritage, Activism, and Empowerment

Chair: Maria Leonard (Director of Social Impact and Sustainability, Vackar College of Business and Entrepreneurship, UTRGV)

Paper: “Dos Mangas Heritage Conversations by Jonathan Gutierrez” (UTRGV Graduate Student, Anthropology)

Paper: “Comiendo y Conviviendo: Empowering Our Community Through Food & Pláticas by Kimberly Grimaldo” (UTRGV Graduate Student, SIPCE, Mexican American Studies)

Paper: “An Exploration of Pain and Love in Anzaldua's El Mundo Zurdo” by Maria Zuniga (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Philosophy)

Paper II: “Digitalization of Healthcare Management Techniques for Ambulatory Care”

Chair: Fatemeh (Noosheen) Nazari (Assistant Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, UTRGV)

Presenter: Anu Banerjee (Lecturer, College of Health Professions, UTRGV)

Roundtable I: Nosotrxs Por El Valle: RGV Stories as History

Chair: Larissa Danielle Gonzales (UTRGV Graduate Student, Communication)

Participants:  Taylor Kathryn Seaver (UTRGV Graduate Student, Interdisciplinary Studies) and Juan P. Carmona (Lecturer, Department of History, UTRGV)

Panel III: History, Languages, and Literacy

Chair: Friederike Bruehoefener (Director, School of Interdisciplinary Programs and Community Engagement, UTRGV)

Paper: “Information Literacy Connections: The University Library and Interdisciplinary Perspectives” by Charles Roush (UTRV Librarian)

Paper: “Measuring the Value of Bilingualism: The Development of the BRAVO Scale” by Ana Ramirez (UTRGV Graduate Student, Psychological Science)

Paper: "From Brown Others to American Icons: The Evolution of the “Greaser” in America’s History and Popular Culture" by Natalie Benavides (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, English and History)

Panel IV: Mental Health and Philosophy in the RGV

Organizer and Chair: Mariana Alessandri (Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, UTRGV)

Paper “Embracing Guilt: Collective Healing and Transformation” Valeria Silva-Delgado (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Philosophy)

Paper: “A Defense of Jealousy” by Daniela Salinas De Alba (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Biology)

Paper: “Are Panic Attacks Natural?” by Jasmine Mercado (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Philosophy)

Paper: “Depressing Happiness” by Diego Mendoza (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Economics)

Panel V: Nature and the Environment in Interdisciplinary Research 

Chair: Paul Jorgensen (Associate Professor, SIPCE, UTRGV)

Paper: “Future Generations as Agents of Environmental Activism” by Danahi Morquecho (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Philosophy), Sofia Homes-Maestre (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Philosophy)

Paper: “Chicana Art Theory and Wildlife Conservation by Kimberly Sandoval” (UTRGV Graduate Student, Art & Design)

Panel VI: The Complexities of Working Within a Community: Disrupting Organizational Boundaries

Organizer and Chair: Miryam Espinosa-Dulanto (Associate Professor, Department of Bilingual and Literacy Studies, UTRGV)

Participants: Melissa Adams-Corral (Assistant Professor, Department of Teaching & Learning, UTRGV), Silvia Patricia Solis (Lecturer, SIPCE, UTRGV), Vejoya Viren (Professor, Department of Human Development and School Services, UTRGV)

Panel VII: Students’ Experiences in Transdisciplinary Food Security Projects for the RGV Community.

Organizer and Chair:  Noe Vargas Hernandez (Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering, UTRGV)

Participants:  Sylvia Robles (Assistant Professor of Practice, International Business and Entrepreneurship, UTRGV) and Joanne Nadia Rampersad-Ammons (Professor, Department of Chemistry, UTRGV)

Roundtable II: Learning and Teaching Dia De Los Muertos

Organizer and Chair: George Diaz (Associate Professor, Department of History, Director, Center for Mexican American Studies, UTRGV)

Participants:  Mónica Alvarez Suárez (PSJA Memorial Early College High School), Rosario García (PSJA Memorial Early College High School), Taylor Seaver (UTRGV Graduate Student, Interdisciplinary Studies in Mexican American Studies, LUCHA), Kimberly Grimaldo (UTRGV Graduate Student, SIPCE, Mexican American Studies, LUCHA, UTRGV), Stephanie Alvarez (Professor, SIPCE, Mexican American Studies, UTRGV)

Panel VIII: Interdisciplinary Health Research

Chair: Nazanin M. Heydarian

Paper: “Adoption Decision Support Systems in Neurological Disease Care: A Mixed-Methods Approach” by Gabriel Owusu (UTRGV Ph.D. Student, Business)

Paper: “The True Extent of Mental Health in the Hispanic Community” by Lorenzo Lozano (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Nursing)

Panel IX: Interdisciplinary Approach in a Service-Learning Experience: "Promocion de la Salud in Flea Market Brownsville Texas”

Organizer and Chair: Maria Castaneda (Lecturer, Health and Biomedical Sciences, UTRGV)

Participants: Luz Maria Silva (Clinical Associate Professor, School of Nursing, UTRGV), Margaret Rubi (Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Nursing, UTRGV), and Estela De La Garza (Director of Community Engagement, UTRGV)

Panel X: “Exploring Current Issues in English Language Arts and Reading Education”

Organizer and Chair: Amy Cummins (Professor, Department of Literatures and Cultural Studies, UTRGV)

Participants: Alek Galarza (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, English with Teacher Certification, 7-12), Hermione Garcia (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, English), April Martinez (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, English,Teacher Certification, 7-12), Eddie Yanez (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Teacher Certification, 7-12).

Poster Session

Naznin Ara (UTRGV Graduate Student, Engineering and Computer Sc.) – “Vessel Delay Detection and Pattern Mining from AIS Data”

Jorge Cantu (UTRGV Graduate Student, Psychological Sc.) – “Post-traumatic stress symptoms relation with problematic smartphone use: Mediating roles of emotion dysregulation and fear of missing out”

Garrett Edwards (UTRGV Graduate Student, SOPM) – “Cardiometabolic and Clinical Profiles in the Advancement of Diabetes and Lower Extremities Complications: A Pilot Study in Mexican Americans from Starr County”

Peter Elvin (UTRGV Graduate Student, SOPM) – “Glycemic Markers and Insulin-related Parameters in the Progression of Diabetes and Lower Extremities Complications: A Pilot Study in Mexican Americans from Starr County.”

Ayleen Flores (UTRGV Graduate Student, Psychological Sc.) – “The Mediating Role of Peer Attachment in the Associations between Experiencing Childhood Maltreatment and Depression and Anxiety”

Gloria Flores (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Political Science) – “Forming a Family: Factors Behind Students Decisions”

Yasim Galdamez (UTRGV Graduate Student, Clinical Psychology) – “Patterns of Resilience in LGBTQIA+ Adults with Interpersonal Trauma: A Latent Classes Analysis”

Rebecca Gonzalez (UTRGV Graduate Student, Rehab Srvs & Counseling) – “Latino Men's Barriers and Obstacles Towards Treatment Seeking Attitudes”

Amanda Hernandez (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, SEEMS) – “The Multidisciplinary Nature of Environmental Studies: My Experience and Lessons Learned from CHAPS’s Capstone Class”

Laura Lamb (UTRGV Graduate Student, School of Interdisciplinary Programs & Community Engagement) – “Flea Markets as Culture and Community in The Rio Grande Valley”

Patricia Lerma (UTRGV Graduate Student, Rehab Srvs & Counseling) – “Adolescents Matter: The Impacts of The Fourth R Program on Rio Grande Valley Youth”

Fatima Mancia Mendoza (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Management) – “Financial Literacy”

Elaine Mora (UTRGV Graduate Student, Rehab Srvs & Counseling) – “Psychological Wellbeing Among Minority College Students with History of Childhood Trauma”

Jessy Rugeyo (UTRGV Graduate Student) – “Comparative Analysis of U.S. County-Level Preparedness for Health Disasters: Insights from the COVID-19 Pandemic Era”

Karishma Sebastian (UTRGV Graduate Student, SOPM) - "Energy Cost of Walking in Diabetic Partial-Foot Amputees"

Adhira Tippur (UTRGV Undergraduate Student, Science) – “Developing Machine Learning Models to Predict Oral Cancer”

Yasim Zafar (UTRGV UTRGV Graduate Student, SOPM) – “Gait Abnormalities in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure”

Award Ceremony, Closing Remarks, and Reception

Speaker: Dr. Luis Zayas (UTRGV Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs)