SMC prof-student teams present research
By KATIE MILLER
News Writer
Four student-professor pairs gathered Tuesday to discuss their experiences with the Student Independent Study And Research [SISTAR] programs as part of a Saint Mary's Pride Week Presentation.
In order to participate in SISTAR, a student must approach a professor with whom she would be interested in spending a summer studying independently. If the professor agrees, the student spends the summer at Saint Mary's working alongside that professor in their chosen area of interest.
"The SISTAR grant for summer work is an opportunity to work independently and interdependently on building new knowledge and skills outside the classroom," said associate professor Deborah McCarthy.
The teams consisted of Deborah McCarthy and Anne Pangilinan from the department of chemistry and physics, associate professor Charles Peltier and Chengdong Liu from the department of mathematics, professor Ann Loux and Cara Ford from the department of English, and associate professor Max Westler and Emily Cardinali also from the department of English.
"She learned to make a decision, follow a method and find a meaning," said McCarthy whose project with Pangilinan was based on "Studies of Antioxidants Produced for Use on Carbon/Carbon Composite Friction Materials."
"I consider the SISTAR project very beneficial. Learning to teach yourself is very useful, whether you are going into graduate school or the workforce," said Cheng-dong Liu whose SISTAR project, "Determi-nation of the Variables that are Significant to Student Retention at Saint Mary's College," focused on variables and statistics.
From their research, the Peltier-Liu partnership found characteristics that predict a student's retention based on her first semester GPA, importance of parents' opinion, if Saint Mary's was her first choice and the size of her high school.
"It's nice to be on the same terms as Ann," said student Cara Ford. Her project, "Voices from the Avenue and Beyond: A Current Reader for Literary Non-Fiction," consisted of actually working with Loux to put together a text that will be used in a class next semester. In addition to enjoying her work with Loux, Ford felt as though SISTAR provided her with many benefits.
"SISTAR was something I actually enjoyed doing, and it gave me direction," said Ford.
Emily Cardinali also enjoyed the freedom she experienced with the SISTAR program in her project, "Words and Images: Exploring Screen Writing."
"This summer, I was able to figure out for myself what I wanted to learn. No one was handing me a syllabus saying, `This is what we are going to learn,'" she said.
"You start seeing yourself. I got an insight into the world of academia, how it is for a professor to put together a film class," Cardinali said.
Associate Professor Westler is as enthusiastic about SISTAR as the participating students are.
"It was the most delightful project I've worked on in 25 years at Saint Mary's. Talking and learning about just one subject over the summer was wonderful," he said.
All of the students and professors who participated in the SISTAR program seemed to enjoy the extra focus on a singular topic all summer long.
In researching their chosen topic, they were able to experience life at the other end of the spectrum as well as forge special friendships.
The SISTAR program is made possible from a grant given by the respective department in which the study and research would take place.
All News Stories for Wednesday, October 6, 1999
