Five Clemson students from a variety of disciplines were chosen to represent the University at the 20th annual ACC Meeting of the Minds Undergraduate Research Conference this spring at Florida State University. The conference, which is sponsored by the ACC Academic Consortium, celebrates undergraduate research and creative inquiry at the 18 ACC member schools.
The conference gives students the opportunity to present their research and connect with peers from other schools. All research presented at the conference is original, student-directed and done under the advisement of a faculty member.
“These five Clemson Meeting of the Minds scholars represent the many extraordinary undergraduate students and their accomplished faculty mentors across Clemson University who together advance knowledge and creative works that benefit our community, our state, our nation and our world,” said Brian Dominy, associate dean of undergraduate learning. “We are deeply grateful to the ACC for annually supporting this transformative experience for undergraduate students and for celebrating their research and creative scholarship.”
The students chosen to represent Clemson were:
Marco Cornejo, a Clemson University Honors College student who graduated in May with degrees in economics and philosophy. Cornejo presented his paper titled “Epistemic Proceduralism: A Critical Evaluation of Democratic Legitimacy,” which was his undergraduate thesis completed under the mentorship of Michael Gregory, assistant professor of philosophy.
Jennifer Covel, a senior in the Honors College majoring in genetics. She presented “The Impact of Glycolytic Enzymes PFK1 and PFK2-FBP2 on Virulence in the Human Fungal Pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans.” Her faculty mentor was Kerry Smith, professor of genetics and biochemistry.
Angie Diaz, a junior Honors College student majoring in computer science with a minor in psychology. Her paper was titled “When Shakespeare Meets AI” and was completed as part of the Watt AI research program under the mentorship of Fanchen Meng, director of analytics systems and apps for the Watt Family Innovation Center.
Anna Gibbs, a May Honors College graduate with a degree in political science. Gibbs presented her paper, “The Effect of Corporate Campaign Contributions on Earmarks Requested by the South Carolina House of Representatives,” which was done under the guidance of William Lasser, Alumni Distinguished Professor of political science.
Allie Norris, a senior majoring in elementary education with a minor in Spanish. She presented “Social Determinants of Post-Secondary Education Enrollment: Latinx Parent and Student Perspectives.” Her faculty mentor was Arelis Moore, associate professor of Spanish and international health.
Clemson will host the 2027 ACC Meeting of the Minds for only the second time in the history of the conference. Clemson hosted the first Meeting of the Minds in 2006.
