Jacob Staudt Participated in Buena Vista University's Eleventh Annual Scholars Day

2015 May 22

Buena Vista University's eleventh annual Scholars Day was held Friday, April 24. The event provided students from all disciplines an opportunity to present their best presentations, original research, academic posters, artistic creations and performances to their peers, professors and the public.

This year's Scholars Day event featured 43 presentations from 86 students, exploring topics from art and business to science and history.

Jacob Staudt, a sophomore biology and chemistry major from Forest City, was one of the students who participated. Staudt's presentation was titled The Effect of Soil pH on Plant Growth, and the project's abstract is as follows:

The purpose of this experiment was to determine if the pH level of a soil type had an effect on the growth of a plant. In order to do this an acidic soil with a pH level of 4.5 was made, a basic soil with a pH level of 7.5 was made, and a neutral soil with a pH level of 7.0 was obtained. The soil types were divided into 4 pots each. In each pot three seeds were planted and watered daily with 40ml of water for each pot. After every week, plant height was measured and recorded. After three weeks, the plants in the acidic and basic soils had grown the most based on height measurements. Based on this data, our group concluded that plants grow best in the acidic and basic soil types.

The keynote speaker for the event was Jeff Anderson, Class of 2003, who is the executive director of communications for the Minnesota Vikings. Anderson is entering his thirteenth season with the Vikings and plays a lead role in the organization's external and strategic communications.

"For some Scholars Day is the culmination of their work at BVU, and for others it becomes the springboard that sends them into a field they had not previously anticipated," said Dr. Steven Mills, assistant professor of Spanish and chair of the events committee who organized the event. "Either way, those who participate find in it a valuable growing experience and a strong sense of accomplishment."

Photos from this year's and previous Scholars Day events, along with a video from this year's event, are available online at www.bvu.edu/scholarsday.