Kathryn Keller Presents at Buena Vista University's Fourteenth Annual Scholars Day

2018 May 3

Buena Vista University's (BVU) fourteenth annual Scholars Day was held Saturday, April 28. The event provided students from all disciplines an opportunity to present their best original research, academic posters, artistic creations, and performances to their peers, professors, and the public.

This year's Scholars Day event featured presentations from more than 40 BVU students, exploring topics from literature and business to science and history.

Kathryn Keller , a junior biology major from Rolfe , was one of the students who participated. Keller 's presentation was titled "When the Midnight Snack Attacks: Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii", and the project's abstract is as follows:

Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular protozoan whose definitive host is the Felis catus (domestic cats) and has a range of intermediate host including rodents and humans. Behavioral changes in the host have been correlated with the T. gondii infection. Our research includes blood samples from varies cat species and Bos taurus (cattle) using PCR to determine the infection rates. We report the prevalence of T. gondii in the local area.

"Scholars Day is an opportunity for students to showcase their talents, passions, and best work to their peers, faculty, family, and friends," said Dr. Tracy Thomas, assistant professor of psychology and chair of the events committee who organized the event. "Not only do the presenters benefit from the occasion to display their work to peers and faculty, but the BVU community benefits from bearing witness to the high-level work of the students."

The keynote speaker for the event was Dr. Darren L. Whitfield, a 2007 BVU graduate, who is the assistant professor of social work and psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work and Department of Psychiatry. As a researcher, Whitfield's scholarship focuses on the areas of psychosocial, sociocultural, and structural factors associated with health outcomes for gay and bisexual men of color, systems of oppression on health outcomes for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities, and intersectional social identities for LGBTQ communities.

Whitfield has more than 10 years of practice experience working in the HIV/AIDS field working at the AIDS Project of Central Iowa, The Virginia Department of Health, and The Kansas City Free Health Clinic. In his spare time, he volunteers with several agencies serving LGBTQ communities. Currently, he serves on the board of directors for the Persad Center, the second oldest LGBTQ Community Center, the advisory board for the AIDS Free Pittsburgh Taskforce, and a commissioner for the Pittsburgh City Commission on AIDS.

This year marked the second time Scholars Day and the annual Student Recognition Dinner - which was held later that evening - were held on the same day.