Eastern Student Christina Welch of Farmington Presents at Northeast COPLAC Conference

2016 Oct 27

Twelve students from Eastern Connecticut State University presented their research and creative activity at the Northeast Regional Research Conference of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC) on Oct. 21-22. Hosted by the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA), eight colleges in the COPLAC consortium participated in the undergraduate conference.

Christina Welch '17, a Pre-Secondary Education major from Farmington, delivered a oral presentation titled "How Can We Coax the Brain to Self-Repair?" Welch was mentored by Biology Professor Barbara Murdoch.

"How can we coax the brain to self-repair?" asked Welch. "It was once believed that if you damaged or injured your brain it could not self-repair. However, as the field of science advances, this theory is being challenged. There are discrete regions of the nervous system that can replace lost or damaged cells. One example is the tissue that is responsible for our sense of smell, the olfactory epithelium. When the olfactory epithelium repairs itself through cell replacement, its function is restored, allowing us to maintain a memory of the smells we have encountered. By studying the olfactory epithelium in chicken embryos, our goal is to identify cells that are capable of cell replacement, termed regeneration. This research will contribute to the overall understanding of embryonic development in the olfactory epithelium and the long-term goal of identifying how neural tissue can regenerate to replace lost neurons."

"We are here to showcase and celebrate the talent, insight, collaborative spirit and inquiry of students from our COPLAC campuses in the Northeast and to recognize the support and guidance they receive from their dedicated faculty," said MCLA President James Birge.

"Undergraduate research is one of the best aspects of an Eastern liberal arts education," said Carmen Cid, dean of Eastern's School of Arts and Sciences. "It provides our students the ability to develop their talents in a meaningful and successful career path. Those who present at COPLAC represent the leaders of tomorrow for Connecticut."

Established in 1987, COPLAC is dedicated to the advancement of high-quality liberal arts education in a public college setting. COPLAC represents a distinguished sector in higher education consisting of 30 colleges and universities in 28 states and one Canadian province. Eastern is Connecticut's designated public liberal arts university and joined COPLAC in 2004.