Eastern Student Jessica DeFelice of Shelton Gives Oral Presentation at CREATE Conference

2016 May 5

More than 250 talented students at Eastern Connecticut State University presented research and creative work at the university's second annual CREATE conference this past April. CREATE stands for Celebrating Research Excellence and Artistic Talent at Eastern, and is the university's premier, academic year-end showcase. At the culminating event, students of all majors presented professional posters, live music, dance performances, artwork, photography, documentaries and panel discussions.

Jessica DeFelice '16 of Shelton, who majors in Political Science and Economics, gave an oral presentation at the event. Her presentation was titled "Women's Route to Elective Office in the United States."

"In the last Census, the United States was comprised of roughly 49 percent males and 51percent females," said DeFelice. "Yet, the Center for American Women and Politics reports female representatives make up only 19.4 percent of U.S. Congress. Some of this disproportion is due to the subliminal messages and unwarranted obstacles that stand in the way of elective office, though many female candidates have overcome these inequalities by being comparable fundraisers and vote share earners. This field of research has received much scholarly attention from a number of perspectives, including, perhaps most importantly, a woman's decision to run. This project will present an analysis of women's route to elective office in the United States by exploring the similarities between men's and women's campaign functions and contrasting the unique difficulties female candidates face while making their decision to run to those of their male counterparts."

Remarking on the variety of presentations, Professor Dickson Cunningham, conference co-chair, said, "CREATE encapsulates the essence of the liberal arts in one afternoon. It is an intellectual smorgasbord."

Speaking to the value of CREATE, Eastern President Elsa Nunez said, "It takes a very strong and dedicated student to produce this quality of work, and it's important for other students to see this output." Praising the faculty, she added, "It takes a committed and skillful mentor to guide students to the work that is on display. Mentorship is such an integral part of undergraduate research."

During the one-day conference, the Student Center crawled with artistic and scholarly activity. Students in professional attire addressed their peers, faculty and family. In the cafe, ensembles performed; in the theatre, student-produced documentaries were shown; in the Betty R. Tipton Room, aisles of posters depicting scientific research were displayed; across the hall, a gallery-worth of paintings lined the walls; and on the ground floor, panel discussions and oral presentations about the humanities took place.