By Tom Ganser
Correspondent
Claire Kinder, a 2011 graduate of Badger High School, participated in Undergraduate Research Day at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater on March 18.
Kinder was among more than 250 students to present the results of their research projects or creative activities at the 20th annual event.
In opening the event, Chancellor Richard Telfer said, “Last October the Wall Street Journal posted an article with this headline, ‘Bosses want critical thinking, but what is that?’
“I think we can define critical thinking right here in this room, because I’m looking out at a bunch of critical thinkers. It’s no secret that employers are trying to find you.”
Kinder, who is earning a degree in theater and English literature, along with a minor in library media, said “My project was a costume design for Neil Haven’s ‘Come Back.’ The production has two casts that I had to costume, and a different cast performing every night.
“It was my job as a designer to find costumes that worked every night with different actors on stage, while keeping the integrity of the production. It was one giant puzzle and I had to create the pieces and make sure they worked.”
The Undergraduate Research Program provides students in the UW-W theater and dance department “with the opportunity to participate in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival where students are allowed to showcase their talents in the fields of both acting and design. It allows students to explore and grow in their craft in a professional environment,” Kinder wrote in an email.
Nearly 100 UW-W students will present their research projects April 16 to 18 at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research at Eastern Washington University in Cheney, Wash., or at the University of Wisconsin System Symposium for Undergraduate Research on April 24 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Fall 2015 UW-W Undergraduate Research Day, which is free and open to the public, is scheduled for Sept. 24 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
For more information about UWW’s Undergraduate Research Program, visit uww.edu/urp.
