CHS Student Earns People's Choice Honors in OUR, UK Sustainability poster competition
The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research and UK Sustainability are honored to announce the six winners of the fifth annual sustainability research poster competition — and CHS' Katie Neglia is one of them.
Katie Neglia, a sophomore pre-med Human Health Sciences and Pharmacology major from Carmel, Ind., who also happens to be a Chellgren Student Fellow, earned the People’s Choice undergraduate award.
The competition was held in conjunction with the annual UK Sustainability Showcase in the atrium of the Healthy Kentucky Research Building on Oct. 15.
As part of the showcase, graduate and undergraduate students in all majors were invited to submit their research related to the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals as a poster for a general audience.
The 2025 Sustainability Research Poster competition winners are:
- First place undergraduate: Katelyn Straw, chemical engineering junior, Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering
- Second place undergraduate: Nikhil Kumar, biochemistry and mathematics Lewis Honors College sophomore, College of Arts and Sciences
- People’s Choice undergraduate: Katie Neglia, human health sciences and Lewis Honors College sophomore, College of Health Sciences.
- First place graduate: Rosbelly Rios, veterinary science first-year graduate student, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment
- Second place graduate: Odianosen Ewah, chemical engineering doctoral candidate, Pigman College of Engineering
- People’s Choice graduate: Seth Thompson, geological sciences second-year graduate student, College of Arts and Sciences
First place ($250), second place ($150) and People’s Choice ($100) awards were presented to the winners.
Judges with relevant experience reviewed posters for originality, clarity, motivation and relevance to sustainability as well as the validity, scope and depth of the project.
The 5-Minute Fast Track challenges students to present their research clearly, concisely and engagingly, with no props and one single static slide, in front of a panel of judges and live audience. The 10 finalists will share their scholarship in a jargon-free, 5-minute talk for a general audience. This challenges students to develop their academic, presentation and research communication skills while also allowing them to showcase their research in a captivating way.
Neglia's research involves investigating the acute actions of lipopolysaccharides on smooth muscle contractions of the GI tract.
“One of the most exciting aspects of my research is that is has allowed me to translate concepts I learn in class to real-world situations," Neglia said.
As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.