Congratulations to Dan Borrenpohl for taking home 1st place in the Oral Presentation Category at the Graduate Research Symposium (GRS). The Graduate Research Symposium is an annual event hosted by the HCS Graduate Student Association that provides HCS students and faculty from both our Wooster and Columbus campuses the opportunity to come together to share their research!
Ben is currently pursuing his PhD under the advisment of Dr. Marília Chiavegato. His research asks the question — can applying co-composted biochar in an integrated crop-livestock system increase yield while also improving soil health? We are delighted to have Ben in our department and luckily he had time to give us a look into his experience at the 2025 Graduate Research Symposium...
WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WINNING THIS AWARD?
Honestly I was surprised! I thought all the presentations were good, but I certainly appreciate the vote of confidence from the judges and the positive feedback I received.
HOW WAS THE GRS FOR YOU OVERALL?
The GRS is unique in that you get to learn about a wide variety of topics from people you know fairly well. I enjoy conferences too, but the GRS is special in that regard. The bowling social was a highlight for me, I'm not going pro anytime soon but I always appreciate an opportunity to have fun with colleagues.
HOW’S YOUR RESEARCH GOING CURRENTLY?
Good! So far we've only analyzed one year of data out of five so it's hard to say anything definitively, but we're entering year three and looking forward to seeing more results.
CLOSING THOUGHTS?
I want to say thank you again to the GSA for planning everything! The GRS takes a lot of time and energy to organize in addition to everything they need to do to stay on top of their research. We greatly appreciate you all!
Eager for more news from our 2025 Graduate Research Symposium? You're in luck - check out all the articles here.