Symposium to Showcase Environmental Research Conducted at Worcester Colleges

WORCESTER, Mass. – In a coordinated effort to showcase the wide range of environmental research spearheaded by local institutions of higher education, the Chief Academic Officers Committee of the Colleges of Worcester Consortium will sponsor a symposium titled "Environmental Issues in Worcester County" on April 20 from 4 to 7 p.m. in Washburn Hall, Mechanics Hall, 321 Main St.

The event is designed to introduce community and business leaders in Worcester County to the cutting-edge work of students and faculty taking place at the region’s colleges, and the impact this research can have on the area’s economy. An online registration form to attend the symposium is available at www.cowcworks.org/SymposiumRSVP.

Assumption College, Becker College, College of the Holy Cross, Clark University, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Nichols College, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and Worcester State College, all part of the Consortium, will be represented by faculty and students.

Presentations are organized around five broad themes: 1) Economic Development and the Built Environment; 2) Rivers and Water; 3) Forests and Land Cover; 4) Health and Hazards; 5) Research and Education.

Some project titles include: "Strengthening Vulnerable Communities in the Worcester Built Environment," "Eighteenth-Century Deforestation in Worcester County: The Onset of Devastation," "Styrofoam: Throwing Away Tomorrow," and "Elevated Lead Levels in the Drinking Water of Selected Daycare Centers in Massachusetts."

"Our aim is to showcase the intellectual capital of the area colleges and universities," said Stephen C. Ainlay, Ph.D., chairman of the Chief Academic Officers Committee and vice president for academic affairs and dean at Holy Cross. "We hope to make people more aware of the important work that is being done by faculty and students that has a direct bearing on Worcester County. There are many people working on environmental issues at Consortium schools."

Each individual project will be presented in a poster format. There are approximately 35 teams presenting.

"We hope that community, civic, foundation, business leaders will attend and will learn a great deal about how the research now being conducted at area colleges and universities benefits Worcester County," Ainlay said. "The program features faculty and students working together, so we also hope the audience will come to better appreciate that dimension of what goes on at our schools."

A research symposium Book of Abstracts will be available as soon as it is published at: www.cowc.org/News/Reports/