Eastern Connecticut State University’s 21st annual CREATE conference is being presented online for the second year in a row. CREATE stands for “Celebrating Research and Creative Activity at Eastern” and is the University’s premier showcase of undergraduate research and creative activity. The public is invited to visit the 2021 CREATE website at https://www.easternct.edu/create/create-2021/create-2021.html to view the variety of student projects. 

“Despite these extraordinary times, Eastern students have again risen to the occasion to present their work in a virtual format,” says Eastern President Elsa Núñez in the welcome video on the CREATE homepage. “This website showcases an outstanding set of posters, oral presentation, visual art, performances and more… The work being showcased here is not only of high quality, but it is rare among undergraduate circles.”

This year’s CREATE features more than 75 students from all academic majors who present projects spanning the arts, sciences and humanities. Oral and poster presentations explore such topics as COVID-19’s effect on relationships; social media’s impact on the body; the brain’s microbiome; queer art throughout history; freedom of speech and the use of political cartoons versus memes; virtual reality modeling as a tool to teach children with autism; and more.

Performing arts presentations include videos produced by students studying music, theatre, new media and film studies presenting music and dance performances, documentaries, day-in-the-life and other short video projects. Art presentations include brand and package designs, public service announcements and other digital artworks.

The CREATE 2021 website also profiles two students — Olivia Anderson ’21 and Hannah Beazoglou ’21 — who received this year’s President’s Award for outstanding research projects, as well as two faculty members — History Professor Thomas Balcerski and Marketing/Management Professor Fatma Pakdil — who received this year’s faculty Mentor Awards.