Published on October 29, 2025 by Gunnar Sadowey  
SURF2025

Samford University students from Howard College of Arts and Sciences, Brock School of Business and the School of Health Professions represented the university with excellence at the 2025 Southern Conference (SoCon) Undergraduate Research Forum (SURF), held Oct. 25–26 at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

The event, part of the Southern Conference Academic Exchange, brought together more than 150 undergraduate researchers from member institutions to share original scholarship across the arts, humanities, social sciences and STEM disciplines.

Samford students distinguished themselves among their peers, earning top recognition in the Best Oral Presentation in STEM category. Caden Smith and Reeves Mileski placed first for their presentation, The Impact of Legalized Sports Betting on College Athletes’ Mental Health and Fan Engagement, while Davis Garrett and Finn Pearson earned second place for Investment Portfolio Rebalancing.

Additional Samford students presented research spanning psychology, biology, chemistry and mathematics, including Autumn Harms, Caring for the Whole Family: The Impact of Care on Biological Children in Foster, Adoptive and Kinship Families; Ashley Bryant, Terrestrial Isopods (Isopoda: Oniscidea) of Alabama; Shaniya Jacobs-Lanier, Evaluation of a Modified Social Identities and Attitudes Scale (SIAS-Chem) for Measuring Stereotype Threat Susceptibility in Postsecondary Chemistry Courses; Aiden Benton, On the Galois Group of a Power Compositional Decic Polynomial; and Hayden Ledford and Anna Caroline Flaming, Weevil Infestation Patterns Follow Masting and Drought in Six Oak Species in Central Alabama.

Samford students were accompanied by Kristin Bakkegard, Paul N. Propst Professor of Natural Sciences in the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, and Megan Connor, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.

“Sharing research with peers is an incredibly valuable experience, cultivating skills far beyond just a classroom experience,” Bakkegard said. “I took great pride in how our students represented Samford.”

Connor noted how the conference experience reflects the university’s emphasis on academic excellence and curiosity-driven learning.

“It was exciting to witness Samford students so engaged in sharing their research with SoCon peers,” Connor said. “Their thoughtful presentations and professionalism reflected the strength of our academic programs and the spirit of curiosity that defines Samford.”

SURF is designed to give undergraduate students the opportunity to present their original work through poster and oral presentations, often for the first time. The annual event fosters collaboration across disciplines and institutions while celebrating academic excellence within the conference.

The students’ participation exemplifies Samford’s culture of academic curiosity and excellence, qualities reflected in the university’s recent recognition by The Wall Street Journal/College Pulse 2026 Best Colleges in the U.S., which ranked Samford No. 3 nationally for career preparation and among the top 10 for learning opportunities.

 
Located in the Homewood suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford enrolls 6,324 students from 44 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford is widely recognized as having one of the most beautiful campuses in America, featuring rolling hills, meticulously maintained grounds and Georgian-Colonial architecture. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks with the second-highest score in the nation for its 98% Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.