Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research celebrates statewide discovery

Nearly 540 students, faculty and staff from colleges and universities across Idaho gathered at Boise State on July 15-16 for the Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research (ICUR), a celebration of undergraduate scholarship across academic disciplines.

Research takes courage

This year's conference opened under the theme "Courage and Curiosity," a nod to the seen and unseen moments in a research journey. As Jim Fredricksen, director of the Undergraduate Research and Mentoring Institute, told students: courage in research often looks ordinary - submitting an abstract, admitting what you don't yet know, standing next to a poster and saying, "Here's what I'm working on and here's what I still don't know." That kind of courage, he said, is what makes research accessible to every student willing to ask a question, test an idea, and keep learning.

Rather than typical project summaries, the opening session featured six live storytellers - four current undergraduates, one recent graduate and one faculty member sharing candid moments of challenge, uncertainty and discovery from their own research journeys. Attendees then discussed those stories at their tables.

The conference's featured lunch keynote, sponsored by Idaho INBRE (IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence), came from Peter Weng, retired senior research microbiologist at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Drawing from his distinguished career, Weng spoke to students about the power of keeping an open mind, illustrating how staying adaptable and following his passions led to a rich, multifaceted journey in science.

Exoplanet worlds, gyrfalcons and biofuel

Student scholarship took center stage with 290 poster presentations representing 10 Idaho higher education institutions and six other institutions. Topics ranged widely, including:

• Doomed exoplanet worlds and AI's evolving impact on peer-to-peer social dynamics
• Mosquito species characterization to study disease ecology in Alaskan gyrfalcons
• Scaling up seed production to restore the threatened slickspot peppergrass (Lepidium papilliferum)
• Converting dairy flocculant to biofuel
• New approaches to combating Parkinson's disease and
• Breast cancer metastasis

Navigating the research journey

Day two of the conference continued to spotlight student voices through a series of Lightning Talks, which are brief, high-energy presentations wherein students share their work and research stories in front of a live audience.

New to ICUR this year were eight concurrent interactive sessions designed to support students at various stages of their paths as researchers. These workshops covered practical skills such as talking about one's research and building faculty relationships, alongside the human side of research, including managing conflict and navigating failure.

Get involved with ICUR

Talan Rudley, a double major in philosophy and biochemistry at Boise State, presented a Lightning Talk and a poster at the conference. He called the experience "tremendous" and encouraged other students to consider attending.

"I sincerely hope that every student utilizes the apparatus available at Boise State to conduct their own research projects," Rudley said. "ICUR could use more of these burgeoning researchers; most importantly, the world could use more active inquirers looking ceaselessly into the foundations of our world."

Visit the ICUR website for information on the 2027 Idaho Conference on Undergraduate Research.

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