In the world of academia, effective presentation skills are not just an asset, they are an essential tool for success. As graduate students embark on their scholarly journeys, the ability to communicate their research, ideas, and findings with precision and impact becomes paramount. This seminar panel, titled "Elevating Your Academic Presence: Presentation Skills for Graduate Success," is designed to assist graduate students with developing the knowledge and strategies needed to excel in the art of presentation.
Throughout the panel discussion, participants will have the opportunity to learn from our esteemed faculty: Dr. Konstantinos Goulas, Dr. Heidi Kloefkorn, and Dr. Tyler Radniecki. Join these seasoned presenters as they share their insights and experiences. Attendees will explore topics such as presentation preparation, designing engaging visual aids, conquering stage fright, and fostering audience engagement.
This seminar aims to empower graduate students to present their research and ideas with confidence, whether it's in the classroom, at conferences, or during thesis defenses. Join us for an engaging discussion with the goal of heightening your presentations to compelling and memorable experiences.
Dr. Heidi Kloefkorn is an assistant professor in Bioengineering at ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ State University. She received her B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and her doctorate in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Florida before pursuing a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroscience through the competitive Fellowships in Research and Science Teaching (FIRST) Program at Emory University. Her work focuses on understanding the interplay between sleep and pain in degenerative joint disease. Through collaborative, multidisciplinary approaches, her group creates noninvasive technologies to assess pathogenic behavior and physiology in preclinical rodent models. These tools are then used to examine mechanisms for how circadian rhythm disruption contributes to osteoarthritis onset and progression. Dr. Kloefkorn consistently supports under-represented populations in STEM through her teaching, service, and mentorship.
Kostas Goulas received his Diploma in Chemical Engineering from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece in 2009. He received his PhD in 2015 from UC Berkeley, investigating the upgrading of fermentation products to diesel fuel precursors via tandem dehydrogenation-aldol condensation reactions. He then worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Catalysis Center for Energy Innovation at the University of Delaware, focusing on the development of fundamental structure-activity relations for hydrodeoxygenation reactions. Since 2018, he has been an Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ State University. Research in his group is focused on using operando spectroscopy to understand the fundamental drivers of selectivity and activity in metal and oxide catalysis and on combining kinetics and spectroscopy with catalyst development for biomass upgrading processes. His team recently has spun out Renewcat, INC, a startup focused on green chemistry and engineering.
Tyler Radniecki is an associate professor of Environmental Engineering at ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ State University. His research focuses on biological wastewater and stormwater treatment systems with an emphasis on the molecular characterization of their microbiomes to enhance performance. Additionally, Tyler has led numerous initiatives to create and implement wastewater surveillance programs for a variety of pathogens throughout the state of ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ. He is a recipient of the 2019 NSF CAREER award, the 2020 OSU Beaver Champion Award, the 2021 ¾«¶«Ó°ÊÓ Association of Clean Water Agencies Outstanding Individual Award and the 2022 OSU College of Engineering Collaborative Research Award.