RCAC 2025 Posters

Printing is not supported at the primary Gallery Thumbnail page. Please first navigate to a specific Image before printing.

Switch View to Grid View Slideshow

BRAVE: Breathing, Risk-taking, Anxiety, and Vagal Enhancement

Blake Hickey

Anxiety is closely linked to decision-making, particularly in risk-taking contexts. Slow paced breathing has been shown to affect heart rate variability as well as emotional regulation. This study investigates the impact of slow paced breathing on anxiety and decision making through a two-session experimental design. Participants complete both a control and a breathing session. In each session, they first rate their current emotions and watch a relaxing video to measure baseline HRV. In the breathing session, participants then engaged in several minutes of box breathing before completing the Iowa Gambling Task. This task is used to measure risky decision-making. In the control session, they proceed directly to the Iowa Gambling Task following the baseline data collection. We expect to find that slow paced breathing increases heart rate variability, reduces anxiety, and leads to better decision making in the Iowa Gambling Task. The findings from this study will highlight the potential importance of slow paced breathing as an intervention for anxiety regulation and risk-related decision making.
From Victim to Offender: How Childhood Sexual Abuse Shapes Cognitive Distortions, Attachment, and Emotional Regulation in Male Perpetrators

Jenna Hines

This systematic literature review examines how early traumatic experiences, particularly childhood sexual abuse (CSA), influence the development of cognitive distortions, attachment styles, and emotional regulation in individuals who later become sexual offenders. The focus is primarily on male perpetrators, aiming to address gaps in understanding the differences between genders in the path from victimization to offending. The final 20 selected studies highlighted themes related to cognitive distortions, attachment styles, and emotional regulation. The findings suggest that early trauma can lead to harmful beliefs that justify abusive behavior, insecure attachment patterns, and emotional dysregulation. These factors appear to create a cycle where unresolved trauma in CSA victims contribute to offending behavior. This review highlights the need for trauma-informed interventions that directly address these patterns of thinking and emotional regulation. Understanding these connections is crucial for improving prevention and rehabilitation efforts for male offenders. Future research should further explore how gender influences these pathways to better guide clinical practices and policies.
Effectively Advising Students Transitioning (EAST) Majors

Layna Holk

Students often feel unprepared for the academic demands of their chosen majors and can experience a lack of sufficient support from advisory practices, in turn feeling overwhelmed in their academic journey (Cody, 2024). Guided by extrinsic and intrinsic motivations alongside their personal orientations, major changes can affect a student’s retention to a school or the higher education institution as a whole (Soria & Stebleton, 2013; Gillis & Ryberg, 2021). To address this challenge, I developed a training program for faculty advisors in Effectively Advising Students Transitioning (EAST) majors. In doing so, I will train faculty to appropriately navigate and effectively support student major transitions as a collaborative unit through a student mentorship program and a toolkit of advising pathways.
Winnipesaukee River Model

Cameron Horta

For this project, I will be creating a model of the Winnipesaukee River using the softwares we learned in class. The main software that will be used is EPA SWMM to create a base model of my river.
HIV Care Providers' View on Exercise for Smoking Cessation

Makayla Hutchinson

People living with HIV (PWH) smoke more cigarettes thn the general population. Exercise can increase short-term abstinence, help reduce cravings, manage withdrawel symptoms, and can improve negative affective states associated with nicotine withdrawel. However, PWH exercise less and are less likely to quit smoking than the general populationw with one likely factor being a lack of communication about the relationship between these health care behaviors with their care providers. This qualitative study will explore HIV care provider’s perceptions of exercise as aid to smoking cessation in PWH, along with barriers and facilitators to engaging in these important conversations
Quantitative Analysis of Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) in the Merrimack and Spicket Rivers

Madalyn Hymowitz

Water samples were collected from sites along the Merrimack and Spicket Rivers for identification and quantification of potential contaminants: pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs). River samples were filtered, concentrated, and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy (HPLC-MS) in order to identify the PPCPs present in each sample. Some of these PPCPs included progesterone, trimethoprim, melatonin, hydrocortisone, and atorvastatin. Upon identification, samples were spiked with PPCPs of known concentrations and standard addition curves were prepared to determine the concentration of PPCPs from each location. These concentrations were compared with typical values reported in literature to determine the potential environmental concern.
The Lasting Impacts of Corporal Punishment: A Systematic Review of of Long-Term, Adult Outcomes

Benjamin Isaacman

Extensive research has shown that corporal punishment is associated with negative childhood outcomes, which can significantly influence the transition into adulthood and shape long-term challenges. While establishing direct causation remains challenging, identifying correlations between corporal punishment and various adult outcomes provides insight into its lasting effects. This systematic literature review examines the non-behavioral consequences of corporal punishment in adulthood, focusing on key domains such as interpersonal relationships, socioeconomic mobility, employment, educational attainment, and legal involvement. By synthesizing recent peer-reviewed studies, this review aims to deepen the understanding of how corporal punishment experienced during childhood impacts long-term stability and quality of life through adulthood.
Personality and Suicidality: A Systematic Review of Five-Factor Model Traits as Predictors of Suicide Risk

Alex Karelas

Suicidality is a major public health concern in the United States and abroad, and personality traits have been implicated in its risk factors. There are a few different theories related to personality traits. Prominent theories include the Five Factor Model of Personality, Eysenck’s Three-Factor Model, and Cattell’s 16 Personality Factors. This systematic literature review examines the relationship between the Five-Factor Model of personality traits and suicidality among adult men and women aged 21 to 50. The final identified 20 empirical studies for the review indicated that neuroticism and conscientiousness are the most consistent predictors of suicidality among adult men and women. Findings on the other three personality traits vary more but low extraversion, agreeableness, and openness may play a role in suicidal ideation. The findings highlighted the importance of personality tests in suicide prevention and suggest that interventions targeting personality traits may be effective.
Measuring Biomarkers in Plasma with Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Waleed Khiyaty

Human plasma presents as a complex biological matrix that can serve as a valuable source for biomarkers that can help us study health and wellness. Fluorescence measurements, excitation-emission matrices (EEMs), were collected from various samples. To deconvolute the complex makeup of signals, we then applied Parallel Factor analysis (PARAFAC) to the data collected from plasma samples. This allowed us to isolate signals of several fluorescent components. Finally, the results and findings are benchmarked against previous studies on plasma, and some of the calculated components are attributed to chemical species such as Tyrosine and NADH. This dataset was made up of subjects varying in various characteristics, such as age and gender, and our analysis examines differences and trends in the dataset between different types of subjects.
Training and Recovery in High-Level Motorsport Athletes

Brandon Kierce

Open-Wheel racers(F1) experience extreme g-forces, temperatures, and other physical and mental challenges. Due to these high demands they often lose lots of weight during the race and with races sometimes only being 7 days apart recovery and a high-level strength and conditioning program is crucial for these athletes. There seems to be lack of scientific literature on this subject so my project attempts to fill in the gaps and give a recovery program that could be helpful to coaches working with these athletes.
Power in Motion: A Plyometric Rotational Training Manual for Explosive Athletic Performance

Allyson Kirck

The "Power in Motion: A Comprehensive Plyometric Rotational Training Manual for Explosive Athletic Performance" addresses a gap in strength and conditioning training by emphasizing the importance of plyometric rotational exercises for softball and baseball players, that demand explosive power, agility, and rotational strength. This capstone project provides sport and strength coaches, and athletes with a structured collection of scientifically backed exercises found to be most effective to help increase swing exit velocity in softball and baseball players. Traditional strength training often overlooks the dynamic rotational movements essential for maximizing force transfer and improving athletic coordination. By focusing on high-velocity training drills, this manual aims to develop the ability to apply maximal force rapidly, a key component for improving performance and reducing injury risk. Beyond physical performance, the manual serves as an educational resource, enabling athletes and coaches to incorporate sport-specific, rotational explosiveness training into their programs. Ultimately, this project contributes to softball and baseball players in sports performance by offering a practical, accessible guide that boosts both athletic development and confidence in competitive settings.
Breaking the Cycle: Resilience in Children of Recovering Parents

Riley Korengel

Addiction and recovery affect not only the individual but also the entire family, often causing stress and emotional challenges for children. Despite these difficulties, some children develop survival skills that help them build resilience. Parental recovery can influence family dynamics, emotional stability, and children’s ability to cope and thrive. This systematic literature review explores the experiences that shape resilience in children aged three to nine. A comprehensive literature search using keywords and subject headings was conducted, yielding 20 empirical studies that met the identified inclusion criteria for this study. The review highlights key survival skills such as emotional regulation, self-esteem, problem-solving, adaptability, and empathy. It emphasizes the connection between a parent's recovery and a child's ability to thrive, stressing the importance of stable caregiving, supportive environments, and targeted therapeutic interventions. The findings suggest that strengthening family relationships and expanding access to family-centered therapy can promote resilience and reduce the risk of future substance misuse.
A Strategy for Stronger Alumni Connections

Molly Kueter

Alumni involvement is defined as alumni giving and/or alumni participating with their alma mater “within the last three years” (Gaier, 2005, p. 279). However, young alumni are the least likely to give back to their institution philanthropically, which is a key form of engagement. Gaier (2005, p. 280) also noted, “If universities desire to increase alumni involvement, then it is vital for universities to understand why alumni are involved with their alma mater.” To address the challenge of keeping alumni involved, I will develop a targeted engagement strategy to encourage increased young alumni involvement, as well as to cultivate long-term, meaningful relationships between alumni and their institution. By focusing on the unique needs and motivations of young alumni, this project seeks to bridge the gap from graduation to reunion with sustained engagement through events, philanthropic gifts, and volunteerism that is mutually beneficial to alumni and their institution.
NFL Circadian Data Analysis Project

Zachary Laher

The goal of this project is to determine whether NFL teams perform better based on the difference between their home timezone and the timezone in which the game is being played using data from the 2003-2023 NFL seasons. The data was collected from the nflreadr package in RStudio. The variables that are included in this analysis are the timezone difference, which is the number of time zones the away team is ahead or behind their home timezone, the number of touchdowns that each team scored, and whether the away team won or lost the game. Exploratory data analysis, including summary statistics and visualizations, will be performed to explore the distribution of wins and number of touchdowns by timezone difference. Logistic regression will be applied to determine the relationship between timezone difference and the away team’s outcome. Secondary analyses will explore the relationship between timezone difference and other variables of interest.
Revolutionizing Hip Replacement: Bridging Innovation & Patient Care with Stryker’s Mobile Bearing Hip System

Allie Lahiff

With hip injuries and on the rise—particularly among aging populations—there is a growing demand for advanced hip replacement technologies. This poster explores the biomechanics of the hip, the prevalence and impact of hip degeneration, and the consequences of delayed intervention. It highlights the Modular Dual Mobility (MDM) Mobile Bearing Hip System by Stryker as a solution offering increased stability, reduced dislocation risk, and enhanced mobility. This study bridges innovation and patient care, showcasing the device’s competitive advantage in both surgical success and long-term patient satisfaction.
An Excel-Based Load Management System for Athletes

Caleb Lambert

Drill menu and Practice Planner excel documents regarding a Catapult or other GPS load monitoring software. As well as a step by step manual on how to implement this and correlational data between estimated load and actual accumulated loads.
A Rebel Girl’s Example: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn and Her Life as a and Labor Leader, Feminist, and Political Radical

Ryan Landry

My presentation consists of a summary of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn’s upbringing and life as it contributed to the American Labor Movement, Feminist Activism, and Socialist politics in the United States. While often narratives of Flynn’s life stop at her leadership role in the 1912 Lawrence Textile Strike. Her contributions span much further including being a cofounder of the ACLU, a tireless campaigner for legal representation of labor unions, and eventually a prominent socialist and communist politician. Her eventual condemnation at the hands of McCarthyism and imprisonment, meanwhile, showed the limits of American political pluralism.
Data Mining to Understand the Impact of the "Circadian Advantage" in the NHL

Mari Leonard

This project utilizes Data Science methodologies within RStudio to investigate the "circadian advantage" in the NHL. The core focus is to determine how travel across time zones impacts team performance, specifically analyzing the effects of circadian rhythm disruptions on game outcomes. I am data mining and feature engineering for two datasets. The datasets are from the 2016-17 and 2017-18 NHL Seasons. Game-level data include the Date and Time of the game (in local time), the Home and Away team, the total number of goals for each team, the division of each team, the Time Zone of the game, how many time zones the Away team traveled to get to the game, the days since their last game, the distance (in miles) they traveled, and the winner of the game. This data will be used to analyze how the timing of the games and the direction of travel affect the win percentage. The goal is to provide insights into the real-world effects of circadian rhythms on athletic performance, with potential implications for optimizing team travel schedules and improving player performance.
Transfer College Success Bridge

Holly Lewis

An increasing number of students are transferring from community colleges to four-year institutions. However, these students often face significant challenges, including a lack of understanding of the transfer process, inadequate advising, financial pressures, and competing responsibilities (Boone, 2017). Transferring from a community college to a four-year institution is more than just transferring credits; Transfer students face a variety of challenges ranging from managing the high costs of education, difficulties integrating into a new academic environment, and making it through “transfer shock” (Rivera-Jiménez, 2024). By increasing support frameworks, institutions can ensure that transfer students will be able to thrive in their new college. In this project, I aim to enhance the preparation of transfer students by establishing a comprehensive transfer transition workshop series. Developing an effective program will help ensure that more transfer students are equipped to succeed and graduate.
Engaging the Whole Student: Connecting Wellness to Academic Success

Katrina Lewis

Adolescents today face rising challenges to their physical, mental, and digital well-being. These issues are strongly linked to reduced cognitive function, emotional regulation, and academic engagement, making student wellness not just a health priority, but an academic one.

This capstone project explores the relationship between wellness behaviors and academic success through an extensive literature review focused on adolescent physical activity, mental health, and digital habits. The research highlights how low activity levels, poor mental health, and digital overstimulation are statistically associated with lower academic performance and decreased school engagement.

In response, this project offers a set of practical, evidence-informed toolkits designed to support school and district wellness committees in implementing effective wellness policies. These toolkits include adaptable action plans, timelines, intervention strategies, and stakeholder considerations—tailored for elementary, middle, and high school environments. The toolkits focus on three key pillars: increasing opportunities for physical activity, supporting student mental health, and promoting healthy digital behaviors.

By connecting wellness behaviors to measurable academic outcomes, this project guides educators and administrators to prioritize student well-being in ways that directly support learning and success. The goal is to move beyond policy as paperwork—and toward action that meaningfully impacts students’ lives, both in and out of the classroom.
The Legalization of Sports Gambling and Its Unspoken Long Term Consequences

Joshua Linnehan

Legalized online gambling has increased the amount of problematic gamblers, due to companies such as DraftKings and FanDuel advertising their product, and the governments in US and Canada having a liberation point of view when it comes to people’s free will to gamble. This paper covers the rise of sports betting since its legalization, and how it impacts various demographics of people in order to understand the limits of sports betting and to not be persuaded to gamble irresponsibly by outside influences.
Juggling Like a Pro or Dropping the Ball?

Abigale Long, August Dexter, and Maci Chapman

This study explores the research question: Can we effectively divide our attention across two tasks? With the rise of multitasking among college students, particularly during academic tasks, understanding the cognitive implications of divided attention is increasingly important. We hypothesize Dividing attention between two tasks will result in decreased performance compared to focusing on a single task. It is predicted that multitasking involving continuous distraction (e.g., watching a show) will lead to slower reaction times and lower recall accuracy compared to multitasking that involves brief memory interference.
Understanding the Connection Between a Sense of Belonging in School and Student's School Success

Kathryn Mailloux

This study aims to understand the connection between a student's sense of belonging within their school community and their success. The sample consists of 81 middle school students in grades six through eight, enrolled in a suburban private religious school in Massachusetts. Data was collected using an adapted version of the School Belongingness Scale, with expanded questions on academics and extracurricular participation. The results suggest a correlation between a sense of belonging, academic performance, and attendance.
The Rainbow Fund

Hannah Makarski, Madison Bowers, Bailey Fleming, Molly Henderson, Erin O'Callaghan, Ella Tanso, and Kyleigh Walker

For the last couple of weeks of our project, we have been emailing and zooming back and forth with Sidney's Rainbows. We have created a survey for them to use to ask local small businesses about what they need when working with this organization. Sidney's Rainbows has sent that out to businesses in downtown Andover and collected their feedback to move forward with their plans of Rainbow day.

Additionally, we have also reached out to Aroma Joe's about having a truck come to Merrimack's campus. The proceeds made from this truck will go towards the Sidney's Rainbow fund. We also have discussed a fundraising event at the local Aroma Joes. They proposed having a specific drink where proceeds get donated to a fund. During this event, we plan on passing out "Bingo" cards to further support small businesses. With these bingo cards, students and participants of Rainbow Day are able to go out to the town of Andover, tick off the boxes, and after the whole card is filled out, be entered into a raffle for a prize.
How does College major shape students’ Climate Change Anxiety?

Tylor Manzo and Leo Mamouni

Is college major associated with students’ level of climate change anxiety. We will distribute a survey to a sample of Merrimack students. Respondents will identify their major(s) and answer questions about their opinions on climate change.