Designed to give students opportunities to present their work, receive feedback, and engage with peers and mentors, this year’s forum featured 74 student poster presentations, four “data blitz” talks, and a keynote address by Jana M. Iverson, Ph.D., the Christopher A. Moore Professor of Pediatric Rehabilitation and Associate Dean for Research at Boston University’s Sargent College.
In her keynote, Development Cascades in Infancy: The Promise of Supported Mobility for Infants with Motor Delays, Dr. Iverson discussed how early motor development in infants shapes communication and language. She emphasized that development is not a set of isolated skills, but an interconnected process in which delays in one area can ripple across others. For example, the onset of walking often triggers a cascade of changes, including more infant-initiated communication and increased caregiver responsiveness.
“We have a whole child in front of us who’s changing in relation to many, many other things,” Iverson said, “and who changes in response to those changes.”
Iverson also highlighted the On Time Mobility Framework, a pediatric intervention model that helps ensure children with disabilities gain mobility in alignment with typical developmental timelines, and shared early findings from her research study, Project Home, which uses a device called the Puma to support mobility in infants with developmental delays. The initial results of her work suggest that even small gains in movement can open new opportunities for learning, play, and social interaction.
Throughout the morning, undergraduate and graduate students presented research spanning the disciplines of nursing, biomedical and health sciences, communication sciences and disorders, and rehabilitation and movement science. The projects aligned with four key themes: high-impact discovery, evidence-based practice, health equity and community impact, and interprofessional practice.
Graduating occupational therapy student Olivia Greenleaf presented a pilot of the Go Baby Go program, which was supported by a CNHS Curriculum Innovation Grant. The project brought together students in occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, physical therapy, and biomedical engineering to modify ride-on cars for children with disabilities, improving mobility and access to play.
For Greenleaf, who plans to pursue a career in pediatric rehabilitation, the experience reinforced the importance of early mobility.
“It was impactful in a lot of different ways,” she said. “Working hands-on with children who have mobility challenges and creating solutions really captured what I want to do: making play and movement more accessible.”
The forum also featured four “data blitz” presentations. Pika Nandagopal shared dissertation research on gene mutations in lung cancer and their implications for targeted treatments; Fredericka Tagupa presented a case study using conversational analysis to explore communication in patients with dementia; Shandi Barclay detailed a nurse-driven protocol that improved hypertension management and access to care in a rural primary care setting; and Molly Hilliker examined ACL injury biomechanics, finding that anticipating impact did not reduce harmful landing forces, suggesting a need for new training approaches.
The event concluded with faculty and student research awards. Professor Bikki Tran Smith received the Dean’s Excellence in Research Award, which includes a $1,500 grant to support her work on improving health outcomes for underserved populations, including those experiencing substance use disorders and homelessness. Professor Mat Failla received the CNHS Research Incentive Grant for his osteoarthritis project, The Role of Alpha-two Macroglobulin in Cartilage Degeneration Associated with Post-Traumatic Osteoarthritis. Peyton Jenkins was recognized for best student poster.
“In addition to highlighting students’ research, we are really honoring the mentoring relationships between faculty and students,” said Noma Anderson, dean of CNHS. “Through these experiences, our students are becoming researchers, clinicians, and scholars in their own right.”
Established in 2010, the Zeigler Research Forum honors UVM alumnus Jim Zeigler, whose life was cut short by non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma shortly after graduation. The forum continues his legacy by fostering innovation, collaboration, and the exchange of ideas.
About Research in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences
In 2025, CNHS faculty submitted 35 grant proposals across federal, foundation, and internal funding sources, securing 14 new awards totaling more than $1.7 million. The college also maintains 12 active funded projects and produced more than 75 peer-reviewed publications and over 100 scholarly presentations.