It is extraordinary for undergraduate students to benefit from the kind of expert mentoring that IC faculty routinely provide. The James J. Whalen Academic Symposium honors past president James J. Whalen's dedication to student learning and undergraduate research. Ithaca College has a long tradition of fostering student learning through collaborative research with faculty mentors, and the success of that tradition has been demonstrated repeatedly as Ithaca College students have presented their research at conferences such as the National Council on Undergraduate Research and the Eastern Colleges Science Conference.

Each year's symposium provides a rich sample of the wide range of undergraduate research and creativity. Enormous personal growth comes from working closely with a mentor to define and refine a research topic, gather information and evidence, and then write and present your results!