The University of Kentucky College of Medicine–Northern Kentucky Campus reached an important milestone this fall with the launch of its first medical student research showcase. The event reflects how scholarship, mentorship, and opportunity are becoming an increasingly visible part of the student experience.
Held in November 2025, the in-person showcase brought students, faculty mentors, and community partners together to celebrate inquiry, innovation, and collaboration. Students presented posters spanning clinical investigation, surgical outcomes, quality improvement, and community-focused research, underscoring the breadth of scholarship taking shape across the UK College of Medicine.
“I could not be more proud of our students, whose curiosity, dedication, and commitment to advancing medicine were on full display,” said Holly Danneman, MD ‘00, associate dean for the Northern Kentucky Campus. “Their work demonstrated a deep desire to improve the lives of the patients and communities they will one day serve.”
A campus designed for connection — and discovery
The regional campus offers a learning environment that is intentionally relational. Students train in tight-knit cohorts with accessible faculty and individualized mentorship, while benefiting from a region that places rural, suburban, and urban clinical settings within minutes of one another. That blend of community intimacy and metropolitan reach is a defining strength of the campus, and it helps create fertile ground for meaningful research.
“Students are known, supported and recognized by the people who teach them,” Dr. Danneman said. “At the same time, they work across the tri-state region, gaining exposure to diverse patient populations, specialty pathways, and research partners.”
According to Amber Onorato, PhD, director of medical student research at the campus, the relationship-driven environment encourages students to pursue questions grounded in lived experience. With access to individualized guidance and strong connections to faculty, clinicians, and community partners, students often develop research projects inspired by what they encounter firsthand in clinics, classrooms, and service settings. At the same time, many students also collaborate with investigators at large academic medical centers — including faculty at other UK College of Medicine campuses — pairing the relational depth of a smaller campus with the intellectual breadth and rigor of major research institutions.
That environment was on full display during the showcase, where faculty mentors, community partners, and judges engaged directly with students about study design, clinical relevance, and next steps — conversations that often continued well beyond the poster boards.
Building a foundation for student scholarship
Key to making the event possible was the work of Dr. Onorato, whose role focuses on strengthening mentorship pathways, reducing barriers to participation, and ensuring research is accessible to students with a wide range of interests and prior experience.
“We are intentional about treating research not as an extracurricular activity, but as an essential part of professional training,” she said. “Our goal is to create an environment where curiosity is valued and students feel empowered to ask meaningful questions that matter to patients and communities.”
For students, that support translates into a learning environment where research feels approachable rather than intimidating — and where guidance is built into the training experience.
Asher Braughton, a first-year medical student at the Northern Kentucky Campus, presented a poster during the inaugural showcase.
“As a medical student, I believe that cutting-edge, innovative research is essential for improving patient care,” Braughton said. “Advancing medicine through meaningful research is a critical part of that mission.”
Braughton also noted the opportunity to present alongside peers and engage with faculty reinforced the collaborative nature of research at UK.
For Dr. Onorato, what stood out most during the showcase was the depth of ownership and maturity students demonstrated across all four years of training. “These projects reflected genuine investment, thoughtful methodology, and a clear connection to patient care and community need,” she said. “The confidence and professionalism our students displayed made it clear this is the beginning of something special.”
At the UK College of Medicine–Northern Kentucky Campus, the inaugural showcase represented more than a single day of poster presentations. It marked the beginning of a new tradition — one that reflects the campus’s commitment to preparing future physician-scholars who view research not as a requirement, but as a responsibility and a powerful tool for improving the lives of the communities they serve.
Poster Presentation Award Recipients
In addition to recognition, award recipients received prizes generously sponsored by St. Elizabeth Physicians Recruiters, an example of the strong partnership between the Northern Kentucky Campus and the region’s clinical community.
- First Place: Katelyn Donley-Weldon (M2); “Premature Birth as an Under-Recognized Contributor to Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorder”
- Second Place: Maddie Bland South (M3); “Pleomorphic Dermal Sarcoma: A Comprehensive Review and Clinical Guide to Diagnosis, Management, and Outcomes”
- Third Place: Claire Dzan (M2); “Do Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma patients adhere to recommended surveillance schedules?”
Research across the UK College of Medicine
The Northern Kentucky Campus showcase was part of a broader series of medical student research events held across the UK College of Medicine in November. The Bowling Green Campus also hosted its third annual showcase, while the Lexington Campus piloted a virtual format using the FourWaves platform to accommodate simultaneous oral presentations and a virtual poster hall.
Across campuses, one theme stood out: student scholarship at UK is growing not only in volume, but in confidence, mentorship and visibility. New tools, including a centralized Canvas hub for medical student research, along with sustained mentorship across campuses, are helping students navigate research pathways earlier and more intentionally in their medical education.