We had quite a fall semester with students from two different divisions, the Business and Technology division and the Public Service, Arts and Sciences Division.

MEC 299 Research in Mechatronics

Instructor: Mr. Rodney Jones

We have 8 students participating as a class with Clemson University students and BMW at our CMI campus (Center for Manufacturing Innovation) on Millennial Boulevard near Clemson University’s ICAR campus. The project they will be working on involves a new type of car assembly instead of the traditional assembly line where the car moves through the factory with workers adding the parts they are responsible for. Instead, these students will be exploring a system where one car is worked on at a station that rotates. This course consists of identifying 3 or 4 critical and challenging assembly operations on the factory floor, and designing and manufacturing appropriate adaptable assembly aids to assist the worker.

 

Audrey Pelicano

HSS 298 Research in the Humanities

Instructor: Dr. Lee McAbee

My Creative Inquiry research project explores the relationship between England and America leading into and during World War II. It does this by studying the relationships and correspondence between the respective world leaders at the time. The original idea for this project was born from my interest in the Royal Hot Dog Summit and it sparked a desire to take a closer look at the relationship between these two countries in light of the war. I’m excited to be pursuing this topic and looking forward to the end of the semester, when I can hold the final product in my hands.

 

Lisa Ramirez

BIO 299 Research in the Biological Sciences

Instructor: Ms. Kathy Maples

 

Beginning of the semester

My name is Lisa Ramirez. I am a Registered Nurse that graduated from the GTC nursing program this past fall. I have decided to return to GTC to finish up my last prerequisites for my BS in Nursing, and to participate in a research class I was invited to attend during my spring semester.  The Creative Inquiry program is a great program for interested students, for me it means an opportunity to pursue research in a topic that is very close to my heart.  On January 27, 2017, I said my final goodbye to my mother who died of a very rare and aggressive cancer called leiomyosarcoma. She did not accept blood transfusions and because of her choice, she was denied aggressive chemotherapy. Her outcome may have been the same no matter her decision, yet, my passion and goal is to change the culture of medicine in regards to views on treating all patients within traditional protocols, as opposed to alternative methods. Specifically, I will explore bloodless medicine, conservation, and the clinical trials of synthetic blood. I will be conducting research under Professor Maples and hope to raise awareness, so that the public is better informed and more options to treatment plans will be supported among medical clinicians, in order to provide patients with a greater sense of autonomy in health care.

End of the semester

I have learned so much on the topic of blood management. It has been a semester full of hard work but I feel that I have started something I can continue to build research on.  I was able to visit and interview with the Blood Connection in Greenville and learned about the process of blood donation from the donor, to the hospitals that receive the blood. I was able to conduct an interview with the Spartanburg Bloodless Center through email and gained so much insight into blood conservation and received additional resources for future reference. Professor Maples was a great resource to help me organize my thoughts and keep me focused. We developed a power point to pull all the research together and then created a website to provide information for others. After all that was completed I presented in front of the students as part of a Creative Inquiry showcase. I appreciate the experience and recommend the program for others that have a passion they wish to pursue research in.