On April 15, Sampson Community College’s (SCC) Psychology Club, led by Sarah Burgin, Psychology Instructor, attended the 2023 Carolinas Psychology Conference (CPC) at Campbell University. During the event, SCC students were able to learn from the psychological research findings of various professionals and peers, in addition to receiving second place in the CPC’s APS Psychology Jeopardy! tournament.
The CPC is one of the longest running undergraduate psychology conferences in the nation. Its purpose is to provide undergraduates in psychology with the opportunity to present their research in front of peers and faculty in a professional yet friendly setting.
Guest speakers for the day included Dr. Kurt Gray, professor in Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Dr. Kinga Káplár-Kodácsy, assistant professor at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, Hungary. Students from over 15 colleges and universities on the East Coast were also able to present their research in psychological topics ranging from: sports psychology; emotion, health, and personality psychology; social and community psychology; cognitive and experimental psychology; and clinical and developmental psychology.
Armando Avenlino-Ortiz, Psychology Club member and Associate of Arts in Teacher Preparation student, detailed his experience at the conference, “It started off with a speaker… then we broke up and went to different groups. Each group was led by a student from a different university or college who was presenting the topic they were researching and explaining how they were serving other students at their college. I liked that it was people from our age group talking… it was a bunch of students. It was nice to learn from other students that were our age.”
Afterwards, Dr. Jim Kalat, retired Professor of Psychology at NCSU, hosted a friendly game of Jeopardy! for the visiting schools– testing their knowledge on various topics within the field of Psychology. Avenlino-Ortiz and Jada Washington represented SCC as they claimed second place against Barton College (first) and Campbell University (third).
“I’m very proud of Armando and Jada for winning second place for SCC in Psychology Jeopardy!” expressed Burgin. “Sampson Community College’s Psychology Club truly had a great time at the Carolinas Psychology Conference at Campbell this year! We enjoyed hearing students present their research on topics and also enjoyed hearing Dr. Gray’s presentation on ‘Understanding Moral Divides.’ If you are interested in learning more about the SCC Psychology Club or attending this conference next year, please contact me!”
For more information about SCC’s Psychology Club or how to get involved, visit www.sampsoncc.edu/psychology or email sburgin@sampsoncc.edu.
About Sampson Community College
Sampson Community College is a member of the North Carolina Community College System, located in Clinton, NC in Sampson County. The college offers many programs to include two-year degrees, college transfer, continuing education and workforce development options and early college education. SCC is committed to the principles of equal educational and employment opportunities for all.
