WE-Spark Health Institute is hosting its first virtual brainstorming event, “Creating Meaningful Research Experiences for Students,” to provide health researchers an opportunity to share ideas on how to provide students with meaningful research experiences during a pandemic.

The WE-Spark Connections Brainstorming Event will run 1 to 2 p.m. Tuesday, June 30.

“COVID-19 has sent the researcher community into uncharted territory, with some struggling to find meaningful research experiences for students,” said executive director Lisa Porter. “This is an opportunity to support our researchers by generating creative ideas for helping students continue to have valuable research experiences, keep students engaged and excited about research, foster new networking opportunities, and serve as a new knowledge translation tool to grow and elevate the health research culture in Windsor-Essex.”

Organizers from WE-Spark will begin the discussion with a few ideas of their own and have invited four students to share how they have been staying involved in research over the past few months.

• Justin Senecal of the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry - Windsor Campus will share his experience leading a project looking at Barriers to Translational Research in Windsor.
• Ryan Palazzolo of the UWindsor Faculty of Science will showcase how to take an in-person community outreach activity and adapt it into an interactive virtual tool.
• Isabelle Hinch and Emily Mailloux of the University of Windsor Faculty of Science will demonstrate how students can work together virtually to develop lab skills training modules.

Participants will be invited to share their thoughts on how to engage students in meaningful research experiences. All ideas will be captured and posted on the WE-Spark website.

The event is open to everyone interested in creating meaningful research for students. Click here to register.