By UNIVERSITY RELATIONS
Elizabeth “Beth” Miller, an FHSU Online student from Cheyenne, Wyo., is the 2021 winner of the Lynn Haggard Undergraduate Library Research Award.
This prestigious award recognizes excellence in undergraduate research that incorporates the use of Fort Hays State University’s Forsyth Library resources and demonstrates sophisticated information literacy skills.
“It is a deep honor to have my work and research recognized with this award,” Miller said. “It is my desire to merge my teaching degree with my web development degree and create websites and apps for education.”
Miller will receive a $500 cash award for her research project, “Effectiveness of Curriculum-Based Technology in Student Learning.” As a senior majoring in information networking and telecommunications, Miller completed her project in the Research Methods in Informatics course taught by Dr. Ginger Loggins, assistant professor of informatics.
“Beth realized that studies looked at online educational materials in general but hadn’t compared online and offline materials directly created for a class. Her argument for the study shows her creativity in finding an unexplored area,” Loggins said.
The award honors Lynn Haggard, retired Forsyth librarian, and her 18 years of service to the FHSU community.
“With the support of generous donors like Lynn Haggard, Forsyth Library is in a position to highlight the library’s role as a partner in student learning at FHSU,” said Leslie Haas, dean of Forsyth Library. “This award gives us an opportunity to recognize students who have learned that good quality academic research is not possible without taking advantage of the vast resources and services the library offers.”
Students who apply for the award provide a copy of their research project, a bibliography, and a reflective essay detailing the search process and lessons learned. A committee of librarians, graduate students, and faculty from each of the five colleges evaluated the materials from 26 applicants.
“This year we had more applications than ever before,” said Elizabeth Downing-Turner, digital curation librarian and chair of the selection committee. “Beth’s reflective essay really stood out from the crowd. This is quite an achievement.” The research of the winner will be preserved and accessible in the FHSU Scholars Repository at scholars.fhsu.edu.