UW-Platteville undergrads use summer stipends to research history, social media, ag, sports gambling

Civil War veterans. Sports betting. Bovine fertility.

UW-Platteville's 2026 Summer Undergraduate Scholars walked family, friends and mentors through a breadth of research in capstone presentations Monday in the Markee Pioneer Student Center, showcasing how they spent the last eight weeks honing skills they'll need to excel in graduate school and beyond. 

"In a time when it's easy to reach for feelings like despair and cynicism, these students fill me with nothing but hope and pride," Dr. Hannah Korell, an assistant English professor who doubles as UW-Platteville's undergraduate research coordinator, said as she introduced the scholars. 

The Summer Undergraduate Scholars Program, or SUSP, is designed to help students develop the research and analytical skills they'll need as they continue their education beyond a four-year degree or enter the workplace. According to the Council on Undergraduate Research, allowing undergrads to dig deeply into their interest areas bolsters mentoring relationships with faculty, increases retention and graduation rates, leads to increased enrollment in graduate courses and develops critical thinking, creativity, problem-solving abilities and intellectual independence.

SUSP program leaders choose 10 ...