Mechanical engineering student Hapaki Lorenzo ’26 spent the morning of Oct. 2 drawing about polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollutants with colored chalk on the sidewalk behind the John Ireland statue at the University of St. Thomas. He is one of six students who participated in the 2024 Sidewalk Symposium, illustrating their original research through chalk art on north campus.
All student researchers presenting and drawing in the symposium were mentored by St. Thomas faculty across various academic disciplines. The students spent one to two hours creating their pieces on the sidewalk for the one-day event hosted by the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. Several days later, under clear skies, the art is still on display.
Laura Bru, the program director of UROP and Excel! Research Scholars at St. Thomas, provided insight on the importance of communication with “the results of research, scholarship and creative activity.”
“With chalk art in a public setting, any student researcher can decide to draw, and any member of our community or visitor to our campus gets the chance to learn a little more about the incredible range of questions St. Thomas students are exploring,” Bru said.
Participants of this year’s symposium, now in its sixth year, included Celeste Conteh, Colin Fjelsted, Nayeli Garcia Genis, Hapaki Lorenzo, Alejandro Vega and Rhiannon Wilson.
Their sidewalk art highlights a variety of research topics, from the long-term effects of COVID-19 (Conteh) to “Ultra-High-Performance Concrete” (Fjelsted).
Genis, a 2024 Excel! Research Scholar who drew a butterfly resting atop a bright pink brain, aimed to depict the mental health barriers Latine communities face in America, bringing attention to culturally sensitive and supportive strategies.
“As the Latinx population continues to grow, developing targeted, culturally sensitive mental health strategies is crucial for improving access and outcomes for this vital community,” Genis wrote in the 2024 Sidewalk Symposium profile collection.
St. Thomas students consulted with Twin Cities artist Shawn McCann regarding the image design for their projects. McCann provided design insight and chalk techniques to the students during the symposium event.
Celeste Conteh, who is also a 2024 Excel! Research Scholar, is the student who centered her sidewalk art on her research about long COVID, a chronic condition that she said is currently under researched and underrepresented.
“Honestly, the chalk art was super fun. Messy, but fun to do,” Conteh said. “I found it to be very unconventional and pushed me to think about a new way to represent my work.”
Looking forward, Bru hopes that the vibrant Sidewalk Symposium will encourage more students to learn about and participate in UROP. “It’s also my hope that the fun and creativity of this medium will convert a sense of the passion and creativity students can put into their research, and encourage more students to seek out a research experience before they graduate,” Bru said.
