Office of Undergraduate Research

OUR Staff

AMY CHILDRESS, PHD

Director
childres@purdue.edu
765-496-3590

Dr. Amy Childress is director of the Purdue Office of Undergraduate Research.  She has held numerous administrative positions at the university supporting education at the K-12, undergraduate, and graduate student levels.  She most recently spent several years with Purdue’s Discovery Learning Research Center, where her work involved managing undergraduate and graduate research internship programs, contributing to grant proposal development, and coordinating multiple sponsored research projects.  She has co-authored manuscripts and presentations on experiential learning program administration and evaluation.  She has also co-edited a book addressing the transformation of undergraduate STEM education for the 21st Century.

JJ SADLER, MS

Associate Director - Student-Focused Programming
jjsadler@purdue.edu
765-494-6505

JJ Sadler joined Purdue in September 2017 in the Office of Undergraduate Research. Before coming to Purdue, JJ had served as the Assistant Director of Career Services – Internships & Undergraduate Research and the Experiential Learning Team Chairman at a liberal arts college, Illinois College. He received his Master’s degree in Environmental Horticulture with an emphasis on Experiential Learning from the University of Florida while mentoring undergraduate researchers and his Bachelor’s degree in Biology/Chemistry from Illinois College where he was an undergraduate researcher. When he is not helping prospective and current undergraduate researchers at Purdue, he enjoys watching movies at theatres, reading sci-fi novels, and spending time with his family in Lafayette.

CRAIG ZYWICKI, MEd

Associate Director - Faculty-Focused Programming
czywicki@purdue.edu
765-496-1452

Craig Zywicki joined the Office of Undergraduate Research as Associate Director in March 2022. He has >20 years of experience in higher education at four different institutions, with responsibilities specialized in: research/assessment, teaching and learning, and holistic student development.

In this role with the OUR, Craig supports mentors of undergraduate researcher experiences across an array of topics inclusive of URE program management, URE proposal development and support, mentoring and training development, and research on UREs.

ANGIE WELSHIMER

Operations Manager
aseldrid@purdue.edu
765-494-6503

Angie joined the Office of Undergraduate Research in September 2017.  She spent a year in Digital Education at Purdue and prior to that 13 years working for Aramark, a management company in Lebanon, IN.  When not working, she enjoys spending time with family and friends and everything outdoors.

Seeking 2024-25 Student Workers

Application review begins August 20, 2024

Job Application Link

Job Summary

The Purdue Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) is seeking an undergraduate marketing intern to engage different audiences in telling the story of undergraduate researchers, research mentors, and the programs and events that highlight research. The marketing intern is expected to plan, create, and schedule a marketing plan that includes social media, campus digital screens, and flyers. The following duties are envisioned while working with an associate director in the OUR:

  • Publish at least three social media posts across three platforms (Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram) per week focusing on researcher profiles, resources, and events.
  • Analyze social media metrics to make recommendations on upcoming posts and how to engage with the audience.
  • Engage with campus partners via social media to continue building our presence in these spaces
  • Create short articles highlighting experiences of students, faculty, and staff relating to undergraduate research.
  • Design graphics to be used on social media, campus digital screens, and flyers for upcoming OUR events and program deadlines.
  • Utilize Purdue brand standards to ensure compliance with visual and language expectations.
  • Examine what other departments and institutions are doing through marketing practices.
  • Support the OUR during events with real-time posts and images on social media and with on-site planning and implementation.
  • Average of 8 hours per week is anticipated.
  • Compensation is $13/hour.

Experience

Expected

  • Student with marketing experience and/or marketing coursework
  • Social media experience – especially with Instagram
  • Self-starting attitude with experience working on multiple projects at a time
  • Creative spirit that can appreciate parameters of brand guidelines and language tone

Preferred

  • Experience with Trello and/or Marq
  • Digital photography and/or photo editing abilities
  • Federal Work Study eligibility

Learning Outcomes

As the OUR Marketing Intern, the student will be able to demonstrate the following outcomes:

  • Produce creative graphics that follow established brand standards for digital use
  • Develop written summaries of relevant people and events in long- and short-form
  • Target messaging based on platform or need while distinguishing between different audiences
  • Develop a social media plan balancing needs and opportunities with general communications
  • Analyze the success of a social media plan using metrics and engagement

Job Application Link

Job Summary

The Purdue Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) is seeking an Undergraduate Course Grader to help provide feedback and initial point distribution for various online courses the OUR hosts. The courses are for students who are interested in getting involved with undergraduate research and for those just starting out in their research career. The following duties are envisioned while working with an associate director in the OUR:

  • Complete mandatory trainings to maintain compliance with policies such as FERPA
  • Review submitted work and compare to rubrics
  • Provide initial feedback and scoring that will be checked by course instructors to ensure accuracy
  • Submit any recommended changes needed for the course rubrics, content, etc. to help prevent common mistakes within assignments
  • Average of 8 hours per week is anticipated but will vary based on the time of semester when assignments are due.
  • Compensation is $14/hour.

Experience

Expected

  • Enjoy supporting peers through constructive feedback
  • Previous experience providing feedback to peers or learning how to provide feedback (this can be non-class or non-formal programs)

Preferred

  • Students who have an undergraduate research or creative endeavor background
  • Students with previous formal teaching or learning experiences (e.g., teaching assistant, supplemental instructor, or student teacher)
  • Federal Work Study eligibility

Learning Outcomes

As the OUR Undergraduate Course Grader, the student will be able to demonstrate the following outcomes:

  • Evaluate submitted course assignments and discussions using established rubrics
  • Provide constructive feedback to learners through the university’s LMS (Brightspace)
  • Demonstrate an ability to work independently through self-motivation while contributing to established expectations
Council of Undergraduate Research Member logo
Students: Schedule an Appointment