Borine Award Spring 2023

Each year, graduating psychology undergraduates complete a project allowing them to explore an area of interest. The Sharon Borine Top Capstone Award was created to acknowledge the students who produce outstanding senior projects. The award selection involved section leaders and faculty members nominating candidates, who are then evaluated and ranked by an ad-hoc panel of faculty members. 

Congratulations to the Spring 2023 recipients: Kayla Chan, Anna Slukvin, Morgan Hoffman, and Bailee O'reilly.

Kayla Chan was awarded the Top Honors Thesis Award with an award amount of $250 for the paper “Associations Between Psychological Factors, Objective Cognition, and Subjective Memory Complaints in Older Adults.” Under the guidance of Dr. Matt McGue, Chan explored the relationship between subjective memory complaints in older adults, objective cognitive function, and psychological processes. The research utilized data from the Minnesota Twin Registry to examine the link between self-reported depression, personality, loneliness, and memory complaints.

Chan is graduating in Spring 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a minor in Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience. During her time as an undergrad, Chan has developed an interest in aging and cognition. She has worked as a research assistant at the Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research (MCTFR) and at Dr. Adri Hughes’ Cognition, Aging, and Technology Lab. She was also a teaching assistant for Introduction to Research Methods. 

After graduating, Chan will be continuing her research journey by working as a research assistant in the Department of Neurology at the University of Minnesota. 

Anna Slukvin received a $250 award for first place for her paper “Opioid Withdrawal-Induced Anhedonia Measured by the Sucrose Preference Test.” This Capstone paper is an empirical research paper that drew from her most recent project worked on in the Gewirtz Lab, where she has been a member for six semesters.

Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Slukvin is set to graduate in Spring 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. She has been volunteering as a Clinic Receptionist at the Walk-In Counseling Center and has also been a teaching assistant for Counseling Skills Practicum I in the Family Social Science Department.  

In Fall 2023, Slukvin will be beginning a Master's program in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Texas at San Antonio, with the goal of becoming a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Texas. 

Morgan Hoffman is the recipient of the $150 second place Capstone Award for the paper titled “How Receiving Weight-Related Advice Causes Distress and Discomfort in College Students During Health and Wellness Visits.” Hoffman was mentored by Dr. Traci Mann. Her capstone is on the work done in the past year in Mann’s Health and Eating Lab, which investigated how people’s reactions to a wellness check-in differed between receiving standard weight-related, optimized, and no advice. Specifically, Hoffman explored how receiving weight-related advice caused distress and discomfort among college students compared to receiving no weight-related advice. 

Originally from Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, Hoffman initially came to the University of Minnesota on a premed track but discovered her passion for psychology in her second year. During her time at the university, she has been part of a sorority, going to sports games, and enjoying campus with her friends.

After graduating in Spring 2023, Hoffman plans to take a gap year or two to spend time with her family and friends. After these gap years, she plans to go to graduate school to obtain a master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling to therefore start her career in that field. 

Bailee O’Reilly received a third-place Capstone Award and a prize of $75 for the paper “Effectiveness of psychological interventions combined with physical rehabilitation on return to play outcomes in collegiate athletes following sports related injuries.” The inspiration for this work came from O’Reilly’s own experience recovering from injuries while being a collegiate athlete. His passion for sport psychology and physical therapy inspired him to explore the effectiveness of psychological interventions on return-to-play outcomes with injured collegiate athletes.

O’Reilly is from Goodhue, a town in Southeastern Minnesota, and is graduating in Spring 2023. His plans after graduation include starting graduate school at the University of Minnesota to work toward obtaining a doctorate in physical therapy. 

Composed by Madison Stromberg, communications assistant.