College of Education Image of Research Competition 2024-2025

This event is designed as an effort to support the annual Image or Research Competition at Illinois State University and a precursor event for undergraduate and graduate students in the College of Education. The COE event, like the University-wide competition, invites graduate and undergraduate students to create or capture one compelling static image of their research to share with the public along with a brief narrative (150 words maximum) that explains how the image relates to their research. The competition gives students the opportunity to engage creatively with their research, share behind-the-scenes views of their research processes, or portray their scholarship in visual form. Submit your application

The Image

Static images may take any form, including photographs, drawings, data visualizations, or digital creations, but they must be created by the student. The submission must be an original, static image that represents your research subject, process, or findings. It may represent your research either concretely or abstractly. Photographs (taken by the researcher), microscopy, drawings, digital images, data visualization, graphics are all permissible, however the image should not include a substantial amount of text. For instance, an infographic is acceptable if the research is communicated primarily through imagery rather than words.

The submission must be original—that is, created by the student researcher. If the submission includes imagery taken from another source, the student must have permission to use it. AI generated images are permissible but require additional explanation as a part of the application process.

The Research

Every discipline has standards for scholarly exploration and contributions. At Illinois State, student research is defined broadly as any mentored investigation or creative inquiry that seeks to contribute to scholarly knowledge. Students from all degree programs in the College of Education can compete in the College of Education Image of Research Competition. The research can be based on course-based projects, independent study, thesis, or dissertation research, both on and off-campus.

The Competition

Any undergraduate or graduate student currently enrolled in a degree or certificate program in the College of Education and in good academic standing may submit an entry. Each eligible person may submit only one entry. No group entries are allowed.

All entries will be evaluated by a judge, external to the College of Education. Finalists’ entries may be displayed throughout DeGarmo Hall and on COE websites. Winners will receive monetary awards of up to $150; First place $150, Second place $100, People Choice $100. All entries are due by 11:59 PM on November 1st. Judging will take place the week of Nov 4th and winners will be announced on Nov. 11th.

The College of Education Image of Research Competition is sponsored by College of Education Dean’s Office in partnership with the Mary and Jean Borg Center for Reading and Literacy, and the Office of Student Research.

The Workshops

The Mary and Jean Borg Center for Reading and Literacy will be holding optional workshops designed to help student researchers answer the question: How do you capture your research in a single image? Students are invited to attend any their schedules allow and are not required to attend all of them. All workshops will be held in DeGarmo 307 (Studio Teach). The schedule is as follows:

• Sunday, Oct. 6, 5-7pm, Conceptualizing an Image of Research: Learn how to represent important elements of your work in a compelling image.
• Tuesday, Oct. 8, 5-7pm, Composing an Image of Research: Learn about elements of composition and how to use them when capturing or creating your image.
• Monday, Oct. 21, 5-7pm, Feedback Workshop and Writing Abstracts: Bring your image and receive feedback from peers so that your work stands out to the judges! Learn how to write an effective abstract.

The University Competition

You are encouraged to participate in the larger university-wide Image of Research Competition. Many of the rules are the same and you can use to same image or enter a new image in the University competition. Please refer to the full competition details for detailed information about the University Competition.

Questions

If you have any questions about this competition, please contact Dr. Ryan Brown. If you have any questions about the workshops, please contact Dr. Robyn Seglem. If you have any questions about the University Image of Research competition, please contact Dr. Gina Hunter.