DSU Research Week Highlights Curiosity, Teamwork, and Discovery
From March 17 to 20, Dakota State University hosted its annual Research Week, a four-day series of events celebrating student and faculty research. Held across several campus buildings, the week offered a look into the variety of work being done in data science, cybersecurity, education, and health.
Monday, March 17 – Data Analytics Competition
Research Week began with the third annual Data Analytics Competition, held Monday afternoon in East Hall 100. DSU students faced off against teams from universities across South Dakota and Minnesota, including the University of South Dakota and South Dakota School of Mines.
Sponsored by Sanford Health, the competition challenged students to analyze a real healthcare claims dataset and forecast monthly volume and spending over six months. The task tested their ability to clean data, build models, and think critically.Four DSU Teams participated and performed.
First Place ($2,500): Normalized Pulsars – Tara Freeburg, Irina Pecherskaia, Andrew Smith, Cora Heidinger, Joelle Malacko (Advisor: Dr. Andy Behrens)
Second Place ($1,500): Not Artificial Intelligent – Justin Tamondong, Amy Collins, Nathan Pabst (Advisor: Dr. David Zeng)
Third Place ($1,000): Global Analytics – Uyaruun Purevdorj, Ashwani Verma, Sarun Bhatta (Advisor: Dr. David Zeng)
Tuesday–Thursday: Doctoral Residency
From Tuesday through Thursday, DSU doctoral students gathered for in-person Doctoral Residency Sessions, hosted in MadLabs 112 and Karl Mundt Library Room 201. Sessions ran most of the day—from 9:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday, and 9 a.m. to noon Thursday.
Students in the program presented research proposals, defended dissertations, and held one-on-one sessions with faculty. The residency gave online students a rare chance to connect in person and share progress on long-term projects.
Doctoral participants also attended a special lunch and talk with Will Cromarty, founder of Kirkwall Defense and winner of the 2024 Governor’s Giant Vision competition. Hosted by the Paulson Cyber and Economic Development Center, the session explored the value of turning research into practical solutions.
Thursday, March 20 – Annual Research Symposium
The week concluded with the Annual Research Symposium on Thursday afternoon. From 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., students and faculty presented posters and gave talks throughout the Beacom Collaboration Space and surrounding classrooms.
The symposium covered a wide range of topics—from AI-generated political ads and acoustic research to antimicrobial studies and education policy. Each project reflected hands-on work and careful thinking, whether through coding, lab work, interviews, or statistical analysis.
“These students are doing serious work,” said one faculty member.
Jay Alexander, a recent graduate, said:
“My research with Dr. Sathoff was the most meaningful part of my degree.”
Graduate and faculty projects included:
- Chatbot design using small language models
- Tracking blockchain trends through Twitter
- Studying digital access in Native American communities
- AI in radiology and healthcare
- Cybersecurity and censorship in libraries
DSU faculty also presented in conference-style sessions. These classroom-based talks created space for longer discussions and collaboration between departments.
Research That Connects to Real Life
Faculty-led research featured throughout the week included:
- Dr. Cherie Noteboom’s study on AI’s role in radiology and decision-making
- Dr. Chad Fenner’s work on internet access in Native communities
- Dr. Youssef Harrath’s project on corn price forecasting using machine learning
- A collaborative project using synthetic archaeological data to train computer vision systems
Each project balanced academic research with real-world applications.
The symposium ended with refreshments and a keynote from Dennis Eger. Faculty, students, and visitors lingered in the Beacom halls to talk, exchange ideas, and reflect on the week.
DSU’s Research Week was the amalgamation of students and faculty working together. From data to design, from policy to programming, the projects reflect time, effort, and the drive to solve real problems. It’s a reminder that research doesn’t have to be distant or abstract. Sometimes, it starts with a good idea, and a space to work on it.
