COSAM News Articles 2022 March Auburn’s Alabama Gamma chapter of Alpha Epsilon Delta attends national convention, wins multiple awards

Auburn’s Alabama Gamma chapter of Alpha Epsilon Delta attends national convention, wins multiple awards

Published: 03/28/2022

By: Leslie Leak

Students representing Auburn University’s Alabama Gamma chapter of Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED) recently attended the 44^th Biennial AED Convention in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 17-19, bringing home multiple awards.

Accompanied by Beverley Childress, Auburn AED Chapter Advisor and Pre-Health Professions Director in the College of Sciences and Mathematics (COSAM), Auburn’s AED chapter attendees accepted a first-place award for Large Chapter Activities - Region 3.

Christopher Purvis, a senior majoring in biomedical sciences and president of Auburn’s AED chapter, received a first-place award in AED’s research poster competition.

Childress was presented a plaque in recognition of over 20 years of service to AED and having served as Region 3 director for five years. Childress has been involved with AED since 1999 and has attended nearly every national convention over the years.

“I am very proud of the hard work of our chapter members,” said Childress. “There were 25 chapters represented and over 225 people in attendance at this year’s convention. To hear our school’s name called multiple times for awards was an honor and speaks to the dedication of our chapter members.”

This year’s convention featured Dr. Mathew Crawford, Pre-Health Instructor at Texas Christian University, and Dr. Chinekwu Obidoa, Associate Professor of Global Health and Africana studies at Mercer University, as its keynote speakers. Convention activities included informative breakout sessions, advisor meet and greets, a research poster competition, showboat dinner cruise, awards banquet and dance party.

“The 2022 AED national convention was a blast,” said Purvis. “From the showboat dinner to the dance party, we made a lot of fun memories and met a lot of great people. My favorite part of the convention was the poster competition. It was neat getting to see the research being done by AED members at other universities.”

Ayden King, a junior majoring in biomedical sciences, said it was exciting to be around students from other universities who also plan to go into medicine. “Through the efforts of the national president and officers, we as chapter members were given an excellent opportunity to network with others in the field, learn new skills related to medicine, see exciting research being done by other schools, and represent Auburn University in a meaningful way,” said King. “My favorite parts of the convention were the suture workshop and the keynote speaker presentation by Dr. Obidoa on her HIV/AIDS research in the Southeast. I am proud to be a part of an organization such as AED, and I am glad, through the efforts of so many people, our officers can be represented in this way.”

AED is a national honor society for students preparing for careers in medicine, dental medicine, osteopathic medicine, optometric medicine, physical therapy, pharmacy, and allied health professions. It is an affiliated society of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a member of the Association of College Honor Societies.

AED’s chapter at Auburn University, Alabama Gamma, provides the opportunity for students at Auburn to become educated about the doctoral and allied health professions, from the responsibilities and daily routine of various health care providers to how to become a competitive applicant to professional schools.

Auburn’s AED chapter accepts the first-place award for large chapter activities from AED President Dr. Sorent Taylor. Pictured L to R: Reid Burleson, Hannah Ryan, Christopher Purvis, Beverley Childress, Ayden King, Dr. Sorent Taylor and Kelliann Donovan.

Auburn senior Christopher Purvis receives the first-place award from AED’s research poster competition.

Auburn’s AED chapter is shown with Beverley Childress receiving her service recognition award.

Auburn’s AED chapter attends the General Jackson Showboat Dinner Cruise as part of the convention’s activities. Pictured L to R (if needed): Reid Burleson, Hannah Ryan, Kelliann Donovan, Beverley Childress, Christopher Purvis and Ayden King.

Auburn’s AED chapter attends the General Jackson Showboat Dinner Cruise as part of the convention’s activities. Pictured L to R: Reid Burleson, Hannah Ryan, Kelliann Donovan, Beverley Childress, Christopher Purvis and Ayden King.