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HONORS EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROJECT PROPOSAL FORM

Complete this proposal prior to your projects start date and upload it in the UHP Database
(https://webapps.uc.edu/uchonorsstudent). Create a project (Add a new record) in the Tracking Project tab
and then upload your proposal document as an attachment. The deadline for submitting proposals is on the 5th of
each month.
While the quality of the proposal is most important, strong proposals are typically 3-4 pages in length (singlespaced). Please maintain the proposal format.
Basic Information
Full Name: Ericka Burchfield
UC Email: burchfee@mail.uc.edu
College: McMicken College of Arts and Sciences
Major: Chemistry
Title of Project: Undergraduate Biomedical Research Mentoring Program: Finding a Bio-Marker for Reading
Disability (Dyslexia) - a Neuroimaging Study using fMRI
Thematic Area (choose only one): Research
Expected Project Start Date: January 12, 2015
Expected Project End Date: April 30, 2015
Project Information
1. Provide a detailed abstract of your proposed honors experiential learning project.
Starting in the spring semester, I will be participating in the Undergraduate Biomedical Research
Mentoring Program by working in the Holland Lab in the General Pediatric Division at Cincinnati
Childrens Hospital and Medical Center under Dr. Tzipi Horowitz-Kraus. I will be assisting the
researchers in attempting to find a bio-marker that will help differentiate children with dyslexia from
those without the disease. If a bio-marker for this condition is found, it will create a more definitive and
objective way to diagnose dyslexia, thus improving the current methods of behavioral testing and
teachers reports, which are subjective and could thus result in an inaccurate diagnosis. My role in this
study will be to take part in neuroimaging studies, including assessing children for their reading and
cognitive abilities and collecting imaging data. I will also participate in behavioral and imaging data
analyses.
I will be working in the lab 8-10 hours per week for around 14 weeks. I will also spend around
an hour per week outside of the lab doing background reading to better prepare myself to continue the
project. The minimum number of hours that I estimate that I will spend on this project are 126 total
hours.
From this experience, I hope to gain a better understanding of how research in a professional
biomedical lab works, along with an understanding of basic lab techniques. I also hope to better
understand dyslexia and how it affects the brain. The relationships that I form while working in this lab
will also better prepare me to enter medical school or graduate school one day.

Clearly and thoroughly address how each of the following elements will be exhibited in your work:
2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within the Honors Thematic Area (identified above)
From this project, I hope to posses a well-developed awareness of literature from the field of
communication sciences and pediatric reading disabilities. I will collect background information relating

to these topics from both the University of Cincinnati library and Dr. Horowitz-Kraus. I will also read
several articles published by the Holland lab. In order to be successful in this project, I need to have a
basic knowledge of dyslexia and other reading disabilities and what effects these diseases cause in the
brain. I also need to become familiar with the research techniques I will be using, such as neuroimaging
studies and behavioral analyses.
I also hope to gain the ability to identify and apply appropriate methodologies to design a
research study, and collect and analyze data. Since the research study that I will be assisting with has
already been designed, I will carefully observe the techniques that the researchers have chosen and I will
interview my mentor about why these were the best choices for this particular study. I will also assess
the methods that I will be using to collect and analyze data, such as neuroimaging studies and behavioral
and imaging data analyses. I will analyze each method to determine where each excels and where each
has faults. I will also interview my mentor about why these methods were chosen.
Finally, I hope that this project will allow me to disseminate the research results and knowledge
gained from this study. I will be able to disseminate my results through a presentation in the Honors
Suite in April. The audience for my presentation will consist of other students participating in the
Undergraduate Biomedical Research Mentoring Program, along with their mentors and staff. This will
allow me to be able to present my findings to a group with a wide range of knowledge, which will truly
put my communication and dissemination skills to the test.
3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories (include reference list, as appropriate)
A. This project is deeply interconnected to my academic and professional goals. I plan to apply
to medical school, where participating is some kind of undergraduate research project is almost required.
The knowledge that I will gain from this project will be applicable on so many levels if I become a
physician. The research techniques that I learn will be essential if I intend to be a physician who spends
any portion of time on research, which is becoming more and more common in modern times. Also, I
intend to learn a lot about pediatric reading disabilities, which could assist me later if I go into a branch
of medicine that deals with this type of condition. Even if I become a general practitioner, I will most
likely treat someone with this disease at some point in my career, so any extra knowledge I have on the
subject will be extremely helpful.
My work in the Holland lab will also be extremely influential on a personal level. The
researchers that I meet and work with will become lifelong contacts that I will be able to network with.
This experience will look fantastic on anything that I apply to in the future, especially endeavors in the
field of health. I will learn research techniques that I will be able to use in the future, no matter what
career path I decide to choose. Although I am fairly confident that I want to be a physician, I could still
change my mind if the work that I do interests me in a special way. I will also gain professionalism and
communication skills and real on-the-job experience.
B. In order to prepare for this project, I will collect background information related to this
research study. I will specifically focus on a recent article co-authored by my mentor, DTI and fMRI
evidence supporting the reliance of reading comprehension on basic language networks (HorowitzKraus et al., 2014). This article provides an overview of the goals of the project. It also utilizes specific
terminology that I will need to become familiar with. It also cites technology, like DTI and fMRI, that I
will be working with throughout my time working in this lab. I chose to focus on this article, along with
others also referenced by my mentor, including, How Does the Brain Get Ready to Read: an fMRI
study (Horowitz-Kraus et al., 2014) and The effect of Learning on an Event-related Potential in
Adolescents with Dyslexia (Horowitz-Kraus et al., 2013). These articles, along with the academic
theories within them, provide substantial connections to the goals of the project. These articles along
with others that are influential to this study are referenced below.
4. Initiative, Independence, and/or Creativity

It took an incredible amount of initiative for me to even consider applying for this project, which
was first mentioned to me by my honors adviser, Kayti Kennard. After researching several of the
available projects, I chose three that interested me and seemed useful for the career path that I intend to
take. After receiving several offers, I ended up choosing this project because it seemed the most
interesting to me.
The skills that I possess that set me apart from other applicants are the fact that I am a very quick
learner, I have a great memory, and I have previous experience working with children and reading from
my many years spent volunteering at Cincinnati Childrens Hospital. My involvement will be different
from all other participants in the Undergraduate Biomedical Research Mentoring Program because I will
be the only student with this mentor working on this particular research study.
I will also be very independent throughout the course of this experiment. Although there isnt
much room for me to be creative, since the experiment has been previously designed by experts, I will
be on my own for much of the data collection and analysis that I will be doing. This requires a great deal
of maturity and hard work.
5. Reflection
I will be keeping a lab notebook throughout the semester, which I will update each week. This
notebook will include the results of experiments, relevant background reading, interviews conducted
with my mentor, and areas where I either excelled or failed during that week, among other things. This
notebook will be extremely helpful in assisting me to comprehend all of the information that I am taking
in. It will also be extremely useful in preparing my dissemination at the end of the project. I will also
write a reflection covering the techniques that I used each week. I hope that writing in the lab notebook
will spur me to ask my mentor questions about anything that I do not understand.
At the end of the semester, I will be writing a reflective essay over the entire project for my
Honors Portfolio. I will focus this essay on everything that the experience has taught me and how my
future career goals have been impacted.
6. Dissemination
I will be presenting my research results and the knowledge I have gained from this experience in
the Honors Suite in April. My audience will be all of the other students from the Undergraduate
Biomedical Research Mentoring Program and their mentors, along with my own mentor. This
presentation will determine how much I actually learned from the project. If I am able to educate others
about this topic, then I have truly learned what I have intended to. Being able to present my findings to a
group consisting of both my peers and experts will greatly enhance my communication and
professionalism skills.
7. Project Advisor(s)
Tzipi Horowitz-Kraus, PhD (Postdoctoral Fellow)
General Pediatric Division, CCHMC
Tzipi.Horowitz-Kraus@cchmc.org
8. Budget (if applicable)
This research opportunity is an unpaid position. I will be working in the lab 8-10 hours a week
for 14 weeks, from January 12th to April 30th (excluding Spring Break). Time spent doing background
reading and preparing for various presentations will also add up to around 1 hour a week, totaling a

minimum of 126 hours. During these hours I will thus be unable to work at a part-time job, so I would
like to obtain an honors grant for my time.
Resources to Explore Further:
Horowitz-Kraus, T., & Holland, S.K. DTI and fMRI evidence supporting the reliance of reading
comprehension on basic language networks. (March 2014). New Horizons in Human Brain Imaging: A
Focus on Neuroimaging of Brain Development, Hawaii.
Horowitz-Kraus, T., Vannest, J. J., Dewitt, T., & Holland, S. K. How Does the Brain Get Ready
to Read: an fMRI study. Pediatric Academic Societies, Vancouver, BC, Canada. May,3-7th, 2014.
Kraus, D., & Horowitz-Kraus, T. (October 30- November 2, 2013). The effect of Learning on an
Event-related Potential in Adolescents with Dyslexia. The 42nd Annual Meeting of the Child Neurology,
Austin, TX.
Holland, S.K & Horowitz-Kraus, T. (November 6-9th 2013). Does brain activation in the front
and the back during narrative comprehension facilitate the development of proficient reading. Literacy
& Learning Conference, IDAs 64th Annual Conference, in New Orleans, LA
Horowitz-Kraus, T., & Holland, S.K. (November 6-9th 2013). Different orthographies, same
mechanism? Training the dyslexics brain to read like a typical reader? - an EEG and fMRI Study.
Literacy & Learning Conference, IDAs 64th Annual Conference, in New Orleans, LA