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Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research

Volume 7 (2015)

With this volume, The Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research (JIUR) enters its seventh year of publication. From the inception, our intent has been to make this journal interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary in approach, publishing original and review papers, including literature reviews, book reviews, film reviews, position papers, empirical work, experiential reflections, and original quantitative and qualitative research. By offering undergraduates the chance to express their ideas to a broader audience, we seek to demonstrate the strength of undergraduate scholarship at Southern Adventist University and our continuing focus on academic excellence.

Beyond Southern Adventist University, our journal is distributed to academic libraries, universities, individual subscribers, and through Knowledge Exchange, which is an online website used to collect and showcase the intellectual work of students and professors on campus to a worldwide audience. Above our expectations, volumes one through six have been accessed tens of thousands of times around the world.

The compilation of this journal would not have been possible without our graduate assistant, Hayley Baker. This year she has built upon past experience and has been instrumental in producing our seventh volume which reflects the scholarship and quality that makes our university proud. Utilizing the knowledge and experience from publishing Volume 7, Hayley is already playing a critical role in the upcoming publication of The Journal of Interdisciplinary Graduate Research which will provide the opportunity for our graduate students to submit their research for publication. We have made a commitment to the university to have Volume 1 published by August of 2015. Thank you, Hayley, for consistently high quality work.

Because our journal is interdisciplinary, I am afforded the special privilege of working with an outstanding editorial board that reflects the immense talent we have on our campus: Dr. Linda Crumley, Journalism and Communication; Dr. Keith Snyder, Biology; Dr. Rick Norskov, Biology; Dr. Mark Peach, History and Southern Scholars; Dr. Kristie Wilder, Social Work; and Dr. Ruth Williams, Psychology. I, too, am pleased and grateful for our university, especially the School of Education and Psychology, for continued support, encouragement, and most of all the commitment to academic excellence that affords this publication.

If there is a contingent within your university that is interested in producing such a journal, our step-by-step manual would serve as an invaluable guide. I would gladly share it with you for the asking (rcoombs@southern.edu).

Robert S. Coombs, D.Min., Ph.D.

Editor-in-Chief