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CUR Statement on COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

CUR 2020 Biennial In-Person Goes Virtual

Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and with the safety of our members uppermost in mind, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) has regretfully decided to cancel the in-person 2020 Biennial Conference. However, please mark your calendars for a virtual 2020 Biennial Conference to take place during a similar timeframe. The Executive Board, Biennial Committee, Conference Host, and National Office recognize that the power of the CUR community is in our ability to support each other and share knowledge and resources to help us through these trying times. We are working on converting our in-person conference into a virtual one and will be excited to interact with all of you in this new space. 

Details, schedule, and registration will be released on Monday, May 4, 2020. For those who are currently registered for the in-person conference, please watch out for further communications on your registration within the next 7 business days. For any further questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to cur@cur.org. 

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The CUR national office and leadership team continue to keep updated on what our health authorities are advising. We understand that you still may have reservations about committing to attend a conference given the evolving situation with the COVID-19 pandemic. 

We encourage all of our undergraduate research community to check out our member resource page. We are making daily updates to bring you the latest resources to help navigate your way through these times. From online webinars that help us understand how to move forward in this time of change to ‘how to’ videos on converting to virtual teaching and learning, this page was built for our evolving undergraduate community. 

From all of us at CUR’s National Office, we sympathize with everything you’re going through right now. We know the pain of cancelled events, graduations, research presentations, and time cut short with friends, students, mentors, and colleagues. Remember to take care of yourself. CUR is here for you. 

I AM CUR. YOU ARE CUR. WE WILL ALWAYS BE CUR. 

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Posters on the Hill

The Council on Undergraduate Research regrets to inform you that we have cancelled our in-person event, Posters on the Hill, originally set to take place April 20-21, 2020. After much consideration, it is within the community’s best interest, the health of attendees, and to our national office staff, that we do not proceed with our scheduled event and remain compliant to the guidelines of the District of Columbia Department of Public Health, CDC, and WHO at this time.

UPDATE: The CUR National Office has been researching ways to honor the many students’ achievements of being accepted to the 2020 Posters on the Hill celebration. Though the in-person event has sadly been cancelled, we are organizing a virtual poster session to take place on April 21 via Twitter. Accepted students and faculty were notified on March 25 of this change. We hope our community can gather around them and celebrate by following #POH2020 and #POHGoesVirtual on Twitter. If you have any questions, please email Liz Hains. 

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National Conference on Undergraduate Research

As of March 11, 2020, Montana State University, in conjunction with the Council on Undergraduate Research, regretfully has canceled the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) to have taken place on March 26-28, 2020. In working with local and state COVID-19 task forces, we take this step out of an abundance of caution. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

For registrants and graduate fair representatives who withdrew their registrations prior to the event cancellation on March 11, the registration fee will be refunded after the $50.00 cancellation fee is assessed in accordance with the refund policy states on the NCUR 2020 website. 

For registrants and graduate fair representatives whose registration was voided by the cancellation of the event, a full refund will be provided. Fees paid for excursions through the “Extras Store” will be refunded in full. Refunds will be processed within approximately two weeks.

For additional questions and information, please refer to the NCUR 2020 website. 

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Information on COVID-19

Founded in 1978, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) focuses on providing high-quality and collaborative undergraduate research, scholarly, and creative activity. Among the many activities and networking opportunities that CUR provides, the organization also offers support for the professional growth of faculty and administrators through expert-designed institutes, conferences, and a wide-range of volunteer positions. The CUR community, made up of nearly 700 institutions and 13,000 individuals, continues to provide a platform for discussion and other resources related to mentoring, connecting, and creating relationships centered around undergraduate research. CUR’s advocacy efforts are also a large portion of its work as they strive to strengthen support for undergraduate research. Its continued growth in connections with representatives, private foundations, government agencies, and campuses world-wide provides value to its members and gives voice to undergraduate research. CUR is committed to inclusivity and diversity in all of its activities and our community.

CUR focuses on giving a voice to undergraduate research with learning through doing. It provides connections to a multitude of campuses and government agencies, all while promoting networking and professional growth to its community.