Student research, scholarship and creative accomplishments will be on display April 8 as the Bemidji State University campus gathers for its 27th Annual Student Achievement Conference.

The conference includes more than two dozen oral presentations and 50 poster presentations from a broad spectrum of academic disciplines, in addition to art and design exhibits. The in-person conference will be accompanied by an online poster exhibit, which anyone can visit through GatherTown. Submissions for presentation are still being accepted for this year.

For the third time, this year’s Student Achievement Conference also will include a Unified basketball experience in the Gillett Wellness Center. Unified is a Special Olympics program that promotes inclusion through sport. Unified sports create opportunities for people of all abilities to compete and break through stereotypes.

A complete list of presenters and presentation topics will be available on the conference’s website closer to the date of the event. All Student Achievement Conference activities and events are free and open to the public.

Keynote Address: Dr. Christopher J. Waller

Dr. Christopher J. Waller, one of seven members of the Federal Reserve System’s Washington, D.C.-based Board of Governors and a Bemidji State University alumnus, will deliver this year’s Student Achievement Conference keynote address.

Waller will discuss how his background and experience at Bemidji State helped prepare him for a leadership role in the Federal Reserve System during the conference’s opening ceremony, which begins at 1 p.m. in the upper Hobson Union’s Beaux Arts Ballroom.

Waller took office as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on December 18, 2020, to fill an unexpired term ending January 31, 2030.

Prior to his appointment, Waller had served as executive vice president and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis since 2009.

In addition to his experience in the Federal Reserve System, Waller served as a professor and the Gilbert F. Schaefer Chair of Economics at the University of Notre Dame. He was also a research fellow with Notre Dame’s Kellogg Institute for International Studies. From 1998 to 2003, Waller was a professor and the Carol Martin Gatton Chair of Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics at the University of Kentucky. During that time, he was also a research fellow at the Center for European Integration Studies at the University of Bonn. From 1992 to 1994, he served as the director of graduate studies at Indiana University’s Department of Economics, where he also served as associate professor and an assistant professor.

Waller received his bachelor’s degree in economics from Bemidji State University and his master’s and doctorate degrees from Washington State University.

Learn more about the Federal Reserve.

Student Achievement Conference: Schedule of Events

10–11:30 a.m. — Oral Presentations; Memorial Hall

10 a.m.–noon — Unified Basketball Extravaganza; Gillett Wellness Center

11:30 a.m.–1 p.m. — Fry Bread Taco Sale; American Indian Resource Center. Proceeds benefit BSU’s Council of Indian Students.

1–2 p.m. — Student Achievement Conference Opening Ceremony; Beaux Arts Ballroom, upper Hobson Union

2–3 p.m. — Poster Presentations; Beaux Arts Ballroom

3-4 p.m. — Student Activities Leadership Recognition; Beaux Arts Ballroom

BSU recognizes outstanding student leaders.

4-5 p.m. — Oral Presentations & Panels; Memorial Hall

5 p.m. — School of Music recital; Main Theater, Bangsberg Fine Arts Complex

Vocal and instrumental recital featuring BSU School of Music students.