A Kentucky State University student presented research at the 2026 Southern Rural Sociological Association.
Themed “Distilling Change: Rural Roots & River Currents in the New South,” the 57th annual conference took place Feb. 1-2, 2026, in Louisville, Kentucky.
This conference brought practitioners, scholars, students and storytellers together at a shared platform to explore rural livelihoods and adaptation, amplifying voices of all backgrounds.
Sienna Stewart, an undergraduate researcher from the School of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Kentucky State University, presented an oral presentation titled “Assessing the Influence of Farming Experience on Farmers’ Resilience to Weather-Induced Damages in the Caribbean.”
This collaborative project among Kentucky State University, Langston University and Prairie View A&M University engages students in experiential research to identify neighborhoods, towns and cities affected by natural disasters and to explore how these disasters have influenced local agricultural food production.
As a first-year undergraduate majoring in agricultural systems at Kentucky State, Stewart has developed a foundational understanding of research areas, connecting the dots and working independently on data entry and coding, as well as basic analysis and interpretation. She is also one of the most active undergraduate researchers in the STEM/Agriculture Undergraduate Research Assistant Program, according to program leaders.
“I have grown a lot as a student and a professional. I loved having Ms. Shristi Adhikari as a mentor and how her instructions are clear and how she prioritizes me despite having her other commitments as well,” Stewart said.
“At the same time, guidance from Dr. Buddhi R. Gyawali has provided me with invaluable perspective and support. Having received combined mentorship from both of them has been an enriching experience, enabling me to learn statistics, review articles, and code and analyze survey data,” she said.
