Goal
Bridges: Spotlight on Emerging Research serves the PBA community as a platform for both students and faculty to discuss their current and ongoing research within their fields. This publication provides PBA members the opportunity to showcase their research to a broad audience to connect with the academic community at large. Bridges focuses on a juried selection process, which allows for an interdisciplinary approach to spotlighting the commitment to academic scholarship within Palm Beach Atlantic University.
The goal of this publication is to provide context for discussion across disciplines and fields of study. Rather than a complete academic journal, this publication serves as gray literature for an overview of the research work being done by students and faculty. Bridges hopes to act as a stepping-stone for future research endeavors as authors continue to reflect on their emerging research through broader contexts.
While Bridges not only provides a window into the active research and scholarship of the PBA community for a broader audience, this publication also encourages rising students and faculty to continue their research work and be encouraged by others who are interested in their discussions for the building of connections across all disciplines.
Dr. Kimberly Bain
Assistant Professor of English,
Editor-in-Chief
Dr. David Compton
Professor of Psychology;
Chair, Office of Academic Research
Associate Editor
Dr. Ana Jaramillo De Graham
Assistant Professor of Counseling
Faculty Board Member/Reviewer
Dr. Don Mcculloch
Professor of Psychology;
Chair, Psychology Department
Faculty Board Member/Reviewer
Brandon Butzberger
M.S. Counseling Graduate Student
Student Board Member/Reviewer
Hannah Hutchins
M.S. Health Science (Biomedical Science)
Candidate
Student Board Member/Reviewer
Jacob Lowinger
M.S. Counseling Graduate Student
Student Board Member (ex officio)
Historical Overview
In the summer of 2025, Drs. Kimberly Bain and David Compton began developing the idea for a tangible reflection of the research being presented at the annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference held at PBA each spring.
Hoping to provide a spotlight on the valuable research being conducted at PBA, Drs. Bain and Compton proposed the idea of an interdisciplinary publication that would allow both students and faculty to discuss their research as conference proceedings.
Additionally, this would provide opportunities for QI grant applicants to submit their discussions to this publication.
Under the direction of Dr. John Simons, Vice Provost, Drs. Bain and Compton worked together as editors to develop a production plan to align the presentations of the Interdisciplinary Research Conference with the discussions of the proposed publication.
With guidance from a team of faculty and student editorial board members and reviewers, development for the full plan of production began mid-fall of 2025.
The Bridges team looks forward to the future of its publication as it finalizes its first interactive, digital issue in the spring of 2026.