It was a big day for Culverhouse students at the 2026 Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Conference held April 14-15 in the Bryant Conference Center.
Payton Jones, Brian Pupecki, and Brayden Fuentes presented original research projects at the conference in the Business/Accounting/Finance/Management/Economics categories. Their winning projects won out of the 615 undergraduate research projects presented. See the complete list of winners.
Jones’ winning research was, “Bursting Bubbles: Historical Parallels to the Trillion-Dollar AI Infrastructure Boom,” with Dr. Paul Drnevich as his mentor.
Pupecki presented, “Buy Now, Default Later: Is Unreported Buy Now, Pay Later Debt Hiding the Next Financial Crisis?,” with Drnevich and Dr. Fred Wei as mentors.
Fuentes presented, “The Porch Project: Assessing the Efficacy of Student-Led Social Capital as a Public Health Intervention for Geriatric Loneliness,” with Dr. Peter Brummund as her mentor.
Culverhouse student Brandon Resseque, mentored by Wei and Vetri Sayanam, had his work on private equity’s negative impact on stakeholders presented as well.
Resseque will join Jones and Pupecki in St. Petersburg, Florida to present their research at the 2026 Southern Management Association (SMA) conference in October if accepted, and develop them for publication in academic research journals over the next year.
