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Libraries' Award for Undergraduate Research Excellence

Past Winners

Our 2023 LAURE winners include:

  • Katie Cross (Economics)
  • Madeleine Getz (Anthropology)
  • Rowan Glass (Anthropology)
  • Devan McClain (Planning, Public Policy, and Management)
  • Ren Reed (Art History)

 

Katie Cross

"Building Community Solidarity: The 1988-90 Strike of the Morgan-Nicolai Door Factory and the Creation of the Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network "

Faculty sponsor: Gordon Lafer, Labor Education and Research Center 
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/28661

Cross’s research—done for her thesis while in the Clark Honors College and interning at the UO’s Labor Education and Research Center—focused on the discovery and documentation of a strike that took place in Springfield, Oregon, during the late 1980s. Though the labor strike failed, it gave rise to the Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network, a community advocacy group still active today. Cross posited that the strike was a “successful failure,” based on research by Eve S. Weinbaum described in To Move a Mountain: Fighting the Global Economy in Appalachia.

“In previous class projects, the library was a resource to find sources that would support the argument I was already trying to make. But in this case, the library acted more as a place to find the puzzle pieces needed to put together those stories. My usage of the library’s digital and microfilm databases helped me put together the frame of my project and discover the words and faces of those who covered the event at the time. Without the library’s resources, it would have been nearly impossible to complete my project in a satisfying manner. So, the next time I find myself wanting to discover a long-forgotten story, I will know the first place to look,” Cross shared in her application essay.

Madeleine Getz 

"Rural Relationships on the Oregon Women’s Lands "

Faculty sponsor: Judith Raiskin, Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/28979

Getz came to her research by taking a history class called Out in the Archives: Preserving LGBTQ History, co-taught by Judith Raiskin and Linda Long, manuscripts curator in UO Libraries.

In the 1970s, there was a sort of lesbian migration to Oregon, where women hoped to establish collectives living on “women’s land.” Full-time collective residents seemed to idealize rural spaces in their personal and public communications, connecting rural living to values of self-sufficiency, liberation, and socialism. Despite these pronounced views, many women had to work in the surrounding local communities to help support their collectives financially. This created tension between rural idealism and the realities of rural living and in the relationships full-time collective residents had with surrounding communities. Getz examined this tension.

“Very little scholarship exists on the Oregon women’s lands, and I felt privileged to be able to contribute to this growing body of work. My research not only grew from independent work in the University Special Collections and Archives and the unrestricted access I was given to those resources, but also from my own lived experience in rural space,” Cross shared in her application essay.

She added, “Working in the library’s collections helped me grow practical, demonstratable skills like understanding copyright law and developing qualitative research projects. But it also helped me understand that research is, at its heart, about people. … At the end of the day, we are responsible for accurately and respectfully telling stories about people.”

Rowan Glass 

Reweaving the Uaman Luar: Cultural Reproduction and Contested Autonomy among the Kamëntšá 

Faculty sponsor: Reuben Zahler, Maria Fernanda Escallón, Department of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/28957

Glass—who is winning the LAURE for the second year in a row—conducted his undergraduate thesis fieldwork in the Sibundoy Valley in Columbia in summer 2022 and February 2023. He produced his final thesis for the Anthropology Honors Program. In it, he interprets processes of cultural reproduction among the Kamëntšá, a culturally and linguistically unique people of southwest Colombia. Building on ethnographic data collected during his three months of fieldwork with artisans, shamans, land defenders, and community members in the Sibundoy Valley, Glass argues that “the Kamëntšá, while facing cultural, political, and ecological threats on multiple fronts, are engaged in the integral reproduction of their culture to ensure the survival and vitality of their community.” 

Glass speaks fondly of his experiences growing his research skills, saying in his winning essay, “My research skills—from conventional library research to archival methods, ethnography, and exhibit curation—developed considerably during my time at the UO. Given the many ways in which I’ve benefitted from the resources and personnel at UO Libraries, my research accomplishments would not have been possible without them.”

Devan McClain 

Information Sources and Covid-19 Vaccine: Hesitancy in Adults with Disabilities

Faculty sponsor: Nicole Ngo, School of Planning, Public Policy and Management
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/28750

In her research—done in part while working as a Disability and Public Health Research Intern—McClain explored vaccine hesitancy in people with disabilities. McClain investigated COVID-19 vaccine and booster hesitancy, sources of public health information, vaccination and hesitance rationales, misinformation susceptibility, and political ideology by expanding upon the 2021 COVID-19 and Vaccine Survey Project from the American Association on Health & Disability.

The findings became the subject of McClain’s honors thesis for the Robert D. Clark Honors College and School of Planning, Public Policy, and Management last spring.

“The success of my project was fundamentally dependent upon my access to library-provided materials that reinforced the value of digital scholarship, enhanced my abilities in data analysis, granted the access licenses to hundreds of publications, and guided my inquires through databases and research guides,” said McClain.

Before applying to graduate school, she plans to spend the next several years volunteering alongside community health workers in rural Kenya, sharing, “It is my hope that this time will supplement my passion for integrated approaches to healthcare with practical experience, as well as set me up for acceptance into a Master of Public Health program.”

Ren Reed 

Harmony and Matrimony: A Cameo of Hermaphroditus

Faculty sponsor: Ashley L. Bacchi, Starr King School for the Ministry
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/28980

Reed examines a cameo ring featuring Hermaphroditus, dated between 150 and 100 BCE, looking at the common uses of similar rings, subject matter, and references to Hermaphroditus within the historical record, all of which indicate a romantic use.

Reed’s research, begun for a class on the representations of the body in the ancient Mediterranean, has now won its third award. First was the Amy & Ross Kari Travel Grant to present the work at a conference, then the Marian C. Donnelly Book Prize for Best Term Paper, and now the LAURE.

“I found a wealth of material at the Design Library. Within a few minutes, I was sitting at a desk with stacks and stacks of books on the jewelry of antiquity. … The depth of knowledge available at the Design Library was incredible. The value of having such an exceptional field-specific library at my immediate disposal cannot be understated,” Reed shared.

 

Though planning to attend graduate school in 2024, Glass chose to do a gap year after graduating last spring and has been making the most of it, including attending the Athens Summer School in Visual Ethnographic Practices and producing an anthropological documentary.

Learn more about Glass and his research in this Oregon Quarterly story

 

 

 

 

 

All UO students have opportunities to conduct original scholarly research as part of their coursework. And with the help of skilled professors and librarians and access to thousands of resources via UO Libraries, how far students can take their research is nearly limitless.

Last year, two stellar student researchers took their work to Columbia and Spain, respectively:

  • Rowan Glass, Anthropology, Class of ’23
  • Emily Kraschel, Global Studies ’22

Rowan Glass

Rowan Glass on right

PAPER: “Colombia Counterpoint: Transculturation in Sibundoy Valley Ethnohistory”
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/27820
FACULTY SPONSOR: Assistant Professor Maria Fernanda Escallón, Department of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
MAJOR: Anthropology (Class of ’23)
CLASS STANDING: Senior

Rowan Glass received a $1,500 award for his Research Process and Scholarly Growth Essay and research bibliography for his paper, “Colombia Counterpoint: Transculturation in Sibundoy Valley Ethnohistory.”

Glass’s research investigates the interdependent relationship between Kamëntsá social movements for territorial autonomy (e.g., land rights, expansion of reservations, resistance to extractive development projects) and expressions of cultural autonomy (e.g., traditional arts and handicrafts, dance, music, and the preservation of the Kamëntsá language).

This paper is an extension of a previous paper titled “Power and Resistance in the Ethnohistory of the Sibundoy Valley of Colombia,” which won the Center for Latino/a and Latin American Studies Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Project. It establishes the historical background for the contemporary ethnographic summer fieldwork Glass developed in the Sibundoy Valley in summer 2022 for the McNair Scholars Program. Together, the projects provide the basis for his honors thesis in anthropology coming in 2023.

Associate Professor Reuben Zahler, Department of History, and Professor Maria Fernanda Escallón, Department of Anthropology, served as Glass’s mentors and advisors on these papers.

“The final paper Rowan produced on indigenous resistance and transculturation in Colombia was extremely well written and well researched. He made excellent use of the library resources he learned to manage. The extensive bibliography included in his work serves as evidence of his thorough use of library resources to develop his thinking and arguments,” Professor Maria Fernanda Escallón,” said in her letter of recommendation for Glass.

In his LAURE application, Glass said, “I could not have successfully developed my research project without the assistance of the UO Libraries staff and research specialists. I am particularly grateful to Bronwen Maxson, whose expertise in the library science of Latin American studies was of enormous help.”

Glass is also exploring possibilities for research in Argentina and the UK. “As grad school applications are fast approaching, I am also thinking ahead to future scholarly work in other regions and working on different themes. I have the research I submitted for LAURE and the library research skills I learned through it to thank for allowing me to pursue these aspirations,” he shared.

Find more of Glass’s research on display now in a Tiny Gallery exhibit in Knight Library, a project for which he won another award. 

Emily Kraschel

Emily Kraschel

PAPER: “Investigating Variations in Unemployment Between North and South Spain and Associated Implications”
URL: scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/27819
FACULTY SPONSORS: Professor Dennis Galvan, Departments of Political Science and Global Studies, College of Arts and Sciences and dean and vice provost, Division of Global Engagement; and Professor Glen Waddell, Department of Economics, College of Arts and Sciences
MAJOR: Global Studies
CLASS STANDING: Alumna ‘22

Emily Kraschel received a $1,500 award for her Research Process and Scholarly Growth Essay and research bibliography for her paper, “Investigating Variations in Unemployment Between North and South Spain and Associated Implications.”

Kraschel shared in her application essay that the process of her research gained her many skills in physical research, database management, and digital scholarship.

“Through the resources and opportunities provided to me by the UO Libraries, I was able to learn skills such as data analysis, database use, and citation management, which helped me not only in my research, but in my classes and in the process of beginning my career. I hope to continue my education with a graduate degree in a few years so I can participate in more research and expand upon my skills,” Kraschel said.

Krashel’s advisors shared their enthusiasm for her in their letters of recommendation.

“Emily Kraschel is simply one of the top 10 students I have worked with and mentored in some 28 years of teaching as a professor,” said Dennis Galvan, dean and vice provost, Division of  Global Engagement.

Professor Glen Waddell said, “Emily is hard working and independent, and in trying times has demonstrated a doggedness that will serve her well going forward and is deserving of reward.”

Announcing the 2020 Undergraduate Research Awards

Ten undergraduate students are recognized for high achievement in scholarly research and writing

Ten University of Oregon students have been announced winners in the 2020 Undergraduate Research Awards(URA) competition for their excellent research papers and theses. The Undergraduate Research Awards is an annual program sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries that serves to recognize and honor undergraduate students for their extensive research and authorship while using the UO Libraries’ resources.

“UO Libraries is very proud to honor the outstanding scholarship of UO students,” said Interim Dean of Libraries Mark Watson. “Winning an Undergraduate Research Award represents a high level of academic achievement demonstrated by the completion of a research project that involves the substantive use of library materials.”

Access to the winners’ scholarly work will be available electronically in Scholars’ Bank, the library’s digital archive for UO research and publications.

The Research Award is funded by the Milton C. and Barbara B. Sparks and Jon and Lisa Stine endowments, as well as gifts from Walter and Gretchen Barger.


2020 Winners in Multi-Term Thesis Category

 

Cheyenne Dakota Collins
Major: Anthropology
Faculty Sponsor: Jeanne McLaughlin, Anthropology

 

Cameron R. Davis
Major: Communication Disorders and Sciences
Faculty Sponsor: Samantha Shune, Communication Disorders and Sciences

 

Jordan Kalani Harden
Major: English
Faculty Sponsor: Kirby Brown, English


Nelson A. Perez-Catalan
Major: Biology
Faculty Sponsor: Chris Doe, Biology

 

Siena Polk
Major: International Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Galen Martin, International Studies

 

Eleanor Rochester
Major: General Science
Faculty Sponsor: Melissa Graboyes, Clark Honors College

 

Miriam Thielman
Major: Spanish and Religious Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Deborah A. Green, Religious Studies

 

Eleanor Hart Williams
Major: Environmental Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Mark Carey, Environmental Studies

 


2020 Winners in Single-term Paper Category

 

Gracia Dodds
Major: Sociology and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS)
Faculty Sponsor: Judith Raiskin, Women’s Gender, and Sexuality Studies


Taylor Griggs
Major: Media Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Gretchen Soderlund, SOJC Media Studies

Eight students win 2018 Undergraduate Research Awards

Eight University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2018 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition, sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries.

Now in its 15th year, the annual program recognizes students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using UO Libraries collections and resources. Award winners received $1,000-$1,500 and the recognition of having their work digitally archived in Scholars' Bank, the UO's institutional repository.

"These awards honor our students' oustanding research and scholarship, work which requires a deep engagement with the literature of various disciplines, with critical thinking and with the technical act of strong writing itself," said Susan Breckenridge, assistant dean of libraries, at the May 22 award ceremony in the Knight Library Browsing Room. "Research papers and articles like the ones we honor today help us expand our stores of the knowledge of humankind."

Read Abstracts and Winning Papers on UO Libraries' Scholar's Bank

Benner, Rachel. Brand Activism: Working Toward Progressive Representations of Social Movements in Advertising 

Bieker, Jacob. Using Deep Learning for FACT Source Detection

Jones, Ellie Sophie. Plastic Debris in Deep-Sea Canyon, Estuarine, and Shoreline Sediments

Louie, Elmira. Sa’di and the Safavid: The Material Culture of a Treasured Persian Manuscript Now at UO

McClain, Sierra. When Worlds Collide: Manichaeism and Christianity in Late Antiquity

McGee, Samantha. Portrayals of Power: The Local Identity of Three Cypriot Sarcophagi from the Fifth Century BCE

Nouboussi Nkenfack, Nelly M. The Ethics of Developing New Treatments: A Case Study of the West African Ebola Outbreak and the Use of Randomized Control Trials

Wilms-Crowe, Momo. Challenges to Democratic Inclusion and Contestation of Space: Contemporary Student Activists in Transforming South Africa 

Winners in the multiterm thesis category were marine biology major Ellie Sophie Jones and three students who graduated in spring of 2018: Rachel Benner, who studied media studies and advertising; Jacob Bieker, who studied physics and computer and information science; and Samantha McGee, who studied anthropology.

Honorees in the term paper category were comparative literature major Elmira Louie, biology major Nelly Nouboussi Nkenfack and political science major Momo Wilms-Crowe, plus Sierra McClain, who completed her undergraduate work in history in spring 2018 and currently is enrolled in a master's degree program in the School of Journalism and Communication.

Winners were selected by a committee of UO librarians and members of the teaching faculty. Criteria for the awards included the quality of applicants' research papers or projects as well as their bibliographies and application essays articulating the use of library resources and services. Each nominee for the Undergraduate Research Award must also secure letters of recommendation and the sponsorship of a faculty member.

Dean Walton, the Lory Lokey Science and Technology Outreach Librarian, has served on the awards committee for the past five years and hosted this year's awards ceremony.

"Faculty members help students submit the papers that they think are the best of the best," he said. "Working on the committee is wonderful because we get to read not just the best, but the best of the best of the best. The winners here today are at that level."

Librarians and library staff members Carolina Hernandez, Jennifer O’Neal, Clara Piazzola, Jeff Staiger and Bruce Tabb received special ackowledgement from the awardees for their help and contributions to the students' research projects.

Breckenridge noted, "I hope that all the students at the University of Oregon will think of librarians as their partners and guides as they navigate this complex world. The library can be a catalyst for your research and writing practice."

The Undergraduate Research Awards are funded by the UO Libraries' Milton C. and Barbara B. Sparks and Jon and Lisa Stine endowments, as well as gifts from Walter and Gretchen Barger.

Rachel Benner

Seven students earn 2018 Undergraduate Research Awards

Sponsored by UO Libraries, the program recognizes students for original research and scholarship

Rowan Patrick Tabor ’18 was honored in the term paper category.

Tiffany Couch ’17 was recognized in the thesis/multi-term category.

Sandra Dorning '17 won awards for both her term paper and thesis projects.

Seven University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2017 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition.

Sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries, the annual program honors UO students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using UO Libraries collections and resources.

Marine biology major Sandra Lynn Dorning, a 2017 graduate of Clark Honors College, was recognized for both single-term and multi-term/thesis projects, becoming the first student since the awards' inception to earn awards in both categories in the same year.

Angela Rothman '17, a history and political science major who was honored for her term paper in 2017, also doubled up by winning an award in the multi-term category this year.

Also taking home 2017 honors in the multi-term category were linguistics major Drew McLaughlin ’17 and Clark Honors College students Tiffany Couch ’17, a political science major, and Hannah Rose Steinkopf-Frank ’17, who majored in journalism and international studies.

Honorees in the term paper category also included Breanne Schnell ’17, who majored in English, journalism, and media studies, and Rowan Patrick Tabor ’18, who majored in history.

Read the Winning Papers on UO Libraries' Scholar's Bank

Couch, Tiffany. WE THE PEOPLE: Populism and Party Realignment in the United States

Dorning, Sandra. From Voluntary to Monitored: The Development of the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna

Dorning, Sandra. The Ecology and Demography of the Invasive Ascidian Botrylloides violaceus in the Coos Estuary

McLaughlin, Drew J. Individual Variation in the Perception of Speech in Multiple Types of Adverse Listening Conditions

Rothman, Angela. Well-Intentioned but Ineffective: A Legislative History of the California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 2001

Schnell, Breanne. Stop Comparing Nollywood to Hollywood: Reorienting Western Understanding of Nigerian Cinema

Steinkopf-Frank, Hannah Rose. La Sape: Tracing the History and Future of the Congos' Well-Dressed Men

Tabor, Rowan Patrick. “The Plague Ship:” Examining the Arrival and Controversial Quarantine of the J.W. Taylor at The Port of New York in 1899

“These students exemplify the best in academic achievement, scholarship and research,” said UO Provost Jayanth Banavar. “They have trained to be the scientists, the historians, the authors and writers of the future. We are all proud of their accomplishments.”

Winners were selected by a committee of UO librarians and members of the teaching faculty. Criteria for the awards included the quality of each applicants’ research paper or project, as well as their bibliography and an application essay articulating the use of library resources and services. Each nominee for the Undergraduate Research Awards must secure the sponsorship of a faculty member, and their letters of recommendation also are reviewed by the awards committee. Each award winner received $1,000 and the recognition of having their work digitally archived in Scholars' Bank, UO's institutional repository.

Barbara Jenkins, the outreach and special programs coordinator with UO Libraries and chair of the Research Award Committee, noted that 42 applications were received in 2017 -- the most submitted in any year since the awards’ inception.

"Seven schools and colleges and 23 majors and programs were represented in the pool of applicants," Jenkins said. "The papers and projects showcase the rich intellectual diversity of student research and give testament to the vital roles that librarians and library resources play in helping to ensure students' success."

The Undergraduate Research Awards are funded by the UO Libraries' Milton C. and Barbara B. Sparks and Jon and Lisa Stine endowments, as well as gifts from Walter and Gretchen Barger.

Announcing the 2017 Undergraduate Research Award Winners

UO Libraries honors five students for outstanding achievement in scholarship

Five University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2016 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition. Sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries, the annual program honors UO students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using UO Libraries collections and resources. A reception honoring the recipients was held in the Knight Library Browsing Room on Friday, May 13, 2016.

“All of us in the UO Libraries are proud to honor these outstanding students and the faculty members who mentored them during their research projects,” said Adriene Lim, dean of libraries and Philip H. Knight Chair. “The celebration of this exemplary work allows us also to highlight the crucial role that librarians and library resources and services provide in the University’s efforts to ensure undergraduate student success.”

Barbara Jenkins, the library's coordinator of outreach and special programs, serves as chair of the Undergraduate Research Awards Committee. "Each year the committee enjoys seeing papers and projects that showcase the rich intellectual diversity of student research on campus," she said. "It is exciting to see the students’ passions, growth as scholars, and their special  relationships with their faculty mentors."

Electronic copies of all winning students’ work will be deposited in Scholars’ Bank, the library’s open access digital archive for UO research, publications, and supporting materials.

The Undergraduate Research Awards are made possible by endowments established through the generous support of Gretchen and Walt Barger, Lisa and Jon Stine, and Barbara Blinco Sparks.

 

Winner in the Thesis Category

Claire E. Aubin Claire E. Aubin

Major: International Studies and Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies

Faculty Sponsor: Julie Hessler, History

The Internationalization of Atrocity: John Demjanjuk and the Politics of Post-War Justice

War crimes trials have always been the subject of both political and legal controversies, and are often highly reflective of the changing nature of justice. One such set of trials centered on the case of Ivan “John” Demjanjuk, the first naturalized U.S. citizen to be denaturalized twice, the first accused Nazi extradited from the U.S. to Israel, and the accidental poster boy for the didactic capacity of the international legal system. The Demjanjuk case calls into question the efficacy of a global legal system so tied to external political realities, as well as highlights the failures and strengths of that system as the arbiter of justice. Using existing literature and archival materials, this thesis examines the effects that political and social circumstances have on the development of a specific war crimes trial, while offering contextual information on the broader nature of post-war justice for the victims and perpetrators of atrocity.

 

Winners in the Term Paper Category

Augustine Beard Augustine Beard

Major: History and Environmental Studies

Faculty Sponsor: Mark Carey, Robert D. Clark Honors College

“Enemy in the Forests: Narratives and Fires in the Pacific Northwest”

Contemporary historians, ecologists, and foresters agree that the policy of all-out suppression of forest fires was misguided and that it led to the proliferation of highly flammable fuels contributing to larger, more frequent fires over time and up to today. While historians have examined the role of science, the state, and capitalism in fire suppression policies, there is a need to turn to the use of narrative and discourse to better understand the motivation behind fire suppression. Using the Pacific Northwest as a case study, this article draws on sources from fire prevention campaigns that developed out of World War II and the fear that forest fires would threaten the war effort. It shows how organizations such as Keep Oregon Green, Keep Washington Green, American Forest Products Industries, Inc., and the Cooperative Forest Fire Prevention campaign made fire a “foreign enemy” through racialized iconography and associating fire prevention with national defense. The timber and wood products industries were portrayed as the heroes in the fight against fire, normalizing the presence of capitalism in the forests. In the end, the fire-enemy narrative that saw fires as foreign and detrimental to forests was as much concerned with protecting timber capital as it was with extinguishing flames.

 

Tate James Tate James

Major: Comparative Literature and Creative Writing

Faculty Sponsor: Alisa Freedman, East Asian Languages and Literatures

"Magical Girl Martyrs: Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Purity, Beauty, and Passivity"

This paper discusses whether Akiyuki Shinbo’s anime, Puella Magi Madoka Magica (2011)is an effective critique of the magical girl genre. Many critics have claimed that the show is progressive. They cite the fact that the show blurs the line between innocent young girls and evil old women, which have historically been dichotomized in magical girl shows, as well as its handling of complex female characters as evidence for a positive reading. While Madoka Magica does make important headway in the realm of dismantling harmful female archetypes, the moral judgments the show assigns to those archetypes problematizes such a positive reading. This paper examines the magical girl genre’s history as well as Madoka Magica’s treatment of nonlinear storytelling, female agency, and purity in order to assess the effectiveness of its critique. The conclusion that is argued is that Madoka Magica is not especially progressive compared to other magical girl shows.

 

 

Michael McIntosh Michael McIntosh

Major: Economics and Political Science

Faculty Sponsor: Ron Mitchell, Political Science

"International Agreement Effectiveness: A Case Study Using the 1985 Pacific Salmon Treaty"

With global environmental problems reaching an all-time high, international cooperation in addressing them becomes ever more important. The widely agreed-upon key to facilitating this cooperation is international environmental agreements. However, many agreements that have already been reached to solve environmental issues have been impotent thus far (e.g., the Kyoto Protocol, the Basel Convention). There are a number of factors that determine the potential effectiveness of an international environmental agreement. This piece discusses several of those factors and applies them in the case of the 1985 Pacific Salmon Treaty between the United States and Canada to explain what constitutes a compelling international environmental agreement. 

 

 

Angela Rothman

Angela Rothman

Major: History and Political Science

Faculty Sponsor: Ellen Herman, History

"Revolutionary Theatricality: Dramatized American Protest, 1967-1968"

Protests against established power in the United States grew between the years 1967 and 1968 when dramatic aspects of political and cultural rebellion manifested in theatrical methods. Prominent examples include the early radicalism of the San Francisco Mime Troupe, the production of Paradise Now by the Living Theatre, the Broadway cast production of the musical Hair, and the Festival of Life by the Yippie movement outside the Chicago Democratic National Convention. During this intense period of domestic conflict, these activists embraced radical theater as a visible form of protest. This visibility was necessary to engage a complex and erratic American public who, inundated by conflicts of the era, could better understand the movements’ beliefs and intentions through the groups’ theatrical methods. This study uses the scripts of plays, the writings of the movements’ leaders, and secondary analysis of the conflicts in which these groups participated to argue that each borrowed tactics from one another to bolster the effectiveness of “revolutionary theatricality.” Because of such tactics, the United States in the late 1960s was a domestic theater of war: the home front of the Vietnam War was almost as turbulent a society in its own way as was the conflict in Vietnam itself.

 

Graduating Seniors: Papers and theses written in the Winter and Fall Terms of 2017 are eligible for next year's Undergratuate Research Awards. Apply before you leave campus!

Deadline: Friday, June 16, 2017

Announcing the 2016 Undergraduate Research Award Winners

UO Libraries honors six students for outstanding achievement in scholarship

Six University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2015 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition. Sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries, the annual program honors UO students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using UO Libraries collections and resources. A reception honoring the recipients was held in the Knight Library Browsing Room on Friday, May 13, 2016.
 
“We are proud to honor these outstanding students and the faculty members who mentored them during their research projects,” said Adriene Lim, dean of libraries and Philip H. Knight chair. “The celebration of their work allows us also to appreciate the UO Libraries’ role in ensuring undergraduate student success and our engagement in enriching the student experience, which are  among the university’s highest priorities.”
 
URA winners cited librarians Jonathan Cain, Jennifer O'Neal, Miriam Rigby, Dean Walton, David Woken, Annie Zeidman-Karpinski, and Kaiping Zhang for providing valuable guidance through the research process.
 
Electronic copies of all winning students’ work will be deposited in Scholars’ Bank, the library’s open access digital archive for UO research, publications, and supporting materials.
 
The Undergraduate Research Awards are made possible by endowments established through the generous support of Gretchen and Walt Barger, Lisa and Jon Stine, and Barbara Blinco Sparks.
 

Winners in the Thesis Category

 
Luciano Dolcini-CataniaLuciano Dolcini-Catania
Major: Psychology and Sociology
Faculty Sponsor: Barbara Mossberg, Robert D. Clark Honors College
 
This study examined the influence of internalizing and externalizing symptoms during early adolescence on the subsequent development of depressive disorder. The role that temperament plays in predisposing individuals to these particular pathways was also examined. Logistical regression analyses revealed that internalizing symptoms and social-externalizing problems were significant risk pathways to the development of depression. Moreover, high levels of effortful control acted as a protective factor for the development of depression across both symptom pathways, suggesting that it may be an important target for prevention strategies.
 
 
 
 
 
Dawn LeDawn Le
Major: Anthropology
Faculty Sponsor: Diane Baxter, Anthropology
 
For immigrants and refugees, the concept of “home” is seldom a concrete definition, as the question of where “home” is - either in the country of origin or the new country - activates a tension in self-identity. For the Palestinian immigration and refugee experience, the longstanding Arab-Israeli Conflict produces an even more complex tension. The purpose of this study is to explore this tension in a Palestinian-American context. An oral history project about Ibrahim Hamide, a restaurateur and human rights activist in Eugene, Oregon, it sheds light on post-trauma resilience and documents a piece of history for the Eugene community.
 

 
 
 
Caellagh MorriseyCaellagh Morrissey
Major: History and International Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Lindsay Braun, History
 
Scholars widely recognize that Amakhosikazi (elite women) played a vital role within the Zulu pre-colonial state. However, histories have categorized these women as accessory to the lives of powerful men. Through close readings of oral traditions, travelogues, and government documentation, this thesis discusses how amakhosikazi exhibited power, and tracks changes in their social position from the early years of the Zulu chiefdom in the 1750s until the 1887 annexation by British forces. As a result of changes in women’s access to male power sources, elite women became marginalized in both Zulu and colonial political structures.
 
 
 
 
Claire WeilClaire Weil 
Major: International Studies and Economics
Faculty Sponsor: Galen Martin, International Studies and Environmental Studies
 
This thesis explores how genocide prevention has progressed in the twenty-first century with an examination of the crisis in the Central African Republic. This project demonstrates that tools created to prompt prevention and reaction to genocide have been effective but the frameworks through which the international community addresses genocide must be enlarged for the sustainability of the intervention. Through showing that genocide prevention in the Central African Republic has been effective, this research highlights the importance of continuously adapting our methods of prevention to create durable visions of peace.

 

 

 

 

Winners in the Term Paper Category 

 
David BrunkDavid Brunk  
Major: Economics and History
Faculty Sponsor: James Mohr, History
 
When the Reading Railroad combined with two other railroad companies in 1892, it controlled more than half of New York City’s market for anthracite coal. Twelve months later, the company collapsed. This paper tracks the events of those twelve months, particularly the actions of the Reading’s president, Archibald A. McLeod, or as his contemporaries called him, “the Napoleon of Railroads.” The story displays important features of American railroad business during the 1890’s: the role of government, monopolistic discourse, and divergent meanings of a company.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Paulla SantosPaulla Santos
Major: History
Faculty Sponsor: Julie Weise, History
 
This paper examines the continuation of U.S. imperialism in the Philippines after Philippine Independence in 1946 through the gendered and sexual stereotypes of U.S. men and Philippine women. These perceptions of the women as submissive and dependent were constructed through women’s interactions with U.S. military men, who were seen as powerful and wealthy. This paper connects the events around U.S. military bases at that time to present-day stereotypes associated with Asian-born women married to U.S. men in the United States, as well as the current discussions of reopening U.S. military bases in the Philippines.
 

 

2014 Undergraduate Research Award Winners Announced

UO Libraries honors six students for outstanding scholarly achievement

Six University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2014 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition.
 
Sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries, the annual program honors UO students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using resources available through the Libraries.
 
A reception honoring the recipients was held in the Knight Library Browsing Room on Friday, May 15, 2015.
 
Electronic copies of all winning students’ work have been deposited in Scholars’ Bank, the library’s open access archive for UO research, publications, and supporting materials in digital form.
 
The Undergraduate Research Awards are made possible by endowments established through the generous support of Gretchen and Walt Barger, Lisa and Jon Stine, and Barbara Blinco Sparks.
 
For more information on the awards--including information about how to apply for the 2015 awards-- visit http://library.uoregon.edu/undergrad-research-award.
 

Winners of $1,000 in the Thesis Category

Brandon ParryBrandon Parry

Major: Ethnic Studies and History
Paper Title: All-American Babyfaces, Un-American Heels: Race and Nationalism Inside the Squared Circle
 
Faculty Sponsor: Brian Klopotek, Department of Ethnic Studies
 
Library Recognition: "David Woken, Miriam Rigby, Yen Tran, Barbara Jenkins, and the rest of the University of Oregon Library staff who saved me hours of time in helping find and access resources that were essential in helping me complete this project."
 
Student Quote: "Writing this paper has convinced me that academic research is something that I am interested in doing as a career. The staff, space, and materials associated with the University of Oregon made the process of writing a multi-term research paper as painless as it could possibly be. My experience working extensively with library resources has reinforced to me that there is an academic field that exists that is interested in the topics that capture my imagination."
 

Neema Sahebi

Neema Sahebi

Major: History
Paper Title: Winning the Wrong War: How the United States Lost the Will of the Iraqi People
 
Faculty Sponsor: Alexander Dracobly, Department of History
 
Library Recognition: "While I did not work closely with any particular faculty member, the resources I used for the project came almost entirely from Knight Library . . . I used the library’s online database to check out virtually every book in stock on the subject matter. Furthermore, I used the plethora of hyperlinks attached to every book’s profile [in the Library catalog] in order to come across other possible books of interest."
 
Student Quote: "This project has taught me how to find credible information and, more importantly, how to use it to generate my own thoughts. Perhaps the most valuable lesson I learned, however, is the great importance of exposing myself to ideas that contradict and oppose my own. I have learned that in doing so one pushes his mind to great lengths and tests the validity and integrity of his own thoughts. This paper has taught me to have no fear in completely altering my thoughts and opinions."
 

Winners of $1,000 in the Single-term Paper Category

Zach BigalkeZach Bigalke
Major: History
Paper Title: Anything But Ringers: Historical Sketches of the Soccer Hotbeds that Produced the 1930 U.S. World Cup Team
 
Faculty Sponsor: Ellen Herman, Department of History
 
Library Recognition: "The library system at the University of Oregon provided the raw materials that allowed me to produce this academic creation. The interface of the library’s request system was easy to use, and each time a new book came in the crew at the checkout desk was helpful and friendly in quickly retrieving my materials."
 
Student Quote: "Until I started work on this paper, I had never been involved in crafting a paper in an academic fashion on a sports-related topic. Combining two of my passions, sports and history, thus allowed me to grow as a writer and a historian and has improved subsequent writing I have produced as a result . . . Each time I searched through the catalog and surfed through the stacks offered an opportunity to expand my understanding of how sports do not exist in a vacuum within society; rather, each new wrinkle illuminated further the fact that sports help shape and are in turn shaped by the societies in which they are played."
 

Ayantu MegeressaAyantu Megerssa

Major: International Studies, Clark Honors College
Paper Title: Assimilation and Activism: An Analysis of Native Boarding School Curriculum and Native Student Activism in the 20th Century
 
Faculty Sponsors: Kevin Hatfield, Department of History and Jennifer O'Neal, UO Libraries
 
Library Recognition: "This research would have been an insurmountable feat without the UO Library resources, and without the incredible breadth of knowledge and willingness to help on the part of UO Archivist and Librarian Jennifer O’Neal . . . I utilized an extensive array of resources throughout my research process, both those owned by the Knight Library, and those accessible to me through ILL and Summit. In Special Collections, I spent a great deal of time working with historic periodicals, such as The Weekly Chemawa American collection, a historic student newspaper published at Chemawa Indian Boarding School in Salem, Oregon."
 
Student Quote: "Ultimately, utilizing a broad array of library resources allowed me to grow as a scholar as I attempted to piece together primary sources in order to tell my own version of the past. Because information on my topic was not readily available in textbooks or through Google searches, the library guided me in my pursuit of seemingly unattainable information. Because of resources available to me through the UO Libraries, I do not have to settle with accepting the narratives of historians past, but rather I have the power to make history as I see fit."
 

Mairin PeckMairin Peck

Major: Human Physiology and Spanish, Clark Honors College
Paper Title: Ecuador's Yasuni-ITT Initiative: A Case Study on International Climate Change Mitigation Narratives
 
Faculty Sponsor: Mark Carey, Clark Honors College
 
Library Recognition: "Professor Carey put me in contact with [History & Latin American Studies Librarian] David Woken, and a meeting with him yielded a goldmine of primary resources. David was an essential resource throughout my entire research process; without his guidance, my bilingual investigation would not have been possible."
 
Student Quote: "I was eager to incorporate my existing academic interests into my topic . . . I began investigating the relationships between climate, culture and diet in the region, with a public health focus . . . The movement’s blurring of Western and indigenous ideals fascinated me, and I was intrigued about the potential policy applications. I was also excited about the prospect of performing bilingual research. Reflecting back, I am grateful that the resources available at the UO library--reference librarians, databases, and borrowing services--afforded me the opportunity to conduct this exciting and novel research."
 

Lisa WilsonLisa Wilson

Major: History
Paper Title: The Sovietization of Commemoration: The Anti-Religious and Ideological Functions of Soviet Secular Life-Cycle Rituals
 
Faculty Sponsor: Julie Hessler, Department of History
 
Library Recognition: "During their orientation to resources for Soviet historical research, librarians Heghine Hakobyan and David Woken not only provided a clearer picture of the tools at our disposal, but also conveyed their enthusiasm and readiness to offer further help. I also want to thank all the library staff who maintain the Summit loan system and who kept the library open during the weekend of the ice storm in February, during which I located a number of extremely valuable supplementary sources."
 
Student Quote: "Because of the relative lack of existing scholarship on this topic, I had to be more creative in my research approach and more diligent in compiling sources than in papers I have previously written. I found my initial assumptions disproven and had to determine my own framework for analyzing the performance, effects, and outcomes of Soviet secular life-cycle rituals . . .  [The East View Information Services database of Russian-language periodicals] granted me invaluable access to primary source material--including discourse on the rituals from Soviet authorities and everyday citizens as well as official statistics on the rites--that would have been otherwise unreachable because of the language barrier."
 
 

UO Libraries' 2013 Undergraduate Research Award Winners Named

Award winners come from all disciplines in the library's Undergraduate Research Awards competition.

Six University of Oregon students who authored outstanding research papers and theses during the 2013 calendar year have been named winners in the university's Undergraduate Research Awards competition sponsored by the University of Oregon Libraries.

The annual competitive program honors UO students who produce exceptional original research and scholarship using resources available through the UO Libraries.

A reception honoring the winners is planned for April 25, 2014.

Electronic copies of all winning students’ work will be deposited in Scholars’ Bank, the library’s open access archive for UO research, publications, and supporting materials in digital form.

The Undergraduate Research Awards are made possible by endowments established through the generous support of Barbara Blinco Sparks, Lisa and Jon Stine, and Gretchen and Walt Barger.
 

Winners of $1,000 in the Thesis Category


Natalie Brezack

Psychology Major in the Clark Honors College

“Motionese: Subject to Preference?” (Thesis)

Faculty Sponsor: Dare Baldwin, Department of Psychology

Library Recognition: “The library aided my thesis process by providing countless peer-reviewed journals. … I also used free scanning in the library and software on the computers to edit my videos. … I did most of the analysis and writing in the library, spending countless hours over several months.”

Student Quote: The planning, data collection, data analysis, and writing process spanned over two years of my undergraduate career at the UO. It is by far my proudest accomplishment and one that I could not have achieved without the help of the library. … I feel like a true researcher now. I am fortunate that the library is still available to me even after I have graduated. …. I will continue to credit the University of Oregon Libraries as an instrumental part of my success as a developmental psychology researcher.

 

Gabriel Sanchez

Anthropology Major in the McNair Scholars Program

“Cetacean Hunting at the Par-Tee Site (35CLT20)?: Ethnographic, Artifact, and Blood Residue Analysis Investigation” (Thesis)

Faculty Sponsor: Jon Erlandson, Department of Anthropology

Library Staff Recognized: Miriam Rigby, Jennifer O’Neal

Student Quote: The library was essential to this project because it allowed me access to primary sources, including those in Special Collections. Research experts, including Miriam Rigby and Jennifer O’Neal, among others, prepared me for effectively processing information at the Smithsonian during the week I spent doing research there. I worked extensively with the written works from the Southwest Oregon Research Project (SWORP) for researching Oregon Native American history. … My research experience has motivated me to continue researching within academia. … In all aspects of my research I had support from the UO Libraries through its knowledgeable and approachable staff and its academic resources.

 

Lindsay Thane

Political Science Major

“Freedom from Guantánamo: How the Court Curtailed Prerogative Powers and Increased Civil Liberties for Detainees” (Thesis)

Faculty Sponsor: Daniel Tichenor, Department of Political Science

Library Staff Recognized: Victoria Mitchell

Student Quote: I discovered the immense reach of the library by requesting books through Summit and ILLiad, the library’s interlibrary loan systems, when the books were not physically present in our campus libraries. I also made extensive use of the academic journal databases to which the university subscribes. … Victoria Mitchell helped me discover ProQuest and CQ Weekly, which I relied upon along with the Library of Congress and Government Printing Office websites for presidential and congressional documents. … The entire process of targeted reading, writing succinct case analysis, and compiling sources can hopefully lay the groundwork for other related research, and it has drastically improved the way I now read, research, and edit, skills which have been vital in my current study of the law.

 

Winners of $1,000 in the Single-Term Paper Category

 

Amber Bryan

Women’s and Gender Studies Major in the McNair Scholars Program

“Exotic Sexuality: Examining the Effect of Exotic Dancing on Women’s Sexuality” (Single-Term Paper)

Faculty Sponsor: Lamia Karim, Department of Anthropology

Library Staff Recognized: Miriam Rigby, Terry McQuilken, Reference Services Staff, Knight Library Computer Help Desk Staff

Student Quote: The helpful staff at the library has played a huge part in my advancement in navigating both the online system and the resources within the library itself. Without the dedicated library staff, I am confident I would still be lost on the Internet searching aimlessly for articles while trying to figure out how to afford the cost of gaining access to them. As a result of using the library, I was able to write a research project that has been accepted for presentation at a conference and will form the basis of my graduate school writing sample. … Gone are the days of sifting through countless websites; now I simply log on to the UO Libraries website and search for the information I need.
 

Kimberly Lerner

Biology Major in the Clark Honors College

“A History of Racism and Prejudice: The Untold Story of the Northern Paiute” (Single-Term Paper)

Faculty Sponsor: Kevin Hatfield, Department of History

Library Staff Recognized: Jennifer O’Neal

Student Quote: The UO Libraries Special Collections provided vital resources needed to complete my research paper. Without the help of Jennifer O’Neal, University Historian and Archivist, I would have been unaware of the information housed in the library that allowed me to write a paper with a strong primary source base. Another valuable source of information came from scouring microfilm collections. The McKay Papers Microfilm collection provided supporting details in my paper. Before working on this project, I had never utilized microfilm, conducted research in Special Collections, or used discussion and interviews in a paper. Oral histories provided a valuable source in my research. … This paper would have been impossible without the information I collected from the UO Libraries, especially within Special Collections and University Archives and the Document Center.
 

Kyle Swartzlender

Art History Major in the Clark Honors College

“Deconstructing the Novel: The Critical Function of the Artist’s Book” (Single-Term Paper)

Faculty Sponsor: James Harper, Department of Art History

Library Staff Recognized: Cara List and Architecture and Allied Arts Library Staff

Student Quote: My research paper would not have been possible had it not been for the assistance I received from the UO Libraries, including its librarians, resources, and search tools. I now feel much more comfortable using library collections and am currently in the process of conducting thesis research through Special Collections and University Archives. … I now have a much stronger understanding and command of the variety of resources that are available through the library.