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MCC Daily Tribune

Honors Students Present and Earn "Most Outstanding Papers and Presentations" at Beacon Conference

On Friday, June 2nd, three of our Honors students travelled to the 31st annual Beacon Conference for Student Scholars at Two-Year Colleges held at Rockland Community College in Suffern, NY.

The Beacon Conference was established to recognize, celebrate, and showcase the academic achievements of outstanding students at community colleges in the mid-Atlantic region. It is held each year on the first Friday in June, and it encompasses a wide range of disciplines.

Each of our students submitted a research essay to be judged by an expert in a given subject area category. The top three papers in each category were then invited to present their work as scholarly presentations to compete for “Most Outstanding Paper and Presentation” in that category.

Scott Rudd, Professor, English/Philosophy Department, mentored each student throughout the submission process and their research was completed in the Honors section of his Humanities course, HMN 220, and his HON 295 course, Justice and Prejudice.

  • Emili Gibson (Social Justice category)
    “The Art of Fashion as Sociopolitical Weaponry”
  • Isaiah Gonsalves (History category)
    “The Internment of Japanese Americans and the Declaration of Martial Law in Hawaii: The Impact of Racial and War-Related Prejudice After the Attack on Pearl Harbor”
  • Rebecca Soriano (Arts category)
    “God the Mother and the Feminine Christ: Representations of the Madonna and Jesus as Divine Maternal Nurturers in Medieval and Renaissance Art”

Please join me in congratulating these three students for the exceptional quality of their work this year.

Additionally, Isaiah Gonsalves and Rebecca Soriano were awarded “Most Outstanding Paper and Presentation” in their categories.

According to their faculty sponsor, Scott Rudd, “These three students have yet again represented our college and our Honors Institute most extraordinarily. From the initial ideas they first came up with in class, to their final seminar papers, to the exhaustive work with which they engaged to submit these papers and then prepare their oral presentations, Emili, Isaiah, and Rebecca have made us so very proud. Each delivered their work like seasoned professionals in their disciplines. These students once again prove that MCC’s emphasis on undergraduate research, its investments in developing the Honors Institute, and its initiatives like Scholars’ Day are succeeding immensely and are worth continued support. This academic year could not have ended on a higher note. I feel so very fortunate to have met and worked with these students.”

  • Photo caption for EG-Pres.jpg: Emili Gibson presenting project in Social Justice category.
  • Photo caption for IG-Pres.jpg: Isaiah Gonsalves presenting project in History category.
  • Photo caption for RS-Pres.jpg: Rebecca Soriano presenting project in Arts category.
  • Photo caption for IG-Award.jpg: Isaiah Gonsalves winning “Best Presentation in Category.”
  • Photo caption for RS-Award.jpg: Rebecca Soriano winning “Best Presentation in Category.”

Attached Files:
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Thomas Blake
Honors Institute
06/12/2023