Cortes has always been community and family-oriented, so when the opportunity to commute only two minutes to a beautiful college campus while still living at home with her family arose, she took advantage.

During her college application process, she expressed feeling discouraged when hearing back from schools.

“It seemed like I was either getting accepted, but with no scholarship, or being denied,” she said.

Upon her first early action application to ������Ƶ, she was deferred. However, her determination to be a part of the community drove her to try again. As she is dedicated and persistent in nature, she submitted another application a couple of months later, this time getting the Califf Endowed Scholarship in recognition of her hard work.

“When I tried again at ������Ƶ, I saw that someone believed in me, and this was the path I was supposed to take; it was meant to be,” said Cortes.

She notes the transition from her high school, Walter M. Williams, to ������Ƶ was a shock. In high school, she was considered advanced, but the academic rigor of �����Dz�’s biology courses caught her by surprise.

“It was definitely a change, but we have so many resources at ������Ƶ to guide me through a successful path,” she said.

For Cortes, her passions have always been focused on biology and entering a pre-med track.

“It’s always been plan A for me. I haven’t thought about doing anything else. I’ve always been so headstrong about what I’ve wanted to become. Since I could remember, I’ve always wanted to be a doctor,” she said.

Cortes is excelling in the pre-med track, with plans to pursue a dermatology path through medical school. Growing up in Alamance and having such a strong connection with her roots, she wants to come back to her county to serve as a dermatologist for the people of Alamance.

“I’ve always loved this county, and dermatologists are running very slim here,” she added.

Several members of her family have struggled with skin conditions like melanoma, drawing her to the dermatology field.

“I’ve spent a lot of time at the dermatology office myself, and I want to give back to the community and hopefully provide dermatology care here someday,” said Cortes.

Already gaining hands-on experience in her career path, Cortes has over 400 volunteer hours with Alamance’s Hospice program. Her extensive work has developed her experience in the medical field through patient interactions and working alongside nurses in an emotionally tough environment, all while making sure the patients are well cared for.

“Unfortunately, there have been a lot of patients that I’ve gained connections with that have passed,” explained Cortes. “It’s been really hard to cope with that, but it’s a part of life and something I have to consider when being a doctor.”

Grateful for her experience in volunteering, Cortes also completed a summer internship program with Alamance Eye Center. Furthering her experience in the medical field,

“Through my internship, I gained new friendships, met new doctors through shadowing, was able to have patient interactions and was able to take part in the work of taking pictures of patients’ eyes,” she said.

Cortes recently took a moment to reflect on her experience at ������Ƶ. Under the warmth of the sun, leaning back in one of the white Adirondack chairs in Young Commons, without her phone or music, she took a moment to think.

“I just wanted to sit and enjoy the sunshine. In that moment, I was thinking, ‘I’m at ������Ƶ, in this amazing place. I’m a part of this community, this is where I belong and where I’m supposed to be, I’m doing it,'” she said. “I was once stressed about if it was going to work out, but I’m really doing it.”

Reflecting on her donors, Cortes said, “I have to remember, during hard times, that I must keep going because I have an opportunity to pursue my dreams. I think about my scholarship all the time, and how I have people in my corner supporting me, without even knowing me.”

Her Califf Endowed Scholarship has allowed her to pursue her dreams to the fullest on �����Dz�’s campus.

“My scholarship has been truly impactful on my life path, and it’s made me want to give back to ������Ƶ,” she said. “I want to give back to ������Ƶ for everything they’ve done for me. Hopefully, one day I can support someone like me who couldn’t financially pursue their dreams without a scholarship.”

“The ACC gave me work that actually mattered; projects you could see reflected in real events,” he said.

Relationships are what drew Gandhi to ������Ƶ.

“I wanted a smaller school because building relationships with professors is the most important thing you can do,” he said.

Those connections, from weekly check-ins with Associate Professor of Journalism Alex Luchsinger to mentorship from Assistant Professor of Sport Management Khirey Walker, have shaped his path in and out of the classroom.

“If you make an effort at ������Ƶ, your professors make that effort back,” said Gandhi.

Support from philanthropy helped unlock the Charlotte opportunity. Through the Queen City Internship Grant, Gandhi could focus fully on learning, not logistics.

“The grant gave me peace of mind,” he said. “It meant I could focus on the experience, my internship, schoolwork and my business, instead of worrying about day-to-day expenses.”

In an earlier feature reflecting on the fall cohort, he added that the ACC helped him strengthen “time management,” learn new tools, adapt on the fly, and most of all, learn “how to be a professional (…) in emails, meetings, and as a teammate.”

The ������Ƶ in Charlotte program places students in the center of one of the country’s most active sports markets, and the Queen City Internship Grant removes barriers to participating, prioritizing unpaid roles and first credit-bearing internships, with typical awards ranging from $1,000–$5,000.

Entrepreneurship is the other half of Gandhi’s education. As owner of SAG Autographs, he’s built relationships with athletes and agents while managing high-value inventory and transactions. He’s learned to stay adaptable; if an injury, trade or headline changes the game overnight, he pivots. Balancing the business with classes and an internship has sharpened his scheduling and discipline, skills he knows will matter beyond campus. Faculty see the same drive.

“Shaan is a serious student who had the fire in his belly before he started at ������Ƶ,” said Luchsinger. “His prior business experience positioned him well to be a leader in the classroom. He’s a successful entrepreneur in the sports sector and has gotten plugged into complementary sectors within sports. I could see him doing just about anything he wants, from solo entrepreneur to an ‘intrapreneur’ innovating within a larger company.”

For Gandhi, that mentorship has been pivotal.

“There are different ways to be mentored,” he said. “Dr. Luchsinger and Dr. Walker have helped me think through decisions for my business and my internship. �����Dz�’s professors really know their students. They care.”

He also carries one piece of advice forward from Luchsinger.

“Dr. Luchsinger told me you should never close any doors, even ones you didn’t expect to open,” Gandhi said. “I didn’t know I’d love what I was doing at the ACC but keeping that door open led to more opportunities.”

From Sports Illustrated interviews to game-day operations, Gandhi’s story is about turning access into impact and about the donors who make that access possible.

“Philanthropy let me say yes to an experience that changed how I work,” he said. “I’m grateful for that support, and I hope to pay it forward.”

The recognition underscores �����Dz�’s strengths in accessibility, affordability, return on investment, better-than-expected student outcomes, high levels of engagement, strong job prospects and overall value.

“Within higher education circles, ������Ƶ is known as a school that other midsized private universities want to learn from,” wrote Selingo, who has written about colleges and universities for more than two-and-a-half decades.

“Dream School” is a follow-up to Selingo’s 2020 book “Who Gets In and Why: A Year Inside College ������Ƶ,” and focuses on helping families redefine their idea of a “good” college, setting aside preconceived ideas about “prestige.” To put together the list, Selingo partnered with several external experts and organizations to examine datasets from 2023 and 2024. The pool of consideration was narrowed down to four-year colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates.

“For the Dream Schools list, I wanted to find institutions that outperform expectations while admitting the vast majority of good students who aren’t predestined for the Yales, Williamses, Northwesterns and UC Berekleys,” said Selingo.

For four consecutive years, ������Ƶ has been named the nation’s best university for undergraduate teaching by U.S. News and World Report and has continued to invest in both the humanities and STEM programs, launching new degrees in neuroscience, nursing and digital content management. A new physician assistant studies program is set to launch in 2027 at the university’s Charlotte national campus location.

One outcome of �����Dz�’s teaching excellence is that the university has produced nine Goldwater Scholars – the most recent, engineering major Jacob Karty ’26, in 2025. The award is given by The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation and provides scholarships to college sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

In his book, Selingo highlights �����Dz�’s commitment to mentorship, the , and the university being one of the top producers of Fulbright Scholars.

“All of my mentors at ������Ƶ have challenged me in ways that have helped me grow into the person I am today,” said Cristy Mariné ’25, a Fulbright Scholar, following the announcement of her selection for the award. “For that, I am forever grateful.”

With a 77% graduation rate, ������Ƶ is in the “Hidden Values” section of Selingo’s list, “comprised of mostly private colleges with strong graduation outcomes and opportunities for fulfilling careers.” Before graduation, all ������Ƶ students are required to complete at least two of the ������Ƶ Experiences: Global Engagement, Service, Leadership, Internships and Undergraduate Research.

“������Ƶ operates a cooperative-education program that integrates work into the undergraduate curriculum, and as a result, some nine out of ten graduates complete at least one internship during their undergraduate career,” wrote Selingo.

Selingo also highlights the connection between �����Dz�’s residential living and academics, including the university’s residence hall neighborhoods that include faculty members in residence, along with more than a dozen Living Learning Communities, where groups of students live in the same residential area, interacting academically and socially with each other and with faculty, and sharing the same passion, interest, or academic focus.

“My hope in writing this book is that students, parents, and counselors might begin to think differently about the college search process so that teenagers ultimately find a school that will help them truly flourish,” Selingo said in an email to ������Ƶ President Connie Ledoux Book about the new publication. “In the end, I want to give families, and parents in particular, permission to widen the lens on the college search.”

“Dream School” is at major booksellers through Simon and Schuster.

“I would say it’s bittersweet, but it’s more bitter than sweet,” said Mariné about graduating. “I have gotten so much support and guidance from the people that I’ve met here at ������Ƶ, whether they stayed in my life for a long time, or they haven’t, they have impacted my journey here so much that I just feel so incredibly grateful to spend my past four years here.”

The study abroad opportunities and cinema & television arts program drew Mariné to ������Ƶ, specifically the program’s push for students to participate in the ������Ƶ in Los Angeles program, and the incorporation of internships. Internships are one of the five ������Ƶ Experiences and students must complete at least two to graduate.

Into the internships

Mariné, who is also majoring in strategic communications, dove right into the ������Ƶ Experiences during the summer after her freshman year, working on content production for Great HealthWorks in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The following spring, she chose to study abroad in Sorrento, Italy, taking courses like volcanology, drawing on location and European literature. While in Italy, she interned with a photography studio, focusing on social media, wedding photography and film development.

“It was challenging because they only spoke Italian. So thankfully with my Spanish and their Italian, we were able to communicate pretty well, but it was really great,” said Mariné. “It was a family-owned business, so I would have dinner with my bosses and their families, and it was so nice because I was developing my Italian skills while they were developing their Spanish skills.”

She returned to the U.S. that summer and headed straight to Miami, Florida, for another internship with NBC6/Telemundo, creating short and long-form video in both English and Spanish.

“My internship with NBC6 and Telemundo 51 was absolutely pivotal for my career development,” she said. “It taught me so much about how to work in a fast-paced environment, how to identify trending news, how to be the first ones to cover something, but also considering quality over quantity and making sure that the work we’re doing is correct. It was definitely the most challenging internship I had, but it was incredible.”

Her NBC6/Telemundo internship paved the way for her next opportunity with E! News in spring 2024 through the ������Ƶ in LA program.

“It was a wonderful experience because I was doing an internship in the heart of the entertainment industry within entertainment news,” she said. “I got to go to award shows and I was meeting celebrities and expanding my digital content skills, which was awesome.”

After E! News, Mariné went to the other coast for a summer internship at law firm Proskauer Rose in New York City, handling digital content. Now, she’s on contract with E! News again, working for the entertainment company on the weekends.

“Working at E! News was just an absolute dream that I did not expect,” said Mariné. “My managers were so supportive. It was also so cool because the office is in Universal City in LA. So, the theme park is two steps away and then you also have all the studio lots.”

In 2023 and 2024, Mariné was named a LAGRANT Foundation Scholar and, in fall 2024, she participated in the prestigious IRTS Foundational Multicultural Career workshop, an initiative designed to support students and recent graduates from underrepresented backgrounds pursue careers in the media industry.

Finding her roots

Despite her numerous internships, Mariné still found time for other campus involvement and scholarship. She is a finalist for a Fulbright UK Study Grant and is a student communication coordinator at El Centro. She credits Syliva Muñoz, the assistant dean of students and director of the Center for Race, Ethnicity and Diversity Education (CREDE), along with MJ Larrazabel Chacon, assistant director of CREDE, with helping her along the way.

“They feel like family at this point, because they’re like my mom and my sister away from home,” said Mariné. “It’s been really nice to have their support and to have them be so understanding of everything and to just give me a space where I really struggled finding my culture at ������Ƶ my first semester and connecting with MJ and Sylvia, and the CREDE and El Centro really helped me find my roots again.”

Mariné, who was born in Venezuela, incorporates her culture into her film work. During her third year, she created a film that, she says, represents Latinx/Hispanic culture in an authentic way, telling the story of a girl navigating grief after losing her grandmother.

“I lost my grandmother a couple of months before and I wanted to create a story where I could represent our culture and also just amplify voices that aren’t often heard,” said Mariné. “I feel like in the media nowadays we see a lot of representation, but a lot of it is performative or it causes more damage than good. It made me realize that in the future I want to continue telling stories that uplift unheard voices and create representation in the media that adds a positive impact that doesn’t create stereotypes.”

I just feel so incredibly grateful to spend my past four years here.

Cristy Mariné ‘25

Her Bachelor of Fine Arts thesis film, “The Fantastic Adventure of Felix Fisher,” tells the story of a 10-year-old boy who tries to one up his arch-nemesis Serena during a show-and-tell presentation, telling a story about his “magnificent” journey to the aquarium.

“It explores the themes of imagination, curiosity and grief,” she said. “It’s a great story in the sense that I see myself relate to it a lot because, as a child, I was super curious and I always wanted to do these  things like travel, and that’s how we see Felix as well.”

And as Mariné prepares for commencement on May 23, she’s looking back at how ������Ƶ helped her explore that curiosity.

“There are so many communities at ������Ƶ,” she said. “There’s something for everyone here, and that’s something that in my first semester, I wasn’t sure if I would find a space for myself,” she said.” But then, when I went to the org fair and I got involved with El Centro, Cinelon Productions and , I found my people and I found my place.”

“The aspects of Dr. Ritchie’s proposed work align seamlessly with several things we already have in motion here at ������Ƶ. But at ������Ƶ, we have a culture of never being satisfied; we know that we can always do better, and that we constantly need to strive for better,” said Joel Karty, Sydney F & Kathleen E Jackson professor of chemistry and chair of the Department of Chemistry. “Dr. Ritchie’s proposed work promises to help us make strides in some challenging areas.”

Solving ‘wicked problems’

Karty notes that science literacy is important for all students and reaching more non-science majors is a goal for the department. While Ritchie will teach through the Department of Chemistry, his educational background is in history and the history of science.  He focuses on how to make STEM education more inclusive and interdisciplinary, connecting science to the real world and solving what he calls “wicked problems.” One of Richie’s courses at Warwick, “Beyond Science,” has students work on projects related to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, collaborating with mentors across disciplines.

“A chemistry degree shouldn’t just be about what you do in the lab,” said Ritchie. “It should be about developing your understanding of challenges we face today, like climate change or inequality, that can’t just be solved by science alone, but that science will have a key role in. I think with those wicked problems, you have to bring ideas from other disciplines as well.”

The Fulbright ������Ƶ Award, through the Fulbright Commission, allows academics and professionals to teach and pursue independent research in any subject area offered by the university.

Ritchie first heard of ������Ƶ through Sarah Dyer with the University of Exeter, who participated in �����Dz�’s 2018-2020 research seminar on Capstone Experiences through the Center of Engaged Learning.

“It was inspirational when you saw her passion when she was talking about ������Ƶ. When it came to applying and looking through the different awards, ������Ƶ jumped out and very quickly I said  ‘That’s the only choice,’” he said. “������Ƶ stood out to me because of its commitment to inclusive excellence and the focus on student-centered learning innovation and teaching. It feels like a place I could go and share what I do and grow what I do and learn more.”

Ethical AI

As universities, including ������Ƶ, integrate AI into their policies and processes – Ritchie focuses on how to teach students to understand and ethically use the technology. At Warwick, Ritchie and a colleague created “The AI Revolution,” an interdisciplinary course focused on AI ethics and AI literacy.

“We want to talk about AI from a philosophical point of view and a historical point of view,” Ritchie said. “How is this a technology that compares to previous technology panics that we’ve seen? And all of these sorts of questions that get students to try to think about AI as more than just a specific tool.”

In addition to his teaching role at Warwick, Ritchie is also director of student experience and emphasizes the importance of belonging and mattering at universities. He developed “We Are Chemistry,” a co-created inclusive education program that, Ritchie says, has led to a 45% reduction in students leaving the department and a 12% rise in first-year student academic success.

“I’d like to think that students leave my courses feeling a bit more like they belong,” said Ritchie. “Belonging is a really hard aspect of university life, but it’s a really important one. There’s so many studies that show the link between belonging and success. I’d like to think  students leave my classes feeling like their voices mattered, that their ideas have had power, and that I’ve tried to be responsive in how I teach.”

Ritchie will begin teaching in Winter Term 2026. Because Ritchie’s background is in history, he will not be teaching chemistry courses. Some of the courses Ritchie could potentially develop at ������Ƶ include:

• Innovation Ecosystems: From Local to Global
• AI Revolution: Navigating a World with Artificial Minds
• Science Across Divides: The Art of Communicating Complex Ideas
• Disruptive Futures: Navigating Radical Change
• Serious Play: Innovation Through Experimentation and Joy
• Design Thinking for Social Impact

Changing the narrative

SURE is about more than just researching a topic – the students are exploring personal questions and interests that can spark wide-ranging, impactful conversations.

“I want to change the narrative,” said Fiona Hodge ‘26, whose research focuses on the intersectionality of queer college student identity.

Hodge, a psychology major and vice president of the Undergraduate Research Student Association (URSA) identifies as a member of the LBGTQ community and noticed a gap in the research around queer people.

“The previous research focused on discrimination and talking about queer people, but not focusing on their own perspectives,” said Hodge. “So, I want to provide research that’s by queer researchers for queer people.”

SURE provides an opportunity for students to work with faculty and gain meaningful research experience over the summer, without the pressure of other courses during a typical semester. Students apply for the opportunity, which usually takes place during the summer before the junior or senior year.

“Undergraduate research has been shown to have a lot of great benefits for students and faculty, thinking about developing critical thinking and communication skills, which is evident at the SURE presentations,” said Eric Hall, director of undergraduate research and interim assistant provost for scholarship and creative activity. “Presenting at conferences is the way we show our research findings, and this shows students what it would be like if they go to a regional or national conference.”

Hodge first started doing research this year and says the experience has gone well, especially with the help of her mentor Adam Kim, assistant professor of psychology.

“This is my first-time presenting research. I’m excited. It feels really cool to see your research come to life,” Hodge said. “My mentor pushes me to work harder and be more creative, to think outside of the box and not just come up with an okay question but with an interesting question.”

Queerness in the classroom

The child of two educators, a future teacher and a queer-identifying student, Lindsey Hefty ’25 also turned to her LGBTQ+ identity for research.

“I wanted to combine my major of elementary education with my minor in women’s, gender and sexualities studies with all the discourse surrounding queerness in schools. There’s been a lot of negativity,” said Hefty, who is also an ������Ƶ Teaching Fellow. “There is a lot of legislation that’s making it impossible for queer identifies to exist in educational spaces.”

The debate over LGBTQ+ issues in public schools has been a hot-button political issue in the last several years. In 2023, North Carolina passed the  “Parents Bill of Rights,” which requires teachers to notify parents if a student questions their gender or uses different pronouns.

In collaboration with her mentor, Associate Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English Kevin Bourque, Hefty interviewed LGBTQ+ educators and fielded survey responses from across North Carolina.

“We are looking for less obvious ways that queerness is happening in the classroom, less safe space posters and more covert incorporations of identity, and that’s a lot of what we’ve found,” said Hefty. “It’s also been really inspiring to talk to other queer educators about their experiences and stories.”

Hefty said she and Bourque fit together well – both being queer-identifying and interested in further exploring queer studies.

“Lindsey has been a pleasure to work with: thoughtful, perceptive, creative, good-natured, smart and funny. I love how her research ties not only to her professional goals, but also her outlook on the world,” Bourque said.

Using research to help

Research was one of the main reasons Natalie Peeples ’26 and Archie Tan ‘25 chose to attend ������Ƶ with undergraduate research being one of the Five ������Ƶ Experiences. Two of those experiences are needed for the Experiential Learning Requirement (ELR) to graduate. Students earn two ELRs for their participation in SURE.

Both Peeples and Tan are Lumen Scholars  with their SURE research being an extension of that work as well. Tan, the president of URSA, is a computer science major researching using artificial intelligence to detect pancreatic cancer.

“Right now, technology is growing super-fast, even for the people in the field, it’s really hard to catch up,” said Tan, who is also a first-generation college student. “I want to help people utilize advanced technology in their daily life. I want to use the technology to help people.”

Peeples’ topic is helping people in a different way – looking at what she describes as an understudied area in childhood well-being. The psychology major is interviewing parents of four-to five-year-old children in the US and asking them about what they think is important for early childhood, later she will talk with parents in Denmark, comparing the two countries.

“Denmark and the U.S. focus on very different things when it comes to childhood,” said Peeples, who is also an Honors Fellow. “In Denmark, they are focused more on play and outdoor time, while in the US, the focus is more on academics.”

A good childhood

Finding the parents to interview has been easy for Peeples through the dance classes she teaches at ������Ƶ DanceWorks. Her mother is also a pre-school teacher. Her mentor Maureen Vandermaas-Peeler, professor of psychology and director of the Center for Research on Global Engagement, is helping to find parents in Denmark, which they will talk with over the next few months. Peeples plans to go to Denmark next summer to complete her Lumen and Honors thesis research.

“My mentor has taught me about resilience and organization, while making sure that you take time for yourself, your own mental health and well-being because it can be draining trying to do all these things at once,” said Peeples.

The two began working together in fall 2023 and Vandermaas-Peeler says Peeples has enthusiastically embraced the project.

“She’s grown tremendously throughout these intensive weeks and SURE has been exceptional preparation for the next two years as Natalie explores these concepts in the U.S. and in Denmark,” Vandermaas-Peeler said. “I feel very fortunate to be in a mentoring relationship with Natalie and support her intellectual journey.”

What does it mean to believe?

Growing up Catholic, Kiara Cronin ‘25 is tapping into her perceptions of religion – looking at how others in her generation (Generation Z) view faith and spirituality, compared to Generation X.

“Spirituality can mean different things for different people,” said Cronin, who is majoring in human service studies. “I see people on social media saying they are spiritual but not religious or they believe in a higher power, but not necessarily God. I thought it was interesting how my generation is open about not subscribing to a certain religion and how that differs from someone in my mom’s generation.”

The project grew out of Cronin’s work as a Multifaith Scholar through the Center for the Study of Religion, Culture and Society, in collaboration with her mentor Senior Lecturer in Human Service Studies Sandra Reid. Cronin is also an Isabella Cannon Leadership Fellow and connected with Reid through the Disarming Injustice course which all the fellows are required to take, along with a Civil Rights Leadership Tour.

Cronin interviewed people about their thoughts on religion and spirituality and held focus groups on the topic. The culmination of the research will be a podcast miniseries about her findings.

“A surprising response from people is that they don’t want to get rid of the traditional ritual acts or traditional values, because that is what makes the church what it is,” she said. “But they do think, to some degree, there has to be some change in how the church interacts with young people.”

Just the start

Before this project, Cronin had never done an extensive research project, so she found the process intimidating at first, something Garrett Schmiederer ’25 can relate to.

“It’s been time consuming, and difficult at times, but I’m enjoying it so far,” said Schmiederer, an exercise science major who hopes to become an athletic trainer. “I’ve always wanted to do research and it’s been a learning experience.”

Schmiederer’s topic looks at concussions in student athletes and their effect on headaches and sleep. His research is still developing, and he plans to have more data by the end of the fall semester and present at the Spring Undergraduate Research Forum in 2025.

“It’s just the start so far,” said Schmiderer. “I’m giving them an ImPACT test, which is a concussion baseline test and then after that I’m giving them a survey that is about quality of sleep, if they have headaches or migraines and how it’s affecting their quality of life.”

Schmiederer is mentored by Caroline Ketcham, associate dean of ������Ƶ College, the College of Arts and Sciences and professor of exercise science, and Hall, who is also his academic adviser.

“I’ve had a lot of success as a scholar myself, but I enjoy talking to students and working with them to develop something and see their success,” said Hall. “It’s amazing to see the topics and say ‘Wow that’s impressive,’ but then when you talk to the students at the presentations and they are able to translate what they’ve done to me, who’s not in their field, is really impressive.”

Racial appraisals refer to the judgments people make about other people’s race and the grounds they use when doing so, such as ancestry, physical appearance, or culture. These judgments historically underlay slavery, segregation and land expropriation, and continue to shape discrimination and anti-discrimination policy.

Prior research had focused almost exclusively on appraisals by white Americans. Ghoshal conducted an original survey with a nationally representative sample of 1,100 people to examine how Americans of varied races constitute race.

Ghoshal found that people of all races use cues of ancestry and appearance to gauge others’ race, but Black and Hispanic Americans are far more likely than whites to think of experiences as one basis for race. For instance, Black Americans consider not just ancestry and appearance but also whether a person’s family experienced enslavement or segregation as a major factor in appraising Black identity, while Hispanic individuals consider whether a person has lived in a Spanish-speaking context as one factor in Hispanic identity.

He also found that Americans accord weight to self-identification and intra-cultural judgments in assessing some claims. For instance, Americans of all races think that whether a person considers themself Hispanic is an important factor in whether they are Hispanic, and that whether an official tribal entity considers a person to be Native American is similarly important in whether they are indeed Native American. But Americans give less weight to self-identification in deciding white or Black identity.

The goal of Ghoshal’s research is not to establish a “correct” logic of racial appraisals or race concepts, since no such correct logic exists. Rather, it is to understand change and constancy in America’s racial system, with an eye toward eliminating racial hierarchy and injustice. The research was supported by ������Ƶ’s Faculty Research and Development.

Huber will spend the 2024-25 academic year studying the Book of Revelation — her area of scholarly expertise — interrogating how biblical interpretation has shaped racialized identities and writing a monograph, “Revelation and Whiteness.” Specifically, she will examine color symbolism and how it contributes to whiteness and anti-Black racism in modern America.

“Revelation is a text that shapes much of the views of white evangelical Christians,” Huber said. “I’m interested in making explicit connections between language that engages in color symbolism, which wasn’t racialized when it was written, but has been interpreted and racialized.”

In doing so, she will centralize under-explored impacts of the text that challenge racialized perceptions of God within some sects of the Christian faith.

�����Dz�’s Faculty Research and Development Committee selected Huber for the competitive sabbatical. Faculty are encouraged to apply for sabbaticals if they are conducting extensive research or engaged in significant additional study that will result in their professional development. At ������Ƶ, faculty may apply for a full-year/full-pay sabbatical, a leave of one–half of a full year’s teaching load at full salary, or for a leave of a full academic year at half salary.

The committee selected Huber’s proposed sabbatical project based on its potential to shape future research in religious studies and on her previous record of scholarly achievement and publications, said Rozana Carducci, chair of the Faculty Research and Development Committee and associate professor and graduate director of the M.A. in Higher Education program in the Jo Watts Williams School of Education.

“The committee found Dr. Huber’s proposed sabbatical project to be thoughtfully conceptualized with significant potential to advance the field of biblical studies. In addition, Dr. Huber has a strong record of scholarly achievement related to the sabbatical project, having previously written two monographs and nine peer-reviewed articles within her disciplinary specialty.”

Huber is a prominent scholar in the field of Apocalypticism, New Testament studies and ancient Mediterranean religions. She previously has published two books, “Thinking and Seeing with Women in Revelation,” in 2013, and “Like a Bride Adorned: Reading Metaphor in John’s Apocalypse,” in 2007.

This month, Liturgical Press published her through a queer and feminist lens in its Wisdom Commentary series. In researching that project, she found gaps in research around the Book of Revelation and race, which led her to begin exploring subjects for “Revelation and Whiteness.”

The opportunity to engage in deep scholarly research influences and heightens ������Ƶ faculty’s teaching and mentorship.

“Beyond benefitting the individual faculty member with extended time to focus on their scholarly interests, ������Ƶ benefits from faculty sabbaticals in the form of faculty infusing new knowledge and skills in their teaching and mentoring roles, and the production of scholarship that advances academic disciplines and an ������Ƶ education,” Carducci said.

When she returns from sabbatical, Huber plans to develop a new course at ������Ƶ examining racialized interpretations of the Bible.

“I try to help students think about the connections between the ancient texts of the New Testament and the world we live in,” Huber said. “Connections around race is an area I’m trying to learn more about so I can help my students better understand them.”

The business analytics and marketing double major spent the past summer in Washington, D.C. as a member of a small cohort of DeJoy-Woś scholars. She took courses through George Mason University and attended a variety of educational and interactive lectures by national leaders. She also completed a professional internship with Electo Analytics during her eight-week stay in Washington, D.C.

“It was an extreme honor to receive the DeJoy-Woś Scholarship,” Lee said. “Louis DeJoy has worked extremely hard and against many odds to achieve the remarkable success he has had in his career. To be a beneficiary of that success makes me appreciate even more the opportunity to attend ������Ƶ and The Fund For American Studies.”

Lee said the D.C. program was a “great complement” to her studies at ������Ƶ and exposed her to many eye-opening experiences that have helped her build a professional network.

She said that having one-on-one interactions with both Louis DeJoy, an ������Ƶ trustee, and his wife, Dr. Aldona Woś, was an honor. “Being able to hear their accomplishments and involvements was truly inspiring and opened my eyes to new possible options for my future,” Lee said.

Lee is a member of Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority where she is the acting junior treasury chair. She is also involved in multiple foundations that focus on mental health awareness and fundraising in her hometown of Rumson, New Jersey.

After graduation, she hopes to remain in the business analytics field while incorporating her marketing interests as well.

“Being recognized with this scholarship is a humbling experience I will never forget,” Lee said. “It also provides me a confidence boost as I enter my last two years at ������Ƶ and importantly as I consider my internship possibilities for summer 2024.”

The DeJoy-Woś Scholarship program at TFAS has been funded for 18 years by the . This year marks the first year of a new gift of $500,000 to be distributed over five years. The annual support is prioritized for students from North Carolina with financial need, as well as a full scholarship to a student from Estonia. Louis DeJoy and Dr. Aldona Woś have provided scholarship assistance to enable more than 120 North Carolina and over 52 Estonian students to participate in TFAS summer programs.

The project seeks to build bridges of dialogue across racial, religious, geographic and generational division and creates spaces of understanding, healing and action. It extends oral history and digital storytelling efforts that began in 2018 in partnership with the . The project also responds to recent research revealing deep divides across race, class, and rural/urban areas in Alamance County, as well as the role of faith communities in catalyzing change.

The collaborative is a partnership between the African American Cultural Arts & History Center, Mayco Bigelow Community Center, History & Geography, and �����Dz�’s Center for Design Thinking.

Over the next two years, the collaborative will be partnering with diverse faith-based partners from marginalized communities to organize a series of community engagement events for youth and community elders to exchange their experiences. Engagement opportunities include site visits to different places of worship, neighborhood walking tours, community book-clubs and dialogues on local issues.

This Thursday, September 21, the Collaborative will kick off their fall events with a county-wide dialogue featuring this year’s common reading, “I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times,” with a visit from the author Mónica Guzmán.

In October, ������Ƶ students and community storytellers will collaborate to conduct oral history interviews and create digital stories. These projects culminate in public screenings, social media and community poster campaigns, and community dialogues of the digital stories.

Sandy Marshall, associate professor of history and geography and founding collaborative member, said, “the North Carolina humanities grant will support collaborative efforts to unearth the inspiring yet often overlooked histories that have shaped diverse communities in our state. It will also help us build bridges of understanding between different cultures and backgrounds.”

Danielle Lake, director of design thinking and associate professor of human service studies, said, “the collaborative is excited that this grant will help us cultivate sustainable pathways for participatory community engagement between students, scholars, public historians, community leaders and the broader public.”

According to North Carolina Humanities, this grant is part of their larger efforts to support the implementation of large-scale public humanities projects and to connect North Carolinians with cultural experiences that spur dialogue, deepen human connections and inspire community.