As 2016 draws to a close, take a look back at some of our favorite stories (and photos) of the year.
A hands-on sustainable farming experience with Daniel Dayton, of Old Milburnie Farm in Raleigh, is one of several offerings on peoplefirsttourism.com, a social venture created by a team of NC State professors. Photo courtesy of People-First Tourism. Learn more »
The U.S. Department of State named political scientist Kathleen Vogel to its 12th class of Jefferson Science Fellows, a group of scholars who serve one-year assignments as science advisers on foreign policy issues. Learn more »
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences invited NC State to support its efforts to advance higher education by serving as an affiliate institution. As an affiliate, NC State joins 66 other top universities, including Duke and UNC Chapel Hill, that partner with the academy by participating in its studies on higher education and by helping to support its fellowships and outreach programs. Learn more »
By joining the Collaborative to Advance Equity through Research, NC State committed to supporting its existing research about women and girls of color while also developing new opportunities for scholarly inquiry. Here, pictured from left, Dr. Karla F.C. Holloway (Duke University), Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry (Wake Forest University), Dr. Shayla Nunnally (University of Connecticut) and Dr. Blair Kelley (NC State University) stand together during a White House forum on Advancing Equity for Women and Girls of Color. Learn more »
NC State University historian David Zonderman has spent the past three years helping Halifax County interpret its deep connection to the Underground Railroad. After performing humanities extension work with the local school system for more than a decade, Zonderman engaged with the Halifax County Convention and Visitors Bureau to develop a plan to share the county’s history with the public. Photo courtesy of the Halifax County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Learn more »
Thanks to a Frederick Burkhardt fellowship, English professor James Mulholland is continuing his research into the emergence of Anglo-Indian literature during the eighteenth century at the National Humanities Center. Mulholland is one of 21 tenured professors who have been named Burkhardt Fellows for the 2016-17 academic year. Learn more »
After reaching thousands of students, faculty and staff on campus, NC State’s Educating the Educated program is quickly becoming a national model for language diversity education. The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators affirmed the program’s broadening impact, awarding Educating the Educated its grand gold medal for excellence in March. Read more about the award »
What basic rules would you choose to create a society, if you were completely ignorant of your religion, race or socioeconomic status in that society? That question forms the basis of the original position, a thought experiment introduced by one of the most influential political philosophers of the 20th century, John Rawls. NC State philosophy professor Timothy Hinton edited a new book in which he and a dozen other scholars offer a range of perspectives on Rawls’ influential theory. Learn more »
NC State history professor Matthew Booker is examining the evolution of food production in American cities during a year-long fellowship at the National Humanities Center. The center named Booker to a select group of national and international scholars who are serving as resident fellows during the 2016-2017 academic year. Learn more »
A novel by NC State alumna and author Therese Fowler, center, inspired the new Amazon Studios streaming series, “Z: The Beginning of Everything.” Here, Fowler stands with “Z: The Beginning of Everything” director Tim Blake Nelson and producer Pam Koffler. Photo courtesy of Therese Fowler. Learn more »
An interdisciplinary team of NC State researchers including communication professor Andrew Binder developed new techniques to help utilities make informed planning decisions about water reclamation projects. Photo credit: My Sideways World. Image retrieved via Flickr and shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
For professor Jim Michnowicz and his students, what started as a class experiment is now producing intriguing research findings that will be published in a new book on language diversity. Here, students Alex Hyler (left), James Shepherd (second from left), and Sonya Trawick (right) stand with Michnowicz at the 2016 Spanish Linguistics in the Southeast Conference at the College of Charleston. Learn more »
A digital archive created by history professor Tammy Gordon allows citizens to share and document their experiences with North Carolina’s controversial House Bill 2. The website, NC HB2: A Citizens’ History, allows users to submit stories, videos, images and documents related to the bill and sort through materials submitted by others. This photo from a Wilmington City Council meeting in April is one item included in the archive. Learn more »
Jennifer Kuzma has been named a fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Communication professor Liz Craig, right, and student Leanne Nieforth, left, are showing us just how significant our relationships with animals can be. Focusing on a horse-riding academy for at-risk girls, the researchers documented how human-animal interaction can serve as a powerful educator of what works and what doesn’t in a healthy relationship. Their findings not only provide insight to the holistic social benefits of equine-assisted therapies, but show how our connection with horses may be more physiological than you think. Learn more »
Research from NC State and Ohio University finds that having an “alcohol identity” puts college students at greater risk of having drinking problems. In addition, posting about alcohol use on social media sites is actually a stronger predictor of alcohol problems than having a drink, according to the study. “This work underscores the central role that social networking sites, or SNSs, play in helping students coordinate, advertise and facilitate their drinking experiences,” said Lynsey Romo, an assistant professor of communication at NC State and co-lead author of a paper on the work. Photo credit: Jean-François Chénier. Image retrieved via Flickr and shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
After double-majoring in psychology and Spanish languages and literatures, recent graduate QuiAnne’ Holmes has developed a passion for promoting equity in the classroom. Holmes, who graduated in May, is exploring her interests further during a Fulbright teaching assistantship in Colombia. Learn more»
Over the last four years, student Nate Myers, right, has trained high school students in photography, videography and music production at the Boys and Girls Club of Wake County afterschool program. Working with teens largely from low-income households, Myers mentored students through multimedia projects with themes often promoting social change. Earlier this year, Myers launched a new startup, the Malkuta Project, to expand the afterschool model to the broader community. Learn more »
When doctoral student Caroline Myrick, right, first went to the Caribbean island of Saba in 2012, she had no idea that she’d be publishing a dictionary on the native language four years later. Myrick, who is pursuing her Ph.D. in sociolinguistics from NC State, worked with Theodore Johnson, left, to write the new book, published by the Language and Life Project at NC State. Photo credit: Bastiaan Janssens. Learn more »
Psychology professor Tom Hess received the American Psychological Association’s most prestigious award for research on adult development and aging. APA Division 20 (Adult Development and Aging) named Hess the 2016 recipient of the Baltes Distinguished Research Achievement Award, which recognizes researchers with distinguished careers of exceptional theoretical and empirical contributions to the psychological science of aging. Learn more »
The idea of what it means to become “independent” has evolved significantly in recent generations. New research by NC State sociologist Anna Manzoni finds that the concept of being either dependent or independent doesn’t apply to almost half of young adults in the United States. Instead, the study finds that young adults can fall into any of four categories that span the spectrum from full independence to being wholly dependent on parents. Photo credit: annelope. Retrieved via Flickr and shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
Pursuing a bachelor of social work at NC State, Jesse Bennett says his quest toward a diploma isn’t only about continuing his recovery from addiction. It’s about helping others. Bennett, who works as a transition case manager at a Wake County recovery center, also serves as president of the NC State Collegiate Recovery Community and has volunteered with advocacy groups across the state. Read more about Jesse’s journey »
One of seven NC State students to earn a competitive Fulbright grant this year, Emma Cathell is spending nine months teaching English to students at Universidad Tecnológica de Tula-Tepeji in Tula de Allende, Hidalgo, Mexico. Learn more »
New research from NC State psychologists found that having a positive attitude about aging makes older adults more resilient when faced with stressful situations. “This tells us that the way we think about aging has very real consequences for how we respond to difficult situations when we’re older,” says Shevaun Neupert, an associate professor of psychology at NC State and senior author on the paper. “That affects our quality of life and may also have health ramifications. For example, more adverse emotional responses to stress have been associated with increased cardiovascular health risks.” Photo credit: daveynin. Photo retrieved via Flickr and shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
In her new book “Contested Tastes: Foie Gras and the Politics of Food” (Princeton University Press), NC State sociologist Michaela DeSoucey captures arguments for and against foie gras, why they matter and what they mean. Shining a light on multiple issues that comprise the charged debate, DeSoucey reveals the political systems and moral arguments that increasingly influence food and taste. Princeton University Press. Photo credit: Ville Oksanen. Photo retrieved via Flickr and shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
A team of NC State faculty and students helped unearth more clues this summer about the ancient Nabataean city of Petra, Jordan. As part of a larger excavation at the site, the group discovered two marble statues of the mythological goddess Aphrodite — artifacts that dig co-director Tom Parker describes as “absolutely exquisite.” News of the discovery spread quickly, as The Huffington Post, Live Science, Archaeology, Travel and Leisure Magazine, WUNC and the News and Observer, among others, have all reported on the find. Learn more »
Hundreds of people visited NC State in September to experience Martin Luther King Jr. anew. Blending digital humanities innovation with the performing and visual arts, Experiencing King at NC State featured a performance by actors Danny Glover and Felix Justice as well as interactive tours and exhibits at the James B. Hunt Jr. Library. Learn more »
For the past four years, professor Ruth Gross has been instrumental to NC State’s Language Training Center, a program designed to help special forces soldiers grow their understanding of languages they’ll encounter in the field. For her service, the Department of the Army recently awarded Gross the Commander’s Award for Public Service. Here, Michael Judge, left, Language Education Program Supervisor at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center in Fort Bragg, awards Gross the Commander’s Award during the annual Humanities and Social Sciences welcome back reception for faculty on Sept. 8 in Caldwell Lounge. Learn more »
A mentoring program for grad students, by grad students — that’s the idea behind the Lead Graduate Professional Skills Collaborative. Co-sponsored by Humanities and Social Sciences and The Graduate School, the collaborative is a group of current doctoral students who are working to implement peer mentoring programs across the college. Here, lead Graduate Professional Skills Collaborative mentors Sarah Soleim, Jennifer Lutz and Vincent Reitano participate in the Marshmallow Challenge as part of a team building activity. Learn more »
Drawing from research and her personal experiences, award-winning author and NC State professor Belle Boggs published “The Art of Waiting: On Fertility, Medicine and Motherhood,” a work that expounds the realities of fertility, choice and the many paths to making a family. The book landed on several must-read lists, including Oprah Magazine’s 10 Favorite Books of 2016, and has been featured by The New York Times, TODAY, New York Magazine’s The Cut, The Atlantic, The Globe and Mail, Slate, and NPR, among others. Photo credit: Trace Ramsey. Learn more »
A new study from NC State, the University of Chicago and the University of Michigan found that female college students are more active than males in racial justice movements — and that what drives Black students to engage is different from what drives Latino students. The finding not only sheds light on how students support social action, but also on what higher education can do to support its students. “This will, hopefully, tell school administrators that it makes sense to support their students – and their mission statements – by offering a variety of courses with a social justice focus, and providing workshops that teach best practices for race/ethnicity-related activism,” said Elan Hope, an assistant professor of psychology at NC State and lead author of a paper describing the work. Photo credit: Philip. Image shared under a Creative Commons license. Learn more »
The NC State Alumni Association recognized three Humanities and Social Sciences graduates at its annual Evening of Stars gala on Oct. 27. Ambassador Gentry Smith (political science ’83) received the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences; Harold Pettigrew (political science ’02) received the 2016 Outstanding Young Alumnus Award; and Christopher Hondros (English ’93) received the 2016 Posthumous Meritorious Service Award. Photo credit: NC State Alumni Association. Learn more »
