seniors – Houghton STAR

The end of the semester is fast approaching, culminating on Saturday, May 11th with the Commencement of Houghton’s class of 2013. Houghton will be saying goodbye to a diverse group of students with various majors and interests. As this collection of individuals look ahead to the future, they also remember their experiences at Houghton.

Student athlete and senior, Mark O’Brien, commented on his participation on the men’s varsity basketball team as being definitive to his time at Houghton, having had a “camaraderie that is hard to replace.” He has been played on the basketball team since freshman year and attributes this part of involvement as having been influential to relationships he has made and the support he looks to as he prepares for graduation.

O’Brien is a business major with a Bible minor and thanks the business department for giving him direction. He said, “professors go out of their way to help you, give insight to the future and opportunities, and stretch you to try new things.” To use the time spent at Houghton to the fullest, O’Brien said to “cast a broad net, and then narrow your interests to the things that you will enjoy the most.”

Alice Browning, a senior political science major with self-designed minors in human trafficking and supply chains and community development in an international context says that Houghton has influenced her world perspective. Although her identity has stayed the same throughout her time as a student, Browning said, “I have been challenged to view the world in a more flexible and permeable way.”

An important aspect of Browning’s Houghton experience includes the time she has spent being able to explore many interests. She said that she has learned that it is more important to “define the greater questions rather than being concerned with finding the answers.” Next year Browning is planning on working with the Wesley Corps in Buffalo in helping with the resettlement of refugees.

Julian Cook, a senior studying religion and music describes Houghton as a place dedicated to self-discovery. His experiences have greatly influenced his decision to attend Boston University of Theology in the fall and of pastoring, teaching, and leading in the future. Cook has found the connection between his interests and said he sees the “value in traditional Christianity to not neglect questioning” as well as appreciating the “musician as a prophet and minister.” In looking back, Cook says to “endure past the questioning and get involved.”

Coming from a family of music teachers, senior music education major Maribeth Olsen said she initially chose Houghton for the way she fit into the music program. Olsen said she has truly appreciated the ability to pursue activities outside of her major. This summer Olsen will have the chance to be a Highlander leader and is excited for this opportunity to interact with Houghton students after graduating.

As her time at Houghton draws to an end, Olsen has found it helpful to make a bucket list. Her list includes the mundane and arguably for her the most rewarding, including: completing a Star crossword, getting on stage, sitting with Coach Smalley in chapel, going to Higgins’ Hole, and visiting the Red Barn. Olsen is currently applying for various teaching positions and her search,” seeks small communities similar in their reciprocity to Houghton.”

For senior Sarah Jacoby, a double major in religion and humanities, off-campus programs have played a significant role in defining her passions and interests. Jacoby spent a semester abroad during her freshman year as a participant in the London Honors Program. She also participated in the City Semester Program in Buffalo for the spring semester of her junior year. Both of these opportunities were “valuable and practical in making connections within [her] majors.”

Jacoby is hoping to work with Wesley Corps next year as well as other non-profit organizations in the future before attending graduate school. With the approaching opportunities and possibilities, Jacoby looked back on the relationships she has formed at Houghton and said, “I have found people that I can return to – strong networks of people who are excited about my life.”

Senior Nathan White, having majored in intercultural studies with a double concentration in linguistics and TESOL, will be heading to Thailand this summer to do a graduate study in Linguistics. While overseas, White will also be doing TESOL work and language development with people in “helping them to value their heart language.”

Entering Houghton as a transfer, White has found it to be a place where “intelligence and faith have a beautiful collision.” He commented on his growth as an individual, not being afraid of the uncomfortable, embracing the awkward, and learning to be whole. White attributes these qualities to those he has interacted with, including his host family in Tanzania, professors, and friends. White said, “There are classrooms everywhere. Behind every face there are glorious stories.”

Pursuing honors studies at Houghton is not just limited to participation in the First Year Honors Programs, East Meets West and Contemporary Contexts. Students also have the opportunity to complete a senior honors project in their final year at Houghton.

Honors projects are minutely detailed research studies of a topic of a student’s choice and are meant to mimic graduate school work. As such, the research and workload of an honors project is very challenging and is meant to go above and beyond standard 400 level independent studies. To even apply for an honors project, students must possess a minimum cumulative grade point of average of 3.25 and a minimum of 3.4 within their own major.

Often, honors projects result from experiences and studies in previous coursework. Senior Hannah Hanover, a writing major, is one such student who has undertaken an honors project this year based on her experiences studying abroad. After taking part in the Balkans semester last fall, she chose to write a historical fiction piece based around Jasenovac, a World War II concentration camp operating in the former Yugoslavia. Hanover said, “I was fortunate enough to visit the site of the camp while in the Balkans, and the museum there was very helpful and powerful in its scope.”

Sydnie Cunningham, a sociology major, has also completed an honors project that has resulted from previous study. She completed “a project examining how romantic roles and socioeconomic status influences women’s occupational choices in STEM fields.” This topic was partially inspired by collaborative research on similar issues regarding that subject. Likewise, Bill Clunn, a political science major, pursued an honors project entitled, “The Militant Politics of Poverty Policy; Flight Fight, Policy, and Rights” that was inspired after an internship he had completed during the Buffalo City Semester.

Overall, Hanover believes that the experience of the honors project has greatly impacted her future academic and career goals. “I wish to study the mid-20th century literature stemming from various conflicts in Europe, mainly Eastern Europe, and work at a university in the future,” said Hanover, “As a fiction writer this was an exercise in exactly what I wish to write – historical fiction examining lesser-known conflicts (mainly in Eastern Europe) that could help Westerners understand the mindsets and values of those entirely unlike themselves.”

Clunn noted something similar, “Initially, I was interested in pursuing criminal law in grad school, but after completing this project I am now very interested in pursuing studies in poverty. I am going to be attending a law school in North Carolina where poverty is an important issue.”

Overall, the participants in the honors project recommended the experience. Cunningham and Clunn noted the benefits of completing a mock graduate study experience. Hanover also said, “Writing an honors project is an excellent way to discover your academic style. I realized many things about my work process that I can now attempt to remedy. It teaches you the flaws in your time management, the frustrations of prolonged projects, methods needed to push past writer’s block, and gives one a taste of graduate-length work.”