Atkins Scholars enjoy support, encouragement for undergraduate research
A 国标麻豆视频APP research program has opened doors for students pursuing individualized research opportunities.
The Atkins Scholars Research Program, funded through the James Graham Brown Foundation, has helped to fund 30 research projects 鈥 both collaborative with faculty and individual research projects. The research program goal is to prepare scholars to confidently integrate inclusion and equity practices in future professional and academic endeavors.
Eight scholars completed faculty mentored projects over the summer. Half of 国标麻豆视频APP faculty conduct research each summer, and providing mentored research opportunities to students through this work is an important way 国标麻豆视频APP supports high impact practices.
鈥淚 think the beauty of this opportunity for students is that we鈥檙e able to provide research opportunities for a diverse group of students,鈥 said Melinda Weathers, director of diversity and inclusion at 国标麻豆视频APP and chair of the program. 鈥淭hey can study and further engage or explore topics that they are passionate about, while working closely with a faculty mentor.鈥
For junior Boston native Santiago Lebron, one linguistic anthropology class with Assistant Professor of Anthropology Jeffrey Shenton inspired a new research topic.
鈥淭hroughout that semester, Dr. Shenton was very open to talk about my personal interests and ways to follow them. That made me see him as a mentor,鈥 Lebron said. 鈥淎nd as someone who is thinking about grad school, I knew I needed more time with him outside of the classroom. When he told me about his research plans for the summer, I was quick to say yes, because I also believed in the work he was doing and was fascinated by his approach.鈥
Lebron is working with Shenton on Participatory Action Research in the classroom through Black Oral History 鈥 and found a passion for Danville, Kentucky in the process, learning more about the cultural erasure endured by African Americans in the Danville and Boyle County community.
鈥淎s we worked through the oral history interviews he and 国标麻豆视频APP students have collected, I noticed that I was not asking enough questions about the place I decided to spend four years pursuing my undergrad,鈥 Lebron said. 鈥淭hrough the interviews, I was able to hear the voices of a community who lost so much. After working with Dr. Shenton, I can say that I have a better idea of where I am right now and how that knowledge and the curiosity to have it, will get me where I want to be in the future.鈥
For Aidan Jackson, a member of the 2025 class and Business major, his research on men鈥檚 mental health had a personal twist. He said that seeing the challenges faced by his father as a Black man in America 鈥攁nd continuing to see them, through his own life and that of his peers 鈥攎otivated him to act.
鈥淪eeing friends, colleagues, classmates, teammates suffer through similar mental health challenges and remain quiet because of a personal stigma behind it is something I could not stand to keep watching,鈥 Jackson said. 鈥淐hange has to be made; and what better place to do so then at 国标麻豆视频APP? (My) project is for black men on this campus who need support, community and tools to understand and examine their emotions, to further become competent as to how to approach sensitive subjects and know that it's okay to need help.鈥
When students have completed their research, opportunities like presenting at conferences, submitting for publication and sharing findings with RICE 鈥 国标麻豆视频APP鈥檚 Research, Internships and Creative Endeavors showcase 鈥 allow students to share their work in a professional setting.
鈥淪tudents last year noted that they weren鈥檛 sure about their work when they started 鈥 they couldn鈥檛 see themselves as a researcher,鈥 Weathers said. 鈥淏ut upon interviewing people, listening and asking questions, they found how important it was, they felt like they were making an impact with these people who hadn鈥檛 been listened to. The research is validating, this work is important, and I think it changes students鈥 view of themselves moving forward.鈥
List of Atkins Scholars 2024-25
Bon Bartholomy 鈥25
Major: Studio art and art history
Hometown: Owensboro, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Andy Brown
Topic: Fluid: Perceptions of identity at 国标麻豆视频APP
Samuel Cotthoff 鈥26
Major: Anthropology/Sociology
Hometown: Hopkinsville, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Jamie Shenton
Topic: The queer+ experience in Greek life at 国标麻豆视频APP
Conley Combs 鈥26
Major: Anthropology/Sociology and Spanish
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Faculty Advisor: Kaelyn Wiles
Topic: Safety and sexual wellness of gay adolescent hookup app users and implications of hookup culture on the gay community
Keely Faulkner 鈥26
Major: Classics and Anthropology
Hometown: Peachtree City, Georgia
Faculty Advisor: Danielle La Londe
Topic: Use of Roman exemplars and iconography by women's rights advocates in the Progressive Era
Creyling Guerrero '26
Advisor: Satty Echeverria
Topic: Constructing Blackness in Latin American Black-authored literature
Aiden Jackson 鈥25
Major: Business
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Genevieve Bell
Topic: Examining the cultural competency of men鈥檚 mental health and re-imagining support: a black perspective
Sarah Koch 鈥25
Major: Anthropology/Sociology
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Jamie Shenton and Philip Limerick (two research projects)
Topic: Parental rights in education and Anti-racist discourse on Afro-Uruguayan social media
Santiago Lebron 鈥26
Major: Anthropology/Sociology and Spanish
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Faculty Advisor: Jeffery Shenton
Topic: Participatory action research in the classroom through Black oral history
Sam Merritt 鈥25
Major: German and Anthropology/Sociology
Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Eva Cadavid
Topic: The role of inclusive pedagogies in developing a sense of belonging in the philosophy classroom
Nick Minton 鈥26
Major: Anthropology/Sociology
Hometown: Brownstown, Indiana
Faculty Advisor: Katrin Bahr
Topic: 鈥淔rom inviting in, to coming out:鈥 The ballroom community/ voguing scene
Kasey Montgomery 鈥25
Major: Anthropology/Sociology
Hometown: Clayton, California
Faculty Advisor: Kaelyn Wiles
Topic: Loneliness and connection at 国标麻豆视频APP
Robyn Tribolet 鈥25
Major: Studio Art and Art History
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Stephanie Galli
Topic: The power of queer community in times of protest
Jennifer Vong 鈥25
Major: Sociology
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Faculty Advisor: Kiyona Brewster
Topic: What does sexuality have to do with being Asian American in the United States?
William Watson 鈥26
Major: International Studies and French
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Faculty Advisor: Willie Costley
Topic: Immigration rhetoric during the 2016 presidential election cycle
Taylor Webb 鈥26
Major: Psychology
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Faculty Advisor: Drew Morris
Topic: Young adult cancer mental healthcare: "The Young Adult Cancer Compendium"
Maya Anderson '25
Faculty Advisor: Kristen Kolenz
Weathers added that the scholarship wouldn鈥檛 be possible without the Brown Foundation鈥檚 support of students to explore these diverse topics.
鈥淲e鈥檙e very grateful for the Brown Foundation鈥檚 support,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e excited to continue that relationship 鈥 it鈥檚 crucial for students to have access to funding, for good mentorship and this research. It鈥檚 an opportunity for us to compensate mentors in a small way, but also without the additional funding, students are limited on options when it comes to research projects. The Brown Foundation has recognized the importance of providing students with adequately funded, well-planned research opportunities in the areas of social justice. In many cases, these types of opportunities wouldn鈥檛 be available without that support.鈥
