Message from Dr. Belinda S. Miles: Supporting Beacon Scholars – June 4, 2021
Colleagues,
Today, Westchester Community College hosts the 29th annual Beacon Conference, established to recognize, celebrate, and showcase the academic achievements of outstanding community college students at two-year colleges within the Mid-Atlantic region. Thirty-three two-year colleges are participating in Beacon ’21.
We thank Dr. Mira Sakrajda and Prof. Kent Trickel for serving as co-directors of this distinctive occasion for students to showcase research skills, present findings at an academic conference, and exchange thoughts and ideas in a professional forum. Thanks also to faculty members who supported our Beacon Scholars, served as mentors, helped students prepare to put forth their content in an enriching and competitive space, and all who are participating as moderators or panel sponsors. Please consider attending the conference and supporting our team of Beacon Scholars.
We wish our students the best of luck as they present their projects. Their research topics are impressive and quite diverse.
LAURA BALSKE
“What Some Scientists Don’t See When Looking at a Brain in Love”
Mentor: Dr. Dwight Goodyear
Conference Category: Philosophy and Religion
BIANCA BRAUN
“The Neurological, Structural, and Psychological Bases of Speech Disorders”
Mentor: Dr. Mira Sakrajda
Conference Category: Allied Health and Nursing
MAC COLLIER
“Fungi: Turning Human Pollutants into Sustainable Building Blocks”
Mentor: Dr. Margaret Eiden
Conference Category: Poster Session
HANA CORNELL
“Love and Mortality in Romeo and Juliet”
Mentor: Dr. Richard Rodriguez
Conference Category: Literature II
MADISON CRANE
“Parent-Teacher Communication Across Cultures”
Mentor: Dr. Mira Sakrajda
Conference Category: Poster Session
JONATHAN CUENCA-LEVANON
“The Bias in Standardized Testing”
Mentor: Prof. Brian Centrone
Conference Category: Education
DORIS DEWEY
“Drugs vs. Diet: Treating Crohn’s Disease”
Mentor: Prof. Michelle Somma
Conference Category: Allied Health and Nursing
KIMANI LAFOND
“The Link Between Personality, Occupation, and Career Success”
Mentor: Dr. Kamil Hamaoui
Conference Category: Psychology
MAYEL LEVIN
“Negotiating Hegemonic Portrayals of Race and Gender in Hollywood: A Cultural and Feminist Analysis of Waves”
Mentor: Dr. Ellen Kreger
Conference Category: Film Studies
CLAUDIA YANELA MALDONADO
“Nuns are Women: The Influence of the Catholic Church on Women in Latin America”
Mentor: Dr. Richard Rodriguez
Conference Category: Poster Session
LUIS ANGEL OCHOA
“Psychotherapy and Intervention Programs for Building Resilience in Adolescence”
Mentor: Dr. Kamil Hamaoui
Westchester Community College
Conference Category: Psychology
DYLAN ORTIZ
“Eternal Love and the Ravages of Time in Shakespeare’s Sonnets”
Mentor: Dr. Richard Rodriguez
Conference Category: Poster Session
IMAN LOUISE ROZGA
“Mindfulness, Meditation and Personality Change”
Mentor: Dr. Kamil Hamaoui
Conference Category: Poster Session
ELLEN ZWEIG
“Racism Undercover: Why Originalism Is Not Right for Today”
Mentor: Prof. Rachel Wineberg
Conference Category: Social Justice
Dr. Belinda S. Miles
President