Senior Independent Study Theses from 2016
“Shikata Ga Nai:” An Analysis of the Japanese American Experience of Internment, Social Injustice, and Perseverance, Hayley J. Cooper
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Opportunity and Empowerment in Female Prison Reentry in Wooster, OH, Zoe E. Cunningham-Cook
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Gracias a La Casa Mono, progreso: A critical analysis of sustainable tourism in Nicaragua, Cullen T. Dolson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
"The Word Is Hula": An Exploration of the Use of Hula in Christian Churches on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, Emily Donato
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Theatre and Dance
“You Can’t Change What You Were”: Liminality and the Process of Role Exit Among Former Amish, Kathryn Foster
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Saints of the Gridiron and Pro Football Pilgrimage: An Analysis of the Role of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in American Culture, Michelle Glazer
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Effects of Skin Tone on Perceptions of Police Officers Among African Americans, Heather Ann Honn
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
My Immigrant Haitian Family: Life Stories on Acclimation in the United States., Paris Jerome
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Civic Effects of Social Capital in Alternative Food Networks: A Case Study of the Wooster Local Food Cooperative Inc. in Ohio, Natalie D. Kahn
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Strategic Essentialism and Hidden Nuance in Tibetan Refugee Culture in the United States, Ben Kingstone
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
These Are Our Mountains: Analysis of Highland Games in the Southern United States as a Performance of Scottish American Culture, Gracie Kral
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Study of Color Red in Chinese Immigrant Culture, Yibing Li
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
An Examination of Federal Agent and Attorney Perceptions, Gabriel Lopez
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Glass Ceiling in Schools: An Ethnographic Approach to Understanding the Racial and Economic Inequalities in Selected Chicago City and Suburban Schools, MacKenzie Rae Love
Department: Africana Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
One Fish, Two Fish, Dead Fish, Tourist: Determining How a Resident's Demographic Factors Influence Their Perception of the Community of La Parguera, Puerto Rico, Amy L. Melena
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Co-Production of Tourism Among Amish Small Business Owners: Redefining “Separation From the World”, Paris Brielle Nahas
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Meeting at the Center: The Role of Amish Birthing Centers in Mixing Modern Medicine and Religion, Leah M. Penner
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Money for Soul: The Effects of Consumer Culture in the Music Industry, Connor S. Peterson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
"You Can't Spell Earth Without ART": The Artistry of Women of Color in Scholarship and Activism, Erin M. Posey
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Pigeon Lady and Public Policy: The Public Conceptions and Media Depictions of Homelessness and the Ability to Design and Deliver Social Services, Marisa A. Quiery
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
A Bone to Pick: Biological Sex Determination and Gender Interpretation of Maya Burials, Krystal P. Reynolds
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Elephant in the Room, The Fetus in the Womb: Disability Rights Activists’ Perspectives on Prenatal Genetic Testing and Selective Termination of Down syndrome, Evangeline Maria Smith
Department: Religious Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
"School is not a business": Chicago Educators' Perceptions of the Neoliberal Turn in Education, Dana Stamos
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Misunderstood and Mistreated: A Case Study of Drug Court as a Functional Treatment Method for Drug Addicts, Claire E. Trescher
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Examining Conceptions of the Nation at World's Fairs and Expositions, 1958-2015, Elliott H. Valentine
Department: History; Sociology and Anthropology
America's Invisible Punishment: An Analysis of the History, Impact, and Public Perceptions of Felon Disenfranchisement, Katherine LA Wollmer
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Euskaldunak or Amerikanuak: An Introduction to the Folklore of the Boise Basques and its Contribution to the Basque-American Identity, Leah Zavaleta
Department: English; Sociology and Anthropology
Senior Independent Study Theses from 2015
Do You Have the Heart For It?: An Anthropological Examination of Portrayals of Aztec Human Sacrifice in Popular Culture, Courtney F. Astrom
Department: Archaeology; Sociology and Anthropology
American Co-eds and the Great Recession: A Study of Job Opportunities for Recent College Graduates Based Upon the Decade of Graduation, Kiara A. Bermudez
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Where Should We Look? Accountability, Stakeholder Relationships, and the Role of an NGO as a Secondary Political Institution in Tanzania: A Case Study Analysis, Ellen R. Boyd
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Distributing Scarcity: Structure, Agency, And The Moral Categorization Of Food Pantry Users, Nina R. Breyer
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
A Paradox of Visibility: Case study of a tent city in Wooster, Ohio, Teresa Butel
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
An Investigation of the Relationship Between Young Adult Substance Use Behavior, Gender, Peer Influence, and Implications for Future Prevention Programs, Georgia Callahan
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
A Neopagan Renaissance: Appropriation of Medieval Imagery and Pre-Christian Folklore in the Magazine Covers of Harvest, Jennifer C. Caventer
Department: Art and Art History; Sociology and Anthropology
Art or Artifact? African Objects in the Museum, Elizabeth Chamis
Department: Art and Art History; Sociology and Anthropology
Once Upon the Fifteenth Year: An Exploration of Identity Formation Within the Cultural Practice of Quinceañeras in Contemporary Nicaragua, Ashley Melissa Chavez-White
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
What is success?: A case study of the Barberton Community Development Corporation and the discourse on community development success, Bailey R. Connor
Department: Economics; Sociology and Anthropology
Parental Attitudes Towards Unsupervised and Unstructured Play, Georgia Corran
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
How do Correctional Programs Help Ex-Offenders Obtain Employment after going through Reentry?, Anthony T. Durkin
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Spontaneous Combustion: Examining the Spectacle of Burning Man, Celeste E. Endlich
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Let's Talk About Shame: An In-Depth Analysis of How Shame Influences the College of Wooster Student Experience, Alanna Faust
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Tuning Togetherness: Negotiating Senses of Place and Community Through Street Performance in Little Five Points, Atlanta, Matthew Adam Germaine
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Stuck In the Middle with You: Non-Western Medical Practices in Biomedical Hospital Settings, Emma Gorin
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
From Refugee Camp to College Campus: Exploring the Role of Educators on Refugee Students’ Views on Higher Education, Elizabeth V. Hart
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Educational Inequality: A Case Study of a Non-Profit’s Approach to Achieve Academic Excellence, Jenae Herrington
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The "Advocacy of Seeing": Understanding the Culture of Non-Profit Organizations and its Effect on the Organization’s Interaction with the Issue of Access to Legal Counsel for Undocumented Immigrant Children in Legal Proceedings in the United States, Holly A. Hickman
Department: Political Science; Sociology and Anthropology
Disrupting a Culture of Violence: A Comparison of Peace Education in Two Community Organizations, Sophia E. Hoover Grant
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Molding of Black Men’s Identity: Exploring Narratives on the Understanding of Institutional Influences on the Construction, Perception, and Performance of Black Masculinity, Brittany D. House
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Canyon as Home: Accessing food, water, education, and employment in Tijuana's former municipal landfill, Morgan E. Hughes
Department: Art and Art History; Sociology and Anthropology
Spirits, Magic, and the Clinic: Healing Practices in a Karen Village in Northwest Thailand, Kathleen Jackson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Being Amma in America: : A Study of the Relationship Between Motherhood and Religion in Hindu Communities of the United States, Cara E. Jacob
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
You Are What You Smoke: Redefining Latino Addict Identities in Memoirs, Ian M. Kernohan
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Spanish
Parental School Choice: Public, Private, and Charter School Quality and Decision Making, Najiyah J. McKinney
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Profane or Profound?: An Examination of Satirized Religion in British and American Culture through the works of South Park and Monty Python, Susannah Montgomery
Department: Religious Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
Buzzkill: Beekeepers’ Understanding of the Environment through the lens of Colony Collapse Disorder, Margaret E. New
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Environmental Studies
Knight Life: The Construction of the Modern Knight Templar through the Symbols of the Past, Mike Ohsfeldt
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; History
"In-Situ: The Social-Spatial Symbolic Implications of Neighborhood Redevelopment in Post-Industrial Detroit", Kathryn Osbourne
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Getting What You Paid For: The Importance of Understanding Voluntourism as a Commodity and the Social Exchanges Within, Jaime R. Parfitt
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Beer, Muscles, and Show Tunes?: Gender Policing and Adherence to Hegemonic Masculinity among College-aged Men, Ashley E. Parry
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Medicine, Endangered: Conservation and Health Care in Conflict, Comparative Case Studies in Tanzania, Dominic Piacentini
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
"The Rules are the Rules:" An Examination of Interactions between Government Caseworkers and Welfare Recipients, Molly Porter
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
How Police Policy Reform Can Reduce Police Violence: An Examination of the Use of Force Policies at the Wooster Police Department, Zachary Rashid
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Laughter in Context: Theoretical Discussions of Humor and Stand-up Comedy, Peter S. Shirey
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Adam, Eve, & Lucy: An Ethnographic Study of How Two Museums Display Human Origins, Karina E. Shvets
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
African American English: Perspectives of Parents and Teachers, Shauntell Q. Simmons
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Music and Identity in Korean American Communities: The Effect of Racial and Ethnic Identity on Korean Americans’ Music Taste, Lara Sinangil
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
"I Wouldn't Wish That on My Worst Enemy" An Analysis of The Effects of Gendered Expectations on Women in Poverty Through Social Service Access, Molly Snell-Larch
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Capturing Identity: A cross-generational photo project on Mapuche self-identification, Heidi Strike
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
'You Are Who We Say You Are': The Politics of Ethnicity in Post-Genocidal Rwanda and Bosnia-Herzegovina, Stephanie A. Sugars
Department: International Relations; Sociology and Anthropology
Bridging the Gap: A Study of the Effects of After-School Programming On the Social Inequalities in the System of Education, Elizabeth Sweeney
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Education
“We don’t need her anymore”: An Ethnographic Analysis of the Relationship Between International Aid and Non-Government Organizations with Child Vulnerability in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Taylor S. Thorp
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Melville in the Anthropocene: The Ecological Ethics of Moby-Dick, Jesse H. Tiffen
Department: English; Environmental Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
"I feel like we're the Indians in the corner": Addressing Native Cultural Identity Formation in Education, Eleanor K. Tompkins
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Entering Stage Left: An Examination of Masculinity and Education Among Black and Latino Adolescents, Emilio A. Vargas
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Man vs Wild: An Anthropological Examination of Big Game Hunting Culture within the United States, Emilie Vermilyea
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
"Women are not just reproductive beings": A Qualitative Analysis of Sexual and Reproductive Rights in India, Leslie A. Weaver
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Planting Seeds, Growing Youth: An Ethnographic Study of the Role of Urban Agriculture in the Dudley Neighborhood of Boston, MA, Alissa Elaine Weinman
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Business of Busyness: The Welfare Implications of Digital Technologies, John Wu
Department: Economics; Sociology and Anthropology
Senior Independent Study Theses from 2014
The Sacred “In-Between”: The Multiple Narratives of Multiracial and Transnational People, Parisa R. Ahmadi
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Moroccan Example: “Coming Movements,” Communities, and Lived Experience in Contemporary Protest, Paige I. Ambord
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Sight May Leave You Blind to Beauty, Edith M. Anderson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Breaking Ground: The New Farmers' Movement in the United States, Ellen Baird
Department: Environmental Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
Independent Study Is-Real (Israel): An Examination of American Immigration to Israel, Kristen Bell
Department: History; Sociology and Anthropology
"You Laugh and Cry from the Same Mouth": An Exploration of Successful Aging in Contemporary Russia, Caroline Bilsky
Department: Russian Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
The Accuracy of the Ethnohistoric Data by La Page Du Pratz about the Natchez, Jensen L. Buchanan
Department: Archaeology; Sociology and Anthropology
“There’s a Time and a Place for Everything...It’s Called Fanfiction”: Investigating the Construction of Queer Women’s Sexual Identities through Doctor Who Fanfiction, Marissa Bundren
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
The Modern Parent-Teacher Relationship: How Teachers' Perceptions of Parents Affect Communication, Rebecca J. Cinquino
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Beyond Accessibility: An Examination of the Relationship Between Socioeconomic Class, Technology, and Student Success, Madeline Erickson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
“All of the Times I Was Pretty/Handsome in Front of Him and He Never Said Anything”: Children’s Perception of Paternal Accountability & The Reason(s) Why Fathers Leave Their Children, LaShanda N. Evans
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
To Do Good: an Analysis of Tzedakah as a Multivocal Symbol as it was Performed by La Sociedad de Damas Israelitas de Beneficencia, Emma Callie Frank
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Community, Risk, and Vaccines: An Ethnographic Examination of the Debate on Vaccination, Cole Grabow
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Students Teaching Students: An In-depth Look at Domestic Student Exchanges between Predominately White Institutions and Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the 1960's, Kendall Grace
Department: History; Sociology and Anthropology
The “Right” Model for Educating Ghanaian Girls: Emerging Themes and Messages from Ghanaian NGO Websites, Eryn E. Greaney
Department: Africana Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
What Does a Fish Say When It Hits a Wall? DAM: Re-fashioning Social and Cultural Ties to Rivers in Northern Thailand, Cassandra Greenbaum
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Conversations in the Gallery: Uncovering Perceptions of Race through the Work of Hank Willis Thomas within a Museum Setting, Olivia Gregory
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Cultivating Champions of Sustainability: an Analysis of Sustainability Education and Civic Agriculture, Alexander Haas
Department: Environmental Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
Single Black Mothers: The Construction of Single Black Mothers and How That Construction Affects Them, Sha-Reeka Hester
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Foster Care Workers and Aging Out Youth: Neglected by the Inequalities of the Child Welfare System, Clara S. Hobson
Department: Sociology and Anthropology
Restorative Reintegration: Restorative Justice and the Applications and Implications for Child Soldier Reintegration, Carolyn Elizabeth Hockey
Department: Political Science; Religious Studies; Sociology and Anthropology
Negotiating a New Feminism: Do Asian Values and Westernization Collide? - A Study of College-Age Students' Perceptions of Feminism in Singapore, Mariel W. Ho
Department: Sociology and Anthropology