Seniors in EKU's Honors Program participate in a faculty mentored process that demonstrates the students' ability to locate, evaluate, analyze and synthesize information, in an ethical manner, in order to produce meaningful scholarship. The Honors Senior Thesis, typically a capstone paper or creative project, is the culmination of this process.
Honors Theses from 2023
Exploring Selective Mutism and Determining the Best Treatment Options, Austin Arroyo
Hollers, Hillbillies, and Higher Education: The Influence of Dialect and Negative Stereotypes on the Academic Experiences of Rural Appalachian College Students, Jessica D. Boggs
Occupational Justice in the Justice System: The Impact of Occupational Therapy on Incarcerated Americans, Cassidy Cain
Play That Funky Music: A Study of Bacterial Contamination of Wind Instruments, Ashley Clark
Halloween: Rituals to Traditions An overview of traditions practiced around Halloween., Antoinette M. Contento
Examining the Evidence: Portrayals of the Careers in Criminal Minds, Natalie Decker
The Maternal, the Rural, and the Oncological: An Epidemiological-Sociological Analysis of Women’s Cancer in Appalachian Kentucky, Jerry P. Derringer
Breaking the Sound Barrier:Improving film Accessibility, Alex T. Farris
The Faces of Crime: How Municipal Police Department Presence on Social Media Influences the Lives of Incarcerated Americans, Carley Frost
Past, Present, Future: Violence Against Native American Women in the United States, Jediah R. Holman
The Quality of Our Water: Emerging Contaminants Effect on Human Health, Jeffrey R. Hurst
A Search for Sustainability: Is Sustainability Achievable within the Social Media Marketplace?, Gracy L. Kelley
Mountain (Grand)Mamas: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren During the Opioid Epidemic in Appalachia American and Their Portrayal in Media, Rosemary P. Kelley
LGBTQ+ in a Rural Kentucky Town, Caroline A. Kinsman
PLEVA: Spreading Information in the Age of Misinformation, Bradley S. Lackey
Queer Representation in the Horror Genre: An Analysis of Queer Stereotypes, Makenna N. Lambert
Does Culture Impact Academic Anxiety in University Students?, Angie J. Marroquin
Navigating Nursing: A Literature Review of Understanding and Addressing Challenges in the Nursing Profession, Hanna N. McQueary
Screaming for Love: An Analysis of the Horror Film Industry Through the Lens of the Six Love Styles Theory, Emilee McQueen
Women in Business: Adjusting Leadership and Presentation from the 1950s to 2023, Stephenie Messer
Application of Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) to Wetland Hydrogeology: An Assessment of the Efficacy of Array Configurations, Wynter Monjarez
Who Says Women Can’t Love and Empower?: How Representations of Women Have Progressed in Medical Romance Fiction, Diana Neely
Impacts of Personal Cultural Orientations on College Students’ Psychological Health and Preventive Behaviors During the COVID-19 Period, Joanna Ouyang
Let’s Talk: How Communication Apprehension and Intercultural Communication Affect Intercultural Conflicts and International Relations, Jessica P. Overbay
Made in China?: Analyzing the Decline in Offshoring to the PRC, Michael B. Peake
Exploring Portrayals of Cults in News Media: Establishing a Continuum, Ashley M. Reynolds
Holidone: The Strategy to Success, Nicholas B. Robinson
The Effect of Cinnamon Supplementation for Patients with Type II Diabetes Mellitus, Lisset Rosaldo-Hernandez
How to Use Digital Media in Your Favor, Elizabeth Ruvalcaba
The Bride Guide: A Guide to Saying "I Do", Lydia B. Smith
The Honeysuckle Myth: Confronting Appalachian Liminal Space, Naomi Smith
Behind The Design, Natalia C. Smith
Expanding Upon Excitation: The Observance of Nonlinearity in Alexandrite, Katherine A. Stephens
Obstacles Commonly Faced When Seeking Healthcare In Appalachia, Haley G. Tackett
Legal and Community Input in the Record of Decision for the Bluegrass Army Depot, Hannah E. Taylor
The Many Shades of Anne Boleyn, Allison C. Turner
Examining relationships between Covid-19, investor personality traits, and investor risk tolerance., Joshua Turner
The Difficulties of Representation: Examining Portrayals of People with Intellectual Disabilities in Film, Peter L. Wilson
Honors Theses from 2022
COVID-19 and Executive Functions, Shannon Ackerman
The Shadow of Fast Fashion: The Quilting Industry, Elizabeth Y. Barnes
Living In a Divided America: The Housing Policies That Have Segregated Our Country and Oppressed African American Wealth, Jenna M. Barnes
Stranger than Fiction: Articulating Postwar Trauma through Metafictional Narrative, Thomas H. Bowling
“Will It Ever End?”: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Mental Health of U.S. College Students, Kristen N. Boyken
Attitudes of Kentucky Residents towards Deer and its Management, Austin Broughton
Beauty Impossible: Breaking the Barriers of Beauty and Self Image, Emily R. Burcham
Defining Best Management Practices for Bee Conservation in Agroforestry Systems, Elijah C. Cardona
Environmental Pollutants and Adverse Health: An Environmental Health Perspective on Living Conditions in Rubbertown, Kentucky, Elizabeth Carter
The Mutagenic and Cytotoxic Effects of Exposure to Heavy Metals and other Oxidative Species from E-cigarettes on Epithelial Cells, Braxton A. Chafin
Mental Health of Collegiate Musicians, Riley L. Chenoweth
The Evolving Presence of Women in a Male-Dominated Business World, Kelcie R. Cooper
Their Health is in Our Hands: A Systematic Review of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in the United States and Ireland, Chelsea G. Cox
Disadvantaged Response: How to Improve Disaster Resiliency for Low-Income Families, Grace E. Crosthwaite
Luteinizing-Hormone Releasing Hormone Directed Cisplatin and 99mTc Imaging Agents, Progress and Future Steps, Andrew S. Elliott
The Implications of Diet Culture on Mental and Physical Health, Kathleen Fitzpatrick
“What is the Environment Doing to Our Genes?”: A Pedigree Analysis of the Possible Genetic Basis of a Set of Familial Clinical Disorders, Emily N. Goodman
Emotionally Unavailable: A Comparison on the Ability of Children with Developmental Language Disorders to Interpret Emotions in Humans and Inanimate Objects, Savanna B. Gullett
Age of the Influencer: Exploring How Influencers Build Trust Online and Its Effect on Young Consumers, Lillian K. Herbstreit and James Blair
Feeding the Cities: A Business Plan to Establish Hydroponic Gardening in Urban Communities, Morgan C. Highsmith
Art and Planning: A Work in Progress, Adam M. Holhubner
Where Words Fail, Music Speaks: The Impact of Music Intervention on Speech Therapy Outcomes, Jenna F. Johnson
Raffi and Responsivity: The Impact of Children's Music and Parental Engagement, Elizabeth M. Jones
The Relationship of Historical Lynchings to Contemporary Death Sentencing Disparities in the United States, Lukas B. Jones
Examining the Use of Naturally Occurring Free Radical Scavengers Against UV Light Damage in Cancer Prevention, Tanner Justice
What’s that smell? Analysis of the Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) Aroma: North America's Largest Native Fruit, Charlotte M. Lee
When Smart Kids Fall Behind: Root Causes and Remediation, Victor T. Logan
For Richer, For Poorer: How Finances Impact Romantic Relationships, Maya Mains
The Spectre of “Overpopulation” in Climate Change, Kris Mann
A Modern War: How Large Dairy Corporations Negatively Affect the Relationship Between Dairy Cows, Humans, and the Environment, Mikayla M. Marti
From Reality to Fiction: How Women’s Mental Health was Portrayed in 19th Century Literature, Sara Mason
An Investigation into the Availability and Quality of Mental Health Services for the Deaf/deaf and Hard of Hearing Populations of Kentucky, Alaina G. Milam
Prototyping a Novel Mach-Zehnder Interferometer with Acousto-Optic Modulators, Jon Mills
Reproductive Cancer Cell Targeting of Pt-Mal-LHRH, Emma Nienaber
Wait, is That Legal?: A Defense of the Rights of the Mentally Ill in the United States Prison System, Sophie Owen
Sustainable Gardening: A Revolutionary Act Towards Household Food Security in Appalachia, Emily Patrick
Kentucky Dental Health with Regards to Social Factors, John Pattison
Prone to Success: The Effects of Prone on Handwriting Legibility, Magdalene M. Pearl
Coping Strategies in College-Aged Women across the Attention Spectrum, Keri Phillips
Assay Development for Investigating the Contributions of p75 Neurotrophin Receptor (p75NTR) Signaling to Neurodegeneration Associated with Parkinson’s Disease, Samantha A. Radomski
Envisioning Libraries as Community: Investigating Social Infrastructure and Community Cohesion, Mora N. Rehm
Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury Preparedness and Recovery process to Avoid Secondary Injury, Celia Rhodus
How Careers in Forensic Science and Criminal Justice Impact Long-Term Mental Health, Abigail E. Roberts
Electrochemical Methods for Detection and Quantification of Metals in Drinking Water, Katherine E. Rogers
Doctor Mario: How Video Games Are Being Used as Medicine, Grayson T. Salyers
iTeacher: How Teachers Can Effectively Use Technology in High School Classrooms, Caroline E. Schack
Girl Power: Criminal Justice Gender Discrimination in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, Abigail M. Scola
The Divided States: An Exploration of the Influence of Media Agenda-Setting on Modern Political Polarization, Anna Grace Smith
Tweeting Trump: An Analysis of the Utilization of Twitter in American Politics, Jakob Smith
Theorizing a Continuum of Serial Killer Fandom and Fascination in our Society, Kellyn N. Smith
Racial Inclusivity in American Music Festival Culture: Who is it excluding?, Jack Souders
An Age of Entropy: COVID-19's Impact on Art, Sarah A. Surace
A Meta-Analytic Study: Effects of Cardiorespiratory Fitness on the Hippocampal Region in Humans, Dakota Taylor
The Hunger Games: A Recollection of Ancient Rome and a Warning for a Desolate Future, Jason Quaid Watwood
Family Centered Care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: A Standard Checklist for Nurses and Parents, Tori C. Williams
How to Raise a Reader in the Modern World, Breanna Willis
Dos Idiomas: Concise Recommendations for Bilingual Speech Therapy, Erin E. F. Wilson
