When the National Collegiate Honors Council held its annual conference in October, Elmhurst College was proudly represented in presentations by three Honors Program students and one faculty member.
The conference, held this year in Seattle, highlights student and faculty research from across the nation, and provides training and development for honors program administrators. This year’s event featured a talk by best-selling author and poet Sherman Alexie.
The Elmhurst contingent included Mary Kay Mulvaney, professor of English and director of the Honors Program, and students Konrad Malinowski ’18, Olivia Prvulov ’17 and Kathryn Panzica ’17.
“Presenting at the NCHC conference is always a great experience for our students,” said Mulvaney. “The experience looks very good on applications to graduate school, and it’s a good way to help them understand the value of being able to communicate research results to a diverse audience.”
Prvulov and Panzica, seniors with majors in psychology, presented research that explored the links between anxiety levels in children and overcontrol in parenting. In conducting their research, the students observed videos of parent-child dyads and analyzed the relationship between parental overcontrol and child anxiety.
Malinowski, a double major in jazz studies and music theory/composition, presented research that compares and contrasts two different performances of Philomel, a 1964 composition by Milton Babbitt that combines synthesizer with the human voice. The work drew on Malinowski’s interest in the intersection of music theory and literary criticism.
Mulvaney, who was named a National Collegiate Honors Council Fellow last year and served on the NCHC board for many years, presented the results of her work on the long-term impact of study abroad on Honors Program alumni.
The national submission process for the NCHC annual conference is highly selective, with hundreds of students and faculty submitting proposals each year.
While they were in Seattle, the Elmhurst students explored the city and learned about honors programs at other colleges and universities.
“I had the amazing opportunity to travel to a new city and experience the culture while at the same time presenting my research,” wrote Olivia Prvulov in an essay about the trip. “NCHC was one of the best Elmhurst College experiences that I have had. I would love to do it again, as I formed so many new friendships and met many new professional contacts that will benefit me if I continue to expand my research.”