Congratulations to the winners of the 2017-18 University Libraries Undergraduate Research Award!

A record seven students were recognized May 8 for outstanding research projects that used Libraries' resources and services.

Winners for the Garnet Track (juniors/seniors) are:

• First Place $500, Carina Leaman, an English major and May graduate, for “Designing an Assistive Edition for First-Time Readers of William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury,” a project she completed for her SC Honors College Senior Thesis. Dr. Greg Forter, English, is the supporting faculty.
• Second Place $400, Rose Steptoe, an English and history junior, for “Entries for The Lone Woman and Last Indians Digital Archive,” completed as part of a SC Honors College Exploration Grant. Dr. Sara Schwebel, English, is the supporting faculty.
• Third Place $300, Elizabeth Gearhart, a history and Spanish junior, for “The East in the Perspective of the West: Richard L. Walker’s Efforts to Reconstruct Notions of the Eastern Hemisphere,” completed as part of the History 466 course. Dr. David Snyder, history, is the supporting faculty.

Winners for the Black Track (freshmen/sophomores) are:

• Top Prize $300, Sophie Kahler, a history sophomore, for “A Neighborhood Transformed: Urban Renewal and University Expansion in Wheeler Hill,” completed as a course requirement for SC Honors Course 337. Dr. Conor Harrison, geography, is the supporting faculty.
• Runner-up $150, Darren Burton, an accounting sophomore, for “Real People Laugh,” completed as part of the requirement for ENGL 102. Joy Priest, English, is the supporting faculty.
• Runner-up $150, Sarah Riser, a civil engineering sophomore, for “An Analysis of BMI as a Measurement of Health,” completed as part of ENGL 102 requirements. Jennifer Blevins, English, is the supporting faculty.
• Honorable Mention, Dara Malachi, a biology freshman, for “From Legalization to Decriminalization: Why Prostitution Should Be Changed,” completed as part of ENGL 102 requirements. Andreas Herzog, English, is the supporting faculty.

A twelve-member review panel, made up of Libraries faculty and teaching faculty from across campus, selected the students’ projects for top prizes. The awards were presented at a ceremony and reception on Tuesday, May 8, 2018, held in the Hollings Library on the University of South Carolina campus.

The University Libraries Undergraduate Research Award rewards excellence in undergraduate use of library resources and services, and demonstrates the contribution of the Libraries to student learning. It highlights the value of information literacy by requiring students to describe their research process as part of the application procedures, and encourages faculty to create assignments that engage students in the use of library resources. Since the start of the awards 11 years ago, 37 students have been recognized with approximately $13,400 in monetary prizes.