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Summary of Projects: Class of 2003

Mirit Barzillai based her project on her stay in Israel.  She produced a film documentary about how Israelis cope with terrorism.  Once in Israel, Mirit interviewed people of various ages and religious backgrounds about their experiences with terrorism in the country.  The focus of her project was to see how people who are not directly involved in a terrorist attack are affected.  Mirit's journey took her all over Israel; she visited Haifa, Kirgat, Jerusalem, and Tel Aviv.  At each stop she found people to interview.  Her finished documentary was in Hebrew with English subtitles.  The documentary focused on how people deal with personal reactions to terrorist attacks, how the situation in Israel influences the society at large, how children live in such a society, and the general morale of Israel. Mirit was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa in the Spring of 2003.

Daphna Berman investigated her family’s oral history for her Centennial Scholars Project.  Daphna traveled to Germany and Holland to trace her grandmother's history and to visit the place where her grandmother had lived.  Before traveling, Daphna recorded extensive interviews with her grandmother that she presented as part of her project.  Daphna's project was mainly concerned with her grandmother's life from 1933 to 1948, from the beginnings of World War II to the creation of the state of Israel.  The Ann Barrow Hamilton Prize for Promise in the field of Journalism was awarded to Daphna in the Spring of 2003.

Alice Boone read from her collection of short fiction at her Centennial Scholars Senior Presentation. She presented her stories—many of which drew upon images from her youth in Albuquerque—last month.  Alice was admitted in Phi Beta Kappa in the Spring of 2003.  Alice received the W. Cabell Greet Prize in English, the Lenore Marshall Prize for Prose, and the Schwimmer Prize for Scholarly Commitment to the Humanist Tradition in 2003.  Alice also came in 2nd Place for the Peter S. Prescott Prize for Prose Fiction. 

Rachel Cohen's project was entitled We, Together:  Identity, Community, and Power on Women's Lands.  Rachel traveled to and lived in women's intentional communities in Oregon, Ohio, and New Mexico.  Women's intentional communities are small rural communities consisting solely of women.  Rachel examined why these communities are formed, the types of women who populate these communities, and the experience of being in such a community.  She now resides in D.C and is taking a year off before medical school.

Elizabeth Devereux researched the life and work of the Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich.  Elizabeth produced a concert of Shostakovich's work performed by other musicians.  One of the many questions that Elizabeth posed to her audience was, "Why is classical music such a foreign thing to most of my generation?"  Elizabeth received the Eleanor Keller Prize for a senior in French Culture courses.

Elyssa Dole choreographed and performed a set of dances entitled “Sift and Riffle” at the Williamsburg Art Nexus, a performance space in Brooklyn. The show included a collection of dances that explored the relationship between sound and movement. In collaboration with a composer, she employed pressure sensors in pointe shoes, dancers as musicians, and sound manipulating images. With the help of an ensemble of eight dancers, live music, and a computer, she created an environment in which the interaction of sound and movement were woven together.

Deena Fox's project, entitled "How Much Are You Willing to GIVE?" dealt with organ donations. Deena examined the attitudes concerning organ and tissue donation in Israel and the U.S.A.  She interviewed a wide spectrum of students and professionals and examined the opinions, motivations, and concerns about tissue donation and how these attitudes differ between the two countries.  Topics of religion, culture, and national identity were all studied. This project looked at whether altruism or national unity is more of a reason why many donors offer their organs.  Deena was admitted into Phi Beta Kappa in the Spring of 2003.

Sarah Housman showed a film she made about her trip to Valparaíso, Chile.  For her project, Sarah lived in Valparaíso and documented her travels.   Her presentation consisted of her film and a discussion, which was accented with an authentic Chilean meal.  Sarah also recreated a small Chilean village utilizing cardboard boxes.  In December of 2002 Sarah was admitted into Phi Beta Kappa.  Sarah is currently working as a research assistant in a New York City hospital.

Elinor Huntington will be presenting her project in the fall. Her project researched the lives of women in Medieval Russia.  Elinor has been looking at the various views of marriage in 15th century Russia.  As part of her project, Elinor is using her knowledge of the Russian language to decipher Old Church Slavonic and Old Russian texts.  Elinor received The Alice Levin Sokolik Prize in Russian.

Lynn Kozak created a children’s book entitled Dream Sequence which focused on visual storytelling.  Lynn utilized various computer generated images to tell a story.  For her presentation, Lynn arranged her images in a gallery style display in the North and South Tower Rooms.  Lynn also showed movies that she made about the art of visual storytelling.  Lynn is pursuing a graduate degree in Classics.

Shelby Peak's Centennial Scholar Project, Slash 101, examined homoerotic fan fiction on the internet.  Shelby visited three Star Trek conventions around the country and researched the culture of Slash fiction, which often portrays romantic encounters of characters from popular science fiction.  At the conventions, Shelby compiled interviews with people in the Slash community. Shelby Peak was admitted into Phi Beta Kappa in the Spring of 2003.  The George Welwood Murray Fellowship for study in the Humanities and/or the Social Sciences was awarded to Shelby.

Sarah Samis examined the impact of arts education on young people's lives.  Her project presentation was titled “Motivating Motion.”  The program consisted of a performance put together by Sarah and the students that she worked with during her research.  Sarah focused on the positive impact of arts on students and their work.  After her Centennial Scholars Project, Sarah will continue pursuing arts education.

Rochelle Urban explored the portrayal and integration of science in theater.  The first part of her project involved looking at contemporary works which focus on science or scientists.  The second part of her project was a production of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia.  The last part of her project was an original piece of theater about science, entitled “The Helical Life.” It was centered around the story of the double helix.  Rochelle was a recipient of The Hermann Botanical Prize for 2003.