WOODYARD STUDENT RESEARCH PROPOSALS Summer, 2012
The purpose of the gift of Henry and Nancy Schacht to the Religion Department is to support and encourage projects on “Religion and Civic Responsibility.” Students may submit proposals for individual projects or collaborative ones.
While research is the primary goal of the ten-week summer projects, we expect there to be an experiential component. We hope to sustain a connection between the research and some concrete expression of the issue. For example, a project on religion and sexual abuse might include some volunteering at a shelter for victims of domestic violence. We believe that critical reflection on experience enhances the quality of learning.
Members of the department of Religion will be supervisors of the research. For projects involving other disciplines, other faculty members also may be involved.
For more information on applying for a Woodyard Summer Scholar Award, see Woodyard Scholar Guidelines . Previous Woodyard students are listed below.
2011
- Chelsea Back, “Reconciliation and Justice: The Place of Religious Institutions in Post-conflict Resolution”
- Kimberly Humphries, “An (Un) Holy Union: Discovering the Particularities in Universalism, An Exploration of Roman Catholicism in American novel from 1961 – 2011”
- Erika Johnson, “The Health of Nations: Classical and Theological Perspectives on Health Care Reform”
- Daniel McCready, “Tomorrowland: The Transformation of the Religious Experience in the City”
- Caitlin Mulrine, “’Islam is Very Different than You Think’: Misperceptions of Muslims Reinforced by the Rifqa Bary Case”
- Beth Neville, “A Bun in the Oven and an Arrow in the Quiver: An Inquiry into the Quiverfull Movement and Spiritual Warfare”
- Joshua Rager, “The Baha’I Faith in America 1893-1918: A Diffusion of the American Religious Zeitgeist”
- Dylan Reaves, “Society, The Individual, and the Quest for Faith: The Works of Peter Berger”
- Valerie Smith, “Those Who Hope: A Subversive Word in a Complacent World”
- Louise Vasher, “Local Food, Local Hunger: Connections and Disjunctions in Granville, Ohio, Churches”
2010
- Kimberly Humphries, “Gustavo Gutierrez’s Liberation Theology: Traditional Catholicism from the Perspective of Afflicted Poor”
- Michael Joyce, Taylor Klassman, Kellie McDonnell, Victoria Sarro, Kirslyn Schell-Smith, Eleanor Swensson, “Reconciliation and Resistance: Negotiating the Social and Theological Polarity Between God and Gay”
- Rachel Mattingly, “Creating a Framework for ‘Right Development’: Buddhist Reconceptualizations of Development within Thailand”
- Claire Navarro, “The Allegorical and Social-Historical Understanding of the Parables of Jesus: How Should the Parables be Understood?”
- Dawn Walters, “The Making of a Christian Woman: How the Christian Right Balances Faith with Family, Community, and Self”
2009
- John Downs, “Emerging/Emergent Church Community/Identity Formation”
- Carolyn Gaglione, “African Religion, the Gospel of Wealth, and Liberation Theology”
- Henry Robb, “The Social Impact on Religion”
- Lillian Schlosser, “A Feminist Hermeneutics”
- Eleanor Swensson, “The Greatest of These is Love: Working Towards a Practical Theology of Ministry to the Dying”
2008
- Whitney Carpenter, “A Quest to Establish Marriage and Family Values Based on Scriptural Analysis”
- Amanda Conley, “Christianity in a Modern Economy”
- Mary Hardy, “Relations Through the Lens of Martin Buber’s I and Thou”
- Elizabeth Hypes, Anna Meeker, “An Exploration of 9/11: American Empire and the Biblical Tradition”
- Michelle Kailey, “Rene Girard: Solving the Problem Between Domestic Violence and the Atonement”
- Amy Novak, “Addiction and Recovery: The Role of God in Alcoholism”
- Andrew Pincus, “Paul Tillich: An Exploration of Non-Being and Ultimate Concern”
2007
- Elyse Akhbari, “Our Nature, Under God”
- Margaret Jaus, “Calling Our Dominant Consciousness into Question”
- Kaitlin Peverall, “Religious Tensions within the Body Politic: The Industry of a Stigmatized Faith”
- Katherine St. Clair, “Public Policy and Catholic Tradition”
- Lauren Volpe, "’I Now Pronounce You Man and Wives’: Examining the Patriarchy of Polygamy Through the Narratives of the Women Who Live/d It”
2006
- Karen Anderson, “A Search for Christian Integrity in Three Modern Christian Communities”
- Keith Brammer, “Sin: Individualistic, Societal, or Both: A Biblical Basis for a Middle Ground”
- Leigh Dance, “The Blending of Religion and Politics in America”
- Stephanie Dixon, “How Does Religion Affect the Social Order? A Study of the Impact of Liberation Theology on the Catholic Church in El Salvador”
- Lauren Howie, “Making Our Own Decisions: A Look at Religious Identity Politics and the Effects on Mid-Adolescents”
- Laura Pippenger, “From a Wealth of Gospel to a Gospel of Wealth: Poverty to Prosperity”
- Elliott Stixrud, “James Dobson and the Religious Right in Modern American Politics”
2005
- Lauren Caryer, “To Understand the Word: Three Modes of Christian Theology”
- Mark Dougherty, “The Influence of the Catholic Church in the Mexican Educational System”
- Fulya Ercan Holtze, Anne Rogers, Leigh Rogers, Sarah Slotkin, Rachel Wise, “Christianity ‘Coming Out of the Closet’: Reevaluating Homosexuality in Today’s Culture"
- Dan Izzo, John Wagner, “The Theology of Poverty”
- Tracy Riggle, “Black Liberation Theology: Exploring the Theology of James H. Cone”
- Sarah Wilson, “The Transcendent and Immanent God in Modern Society”
2004
- Lauren Caryer, “The Biblical Sense of Community and Unwed Mothers”
- Elise Copenheffer, “Jesus: Ppersonal Savior or Social Critic?”
- Stephen Grosse, “The Relationship of Religion, Spirituality, and Healing”
- Jennifer Hart, “Missionization and Development: The Role of the Church in the West African Development Enterprise”
- Kathryn W. Hotler, “Liberation Theology and Hispanic Young Women’s Movements”
- Annette Thornberg, “Truth Through Tales: Giving Laws Strength Through Narrative”
- Amanda Vajskop, “The Abuse of Women and the Christian Tradition”
2003
- Chris Byrnes, “Catholic Theology and Interreligious Dialogue in Columbus, Ohio: The Catholic Church in a Hindu Culture”
- Stephen Grosse, “God Concepts and Environmental Responsibility”
- Andrew Hupp, “Land and Agricultural Ethics in the Taoist and Buddhist Traditions”
- Carlyn Love, “God as Being or Becoming”
- Ashley Meade, “The Buddhist Concept of Duhkha”
- Emily Teitelbaum, “Pluralism and the New Religious America”
2002
- Meghan Henning, “Striking Balance: The Ongoing Dialogue Between Self and Community”
- Duane Ivy, “Roadmaps Towards Liberation: A Study in James Cone’s Liberation Theology”
- Daniel Rohrer, “Civil Religion Versus Christian Imagination: Biblical Symbols in American Culture; or, Reinhold Niebuhr in 2002: American Religion & American Politics”
- Ryan Ruiz, “Catholic Social Teaching: Peace on Earth in a Nuclear Age”
- Sarah Smith, “Christology: Moving from the Traditional To a Political, Subversive Understanding; or, Analyzing Christianity and Specifically Liberation Theology as a Means for Social Action and Change”
2001
- Michael DeCesare, “Christianity and Economics in America: A Study of the Church’s Role in Social Transformation”
- Katherine Harwood, Amber Neal, Daniel Rohrer, “Christianity and Economics: A Study of the Church’s Role in Social Transformation”
- Henning, Meghan, “The Enculturation of the Church and the Prophetic Tradition”
2000
- Rachel Egan, “Society, Poverty, and Religion: A Connection: A Look into Utica, Ohio
- Daniel Fisher, “Moment to Moment: Buddhism in the World’s Prison Systems”
- Heather Frick, “An End to Injustice: A Critical Look at Our Metaphorical Conceptions of God and Their Effects on the Abused Women’s Search for Hope”
- Jerry Krzys, “Problems at Home: Poverty in Newark, Ohio and the Christian Response”
- Sarah Griffith, Amber Neal, Ashley Newton, “Justice and the United States Health Care System”
- Kimberly Kwedar, “The Courage to Be: An Analysis of the Theology of Paul Tillich”
- Kalyn Wilson, “Myth and Modern Magick: The Influence of Celtic Mythology on Contemporary Paganism”
1999
- Matthew Eanet, “Introducing the Basic Texts of Judaism: Responses to the Destruction of the Second Temple in Classical Rabbinic Literature”
- Daniel Fisher, “’Vegetarians and Process Theologians and Ecofeminists! Oh, My!’: A Dialogue Between the Theology and Ethics of the Animal Rights Movement for the Christian Community”
- Joi Garrett, “The Emergence and Survival of Rastifarians”
- Jerry Krzys, “Poverty, Morality and the Response of the Church”
- Kelly Riggle, “The Injustices of Our Economy and Its Allocation of Resources: Out of This Crisis, Where Does Religion Emerge?”
1998
- Jamel Bailey, “Religion and Civic Responsibility: What Must Be Done to Liberate All Those Who are Oppressed?”
- Kristen Bardou, “Culture Conflicts and Social Injustices: Our Need for Liberation Theology”
- Melissa Baum, “Visions of a Cultural and Theological Awakening: The Resurgence of Jewry after the Holocaust”
- Kelly Carpenter, “Culture Conficts and Social Injustices: Our Need for Liberation Theology”
- Tara Kocheran, “Reconceiving Christianity: Moving from a Theology of Abuse to a Theology of Liberation”
- James Kroll, Joel Norton, Elizabeth Nutting, Michael Plowgian, “The Holocaust as a Prismatic Event”
1997
- Kristen Bardou, Kelly Carpenter, Macciano Lewis, Eric Nigh, “Religion, Economics, and the Environment: Three of the World’s Most Integral Components”
- Kevin Lee, “How Patriarchal Values Have Influenced the Treatment of HIV-Infected Women and Gay Men”
- Kristin Williams, “The Bible in the Political Realm: How Different Understandings of Scripture Influence Christian Debate Over Contemporary Issues”
1996
- Heather Benko, “Trying to Transform the American Political System to Aid in the Struggle for Justice”
- Natalie Dodson, Andrew Hulse, Jacqueline Richards, Todd Roberts, Leanne Watson, “Beyond Us and Them: Transcending Realms of Economics and Theology to Create an Earth-Centered Ethic in the Community of Life”
1995
- Amy Ard, “Theoretical Framework for the Deconstruction and Reconstruction of the American Family”
- Andy Hulse, “Agricultural Theology: Toward and Ethic of Inclusive Interdependence”
- Grant Potts, “Mothers and Fathers: A Study of Four Major Voices in the American Neo-Pagan Community”
- Megan O’Bryan, “The Dialogue between Religion and Psychology”