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Below are some examples of thesis projects that our Honors students are working on, this is just a taste of what is being done, there are many more!
Name: Patrick Hanan
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2009
Thesis: “Arachnid”
Synopsis: The first forty-five pages of a novel to be called Arachnid. This book is influenced by detective fiction. The story is of a young man who returns home to find that his ex-girlfriend’s brother is missing. It is a story that focuses on the search for the brother and demons of the past.
Name: Terry McGahan
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2009
Thesis: “Merry Street”
Synopsis: About sixty pages of a novel.
Name: Phebe Varghese
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2009
Thesis: “Nothing Special”
Synopsis: About fifty pages of a series of seven short stories that could stand independently, but when read together, create a larger tale. These stories revolve around character Connor Bristow and other characters involved in different stages of Connor’s life. Though the Bristow family closely paralleled the author’s own family, this story is more so about each character’s perception of relationships.
Name: Jessica Mongiello
Track: Performing and Literary arts
Date: Spring 2009
Thesis: “Artful Expectations”
Synopsis: An eighty-five page long story about a young artist who is dating an older man.
Name: Lindsay Tierstein
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2009
Thesis: “Seven Cycles”
Synopsis: About sixty pages of a story of a boy named Jason who re-lives his life over and over again.
Name: Ngoc Nhung T. Nguyen
Date: Spring 2009
Track: Biopsychology
Thesis: “Effects of viral mimic poly I:C on development of autistic-like symptoms in stress-reactive BTBR mouse”
Synopsis: This study analyzed a strain of DNA that is a popular genetic model for autism (in mice).
Name: David Molczyk
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2008
Thesis: “Fiction and the Supernatural”
Synopsis: Fifty pages composed of one short story, entitled “You Promised” and an excerpt from a novel entitled “Lucky Day.”
Name: David Molczyk
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2008
Thesis: “Fiction and the Supernatural”
Synopsis: Fifty pages composed of one short story, entitled “You Promised” and an excerpt from a novel entitled “Lucky Day.”
Name: Rumki Chowdhury
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2008
Thesis: “Her Feet Chime”
Synopsis: 90 page story.
Name: Jennifer Sudol
Track: Social Sciences
Date: Spring 2007
Thesis: “Popularity, Assertiveness, and Aggression among boys and girls in Middle-School”
Synopsis: This report includes forty pages of analysis of the four kinds of aggression – direct, indirect, overt, and relational, and two types of popularity – sociometric and perceived. The intention of this study was to provide help to parents, teachers and others in the understanding of child behavior (especially in middle school).
Name: Christopher Kosmas Larres
Track: Social Sciences
Date: Spring 2007
Thesis: “Acculturation, Ethnic Identity, and Quality of Life of Greek-Americans in Northern and Central New Jersey”
Synopsis: This study explains the assimilation of Greek-Americans in New Jersey.
Name: Carol A. Chu
Track: Social Sciences
Date: Spring 2007
Thesis: “The Effect of Ethnicity, Acculturation, and Support Systems on a Graduate Student’s Perception of Stress”
Synopsis: This report looks at factors such as ethnicity and social support rather than alcohol use or depression in regards to stress. Through various analyses of the conducted studies, the author was able to relate gender, ethnicity, immigration status, parenting status, and social support to measure stress and levels of coping. The author ultimately hopes that in knowing and embracing the results, students will be better able to understand, and therefore cope with stress.
Name: Samantha Branin
Track: Social Sciences
Date: Spring 2007
Thesis: “Moral Education in American Public High Schools”
Synopsis: This project includes studies and analysis of the moral education in public high schools throughout the US. The author suggests theories of how moral education could be put into practice and stresses the importance of support from educators, administrators, and members of the community for a moral education program to be successful.
Name: Michael L. Blizzard
Track: Biopsychology
Date: Spring 2007
Thesis: “The Legacy of Eugenics”
Synopsis: This thesis presents a historical analysis of the eugenic movement in the US, including discussion of ethics, genetics, religion, sterilization, abortion, mental disorders, and certain laws in regards to science and biotechnology. The author’s argument revolves around the moral aspects (but doesn’t focus on just the negatives) of eugenics, both from a scientific view and the view of college students.
Name: Lisa Paitchell
Date: Spring 2007
Track: Performing and Literary Arts Track
Thesis: “Judith”
Synopsis: A fifty page novella about a girl who is depressed.
Name: Amy Van Druten
Date: Spring 2007
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Thesis: “The redemption of a Teenage Nobody”
Synopsis: Several chapters that compose fifty pages of a novel.
Name: Alyson Heller
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “Interracial Adoption and its Effects on the Ethnic View of Self”
Synopsis: This pilot study concentrated on the ethnic identity and development of adopted Asian-Americans, and how the experience of growing up of a different ethnic background than their immediate families and communities has affected them. Results showed that the majority of the participants in the study experienced some sort of discrimination and still deal with issues of identity as adults. Based on the findings, it was concluded that growing up a different ethnic background from one’s family, peers and community has a great impact on the ethnic view of self.
Name: Kerri Lindenthaler
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “Childhood Origins of Dependent Personality Disorder; Parental Authority and Its Effects on Adult Attachment Style”
Synopsis: This project explored two possible origins of the Cluster C personality disorder, Dependent Personality Disorder. The author hypothesized that environmental factors were the cause of this disorder, so she conducted a survey to correlate parenting styles to the development and dependency of children.
Name: Tiffany Clarke
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “Black Racial Identity in the United States and Political Group Cohesiveness”
Synopsis: This paper analyzes the political role of discriminating immigrants.
Name: Madalina Radu
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “The effects of the scheduled news announcements about the Unites States Gross Domestic Product Value on the United States Dollar versus the Euro Dollar exchange rate”
Synopsis: This paper explores the impact of scheduled news announcements of the US Gross Domestic Product value on the US dollar versus the Euro dollar exchange rate. According to several previous models, it has been found that scheduled news announcements do affect currency exchange rates due to numerous sources associated with business men and women’s perceptions of the news. These perceptions play an important role in determining whether the rates with fluctuate or remain the same. Overall, the more negative the announcement, the more likely it is that the exchange rates will lower; the more positive, the higher.
Name: Maite Rago
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “The Psychology of Abusive Dating Relationships in College-Age Women”
Synopsis: The goal of this study was to understand some aspects of the relationship among dating violence, blame attribution, and post traumatic stress. This paper also considers new policies that might address the issue of dating violence including new laws, educational programs, and accessible counseling centers for victimized students.
Name: Diana Hilbig
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “A Content Analysis of Representations of American Indians in Movies from 1933 to 2005”
Synopsis: This report shows how American Indians may be one of the least accurately portrayed minority groups in the history of American movie making.
Name: Derek R Sloan
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Feminist Deconstruction of American Folklore and Fairytales”
Synopsis: This paper analyzes the role of folklore and fairytales in women’s history.
Name: Sarah Mirza
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Trickster: from Hermes to Carnival Fool, and Harlequin”
Synopsis: About thirty pages
Name: Phoebe North
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2006
Thesis: “Nostalgia: A Mixed-Tape in Memories”
Synopsis: A collection of poems (45 pages)
Name: Kyle Allen
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2006
Thesis: “In God’s Country”
Synopsis: A compilation of four short stories.
Name: James Van Wyck
Date: Spring 2006
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Thesis: “Chains: Fit for Mercy”
Synopsis: A seventy page novella dealing with the issues of race and religion.
Name: Renato Antunese
Date: Fall 2005
Track: Social Sciences
Thesis: “Profiling as a Tool in Airport Security Operations”
Synopsis: This thesis, written at a time when airport security was tight, was meant to contribute to the debate concerning the desirability of profiling as a tool in an airport security strategy. After the author reviewed the history and theory behind it, he conducted a survey of airport personnel involved in security. He found that the majority of the sample believed that profiling can be a useful tool to detect security threats that might otherwise be missed by screeners. (About forty pages)
Name: Latoya Pinckney
Date: Fall 2005
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Thesis: “The Color of Dignity”
Synopsis: A collection of poetry.
Name: Philip A. Donchevich
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2005
Thesis: “Our Father”
Synopsis: Fifty pages of eight memoir-like short stories. This collection of nonfiction reflects the journeys, both funny and tragic, of the author from his childhood through adolescence and into adulthood. This thesis goes beyond the depth of just storytelling, into a recognition and analysis of the chaos of his past.
Name: Lori M. Haddix
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2005
Thesis: “Ilsilab”
Synopsis: A story
Name: Paloma Kelly
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2005
Thesis: “The Cosplay Curse”
Synopsis: A story about a group of friends interested in cosplay, the act of dressing as a character from a TV show or movie and then acting as the character in a convention.
Name: Dan Faraguna
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2004
Thesis: “Loss of the Moment”
Synopsis: About fifty pages of a collection of unrelated short stories.
Name: Chantel Phipany
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Fall 2004
Thesis: “Random Days”
Synopsis: A fifty page novella.
Name: Mietra S. Harandi
Track: Biopsychology
Date: Spring 2004
Thesis: “Mapping of a 5-HT Receptor in the Larval Zebrafish CNS”
Synopsis: The objective of this research was to map the expression of the 5-HT2 receptor gene in the CNS of larval zebrafish via in-situ hybridization.
Name: Jennifer E. Smith
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date: Spring 2003
Thesis: “Her Lore: Women in Myth, Legend and Fairy Tale”
Synopsis: About sixty pages of a collection of fictional stories.
Name: Rachel Miuccio
Track:
Date: Fall 2002
Thesis: “Kinesthetic cues may facilitate mouse learning in the radial arm maze.”
Synopsis: This report involves the study of behavior and positive reinforcement in mice.
Name: Irene Mburu
Date: Fall 2002
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Globalization”
Synopsis: Throughout this paper, the author looks at the role that multinationals play in creating a more global world, and the environmental effect of globalization. The paper addresses both the support and criticism of globalization and analyzes its effect on a nation(s).
Name: Remi Ellen Groner
Date: Spring 2002
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “I, Candidate”
Synopsis: A 95-page play based on Upton Sinclair’s “I, Candidate for Governor: And How I Got Licked.”
Name: Trudi Van Dyke
Date: Spring 2001
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Sweetest Tongue has Sharpest Tooth: The Evolution of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’”
Synopsis: This thesis paper illustrates the evolution of folktales into fairy tales and further into the motion picture industry. This evolution, the author argues, completely conflicts or contradicts the interpretations of the folktales by different cultures. As an example, the fairy tale “Little Red Riding Hood” was examined both for its content and cultural value over time.
Name: Jeff Duong
Date: Spring 2001
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “An Overview of the Philosophical Implications in the History of Psychology in Society”
Synopsis: This paper reviews the influence of philosophy and science on psychology.
Name: Amy Lorfink
Date: Fall 2000
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Vampire Legend”
Synopsis: A thirty page study of vampires, their history and their legend.
Name: Maurice Streeter
Date: Spring 2000
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The subjection of the Negro”
Synopsis: The idea of this thesis was to show how the African and his heritage pertaining to its cultural base has been misconstrued within the United States of America’s social arena, specifically, the educational system.
Name: Paul Bonney
Date: Spring 2000
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Hesitate – The existentialist crossroads of Generation X through the lyrics of The Smashing Pumpkins”
Synopsis: This thesis paper addresses art and its role in determining the value of a civilization. The education and expression revealed through art is seen as a true reflection of culture, and the author illustrates that through the analysis of The Smashing Pumpkins music.
Name: Louis LaRegina
Track: Biopsychology
Date: Spring 1998
Thesis: “A Diallel analysis of the Aversive Potency of Alpha-Male Mous (Mus musculus) Urine on Several Inbred Strains of mice.”
Synopsis: The study of genetics on behaviors of mice.
Name: Christopher Hess
Track: Biopsychology
Date: Fall 1998
Thesis: “Fluoxetine-Induced Hyperphagia in Female Mice”
Synopsis: This thesis included an analysis of serotonin specific reuptake inhibitor drugs in female mice. Prior to 1994, literature provided support for satiety enhancing effects of Fluoxetine, however another test was conducted that disagreed with those results. The intention of this project was to identify the factor that was responsible for the disagreement in results through a replication of previous studies.
Name: Craig Germain
Date: Spring 1998
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Media and Society: Who Is In Control?”
Synopsis: This thesis paper discusses the media’s role in the portrayal of the US government.
Name: Ron Petrucelli
Date: Fall 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Spiritual Decadence in Modern American Society: A Critical Analysis”
Synopsis: This forty page paper discusses Eastern Philosophy from the eyes of a psychologist.
Name: Scott Ferguson
Date: Fall 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis:
Synopsis: This paper deals with Romantics in the Industrial Revolution.
Name: Michael Marino
Date: May 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Does the British Monarchy Have a Future?”
Synopsis: This project investigates the findings of historians and social scientists that the British Monarchy is losing the support of its public. The author focuses on the debate on the monarch’s potential for exercising political power, the economic cost of the monarchy, and the prospect for survival of the monarchy into the 21 st century. This paper effectively incorporates the social and political events into the analysis and understanding of the British Monarchy’s current standing.
Name: Dawn Olson
Date: Spring 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis:
Synopsis: This paper focuses on early twentieth century American women authors. It discusses their attitudes about being female and examines whether the authors were sympathetic toward women or, if through their writing, they express hatred toward their female characters. Overall, it looks to analyze if women were portrayed as positive or negative in the literature of the early 1900s.
Name: Heather Denneau
Date: Fall 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis:
Synopsis: This paper explores the history, significance, and comparison of accounting and its different approaches in different civilizations. It continues to analyze changes throughout history in regards to the development of accounting.
Name: Vincenzo Nocito
Date: Fall 1996
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Humanities Honors Thesis”
Synopsis: This paper focuses on the politically inspired theological debates between the Roman Catholic Church and the Byzantine Orthodox Church during the fifteenth century.
Name: Alexa Pereira
Date: Spring 1995
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “I Love You?”
Synopsis: An analysis of what is love.
Name: Rae-Shan N. Barclift
Date: Spring 1995
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Salvation or Sanctification: Need I One, The Other, or Both?”
Synopsis: This thesis paper takes a religious look on salvation versus sanctification (after death).
Name: Svetlana Vicki Bochstein
Date: Spring 1993
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Sigmund Freud, James Joyce, Franz Kafka”
Synopsis: This paper focuses on Sigmund Freud, James Joyce, and Franz Kafka. The connection established was their involvement with the human aim for pleasure and the human struggle against suffering. The student utilizes the written works of these three authors to gain a better understanding of their perspective on what pleasure is, how it can be attained, what role it plays in society, and whether or not it can ever be attained. This paper examines each author’s personal opinions and relations to pleasure, and also how it affected the theme of their works.
Name: Barbara E. Martin
Date: Spring 1992
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “War, Women and Change”
Synopsis: A thesis paper that analyzes women’s roles in war.
Name: Lisbeth Cobas
Date: Spring 1992
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “To Hell with Dante and Forward”
Synopsis: A play that mocks Dante Alighieri and his “Divina Comedia.”
Name: Amy Stucki
Date: Spring 1991
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Last Laugh”
Synopsis: A sixty page analysis of comedy.
Name: Stacy Ann Tankel
Date: Spring 1990
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Marriage: An Analysis of the Elements Needed for it to be Healthy”
Synopsis: This project takes the book, “The Feminine Mystique” by Betty Friedan, and comments on how the power of women has an effect on married couples everywhere. This analysis of gender equality and personal relationships helps illustrate what is needed in order to maintain a healthy relationship.
Name: EM Sorber
Date: Spring 1987
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Ayn Rand and Objectivism”
Synopsis:
Name: Donna Marie Jones
Date: Spring 1985
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Philosophies of Plato, Dante, and Dewey in relation to the Education of the Individual”
Synopsis: This paper relates the philosophers Plato, Dante and Dewey to the theory and practice of education as a continuous, dynamic experience and way of life.
Name: Kevin G. Thomas
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Date:
Thesis: “Gypsy and the Lost Treasure”
Synopsis: A fifty-five page play for children.
Name: Rachel Kaplan
Date:
Track: Performing and Literary Arts
Thesis: “Rain”
Synopsis: A ninety page story.
Name: Susanna Park
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Gaining Korean Culture through My Family: Sunday Gatherings”
Synopsis: The analysis of second-generation minorities in the United States through discussion of ethnicity, prejudice, and self-discovery.
Name: Nancy Walsh
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Third Wave Feminism: The Voices of Rebellion and the Cries of Opposition”
Synopsis: This paper analyzes the third wave of feminism, its struggles and its success.
Name: Lisa Byrne
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “The Fin-de-Siecle”
Synopsis:
Name: Mary Allen
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Thesis Statement”
Synopsis: This thesis includes an analysis of the reign of Elizabeth Tudor as a figure of the history of Western Civilization. Elizabeth I ruled neither as man-king nor woman-queen, but as an autonomous androgyny though not completely, seamlessly, or without her regrets.
Name: Yvonne Raley
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Who is the Judge? An Examination of the Concept of Justice and the Good Man in Aristotle and Plato”
Synopsis: A philosophical paper on the interpretation of Aristotle and Plato’s views of justice.
Name: Vasiliki Odysseos
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “A Study of Greek Goddesses”
Synopsis: This paper focuses on the role of women within Greek mythology, as illustrated through characters like Hera, Athena, and Artemis. This project is a play (story) that emphasizes the three mentioned deities. The story has a central theme of the conflicting interests of these three goddesses, and their involvement in human affairs.
Name: Dawn Marie Ferchak
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “They Saw Dead People: Perception and Presence in Middle and Late Victorian Ghost Fiction”
Synopsis: This thesis paper analyzes the evolution of ghost stories and how people of different eras viewed the supernatural.
Name: Davinder Bhamra
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Magical Realism: Focus on Tom Robbins”
Synopsis: A 75-page paper that discusses Tom Robbins and his focus in magical realism. The author determines that one has to reach a level of awareness to pick up on the subtle, intangible, inherent, but concrete elements of magic within everyday reality.
Name: David Fernicola Jr.
Date:
Track: Humanities
Thesis: “Can I Buy Those Genes?”
Synopsis: About fifty pages of research within the field of selective breeding and genetics.
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