Political Science

EWU McNair Scholar Alexandria Coronado Completes Summer Research Internship

10/22/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Alexandria Coronado for completing her EWU McNair Summer Research Internship! Alexandria worked hard all summer under the mentorship of Dr. Lindsey Upton in the Department of Sociology and Justice Studies. With Dr. Upton's ongoing support, Alexandria will continue her research throughout the school year by developing and collecting responses to a survey. Alexandria presented her research proposal, Housing and Food Insecurity Among College Students, at the 2020 EWU Virtual Symposium. Check out Alexandria's poster presentation and her McNair webpage to learn more about her research.

Alexandria is currently hard at work completing her senior year at Eastern while also applying to graduate schools around the country. Keep up the amazing work Alexandria! EWU McNair is confident that you will succeed in graduate school and beyond.

Alexandria Coronado Selected as an EWU McNair Scholar and Awarded Summer Research Internship

05/21/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Photo of Alexandria Coronado next to text congratulating her with red textured border.

Congratulations Eastern Washington University student Alexandria Coronado! Alexandria has been selected as an EWU McNair Scholar and awarded a summer research internship. McNair Scholars must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher, are first generation college students and low-income and/or underrepresented students, and are selected for their promise as scholars and commitment to attaining a PhD. Alexandria is majoring in Political Science with an emphasis in Pre-Law and minoring in Anthropology. Prior to attending EWU, she graduated from Columbia Basin College with an Associate of Art degree. She is involved in the Honors Program at EWU as well as the International Affairs Community. Her research interests revolve around the ever-growing economic inequalities in the United States. For her EWU McNair Summer Research Internship, Alexandria will look at the food and housing insecurity of undergraduate college students under the mentorship of Dr. Lindsey Upton.

We're so excited to have Alexandria join us as a McNair Scholar!

EWU College of Social Sciences Honors Six EWU McNair Scholars

05/20/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Six fantastic EWU McNair Scholars receive highest awards from the College of Social Sciences at EWU.

This spring, the Eastern Washington University College of Social Sciences has selected six EWU McNair Scholars for some of their highest awards. The Frances B. Huston Medallion Award is presented to only 20 graduating students each year who have a strong academic record and have demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities at Eastern and in the community. EWU McNair Scholars Angélica García-Macías (Political Science), Miriam Carlson (Psychology), and Marixza Torres (Psychology) all received this award. The Dean Jeffers W. Chertok Honored Student Award for the College of Social Sciences is presented to exceptional students who have shown a commitment to their education by demonstrating outstanding academic achievement with a minimum of a 3.75 GPA in their previous four quarters and through leadership and service to the community. The College of Social Sciences selected EWU McNair Scholars Madelyn Brown (History), Lily Ann Long (Psychology) and Abdulrazik Mohamed (International Affairs) for this award.

Not only do these awards acknowledge the hard work of each of these students, they also exemplify the power of collaboration, mentorship, and student support by EWU faculty and staff. Each year the EWU McNair Program recruits promising scholars and engages them in year round learning on research, writing, and preparation for graduate school. Each EWU McNair Scholar is paired with a faculty mentor who guides them through the research process. EWU McNair Faculty Mentors meet as often as weekly with their mentees throughout spring and summer quarters culminating in a research paper. EWU McNair Scholars then present this research at the EWU Symposium as well as at academic conferences around the nation. For example, Miriam Carlson will present her research, completed under the mentorship of Dr. Aryn Zeihnert, at the upcoming Western Psychological Association conference in October 2020. Marixza Torres has presented her EWU research, under the mentorship of McNair Director Dr. Christina Torres García, at the Western Psychological Association conference and the National Latinx Psychological Association conference. Marixza has also been mentored year round by Dr. Theresa Martin. Other mentors for this group of scholars include: Dr. Dorothy Zeisler-Vralsted (Abdu), Dr. Aryn Zeihnert (Lily Ann), Dr. Martín Meráz García (Angélica), and Lecturer SimHayKin S. Jack along with Dr. Christina Torres García (Madelyn), and there are countless other College of Social Sciences faculty and staff that support McNair students at present and in past years. In addition to these formal faculty mentorships, many professors do additional year round support for students, by having them join their research labs, TA, and just everyday care, engagement, and guidance.

McNair also provides year round support for students including tutoring, linking students to services and resources, and regular one-on-one meetings for connection, encouragement, and advice. EWU McNair makes sure students have the tool they need to navigate higher education, successfully apply to graduate school and research internships, and negotiate funding and final decisions for which graduate schools they will attend.

McNair is a federally funded program that helps low-income first generation colleges students and those else wise underrepresented in higher education to earn PhD's and increase diversity in academia. EWU's McNair program started in 1995 and, to-date, 40 EWU McNair Scholars have gone on to earn their PhD and over 100 more have attained their Masters degree. This year, twelve graduating EWU McNair Scholars have been accepted to Masters and/or PhD programs, many with full funding. Miriam has been accepted Gonzaga University's Education Specialist in School Psychology program. Lily Ann has been accepted into Point Park University's PsyD Program. Angélica has been accepted at 3 PhD programs with full funding and one Masters program. Marixza has been accepted to 2 PhD programs with full funding and one Masters program. Abdu has been accepted by 3 Masters programs and 1 PhD program with full funding. And Madelyn has been accepted by 7 Masters programs, many of which offered full funding. All are planning to attend graduate school in the fall of 2020. This would not be possible without the incredible support of faculty mentors and partnership with the other colleges at EWU. Thank you to all of our incredible faculty and staff and congratulations to our phenomenal scholars!

EWU McNair Scholar Angélica García-Macías Awarded Frances B. Huston Medallion

04/24/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Angélica García-Macías! Angélica has been selected to receive a 2019-2020 Frances B. Huston Medallion Award for the College of Social Sciences. This award is presented to only 20 graduating students each year who have a strong academic record and have demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities at Eastern and in the community. Angélica has been a student advisor for Welcome Week Orientation, a mentor for the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP), and both a Legislative Affairs Associate and a Superior Court Justice Associate for ASEWU. She is a dancer, choreographer, and fundraiser for Ballet Folklórico De Aztlán. She has volunteered for EWU's Annual Drag Show, Habitat for Humanity, 2nd Harvest Mobile Food Bank, and Cheney Clean Up events. She also interned for the Washington Legislative Program in 2018 researching issues concerning housing and undocumented student resources as well as for the Sea Mar Executive Program, a non-profit that provides health care and support services for farmworkers and marginalized communities. In addition, Angélica did peer mentoring and advising with Scholars in Action, including creating and leading workshops on how to prepare for graduate school.

In addition to all of her extracurricular work and volunteering, Angélica is an incredible scholar. She is a senior at EWU majoring in Political Science and minoring in Spanish and Chicano Studies. As a McNair Scholar Angélica has committed to a path of attaining her PhD. To prepare for this she completed two summer research internships, one at EWU under the mentorship of Dr. Martín Meráz García, and another at MIT under the mentorship of Dr. Charles Stewart III. To read more about Angélica and her research check out her webpage on the EWU McNair website.

Angélica has been accepted by Political Science PhD programs at the University of Washington, the University of California, Irvine, and Michigan State University. She was also accepted into the Higher Education Masters program at Arizona State University. EWU McNair is so proud of Angélica and all her hard work. We're so excited for her next steps to graduate school and the lasting impact we know she will make on academia and in all of her communities.

EWU McNair Scholar Angélica Garcia-Macias Accepted into Additional Graduate Program

03/16/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Photo of Angélica Garcia-Macias next to red confetti backdrop and text congratulating her.

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Angélica Garcia-Macias! Angélica has been accepted into the MA in Higher Education program at Arizona State University. This is in addition to three prior acceptances to PhD Political Science programs across the country! Angélica is a senior at Eastern Washington University majoring in Political Science and minoring in Chicano Studies and Spanish. To prepare for graduate school Angélica completed two summers of research internships: one through the EWU McNair Scholars Program with mentor Dr. Martín Meráz García researching housing discrimination in the Latinx community, and last summer at MIT with Dr. Charles Stewart III researching the Latiné vote. To read more about Angélica and her research, check out her page on the EWU McNair website.

We are so proud to see all of Angélica's hard work paying off and excited for her next steps towards attaining a PhD!

EWU McNair Scholar Wendolyn Martinez Accepted to Summer Institute at the University of Michigan!

02/14/2020 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Wendolyn Martinez! Wendolyn has been accepted into the Junior Summer Institute in Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) at the University of Michigan. This summer institute is an intensive seven-week summer program that focuses on preparing undergraduate students from all over the United States for graduate programs in public policy and international affairs. This fellowship includes a stipend, University housing, books and related course materials, and the cost of airfare to and from the program! Wendolyn completed research last summer as a part of the EWU McNair Scholar program comparing propaganda from the US and the USSR with mentor Dr. Dorothy Zeisler-Vralsted. We're so excited for Wendolyn's next step in preparing for graduate school! To learn more about Wendolyn and her research, check out her page on our website!