Emerging Scholars Projects 2025-2026
Legitimizing Evolution: Social Implications of a New Discipline
Professor: Alison McConwell, Philosophy
Project Description: Evolutionary biology is a subfield that examines life processes such as natural selection and speciation. A critical turning point in the study of evolutionary biology emerged between 1930-1950, in what scientists call the “modern synthesis” that united fields like genetics, paleontology, and systematics. While the technical aspects of this important scientific advance have been analyzed with some care by sociologists, historians, and scientists themselves, philosophers have not yet carefully considered the social implications of this new discipline. This research project will assess the social and scientific consequences of proposing biologists as the new authority over social issues following the turn of the 20th century. For the decades on either side of World War two (WWII), how did the new role of biologists as “social engineers” emerge, evolve, and impact broader social problems? And can any lessons be drawn about the emergence of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), such as at UMass Lowell and in other universities and academic settings, concerning STEM’s current influence on social controversies in society? This project seeks to process archival items already gathered from university Special Collections, generate chronologies of correspondence and technical research using timeline software, discuss and curate primary and secondary literature reviews and bibliographies, and generate analyses of significant celebrity evolutionary scientists working during this time. Students with a critical lens on knowledge and society and an interest in archival research are encouraged to apply.
If maximalist goals, then more (extreme) violence?
Professor: Minnie Minhyung Joo, Political Science
Project description: Civil conflicts are academically defined as armed conflicts that involve at least one state actor (for example, government) and at least one non-state actor, typically referred to as rebel groups. Rebel groups engage in armed resistance against the government for a variety of reasons, ranging from political, economic, ethnic, environmental and social grievances to ideological or religious motivations. This project specifically examines whether the nature of rebel goals affects their use of violence, including its intensity, targets, and forms. More specifically, it hypothesizes that rebel groups with maximalist goals—such as the overthrow of a government or the establishment of an independent state—are more likely to engage in highly lethal violence, target civilians, and/or adopt terrorist tactics compared to groups with more moderate or reform-oriented objectives. Potential student tasks include assisting the faculty in various stages of the production of an academic paper, conducting initial research on the topic, conducting and writing a literature review, gathering existing data, cleaning datasets, running statistical models, reporting results, gathering references, and editing manuscripts.
The Coinage of Antioch in the Third Century Crisis
Professor: Jane Sancinito, History
Project description: During the peak of the Third Century Crisis (circa 235-284 common era (CE)), there were more than 26 Roman emperors in a period of just under fifty years. Rapid regime changes, rebellious generals, and foreign wars all wreaked havoc on the economy, causing rapid inflation and destroying consumer trust. The coins from this era are worn and poor quality, but they hide invaluable information about how the empire held itself together, albeit just barely. This project studies the quantity of coins struck in the Syrian city of Antioch in this period and consists of die studies, a method that allows scholars to estimate the total number of coins produced from the coins that still survive in museum collections around the world. Students will help generate new data about the ancient world and discover information that hasn't been known for 1800 years. From the estimates we generate, we can assess imperial policy, analyze the workings of the Roman military, and reconstruct the nature and extent of the monetized economy in this turbulent period, while simultaneously learning about how economies (modern and ancient alike) function beyond the basics of supply and demand. Potential student tasks will include data collection, identifying relevant images, as well as assessing coin descriptions, weights, and museum collection information.
Second-Gen Muslims: Growing up Muslim and American
Professor: Maheen Haider, Sociology
Project description: I am looking for an Emerging Scholars (ES) student interested in studying immigration and race to help us learn about the lives of second-generation Muslim Americans born in the United States. The research explores the issues of race, religion, and Muslim identities in the aftermath of the so-called War on Terror, a military campaign launched after the attacks of 9/11/2001. The study will rely on a mixed-method approach and include interviews and surveys to understand the current lives of Muslim Americans. Potential student tasks include participant recruitment and outreach, assistance in designing the interview guide and surveys, sending surveys to the population, performing data collection and conducting interviews.
The Last Seed—A 2D Animated Short Film
Professor: Pouya Afshar, Art and Design
Project Description: The Last Seed, is a short animated film project focusing on story, design, and character-driven animation. This film explores perseverance and growth, following a group of children who, through their father’s final words, unknowingly revitalize a barren farm in search of a treasure. As an Emerging Scholar, you will play a crucial role in the pre-production phase, contributing to storyboarding, character design, and visual development. You will work closely with Professor Pouya Afshar, receiving mentorship in professional animation workflows. This opportunity is ideal for students interested in 2D animation, concept art, or sequential storytelling. You will gain hands-on experience with industry-standard software like Toon Boom Harmony and Photoshop while developing a polished portfolio piece. If you're eager to contribute creatively and gain professional animation experience, apply to the Emerging Scholars program and potentially become a part of The Last Seed!
Behavioral, and Social Contexts Surrounding Mass Public Shooting Incidents and Plots
Professor: Emily Greene-Colozzi, Criminology and Justice Studies
Project Description: Although statistically rare events, mass public shootings are among the nation’s most salient violent crime issues. According to recent estimates, the U.S. accounts for over 30% of worldwide mass shootings, more than any other similar country, and there is evidence this violence has grown deadlier over time. Studies have suggested that mass public shooters often engage in an observable process towards violence, and for every potentially violent individual planning a targeted attack, there exists a social network, or system, of guardians, handlers, and managers who can observe behaviors indicating violence. These studies maintain that leakage and warning signs typically are communicated or displayed to friends, family, peers, teachers, neighbors—that is, members of the shooter’s social network system—who may be well-positioned to report suspicious behavior. This project intends to compare the leakage, warning signs, and social networks of mass public shooting perpetrators and plotters to identify pre-incident behavioral and social characteristics that contribute to successful aversion of a mass public shooting. Potential student tasks include collecting open source data on averted and foiled mass public shooting plots in the United States, reading and analyzing sources, learning and understanding a conceptual codebook, and entering data into an Excel-style database.
Game On! Sports Media and Marketing in Hispanic Identity
Professor: Oscar Ruiz Hernandez, World Languages and Cultures
Project description: This research project explores the powerful intersection of sports media, advertising, and Hispanic identity and how sports shape and reflect cultural identities across the Spanish-speaking world. While developing an undergraduate course for Spring 2026, we will explore key questions such as: How do sports media portray Hispanic identity? How do advertisements influence cultural narratives? What role do athletes play in shaping national identities? The research combines cultural and linguistic studies, media analysis, economics, and pedagogy as a methodological approach. The student collaborator will assist with researching sports media trends, analyzing Spanish-language texts, and evaluating marketing strategies in Hispanic sports culture; help design interactive activities; and write summaries of research findings. Desired skills include Spanish proficiency and a passion for sports, ideally with experience as an athlete. You will be working in the humanities (databases, digital tools) as well. This is a great opportunity to gain research experience and apply it to classroom learning and real-world topics
Uncovering Patterns in Prosecution Using Online Data Dashboards
Professor: Rebecca Dunlea, Criminology and Justice Studies
Project Description: Prosecutors are among the most powerful agents in the criminal justice system, making key decisions that impact criminal defendants, victims of crime, and local communities every day. Yet we know astonishingly little about how they handle cases. One recent advancement in prosecution—the data dashboard—provides an exciting opportunity to learn more about prosecutor’s offices on a national scale. Over 50 offices scattered across the United States now publish information about their caseloads through an online data dashboard. The aim of this project is to exploit the growing popularity of these dashboards to better understand the landscape of prosecution nationally. How often are criminal cases filed across the United States? How often do defendants plead guilty? How often do defendants receive incarceration sentences? Do most offices treat cases similarly, or are they vastly different in how they address similar crimes? In this project, we will use information drawn from publicly available online dashboards created by prosecutor’s offices to create a database that answers these fundamental questions. This open-source data collection effort will focus on key outcomes driven by prosecutors, as well as racial inequality in these outcomes. The Emerging Scholar will assist in compiling a list of prosecutorial data dashboards, recording and organizing data from the dashboards, analyzing the predictors of key prosecution outcomes, and potentially preparing reports and/or manuscripts for peer-reviewed publication. This project may be a good fit for a student interested in law, but demonstrated interest is not required.
The Emergence of the Far-Right in Latin America
Professor: Rodrigo Castro Cornejo, Political Science
Project Description: This research project seeks to study why the far-right in Latin America—particularly populist authoritarian candidates—is electorally relevant in some countries but not in others. The focus of this project will be on Latin America, specifically Mexico and Brazil. While Brazil has experienced significant backlash from conservative groups, leading to the rise of figures like Jair Bolsonaro, Mexico has not seen the emergence of a comparable far-right movement despite progressive legal reforms. This research project examines how conservative political actors, NGOs, and media outlets in Brazil and Mexico have responded to progressive legislation, particularly regarding lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and plus (LGBTQ+) rights, abortion, and other socio-cultural policies. What factors contribute to strong conservative backlash in some contexts but not others? How do media narratives shape public perception of progressive policies? The project will employ qualitative and quantitative methods, including literature review and public opinion data analysis. The student collaborator will assist with conducting literature reviews on progressive legislation in Brazil and Mexico, analyzing reactions from conservative political parties, NGOs, and media, examining media coverage of progressive policies, and assisting in the analysis of survey data (training will be provided). The ideal student should have strong research and analytical skills, attention to detail, and an interest in political science and public opinion. Ability to speak/understand Spanish and/or Portuguese preferred but not required.
Digital Literacy and Video Game Modding
Professor: Michael Black, English
Project description: Video games have been and continue to be a great way for people to learn about computing. But how does “modding” change our understanding of what we can or should be able to do with our apps and personal devices? Beginning with the 1993 video game “DOOM,” modding has had a tremendous impact on the games industry by sustaining interest in the games that support it long past the typical shelf life for software. For players, modding has allowed them to revise or wholly replace elements of games to either tailor their play experiences to their liking or to build entirely new experiences that the original developers never envisioned. This project seeks to understand how modding influences how we learn about computing by examining:
- How players learn to locate and manage mods and
- How mods change players understanding of their relationship to computer systems.
The student collaborator for this project will assist with examining online archives of mods, mod documentation, and discussions on modifying for select video games. The project involves a wide range of primary sources, and students will be welcome to pursue their own interests as they help to map conversations occurring across them.
A History of the Arlington Soccer Club, 1977-2027
Professor: Christopher Carlsmith, History
Project Description: This project will examine the history of the Arlington Soccer Club (ASC) in Arlington, Massachusetts from 1977 to 2027. Drawing from meeting minutes, articles of organization, correspondence, budgets, local newspapers, and oral histories, we will craft a narrative history of this community non-profit organization. With 2,500 players and over 300 coaches, the ASC is one of the larger town soccer clubs in Eastern Massachusetts. In addition to documenting the history of the club, we will seek to analyze change and continuity over time. We will compare the growth of soccer to other town sports (i.e., baseball, hockey, football, lacrosse), and compare the ASC to other local town soccer clubs. If the data is sufficient, we might consider the growth of female participation in response to Title IX legislation, as well as trace the careers of players who went to play or coach professionally. My student partner will participate in the collection and analysis of primary sources, help to conduct oral interviews, and search for relevant images.