The call for nominations for these awards is now closed. 

Please join us in celebrating the work of this year's winners.

​

NRHC Paper of the Year Awards

The Paper of the Year Award recognizes outstanding papers presented as panel talks at the NRHC annual conference. Winning papers will be published and featured in a special Conference Edition of Illuminate, the NRHC Undergraduate Research Journal.

2025 winners

​

Charlie Dorlon, Chatham University

"Perspectives of Power and Privilege in Rebecca Harding Davis's 'Life in the Iron Mills'"

 

Raewyn Kraybill, Chatham University 

“‘where we take shape in the dark air’: The Specter of Our Humanity in John Hollander’s ‘Swan and Shadow’”
 

Jawad Zaman, St. Joseph’s University 

“Benchmarking Neural Machine Translation Using Open-Source Transformer Models and a Comparative Study with a Focus on Medical and Legal Domains”

NRHC Creative of the Year Awards

The Creative of the Year Award recognizes outstanding creative work that may be presented at the conference as part of the Performing Arts and Film Showcase and/or Art Gallery. However, submissions that aren’t being presented at the conference but celebrate the conference theme are welcome. Winning creative works will be published and featured in a special Conference Edition of Illuminate, the NRHC Undergraduate Research Journal.

​

2025 Winners

​

Bianca De La Cruz, Mercy University 

“Cutting Us Out” (Poem)

 

Emily Eisenhard, Northampton Community College

“Inkblot Self Portrait” (Fine Art)

​

​​

NRHC Poster Presentation award winners

​

Katelyn Beitz, Kutztown University

“Kutztown University’s System Crossroads: Developing Check List Advising Tools to Fit Student and Faculty Needs.”

​

Alexandra Caldwell - Slippery Rock University

“Strengthening Stress Coping Skills: Outcomes of an Honors College Wellness Retreat.”

​

Morelia Morel Diaz & Melanie Zimmerman, Salem State University

“Investigating Potential Transcriptional Regulators of Cilia Assembly and Function in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.”

​

Ezra Forero-Tarquino, Gallaudet University
"Social-Emotional Learning and COVID-19 for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students.”

​

Derek Gonzalez, Hanieh Kachooee, & Hosna Kachooee - Bergen Community College

“Comparison of Agricultural Systems within Community Gardens.”

​

Lindsey McGovern, Salem State University

“Detecting AI-Generated Content in Student Work: Preserving Academic Integrity in the Age of Generative AI.”

 

Amanda Olachea, Dominican University New York

“Enhancing Traffic Prediction Accuracy for New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority Using Explainable Artificial Intelligence Techniques.”

​

Emmett Perkinson, Hudson Valley Community College

“Optimization of Photon Counting Computed Tomography Scanner for Novel Tantalum Contrast Agent.”

​

Paula Perez Portero, Bloomfield College of Montclair State University

“Predicting Air Quality and Public Health Impacts: A Machine Learning Approach to Understanding Pollution and Meteorological Factors in New Jersey.”

 

Alex Steffens, Dominican University New York

“Improvements in Physical Therapy Treatments for Those with Low Income, Financial Troubles, Limited Health Insurance, or Living in Rural Areas.”

 

​​