A wealth of research takes place at the UC Davis Library, and each year the library awards the Norma J. Lang Prize for Undergraduate Information Research to recognize students for their work. This year, four prizes were awarded to students majoring in the College of Letters and Science.
“Supporting and encouraging our young scholars is central to our mission in Letters and Science and at UC Davis,” said Estella Atekwana, dean of the College of Letters and Science. “This honor from the UC Davis Library recognizes both our students’ incredible talent and unparalleled support through the library’s collections and services to help them achieve their best.”
Here are this year’s College of Letters and Science honorees.
Mariana Perez Sierra, 1st Place
Honors thesis in international relations: “Expandiendo La Herida: How U.S. Training Exacerbated Human Rights Violations During Chile’s Dictatorship”
Mariana Perez Sierra is examining the role of U.S. intervention and training of Chilean security personnel on human rights violations under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, and urges future restrictions on U.S. training in Latin America and beyond.
I discovered that existing literature minimally studies the effects of U.S. military training on Latin American security personnel behavior. I used library resources to fill those gaps and clearly outline mechanisms that explain how U.S. training could have shaped the human rights violations in Chile. — Mariana Perez Sierra
With help from librarian William Cuthbertson, she used library databases and research guides to locate primary sources for her research, including declassified CIA documents and a Chilean government report.
Sofia Hosseinzadeh, 2nd Place
Honors thesis in history: “How that Stevenson Rumor Started: The 1952 Election and Cold War Gender and Sexuality”
Sofia Hosseinzadeh’s research sheds new light on the role of gender and sexuality in Cold War-era American society. She examined newspaper articles, gossip magazines and FBI transcripts to unpack the origins of the rumor that 1952 presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson was gay.
I looked at secondary sources’ footnotes to start my primary source research. From the sources cited in secondary literature, I identified the newspapers, FBI files, and gossip magazine articles that I needed to read. — Sofia Hosseinzadeh
She consulted with librarian Nancy Wallace, used the library’s news databases and interlibrary loan service, and contacted the Houston LGBT Archive to obtain sources to complete her honors thesis.
Nafeesa Khan, 3rd Place
Literature review for UWP Writing in the Professions in Health: “Valley Fever Outcomes, Occurrences, & Occupational Risks in Vulnerable Populations in California & Arizona: A Systematically-Approached Review of Literature”
Nafeesa Khan’s review investigates the factors that shape the health outcome of vulnerable populations affected by Valley Fever in California and Arizona.
As a child of immigrants from California’s Central Valley, I knew that I wanted to cover a topic that affected my family and individuals living in my own community … in a way that uplifted their voices and unique experiences. — Nafeesa Khan
Meeting with librarian Erik Fausak helped Khan broaden her research scope, navigate databases and find new source material.
Ananya Nipane, 3rd Place
Honors thesis in Sociology: “Feminization and Racial/Ethnic Diversification of the Legal Field, 2005 – 2020”
Anaya Nipane explores whether increasing representation of women and women of color in the legal profession, traditionally dominated by men, is accompanied by income growth, reduced wage gaps and sustained professional equity.
I navigated multiple challenges during my project, like finding a suitable database and learning how to code, but I overcame them by seeking the help of my peers, advisors and campus resources. The library was a major resource and helped me immensely at all stages of my research. — Ananya Nipane
Through research consultations with librarians William Cuthbertson and Qian Liu, Nipane discovered IPUMS, an open-source database of American community surveys, which served as the foundation of her thesis.
See all the prize winners at the UC Davis Library website.
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