LCCC Students Present Papers At The 22nd Beacon Conference For Students

Two Lehigh Carbon Community College (LCCC) students presented papers at the annual Beacon Conference for Students at Two-Year Colleges on June 6 at Ulster Community College in New York. Caitlin Brown of Orefield, Pa. and Nathan Christie of Allentown, Pa. were selected from more than 120 submissions; 42 were selected to present their work at the conference; and 14 won prizes as "Outstanding Presenter." Two of those 14 were from LCCC. 

Nathan Christie's paper, "Social Class and Compassion," won in the Interdisciplinary Studies category. Professor of sociology, Christine Bowditch, served as Nathan's faculty mentor. Caitlin Brown's paper, "Gender Role Conformity," won in the Gender Studies category. Assistant professor of psychology, Betsy Swope, served as Caitlin's faculty mentor.

The Beacon Conference was established in 1993 to recognize, celebrate, and showcase the academic achievements of outstanding students at community colleges in the mid-Atlantic region. The conference is held each year on the first Friday in June, and it encompasses a wide range of disciplines.

Students work with faculty mentors from their colleges to prepare and submit papers that demonstrate outstanding scholarship and originality. Submitted papers are then read and ranked by community college professors with expertise in a particular discipline. The top three papers in each category are selected for presentation at the conference. Student presentations on each panel are judged on originality and quality of research, written work, and oral presentation by a judge from a four-year college or an expert from a renowned institution in the field. The judge for each category chooses the most outstanding presenter. Outstanding presenters and their faculty mentors are recognized at the closing session of the conference, and they receive $100 awards.

For more information, please contact Sean Dallas at 610-799-1584.