NIC hosts third annual Humanities Conference

NIC’s humanities program hosted its third annual Humanities Conference in the SUB Saturday, inviting undergraduate students from schools in Idaho and eastern Washington to present and discuss humanities subjects such as art, research, and history.

Attendees enjoy the mid-day break sandwich and salad bar lunch before going back to the remaining sessions.

Audrey Cameron, NIC English professor, introduces a group research project at the Humanities Conference.

“This is our baby. Its been getting bigger and bigger every year,” said Molly Michaud, Professor of English at NIC. “More students have been coming every year, even more than just in the localized area. Which we thought it would be just this area but its growing tremendously which has been amazing.”

Undergraduate students from eleven separate schools were in attendance with all four awards given to students from the guest schools.

Best Overall Conference Paper was awarded to Adi McNally from Whitworth University for her paper “Gender-Neutral Language in Christian Universities.”

Best Creative Writing Paper was awarded to Rebecca Cyr of Oregon State University for her paper “The Street Performer.”

Best Critical Writing Paper went to Aditi Kumar from Reed College for “Memory, Affect, and Subjectivity.”

Honorable Mention for Best Critical Writing was presented to Terlona Knife of Washington State University for “Toxic Roots: Remnants of White Minority Rule in Zimbabwe.”

Lita Burns, vice president of instruction at NIC listens in on an early morning session at the third annual Humanities Conference. Photo by Rebecca Pratt.

A new record of submitted and accepted papers was set for the conference at 56 total, 21 of which were submitted and written by NIC students.

The conference had a total of 15 sessions with varying presentations beginning at 9:15 a.m. and had back to back presentations and panels until the dinner at 5 p.m. The panels featured students reading and presenting their papers or topics with a question response at the end of the panel. Papers and projects were sorted into similar subject groups with students from different schools to create a themed discussion.

North Idaho College students answer questions after their panel and presenting their papers.

“[For me, this conference is about] getting to work with my colleges, fellow students, friends, and peers, people I have struggled together with,” Robin Lamarsh, North Idaho College student, and conference participant, said. “I get to see what other students from other schools have struggled with, what they have succeeded with, and how they have different perspectives and classes. It’s just a really good chance to see what else is out there.”

At the end of the evening, local authoress Kim Barnes told a story themed around the North Idaho area. Several of her published works were for sale and there was a book signing to close the conference after dinner.

Nikole King, event organizer, talks with conference attendees between sessions.

“My hope with the conference is that it will give student presenters a professional academic experience that they can put on their resume and talk about in job interviews,” Nikole King, English Professor at NIC and event coordinator, said. “But more importantly, I hope it will give them confidence and inspire them intellectually. It is a real joy for me to see so many students in one place passionate about their own intellectual work.”