By Elizabeth Clarke, LCU News
PINEVILLE, La. (LCU News) – Four Louisiana Christian University honors students presented research at the 4th annual C.S. Lewis Honors Forum, April 12.
LAURA AIME
Laura Aime, a senior history major with an English minor, from Baton Rouge, presented “Religious Rhetoric of the American Revolution: Jeremiads, Ad Hominem Attacks, and the Holy War Ideology.”
Aime’s research discovered that Patriot preachers discussed liberty, resistance to tyranny, the morality of current events, and patriotism. From the 1760s onward and during the conflict itself, the rhetoric of sermons became much more aggressive and intense. The rhetoric employed by New England clergy during the American Revolution – the jeremiad sermonic rhetorical structure, holy war rhetoric, and ad hominem attacks – resulted in powerful sermons that both persuaded the public to support the revolution and molded the ideology of the revolution by reshaping the concept of resistance and emphasizing liberty’s importance.
She is a member of the Alpha Mu Tau chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society and the LCU Student Government Association. She has served as the president of SGA this academic year. Aime plans to pursue an accelerated bachelor of science in nursing and work as a nurse after she graduates in May.
ELIJAR MCGREW
Elijar McGrew, a junior social work and nursing double major from Bossier City, presented “Be a Cyberhero: Navigating a World of Technology in a Highly Connected Society.”
His presentation built on research showing that the human brain is not fully developed until the mid-to late 20’s. The prevalence of social media within all facets of modern highly content-centered society presents various potential harms for adolescents. Without proper education and advocacy, adolescents face a variety of emotional, social, psychological, and even physical dangers. “Be A Cyberhero” is a community service project conducted at Jena Junior High designed to help mitigate the dangers associated with social media misuse and abuse.
McGrew will graduate in May 2025 and plans to gain experience in nursing and case management within the hospital setting before travel nursing.
MCKENZIE STRICKLAND
McKenzie Strickland, a senior secondary English education major from West Monroe, presented her research “Kagan Strategies Compared.”
The core of her project centered on assessing the efficacy of specific Kagan Cooperative Learning Structures by conducting an experiment involving a select group of students who demonstrated lower scores on one of the lessons from the semester. The goal was to compare two Kagan strategies to ascertain their respective effectiveness. By integrating elements from both the realms of Education and English Language Arts, this project aimed to delve into the dynamics of student learning.
Strickland enjoys mentoring young people in her church and plans to serve at a church camp this summer before teaching English in her hometown.
HANNAH MILLER
Hannah Miller, a senior math education major from Iowa, Louisiana, presented her research “The Effectiveness of Remedial Strategies.”
The research process included observing a cycle of instruction from an eigth-grade math teacher, preparing a lesson, administering a pre-assessment, teaching a concept, and administering a post-assessment to determine the percentage of students who met the lesson objective. By focusing on students who did not meet the objective, the goal of the project was to determine if the remedial strategies that were implemented in a small group of students would be successful in helping those students reach the objective. To explore the effectiveness of remedial strategies in helping students reach a lesson’s desired objective, both mathematical and education principles were combined to address the needs of the students.
Miller is the president of Wildcats for Life, vice president and co-founder of Fresh Fire, and executive treasurer of the SGA. She also serves as a math tutor in the Student Success Center, an LCU ambassador and a Wildcat navigator.
After graduation, she plans to teach middle school math and serve in the local church.
The C.S. Lewis Honors Program is an interdisciplinary program that is designed for students who perform at the highest academic standards. Its small, seminar-style courses focus on integrating faith and learning through writing, discussion, service learning, and travel. Students enter during their freshman year and complete the honors curriculum as a cohort.
The purpose of the Honors Program is to further Louisiana Christian University’s vision of preparing graduates and transforming lives while supporting its mission as “a Christ-centered community committed to Academic Excellence where students are equipped for Lives of Learning, Leading, and Serving.“
The Honors Program fulfills this purpose by providing an honors experience integrated throughout the core liberal arts curriculum, supplemented by honors colloquia, and one division- specific experience-based course that is contracted with individual faculty culminating in a C. S. Lewis Honors Program Forum.
