Five sophomore Northeast Texas Community College Honors students, in addition to Honors professors Dr. Mary Hearron and Dr. Andrew Yox,†recently†represented NTCC at the 50th Anniversary meeting of the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC) in Chicago. The NCHC is the premier association of honors programs and honors colleges in the nation. NTCC is the only community college to have featured scholarly student presenters at the yearly NCHC continuously since 2008.
NCHC committees select proposals to present on the basis of appeal, previous awards, and scholarly promise. Making the cut for NTCC this year were Isaac Burris, for his work on slaves in Texas,†† Morgan Capps for her work on Texas governors Ma and Pa Ferguson, and Jessica Velazquez, for her work on changing patterns of rural life in Texas. Honors Northeast also won a rare third-time invitation to present an honors project?in this case, its film on Harriet Potter Ames.
Burris presented work on the ?western weakness? of the slave system in Texas before the Civil War.† Starting with a narrative of Jeff Hamilton, the famed Sam Houston?s slave, Burris found other cases of slaves performing bodyguard functions on the Texas frontier, and earning rights as they helped protect planters and their families.
Capps presented her research on governors Ma and Pa Ferguson. She argued that, unlike other political couples such as the Clintons and Johnsons, the Fergusons functioned as a ?symbiotic super couple.?† The efficacy of their bonding as a couple even offset their corruption and lack of governing skills in the public eye.
Velazquez presented work on southern agriculture during the mid 20th century. Her essay on this same topic will constitute the seventh publication of NTCC honors students since 2010, and will appear this spring in a publication of the Texas State Historical Association. Velazquez argues that the mechanization and depopulation of Texas? rural society anticipated the Civil Rights movement.
Angelica Fuentes and Cassia Rose also attended the meeting and†participated in the group presentation about the Honors Northeast†historical film project. The panel discussed opportunities for niche cinema in regions that support honors programs, the realities of costs, and the film?s role in enhancing team spirit.
An anonymous Friend of Honors Northeast donated $500 so that each student could have an extra $100 for spending money on the trip. Dr. Mary Hearron also contributed a major gift that allowed the scholars to enjoy a meal at a top French restaurant during their night in Hyde Park. The†group also received a private tour of the University of Chicago.
