By: Inji Kim, Staff Writer Photographer: Lynne DeLade
On April 6, the rotunda of the Dorothy Young Center for the Arts was filled with numerous posters of Baldwin Honors students who have conducted research for the first ever Day of Scholars organized by Doctor Stephen Dunaway, the new director for the Honors Program. The visitors included prospective Baldwin Honors Scholars, Drew students, professors, and many members of the administration including the University President, who completed the event with all of their curiosity piqued and energized to communicate with the scholars. João Pedro Martins Pinheiro (‘19), a junior Honors Scholar was present at the event with his poster that described his research on the relationship between technology and self-uncertainty. He said that some of the most memorable parts of the day were the conversations he had with people who were at the event. “It feels great to be able to share what I found and what did after going through an entire research process. Amazing, too, how many conversations that I had with all sorts of people uncovering interesting lines of questioning that I had not considered before.”
Alongside the poster presentations at the rotunda, the event took a full advantage of the DOYO, with an art exhibition at the foyer outside of Korn Gallery that featured visual works created by scholars, theatrical performance at the Director’s Room, Dance Performance at the Black Box Theater and musical performances followed by plenary talks in the Concert Hall. Andy D’Amato (‘21), a first year Honors scholar, noted that he specifically enjoyed the musical performances. “If I had to say what I enjoyed personally, it would be the concert hall performances. I love it when good music is presented, especially since the Concert Hall is acoustically perfect.” Dunaway noted that this structure was intended to highlight multiple aspects of being an honors scholar, saying, “Students and faculty alike enjoying scholarly discourse across all of the academic disciplines, like we saw at Day of Scholars, is exactly what a liberal arts education is all about!”
Dunaway also noted that the success of this event would act as an impetus for similar events in the future. “I am already at work on planning next years event, which promises to be bigger and better. I want to express my sincere gratitude to all of the students who displayed their talents and hard work and to also thank all of the members of the Drew community that showed up to support our incredible students,” he said. Eva Wagenknechtova (’21), who was heavily involved in planning the event, noted that the success of the event was important because it was able to provide prospective visitors a glimpse of what their four years in Drew will look like. She also noted that the event will continue to become a part of the University in the coming years: “The future of this event is very promising, as we hope to expand beyond just Honors students next year.”
