The honors thesis is a time-honored tradition in the Lee Honors College. It is an opportunity for students to demonstrate to themselves and others the knowledge and skills they have developed during their undergraduate studies and honors experience. The general purpose of the thesis is to create a capstone work that reflects the expertise they have developed in their major field of study or interest.
Honors theses completed at Western Michigan University are entered into ScholarWorks. Some may be embargoed or restricted by the authors or we have been unable to reach the authors, so the theses may be only available from on-campus computers. If you are an author of an honors thesis and would like to make it available off campus or if you have any questions, please contact wmu-scholarworks@wmich.edu.
Theses from 2017
Influence of Nanoparticle Composition on the Function of Antibiotics at their Surface, Maryam Kok
The Importance of Joining the Marrow Registry: The Biology behind how a Donor can Cure Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Alisa Kraft
Growing with Autism: Services and Opportunities Offered Following Secondary Education, Nicole Langlois
Therapeutic Benefits of Certified Canines for Veterans with War-Related Trauma Disorders, Smith Lauren
The Importance of Impact Investing in African Developing Economies, Emmanuel Machena
Identifying Cultural Connections in Dance, Anna Mainero
An Evaluation of the Variety and Availability of Continuing Education Opportunities for Occupational Therapists, Rachel Marquardt
Haunted Houses: A Directorial Exploration of Expressionism, Jose Martinez-Chavarria
Inference and Representation: A Look at Umberto Eco’s Notion of the Sign, James Martin
Tales from the "Bad RAs", Narisse Martin
The Effectiveness of Music Therapy to Reduce Agitation among Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease, Caroline Mazon
The New Merchants of Death: A Look into the Advertising of Tobacco in Third World Countries, Kraig McAllister
Statistical Analysis of Paper Machine Productivity, Lance McCauley
Litvo Business Plan, Aaron McClendon
Western Michigan University Bronco Marching Band: Proposed Fundraising Plan, Elizabeth Mena
The role of the serine biosynthesis pathway on the growth and proliferation of EML4-ALK driven lung cancer cells, Salma Mumuni
Biogas Separator and Storage Tank, Brandon Nimtz
Potassium Chloride as a Salt Substitute in Bread, Andrea Noud
Millennial Attraction to Southwest Michigan – Retaining and Attracting Millennial Talent to Our Region’s Companies, Robert Nyhuis
Shopping with Strangers: Grocery Shopping Behaviors of Generation Z, Madelyn Olsen
Culture of Gentleness: A Behavioral Approach, Stevie Parcell
Addressing Common Mental Health Issues Prevalent Among Honors College Students, Steven Pham
Identity Development in Korean-American Adoptees: A Content Analysis of Personal Reflections, Charles Rachor
Pacing Strategy During the Last Two Minutes of a Self-Paced VO2mat Test: Aggressive vs. Conservative, Carter Reid
The Effects of Increased Cycling on Local & Global Green House Gas Emissions, Trevor Roberts
A Scholarly Fictional Narrative Portraying the Stigma that Surrounds Mental Illness and Its Place in Literature, Adrianna Robinson
A Training Module on How to Effectively Speak with Older Adults with Hearing Loss, Valerie Rubley
Social Media in Big Business: An Autoethnography, Anna Rudisill
Reifying Digital Histories, Ed Ryan
Redesigning High School Mathematics Curriculum to Enhance College Readiness, Alicia Sanfillippo
The Reader and the Web: Web Companions to Literature, Heather Sanford
Event Planning for a Million People: A Reflection of an Internship at Palace Sports & Entertainment, Juliet Sanford
Camping for Children with Cerebral Palsy, Emily Scannell
Helping Children Understand: Using Picture Books to Age – Appropriately Explain Dance-Movement Therapy and Childhood Cancer, Megan Schaefer
Boat-Lift Design and Analysis, Nathan Schick
Occupational Therapy Treatment of Distal Radius Fractures: Best Practices, Erika Schleis
Studying the Effects of High School Athletics Social Media, Justin Scott
Site Access Checkpoint Application, Cameron Simon
Extreme Major Makeover: A Plan for Marketing Improvements to the Electronic Business Marketing Major, Erin Sionkowski
Importance of Play in Child's Development During Hospitalization, Hannah Slupka
A Comparative Analysis of Professional Pilot Jobs, Ryan Snoeyink
CEAS Student Center Expansion, Turner Solterman
City of Lost and Found: Reflections of an Adult Third-Culture Kid, Jeddie Sophronius
Self Management: Overcoming Barriers to Success, Jazmyn Souryamat
The Regularity Lemma and its Applications, Elizabeth Sprangel
Examining Atmospheric Microbial Communities, Allison Spring
New Work Center Optimization, Clarissa Stanton
Interpreted Fashions of the Yoruba Tribe, Ramea Starling
Within-Session Progressive Gestural-Prompt Delay to Teach Receptive Identification, Breanne Stiemsma
Cross-Curricular Writing in Mathematics for Comprehension, Kirsten Stowell
Effects of Light and Noise Pollution on the Dawn Chorus of House Wrens, Carley Stuart
The Current State of Management Science and Operations Research in the Top Undergraduate Business Schools, Emma Stuba
Karst Sub-basin Delineation via Dye Trace Study near Turnhole Bend, Mammoth Cave National Park, Jake Tholen
Self-Reported Professional Competencies of RN-to-BSN Students, Nicole Thompson
Encore Dance Costume Rental: A Business Plan, Aubrey Utting
The Effects of Repealing the Estate Tax and Reducing the Corporate Tax Rate Coupled with a Repatriation Act, Trenton Vanderlende
Treat Transparency, Amanda Van Giesen
A look into Japanese Translation, Benjamin Villar
The Technological Revolution and Data Science, Leslie Walcott
Teaching Two Children Diagnosed with Autism to Tolerate Physical Contact, Kelsey Webster
The Abrahamics on Depression, Rhyan Wengorovious
A Necessary Evil?, Jessica Wetzel
How to Plan, Budget, Write, and Implement a Student Sustainability Grant, Annalisa Wilder
Physiological Effect of Urbanization on Resident Bird Species in Southwest Michigan, Joseph Willner
Bilingual Language Assessment, Carmen Wittkopp
The Stigma Against Tattoos in the Workplace: San Francisco versus Kalamazoo Area, Sarah Wroblewski
Alzheimer's: Advancements through research, Taylor Wrozek
Increasing Vocalization and Echoic Stimulus Control, Logan Wurster
Sensory Interfaces: Intelligent Surgical Box Trainer, Krystal York
Taino Revival, Carla Sofia Zorrilla Baquero
Theses from 2016
The Role of Physician's Assistants on Limiting the Risk of Surgical Errors, Courtney Adler
Vertical Take-off and Landing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for Payload Delivery Applications, David Ajoku
Global Paths to Enlightenment: A Foundation Scholar Study Abroad to the Dominican Republic, Tacy Allan
I-94 Advanced Bridge Replacement, Saleem Alsharari
Anxiety in the Aisle: A Multi-Channel Study of the Incongruence between Wine Consumption and Wine Shopping, Brianna Amat
Retinal Ganglion Cell Neuroprotection Induced by Neuropharmacological Agents in an In-vivo Model of Glaucoma, Quinn Ameel
Structure and Function Studies of Tanapoxvirus Proteins, With a Focus on 57L, Ethan Archer
Investigating Ocular and Dermal Phototransduction in Planarian Flatworms, Jessica Bacher
Differences in amphetamine/dextroamphetamine prescriptions in areas with & without large universities, Heather Bacon
Designing an Accessible Hall Effect Thruster, Matthew Baird
How Recipient Age Affects Long Term Survivability in Heart Transplantation Patients, Daniel Baker
Bridging the Gap in Care for Older Adults Through Increased Training of PA-Cs, Stacy Bangert
Russian Justice on Trial: A Slavophile's Perspective on Judicial Reform in Dostoevsky's Brothers Karamazov, Michael Beck
Dance and the Deaf Community, Brianna Benvenuti
Mindfulness and Prevention in Western Medicine: Focus on Physician Assistant, Amber Bernelis
Implementation of Athletic Trainers in Michigan Youth Travel Hockey, Kelsey Berry
Campus, Community, Connection: A Public Relations Campaign, Elizabeth Blasko
Editor-in-Chief of the Laureate, Michael Bodinger
Extended Gamut Printing in Flexographic Packaging and the Impact of Brand Management, Andrew Bogan
Human-Assisted Fluid Power Vehicle, Andrew Bonter
Verification and Quantification of Surface Electromyographic (EMG) Activity of the Masseter Muscle, Kelsey Bowles
Allied Paper Landfill, a Case Study of Superfund, Kaitlin Braunschweig
Southwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines: A Review of Key Planning Optimization Activities and Their Execution During 2015, Justin Bravman
The Creation of a Video Review Guide for the Free-Response Section of the Advanced Placement Calculus Exam, Jeffrey Brown
Sensor-Enabled Reduction of Stereotypy, Aaron Brzezinski
Total Bridge Replacement of M-13 Over Cheboyganing Creek, Daniel Burns
Corporate Social Reponsibility Reporting: Industry Comparisons, Yu Cao