The Honors College at ACU exists to enable students to get the most out of their academic experience by creating the space for—and rewarding participation in—challenging intellectual work. This is achieved through three mediums: Honors sections of required lower-level classes, colloquia, and upper-level work in your major. By combining these in different ways, an Honors student can graduate with a choice of two distinctions: Honors Graduate, or Honors Scholar.
Depending on which Honors distinction you pursue, you must complete either three (Honors Graduate) or five (Honors Scholar) upper-level units. To graduate as an Honors Scholar, an Honors Project Thesis must be completed in addition to the five upper-level units.
Below, you will find the Honors Project Theses for our graduating Honors Scholars.
It is an exciting time at ACU and in the Honors College. Thank you for stopping by to check it out.
Dr. Jason Morris
Dean, The Honors College
Theses/Dissertations from 2024
“It’s Literally Impossible to Be a Woman:” Female Depictions in the Films of Greta Gerwig, Genevieve Graessle
Dissatisfaction and Eroding Institutional Confidence: Examining German Perspectives of the Alternative für Deutschland and Its Impact on the German Party System, Isabel Erin Hodgson
EFFECTS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF MASTERY GRADING IN AN INTRODUCTORY BIOLOGY COURSE, Darby Ice
A Hero in Tears: How the Female Gaze Elicits Male Emotional Vulnerability in Romance Novels, Eowyn Stewart
Theses/Dissertations from 2023
Comparing Returns between Curricular and Cocurricular Student-Managed Investment Funds, Kathryn Louise Crawford
The Challenges of Mental Health Services: Cost of Counseling and Impact in Texas Colleges, Skyler Gill
They Need Rappers Like Me: A Poetic Analysis of Identity and Disturbance in Women’s Rap Music, Willard Justice
Veils and Natural Forms, Avery Silliman
Theses/Dissertations from 2022
Young Adult Literature: The Past, The Present, and The Person, Kelsea Abston
A Good Tax System: An Analytical Approach of United States Taxation, Elijah Bruce Biedinger
A Survey of Prosecutorial Philosophies and their Effects on Sentencing, Bryan Briones
Through the Needle’s Eye: Capitalist and Evangelical Considerations in Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Emma Conatser
A Study to Investigate the Relationship Between Relationship Theories, Dependency, and Self-Esteem, Peyton Himango
The Impact of Fictional Characters on Political Beliefs: A Reception Analysis of Arrow S5E13, Eastin Kandt
Disney’s Quest for Success in its Racial Representation and Diversity in its Animated Human Feature Films, Katie Pantoja
Paw Preference and Behavior in Canis lupus familiaris and Felis silvestris catus, Abigail G. Williams
Theses/Dissertations from 2021
Evidence-Based Principles for Successful Juvenile Justice Systems in the United States, Elizabeth Miller
Theses/Dissertations from 2019
Hispanic Studies: Enrollment, Retention, and Graduation Rates in Texas Post-Secondary Education, Adam Andrade
Padawan to Jedi: Using Reinforcement Learning to Train an Agent to Play Mancala, Tiffanie Birrell
Perceived Student Stress in Relation to Attachment Theory with Pets, Baylee Ray Blanton
A Survey and Critique of the Methodologies and Techniques Used in Abilene Christian University's English as a Second Language Classrooms, Hannah Elizabeth Bowling
Behind the Veil: Sin and the Sublime in Nathaniel Hawthorne's Twice-Told Tales, Jacob Tobias Buller
Hispanics in Education: A Look into Underrepresentation, Sarah JoAnne Dillinger
Hospitality in Culture: A Study of Differences and Influences of the Hospitality Industry in the U.S. and Western Europe, Catherine Finney
Future Worlds and the Goals of Refugee Children, Tori Ford
Optimist Design Guide, Lauren Franco
Who's Your Daddy?: A Psychological Analysis of Father-Son Relationships in Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, Hattie Jane Johnson
The Influence of Spanish within the Identity of Chicano Children: Discourse analysis in Rudolfo Anaya, Sandra Cisneros, Mario Alberto Zambrano, and Erika Sanchez, Magda Virginia Rodriguez
Exploration of Human Nature in the Federalist Papers, Jenna Ashley Salzman
Environmental Audit of Abilene Christian University Dormitories, Kaitlyn Alexandria Saucedo
The Character Within: Understanding the Use of Personality Assessments for Managerial Effectiveness, Yesenia Ruby Soria
Expression vs. Expectation: A Look into Patients' Perspectives on Professional Appearance in Physical, Speech or Occupational Therapists with and without Body Art, Catherine Joy Swedlund
An Analysis of the Impact of Immigration on the Labor Market and Economy, Shelby Lynn Weddle
Jerry Cans and Gender: The Necessity of Women's Inclusion in Clean Water Development Work, Samantha Young
Theses/Dissertations from 2018
Collective Experience: Race and Perceptions of Christian Suffering Amongst College Students, Abbey Green
Assessment of the Genetic Diversity of the Abilene Christian University Feral Cat Population Through the Use of Mitochondrial Genes, Carley Paige Johnson
The Red Wilderness: Mark and Modern Western Storytelling, Nathan Kent Jowers
A Comparative Treatment Approach for Childhood Apraxia of Speech, Audrey Kinzinger
Jacob's Dream 3D Recreation Postmortem, Caleb Martin
Employee Engagement in Abilene, TX, Madeline Moore
The Life and Experiences of the East German Woman, Mackenzie Elizabeth Sanderson
The Abilene Swim Club: An Advertising Rebrand, Katherine Leigh Scott
Church Health: A Comparison of the Clergy and Laity Perspectives on the Church's Discipleship, Spiritual Formation, and Outreach, Bryn Stonehouse
The Role of Histone Variant H2A.Z During the Oxidative Stress in Budding Yeast, Julia Elizabeth Taylor
The Cry of the Cymry: The Linguistic, Literary, and Legendary Foundations of Welsh Nationalism as it Developed Throughout the 19th Century, McKinley Terry
Simulation Scenario of a Postpartum Hemorrhage following Placental Abruption, Federica Giorgia Vinera
'The Worst of All': The Intellectual Authorization of Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz and the Lady Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle, Savannah Weeks