Every year in the United States, there are 2.9 million reported child abuse cases. Unfortunately for researchers, this number is often inaccurate due to the amount of underreporting due to fearful children and unsupportive parents. In addition, some reported cases are unsubstantiated suspicion. Child welfare advocates argue that suspected causes for child abuse are low education levels, low socioeconomic status, a parent involved in the child welfare system, and becoming involved with intimate partner violence. Both the gender of the perpetrator and victim are suspected of playing an important role in outcomes for child victims. However, this may not be the entire story. This study suggests that the cycle of violence viewed by sociologists and social workers may be more complex than simply modeling behavior or feeling gendered trauma. The reciprocation of violence also may depend on the type of abuse experienced by the victim.

Center of Social Science Research Student Paper Award Winners (2021), (Long Paper Winner). The Incan religion played a critical role in daily life throughout the empire. Religious ideology was formed based on the importance of ancestors and Gods in creation myths. Societal prosperity, good weather, and fertile lands depended on the happiness of the ancestors and the Gods. In order to develop a positive relationship with these sacred figures, the Inca people spent their lives following a strict calendar schedule of sacrificial burials, celebrations, and customs. Each event focused on becoming closer to the mountains, worshipping ancestral mummies, and children's development. Parades took place where mummies were carried in the streets. The Inti Raymi Festival took place to honor the Sun God, corn was harvested to give thanks for fertility, and human sacrifices were made on mountains from where the Inca founders originated. Spirits, ancestors, God’s, the living landscape and religious rituals all played a vital role in the Incan religion and everyday life because of their importance in state and cosmic origin myths.

Purpose: This paper examines the ongoing challenges college students experience during the Covid-19 pandemic. Specifically, studying SUNY Oneonta college students' situations. Methods: This study interviewed a sample of seven students individually to collect qualitative data about their personal experiences regarding college life in a pandemic. Participants were picked using three non-probability sampling strategies: availability, quota, and snowballing. Findings: Students found it difficult to adjust to all online college classes; they received a heavier workload, did not retain information, and were less successful in classes. College students had increased stress levels regarding online classes and the ongoing pandemic. Lastly, students struggled with higher levels of anxiety and depression directly influenced by the pandemic. Stress caused by Covid-19 led students to develop coping mechanisms. Implications: Online learning is not the best practice for all Oneonta students. The college should take this opportunity to improve emergency learning and adjust the structure of online learning to help struggling students, which could ease their mental health and help to create healthy coping mechanisms.

Winston Churchill became an idealized figure to the British public in his first two years as Prime Minister. The Battle of Britain and German blitzkrieg enabled Churchill to exercise his oratory skills through speeches that encouraged the suffering masses. Through an analysis of contemporary diary entries and public opinion polls, this essay reveals that British citizens connected with Churchill’s inclusive language and admired his recurring public visits to the streets of Britain. Churchill contributed to his mythmaking as he manipulated the media to prohibit criticisms of his wartime policies. He also utilized emerging technologies, mainly the radio, to speak to the masses and cement his reputation as a humble servant of the people. Despite a few detractors, most British people revered Churchill for his preservation of morale in the beginning of WWII, owing largely to the Prime Minister’s careful control over the creation of his own myth.

Colombia has been in a constant state of conflict for the majority of its history. The Colombian Conflict has contributed to over 220,000 deaths and over 5.5 million displacements, but the blame of this grave human rights issues has yet to be placed. While on paper, Colombia and the U.S. have deep-rooted ties through the economy and its alliance during the Cold War, USAID to the Colombian military has produced and reproduced a violent cycle within Colombia. In this political economy analysis of U.S. backed violence in Colombia, the relationship between the U.S. and Colombia will be thoroughly examined following the entrance of Colombia to the global market. Through review of other political economy literature, this analysis will address the structural issues of the Colombian criminal justice system and its deplorable impunity rate of human rights violations that disproportionately affect Indigenous and Afro-Colombians. In doing so, this analysis will argue for the need of more inclusive political economy lite

Looking back on my time at SUNY Oneonta, I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of the SOAR team. I learned about SOAR in my junior year from a past e-board member who convinced me to become a peer-reviewer. I have always had an interest in academic research and the process of publishing a peer-reviewed journal, so I joined without hesitation and my only regret is not having joined sooner. Throughout my experience as the coordinating editor, I have learned just how much effort and care goes into publishing a journal, and SUNY Oneonta is especially lucky to have faculty members who want to provide us with the ability to get published as undergraduates. As the coordinating editor my job is to communicate with authors and peer-reviewers, edit and format papers, and ultimately work with the faculty advisors in order to get a new issue out every year. I also spread the word about SOAR to my peers by notifying chairs and professors of relevant departments that there is an open call for peer-reviewers, authors and e-board members. Before joining SOAR, I knew very little about the copyediting and publishing process, but I was welcomed with open arms regardless. Dr. Fulkerson, the founding faculty member of SOAR, had no reservations about helping me every step of the way and helped me get to a place of confidence in this area. In April of next year, we will travel to Suffolk County Community College on Long Island to attend SURC, the annual SUNY Undergraduate Research Conference. It will be a terrific opportunity to spread the word about SOAR. Due to its open access nature, we hope to one day offer students from other SUNY schools the opportunity to get published in and peer-review for our journal.

Center of Social Science Research Student Paper Award Winner (2022), (short paper winner). Ecologist and marine/fishery biologist Simon Reddy states, "the weight of ocean plastics will exceed the combined weight of all fish in the seas by 2050" (2018). The matter of climate change and surrounding concerns are often brought up but continuously brushed off by individuals and countries alike. However, after digging deeper into this subject, it quickly becomes apparent how serious this is. This essay explores the severity of plastic pollution in the oceans, explains what the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is, how this issue is impacting both people and animals, and possible solutions, specifically the work being done by the Ocean Cleanup.

During my time as an undergraduate, I’ve had the pleasure of working with SUNY Oneonta’s own social science academic journal, SOAR. I started with SOAR as a peer reviewer during my junior year, which allowed me to understand the research process better and how to view academic research through a critical and constructive lens. I later got more involved with SOAR and became the Coordinating Editor for my senior year, which made me responsible for coordinating the publication process, helping organize meetings, recruiting submissions, and organizing the journal materials. Because of my role with SOAR, I presented at a SUNY-wide conference about the importance of undergraduate research and publication through the journal. Through this work, I became a research assistant under the faculty advisor for SOAR, Dr. Gregory Fulkerson. I continued to search for ways to grow SOAR and run social media accounts. I focused on helping the program so it wouldn’t die out or lose its progress, organizing a booth for the school’s club fair, organizing an interest meeting, and sending out information to other schools.

The need for authentic work experience is a concern for most graduates entering the field of librarianship. For academic librarians, authentic teaching experience is particularly desired, and while some courses are offered in most library and information science grad uate programs, few pair the coursework with opportunities for practical applications. At institutions with LIS programs, there can be partnerships with the university or college library. The Information Literacy Scholars Program at Syracuse University is one such program. In 2018, the newly hired information literacy librarian at Syracuse Univer sity Libraries (SUL) approached the Syracuse University School of Information Studies (iSchool) to consider a partnership aimed at providing Library and Information Science graduate students with critical teaching experience while also increasing the Libraries’ capacity to teach information literacy to undergraduate students. The Information Liter acy (IL) Scholars Program was launched in 2019, with a cohort of six students selected via a competitive process. The program has accepted a new cohort each year. It is worth noting that while the program is on track, it was adjusted during its first years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While the first three cohorts’ experiences were influenced by the pandemic and the sudden shift to virtual learning, their insights demonstrate how an experiential program can adapt and support students even in times of rapid and often uncertain change.

The causes of the War of 1812 have been debated by historians. Explanations have ranged from reasons such as the hunger for new land to securing commerce and protection for American sailors on the seas. These previous explanations however have left aspects now seen as very important to the history of the early American republic such as religion and Anglo-American republican ideology out of the picture. In this paper various written materials such as poems, newspaper articles and sermons using the methods of conceptual history are used to show the importance of these aspects to the War of 1812 and how a powerful matrix of discourse between competing Christian denominations contributed to the causes and reactions to the War of 1812 among Americans. These reactions created an atmosphere of extreme partisanship between citizens of the United States at the time and divided them along religious and party lines in regard to the war.