Honors Week – Page 2 – Virginia Military Institute

Honors Week: Cadet Looks at U.S. Debt

American investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett said, “It’s never paid to bet against America. We come through things, but it’s not always a smooth ride.” Harrison Williams ’25, a cadet at Virginia Military Institute majoring in economics and business, researched the wisdom of investing in the United States for his honors project, “Sustainable Debt Limit Estimates for the U.S. and 20 Other OECD Countries.”

The goal of Williams’ project was to estimate the debt level of the U.S and how much money the country can continue to borrow before a default occurs.

Williams opened his presentation by reminding his audience that the nation was founded in 1776 with the idea of the American dream, allowing people from all over the world to immigrate to the foundling nation, start businesses, and grow wealth to provide better lives for themselves and their families. “One way to grow your wealth in the U.S. is by investing in stocks and bonds. U.S. bonds provide a guaranteed return on investment because the U.S. has never defaulted on debt. However, this guaranteed payment on U.S. bonds may not last forever. The U.S. currently has $36 trillion in gross debt. This is more than the combined debts of China, Japan, France, Germany and the United Kingdom (UK). How much is $36 trillion? Thirty-six trillion one-dollar bills stacked on top of each other will reach the moon and back over nine times, spanning 2,200,000 miles. That’s the distance of traveling from Lexington to San Francisco and back nearly 500 times. To put it in another perspective, between 2020 and 2024, the U.S. government spent $320,000 every second,” Williams stated.

He pointed out that when a country’s interest payments on debt begin to exceed its defense budget, that marks the beginning of the end for that country, and that happened for the United States in 2024. “If you look at countries or empires like the Ottoman Empire, Great Britain, Spain, and France, the beginning of their demise started as soon as their interest payments on debt began to exceed their defense budget. So why is this important? If the U.S. defaults on its debt, the beginning of one of the most catastrophic economic disasters since the Great Depression will occur,” predicted Williams.

His research was based off a paper released by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) from September 2024, in which the debt limits for the U.S. and 26 other countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) were calculated. “OECD countries are generally considered high-income economies, European countries, Canada, Japan, the UK, and the U.S. I modeled my equations off of that paper, but the main difference between mine and theirs is that they covered a different time period. Their debt limits included variables spanning from 1984 to 2022. My data covered 1996 to 2022. The AEI paper used 26 OECD countries, I only used 21 due to data limitations. I also took the U.S. out of the sample because the U.S. is the greatest economy in the world, so its numbers have a great impact in the sample. With the U.S. taken out of the equation, the debt limits for each country decreases,” explained Williams.

After running a series of complex calculations, comparing gross debt and net debt, Williams completed his research. He shared his concern for the U.S. economy at the conclusion of his presentation. “This debt ratio hasn’t been this high since World War II, and if it’s already this high, what if the U.S. gets in World War III today? Will we be able to afford to fund it in the long run? That is troubling.”

Maj. Steven Landgraf, assistant professor in the Department of Economics and Business who served as Williams’ advisor on the project, stated that a few studies in this field have been criticized for lack of reproducibility. “The fact that Harrison used similar methods and confirmed some results of past research is valuable, but his work also shows that economists should be more careful about using U.S. data to calibrate models meant to inform non-U.S. countries.”

Williams is the son of Lang and Lucy Williams of Norfolk, where he graduated from Norfolk Collegiate School. Following graduation, he hopes to go into the field of finance and eventually become an entrepreneur.

Honors Week: A Look into VMI Recruiting Efforts

Adam Hoffman ’24 was sparked by the strategic enrollment initiatives of Virginia Military Institute, and his instinct to help led him to his honors research topic.

As an honors student, he’s required to research a topic, so when he started thinking about enrollment numbers and recruitment efforts at VMI, he knew he found something he was interested in.

“I found out answers to three questions — how cadets found out about VMI, why they decided to come and how they’re doing once they got here,” he said.

He was surprised by his findings, especially regarding how prospective cadets found out about the Institute.

“The most common way people are finding out about VMI is through their parents, which is surprising. Alumni and current cadets played a smaller role than I thought they would,” he said.

As part of VMI’s Honors Week, Hoffman presented his thesis “Virginia Military Institute Recruiting: How Cadets found their Way Here.”

He started his research last spring. He averaged about three hours a week on research, which spanned from learning how VMI recruits, sending out surveys to cadets, and talking with administration. From his research he said he’s gained a better understanding of statistics and clarity on the issue at hand. His goal now is to focus on a messaging plan moving forward to present to administration.

“For big things to change, we need to fix things between the Corps, the administration, and the alumni. I think it’s a great opportunity right now, since we’re getting a new commandant next year, having a working group of cadets involved,” he said. “It would be a good thing to change the perception of what’s going on here.”

He saw that VMI had a hard recruiting season for the Class of 2026. His research was aimed to look at the effectiveness of past resources in recruiting, specifically by studying cadets of the past four years. His thesis also touched on how cadets who were recruited prior to COVID-19 compared to post-COVID Rat Mass of 2027.

“With this and many other variables, I will seek to find the highest yield strategy for prospective cadets,” his thesis stated. “I will also look to find the cadets who are high achieving and are doing well at VMI and see how they were attracted specifically.”

Col. Sara Whipple, assistant professor of psychology, was Hoffman’s advisor for the research. The two met weekly to make sure everything was on track. When they first met, it was mostly about fleshing out the specific research questions for Hoffman’s project.

“Though Adam already had his own ideas, we worked together to meld his college recruitment interests with psychological concepts,” Whipple said.

The largest step was crafting his Institutional Review Board application, which Whipple said is required any time there’s human participants in research.

Whipple said she was both hands-on and hands-off with Hoffman’s project. She also recognized his passion for understanding effective recruiting methods. She said this experience has allowed Hoffman to connect his interest in VMI recruitment efforts with the skills he’s learned as a psychology major, specifically: ethics training, reading and critiquing empirical papers, designing study methodology, analyzing data, and ultimately writing and presenting a research paper.

“Adam’s research has implications for VMI recruiting, which was his main motivation for completing this particular project,” Whipple said. “Adam’s research examines the most common ways cadets first learned about VMI, their main motivation for attending, and their levels of well-being once at the Institute. Among other things, he finds a connection between family as a motivator and well-being. That said, although his sample is a reasonable size (300 cadets), further research using a fully representative sample is needed before we can be confident in the replicability of these findings.”

Whipple said that Hoffman was highly motivated for this topic. Despite some roadblocks concerning writer’s block and statistics, Hoffman persisted.

“Adam expresses confidence when he talks about his research methodology and results. He knows he can go from conceiving of an idea/question to getting the answer,” she said.

Honors Week: Cadet Researches Suicide Prevention

Advertisers have long known that a celebrity’s endorsement of a product can increase sales, but does that marketing strategy hold true for a health care campaign, more specifically a mental health campaign? That is what Delilah Martindale ’25, a Virginia Military Institute cadet, researched for her honors thesis, “Preventing Suicide: The Effect of Visibility on Mental Health Infrastructure.”

Martindale chose the subject of suicide prevention in order to merge her major in international studies with her minor in psychology. Martindale’s advisor, Vera Heuer, Ph.D., professor in the Department of International Studies and Political Science, whose area of expertise is social movements, encouraged her to take a look at mental health care.

“Essentially, we embraced this political sociological approach and came up with a project where she examined the degree with which the visibility of an organization in trying to raise awareness for suicide prevention actually impacts tangible outcomes. It’s truly in the spirit of the Institute honors program by merging various disciplines, and she did quite a wonderful job with that,” Heuer said.

Martindale’s research question asks, “What effect does visibility have on mental health infrastructure?” She defined mental health infrastructure (MHI) as the physical and organizational structures, facilities, and systems that collectively support the delivery of mental health care services. She hypothesized that the more visibility a campaign can create, the higher the rate of increasing MHI, and if a campaign can obtain a celebrity endorsement, it will enhance its visibility and therefore positively impact MHI.

“There is a psychological phenomenon where repeated exposure to a stimulus leads to an increased liking or preference for that stimulus. So essentially, familiarity breeds liking. The more familiar you are with something, the more likely you are to like it or have it in the forefront of your brain when you’re making decisions,” explained Martindale.

She tested her hypothesis by examining five case studies: The Trevor Project, a leading suicide prevention/crisis intervention nonprofit for young people ages 13 to 24 of the LGBTQ+ community; The Jed Foundation, an organization established by a couple following the suicide of their son; Active Minds, a program launched by the sister of a man who committed suicide; Hope for the Day, a prominent nonprofit movement in Chicago that influences proactive suicide prevention and mental health education; and Project Semicolon, an organization founded by a woman whose father took his own life, and in which Selena Gomez, a very prominent A-list celebrity is involved as executive producer.

Martindale assigned each case study a score based on their facilities, services, resources, education, and patient interaction compared to their social media presence, celebrity endorsement, news coverage, advertising and published literature.

She concluded that the first part of her hypothesis, “The more visibility a campaign can create, the higher the rate of increasing MHI,” is correct most of the time. “Clearly it was correct, four out of five times that I did the different case studies.”

The second part of the hypothesis, “If a campaign can obtain a celebrity endorsement, it will enhance its visibility and therefore positively impact MHI,” was inconclusive. “It seems to be more about what type of celebrity involvement there is, how actively engaged they were, what kind of endorsements they were doing, rather than general celebrity involvement,” she clarified.

Martindale is from San Bruno, California, where she attended Capuchino High School. She is the daughter of Mary Lefevre and Dave Martindale. In addition to minoring in psychology, she also minors in Spanish and leadership studies. After graduation, she plans to commission into the U.S. Army.

Exploring Moral Dilemmas in Unique Thesis, Linking Dostoyevsky and Star Wars

Jackson Miller ’24 was drawn to a research topic as he approached his 1st Class year with strong philosophical and religious themes. The recent Virginia Military Institute graduate, who majored in English, has always had aspiration in the medical field, along with potential military service. He presented his research “Dostoyevsky and Star Wars: Understanding How Narratives Can Help Us Deepen Our Moral Awareness” during Honors Week in the spring semester.

“The question is, do the ends justify the means? Is it okay to do bad things for the greater good?” Miller explained. This central question, often debated in historical and military contexts, resonated deeply with him.

“I watched ‘Star Wars: Andor’ after finishing ‘Crime and Punishment’ and was struck by how both works addressed the same ethical questions but arrived at different conclusions,” he said.

This juxtaposition sparked his interest in exploring the narratives further.

During his thesis process, Miller was guided by Dr. Curry Kennedy, formerly of VMI, now teaching at Texas A&M, and later by Dr. Reshef Agam-Segal, associate professor of English, rhetoric, and humanistic studies.

Both advisors played essential roles in shaping his research.

“Dr. Kennedy initially helped me frame my project, while Dr. Agam-Segal provided further guidance and resources,” Miller noted.

His research journey was challenging.

“I pitched the idea to Dr. Kennedy, unsure if it would be accepted. Thankfully, he and the department supported it,” Miller said.

Weekly meetings and extensive reading on ethics, literature, and storytelling helped refine his thesis. Miller’s exploration went beyond literary analysis to personal growth.

“Working with knowledgeable professors and delving into new subjects like rhetoric and philosophy was humbling. It forced me to confront my own conclusions about ethical dilemmas,” he reflected.

His work was academically rigorous and deeply relevant to the lives of VMI students and future military officers.

“Especially for those who will be making critical decisions, understanding whether the ends justify the means is vital,” he emphasized.

The presentation stressed the importance of grappling with moral questions with real-world implications, particularly in military settings where officers must often weigh difficult choices — a likely scenario for some graduates of VMI.

Looking ahead, Miller intends to spend a gap year working at Johns Hopkins University’s research labs before pursuing medical school.

“I’m going to be working there as a research tech, continuing to expand my knowledge and skills,” he said.

“My goal is to combine my passion for medicine with my desire to serve, potentially joining the military as a medical officer,” he shared.

Honors Week: Unveiling Key Insights on War Timing in Power Transition Theory

Devin Thomas ’24 presented insights into his honors thesis, “War Onset Power Transition Theory.” His findings included that wars are likely during phases of relative parity and both before and after power transitions.

The power transition theory appealed to Thomas due to its focus on power dynamics and systemic changes, which have significant implications for international relations at various levels. Thomas initially encountered power transition theory in a Theories on War and Peace class with Col. J. Patrick Rhamey, professor of international studies, during his 3rd Class year. Rhamey eventually became Thomas’ academic advisor for his senior thesis presentation for Virginia Military Institute’s Honors Week.

Thomas became intrigued by the question of when wars are most likely to occur within the context of power transition theory. He noticed a gap in his academic literature regarding the specific timing of war onset before or after power transitions. 

“When I was doing my initial research, fall of my 2nd Class year, this is what I was looking at,” explained Thomas. “It’s like trying to find a question within power transition theory and the question became no one’s really tackled this question of when is war most likely under it.”

Thomas recognized the practical implications of understanding power transitions and war onset and saw the research topic as important for policymakers and those involved in foreign relations.

This relevance fueled Thomas’ interest in exploring the subject deeper. Drawing from his academic background, he integrated insights from various theories, including realism, liberalism, and constructivism, to develop a comprehensive framework.

Collaborating with Rhamey, Thomas identified two causal mechanisms for his research: perception and misperception in international politics, inspired by Robert Jervis’s work, and the concept of time horizons, drawn from David Edelstein’s research. 

During the following semesters, Thomas engaged in extensive literature review, theoretical development, and methodological training, culminating in both quantitative analysis and qualitative case study work.

Thomas elected rigorous coursework like an International Studies Research Design class, which equipped him with the necessary skills for research design and execution leading up to his culminating presentation during his last year at VMI.

He collected various datasets pertinent to his research question, encompassing gross domestic product, state capacity, militarized interstate disputes, and United Nations General Assembly
voting similarity. Employing a blend of quantitative analysis techniques and qualitative research methods, Thomas analyzed the data, using techniques such as interactive logic regression to scrutinize his hypothesis quantitatively.

“Beyond demonstrating research excellence in the scientific study of international politics, Cadet Thomas’ research also has clear policy implications that allow government to anticipate the timing of conflicts globally,” said Rhamey. “I directed Cadet Thomas to relevant research on his topic to help him develop his project into one that was both targeted to a specific research question and accomplishable within the limited time frame of Institute Honors.”

“The international studies department does a great job of wrapping it all in and allowing you the most time possible to work on your thesis,” said Thomas. “He was having me do a lot of research because the foundation of power transition theory, the two independent variables, are the reaching parity and the dissatisfaction of the rising challenger. But that doesn’t really get to the question of the timing and the why for the timing.” 

Thomas said his research has helped him understand how the political world operates, mainly through the lens of power transition theory, which examines wars with systemic consequences. 

“I think I’ve gained a much greater understanding for, in a pragmatic sense especially, how the political world works,” Thomas said. 

Thomas said this experience has not only deepened his academic insights but also influenced his career trajectory, steering him to pursue military intelligence and strategic analysis roles after graduation, where he can apply his knowledge to current international issues.

Honors Week: Barracks Security At VMI

Serving as cadet operations sergeant for Band Company her 2nd Class year, Annie Townsend ’24 was able to set up a cadet guard team, which would perform the security for barracks at Virginia Military Institute. The team would oversee locking gates, coordination during emergency situations, enforcing uniform or disciplinary standards within the Corps, and posting members of the guard team for the security of the Corps of Cadets.

As her experience grew in that capacity, it piqued her interest in the security of barracks. Specifically, the interaction of infrastructure with the implementation of security.

“In conjunction with my interest in architecture — and particularly historic architecture — I developed my research to include aspects of security engineering, structural engineering, architecture, and the historical development of security at VMI,” she said.

Townsend, a civil and environmental engineering major, started her honors thesis midway through her 2nd Class year.

“I started by brainstorming, speaking with professors and finding faculty advisors, and writing a prospectus (research proposal),” she said.

Col. Chuck Newhouse, head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, served as Townsend’s advisor. He said when she approached him with the idea of combining her interests in engineering with the role of VMI’s guard team to take a critical look at the security at VMI, he was a little hesitant.

“Initially, I was reluctant to recommend that she pursue this because it is a controversial topic,” he said. “It is controversial because not everyone agrees on the best ways to provide security. Also, VMI doesn’t fall into one clearly defined category. It is, on the one hand a public college, and on the other hand an institution with a strong military presence. Should security follow requirements provided for colleges, or for military bases? It is not an easy question.”

She presented her thesis “A Security Analysis of the Virginia Military Institute’s Barracks through the Lens of Infrastructure” during VMI’s Honors Week.

Initially, her research had gone through several phases. She said she hoped to study the blast resistance of barracks based on the structural design, in the context of security and antiterrorism security.

“After realizing that I’d like to pursue architecture after graduation, I wanted to mold my topic to account for the architectural aspects of barracks as well,” she said. “I ultimately ended up blending architecture and structural/security engineering together to develop my final topic, a security analysis of barracks through the lens of infrastructure.”

Her research aimed to identify whether modern-day security that governs cadet life in barracks is sufficient.

The focus of the research was on four topics:

Military influences on VMI’s security
9/11 and its impacts on institutions of higher learning
How historical developments connect to security upgrades
How the research relates to barracks infrastructure, architecture, and structural engineering

“VMI’s barracks is the center of cadet life — it’s where we train, sleep, assemble for formations and parade, and get to know the brother rats that will be there for us throughout the rest of our lives,” Townsend said. “It’s where our cadetships begin on Matriculation Day, the center of our cadet organizations and activities throughout our four years, and where our cadetships end on graduation day.

“Ultimately, it houses VMI’s most valuable asset — the Corps of Cadets,” Townsend continued. “My research analyzes how the structure of barracks itself, and supporting human elements, reinforce and affect the security of the Corps of Cadets.”

A survey was conducted as part of Townsend’s research. The goal of the survey was to identify the Corps’ opinion on existing security infrastructure and the relevance of the guard team in security of barracks. The survey was voluntarily completed by 177 cadets, or 10.4% of the Corps, her research said.

The research showed that VMI’s approach to security is currently acceptable, but there’s significant room for improvement. Townsend says about 76% of the Corps felt entirely safe living in barracks, while about 14% said they feel neither safe nor unsafe living in barracks. But, nearly 10% of the Corp — 35% of that section were female cadets — did not feel entirely safe.

There are plans in place to ensure more security measures are met. According to the VMI Post Facilities Master Plan, roads, foot paths, parking areas, lighting, emergency lights and phones, along with signage are to be considered to enhance security. New security technologies are to be adopted with the attention to historical facilities, the plan said.

“As time progresses, change will remain the only constant in VMI’s approach to security — just as it has been in the past,” Townsend said in her thesis. “It is important to approach the security of VMI in the broader context; considering that it is neither a traditional college campus or a military installation, the approach to security is, and will always be, complex.”

Townsend said her research allowed her to develop insight into VMI’s unique history of security development, along with the culture of the Corps of Cadets that facilitates the security of barracks.

Her hope after graduation in May is to pursue a master’s degree in architecture, and study historic architecture and adaptive reuse. She’s also interested in the impact of architecture on the security of facilities and structures.

Microfinance as Tool to Reduce Global Poverty: VMI Cadet Presents During Honors Week

How can people living in extreme poverty in developing nations around the world lift themselves and their families out of hardship and provide a new life for generations to come? Brandon Marks ’23, an international studies major at Virginia Military Institute, conducted a two-year-long research project on microfinance, and presented his findings in his senior thesis titled, “The Impact of Domestic Context on Microfinance Provision and Effectiveness” during Honors Week, held March 20-28.

Marks opened by telling two stories. This first about a woman named Jacqueline from a poor province in Rwanda. She had lost her siblings from disease and war, but she had a dream of starting a sewing business to take her family out of poverty. She took out a $100 microfinance loan, co-signed by eight other women, and bought a sewing machine. Six microfinance loans later, her business began to expand and became profitable. Once unable to provide schooling for her children, Jacqueline successfully lifted her family out of poverty, sent her daughter to college, and hired tutors for her three sons. Marks quoted Jacqueline as saying, “The loan changed my life.”

The second story was about a woman named Madhuka from Sri Lanka, who had a similar dream as Jacqueline’s. She wanted to start a mat making company to lift her family out of poverty. Unbeknownst to her husband, she took out a $425 microfinance loan and started the company. However, when the rains came down and flooded the streets that she needed to sell those mats, she could not make the $30 monthly payment. Her husband panicked when he found out, and she fell into despair. In the dark of night, she went outside and poured kerosene over herself and lit herself on fire. Hearing her screams, her husband rescued her and took her to the hospital. Even at the hospital, the microfinance loan officers came to her bedside and demanded payment for the loan.

The two very different stories led Marks to his research question: How do domestic factors influence microfinance provision and effectiveness?

He stated that worldwide poverty effects nearly 698 million people, or 9% of the global population, who live in extreme poverty. “Roughly 2 billion adults across the world are unbanked, meaning they cannot apply for a loan. Microfinance is a tool that provides a way for people to take themselves out of extreme poverty, and build a new life for themselves and their families,” he stated.

Microfinance provides capital in the form of small loans with high interest rates, joint liability, and no collateral, with the goal of creating entrepreneurship, productivity, and social capital in borrowers. Proponents of microfinance say it reduces poverty, uses capital for entrepreneurial pursuits, and increases economic growth, as seen in the success story of Jacqueline. Opponents of the practice though say it is a debt trap, demands high interest rates, and tends to saturate the market with similar businesses. Marks discovered that 50% of households eligible for a loan choose not to get one because they perceive it as a risky endeavor, are unwilling or fear of going into debt, and see the cost of the loan as too high.

Theorizing that high trust and regulation would lower the perception of risk for the borrower, Marks’ hypothesis for his research project was, “All else equal, countries with a higher societal perception of regulatory quality should experience greater levels of microfinance provision.” After much research and statistical analysis though, he found that his hypothesis is suggested to be wrong. He found that the opposite was true, that as levels of trust and government regulations decrease, microfinance provision increases. Highly regulated and trustworthy institutions are associated with efficient microfinance operations that can offer lower interest rates to borrowers. Ironically, in areas where microfinance is most needed, institutions are the least efficient and loans are the most expensive, putting borrowers at risk. On effectiveness, Marks notes that market saturation of similar businesses has a strong impact on microfinance. Countries with low regulation continue to provide business loans even after markets reach capacity, leading to hyper-competition, decreased profits, and business failure. High-regulation countries provide fewer business loans and more household loans to avoid market saturation. To effectively reduce poverty, Marks argues government and microfinance institutions should regulate lending to prevent market disruption and indebtedness among borrowers.

Maj. Megan Roosevelt, assistant professor of international studies and Marks’ advisor on the project said, “Brandon’s research is a great example of how the social scientific research method should work – with all its ups and downs. Trying to square a classroom discussion on microfinance with his travels in developing countries led him to an interesting and under-explored research question on an issue with major significance to policymakers, donors, and people living in poverty around the globe. Even when, after a year or more of gathering literature and quantitative data, his results disconfirmed his hypothesis, he used those unexpected findings to highlight a fascinating and maybe counterintuitive reason why microfinance has such mixed results for the poor. The whole research process has really been a testament to his creativity, hard work, and intellectual curiosity.”

Marks is from Staten Island, New York, where he attended Staten Island Technical High School. He is the son of Len Marks and Cary Berwald. He is president of the Honor Court and operations officer of the Cadet Superintendent’s Advisory Board. After graduation, he will enter the field of real estate development, creating hotels.

Dyslexic Cadet Focuses Research on ADHD and Dyslexia for Honors Week Presentation

“Good afternoon. I am a 1st Class cadet here at VMI, and I have dyslexia.” That is how Claire Curtis ’23, a biology major at Virginia Military Institute, began her senior thesis titled, “Learning Differences at VMI” during Honors Week, held March 20-28.

To a captivated audience, Curtis shared that the U.S. Department of Education defines a learning difference as being “A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations.”

Curtis then focused her discussion on two fairly common learning differences: ADHD, a neuropsychological disorder characterized by hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsiveness; and dyslexia, a neuropsychological disorder personal to Curtis, and characterized by issues in reading, writing, and understanding written language, and affects 20% of the population. She postulated that because the two are the most prevalent learning disorders, there may be a number of students with one or both at VMI.

Curtis shared that her parents believed her capable of reading at the age of four, but she had only memorized the story books that her parents had read to her. They became aware of a problem when she was off by a page, but told the story verbatim. She was officially diagnosed with dyslexia when she was in 3rd grade. However, she is considered to be a twice-exceptional learner, that is a student who has both a high cognitive ability and who has a learning disorder, which is why she is an honors student at an exceptionally challenging senior military college.

Curtis cited federal and state laws currently in place that prohibit discrimination, and allow accommodations for students with learning differences. She examined several colleges and universities in Virginia, such as George Mason University, James Madison University, Randolph-Macon College, University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Virginia Commonwealth University, who all offer between three to six different accommodations. But according to Curtis, using accommodations for learning differences disqualifies one from enlisting or commissioning, as well as attending a military college.

“VMI’s accommodations include assistive technology, priority registration, extra time on tests, a separate testing location, and academic assistance. I compared those accommodations to what is offered at the Citadel, a college very similar to VMI. Their accommodations include learning assistance, a test-taking center, assistive technology, peer note-takers as well as note-taking alternatives, and priority registration. Like VMI though, they cannot accommodate those who are commissioning,” she explained.

Curtis spent much of the year researching, reviewing, and interpreting brain scans, and seeking best practices at places of higher education with regard to learning differences. She sought to educate and advocate, and identified ways to further support VMI cadets with learning differences, including additional funding for programs and support staff.

Maj. Molly Kent, assistant professor in the Department of Biology and Curtis’ advisor stated, “Claire approaches material and data differently than many in the sciences, but her unique perspective and voice have been educational for me. I have learned so much from Claire’s project and hard work over the past several semesters. I can’t wait to see what she does next.”

Lt. Col. Sara Whipple, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology said, “I’m impressed with the breadth of information Claire has covered, from the neuroscience of dyslexia and ADHD, to federal and state policies, down to an analysis of services and accommodations that a variety of colleges offer. Advising her on this project allowed me to recognize ways I could improve inclusivity and accessibility in my own classrooms.”

Curtis is from Louisville, Kentucky, where she attended high school at Presentation Academy. She is the daughter of Diane and Brian Curtis. Her minors are history and chemistry. She is part of the Institute Scholar program, an S7 lieutenant, works as a cadet assistant athletic trainer, serves as an EMS member, is a member of the Cadet Superintendent’s Advisory Board, and plays volleyball. After graduation, she hopes to commission into the military and attend medical school.

Honors Week: One Cadet’s Connection to the Greek Resistance

Cadet Chris Cocoris ’23 remembers growing up listening to stories about his great-uncle George Cocoris. They were passed down to his father since his great-uncle had passed before Cocoris was born. George joined the Greek resistance to oppose the Axis occupation in 1941 Greece, Cocoris said.

For Cocoris’ senior thesis “Suppressing the Red Tide: Greek-American-British Counterinsurgency Efforts Against Greek Communist Insurgents During the Third Phase of the Greek Civil War, 1945-1949, he decided to dive into his Greek heritage.

“I selected the topic to demonstrate how the Greek government, with American and British assistance, managed to defeat one of the earliest communist insurgencies,” the 1st Class Virginia Military Institute cadet said. “In addition, I wanted to work on a topic for which I could use my fluency of the Greek language, which in this instance proved to be instrumental for the completion of my project.”

The project took nearly two years, and according to his advisor Col. David Gray, it’s more of a graduate-level thesis than an undergraduate. Gray described Cocoris as a go-getter who’s self-motivated. He was impressed with his curiosity, which led Cocoris to visit multiple archives — including some in Greece, the National Archives, the Truman Library, and the George C. Marshall Library on post — to attain research for his thesis.

“He’s got some good insights and as his young mind is developing both as a historian but perhaps more important in the near term as a future army officer, soon to be this spring, and an infantry man, he will for sure engage in some of these types of operations if he stays in long enough,” Gray said. “So this gives him a great intellectual foundation and hones his own judgment in thinking about these important issues.”

Cocoris, a history major, will commission into the United States Army as an active-duty Infantry 2nd Lieutenant upon graduation.

The biggest piece of research he collected was his great-uncle’s journal, something he wasn’t aware his family even possessed.

“The resistance group he joined was ELAS, which during WWII, had kept its communist character hidden,” Cocoris said. “I was lucky to be given his journal ‘Why we Became Guerrillas of ELAS’ by my father, which unveiled the fact that upon the liberation of Greece, George Cocoris’ partisan group opposed the rule of the Greek government, which is the focus of my study.”

His thesis was presented March 22 for VMI’s Honor Week. The Greek Civil War is one of the few successful counterinsurgencies in an era of defeats, he said. His great-uncle’s journal proved to give great insight into a firsthand account. Captured and imprisoned by the Greek National Army in 1946, George Cocoris was eventually released in 1947.

“Military historians tend to focus on leading personalities in warfare, such as general officers and political leaders. While primarily focusing on WWII rather than the Greek Civil War, George Cocoris’ journal allowed me to observe the average insurgent’s opinions and way of life during the civil strife in Greece,” Cocoris said. “His journal reflects his reactions to the Greek government’s counterinsurgency efforts and the insurgent rhetoric’s shift from national liberation towards communism.”

His thesis required lots of work and dedication — it was a three semester process to complete a 50-page report that went through a myriad of edits and refinements.

“I truly immersed myself in the study of the Greek Civil War, researching archival sources from several countries, and exploring my family’s past during the civil strife in Greece,” he said.

Gray gave Cocoris a series of 10 books to start out with the second semester of his 2nd Class year, in order to provide him with some background reading and perspective and context on the period of study.

“That gave him some clues as to where to start,” Gray said.

Research carried on over through the summer into the 1st Class year, where Cocoris began producing a thesis. After their first semester they must produce a draft of their thesis and give an oral defense, Gray said. His final semester was spent refining his research and reviewing edits from Gray after each draft of his thesis.

Tag: Honors Week