Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Using Design To Advocate For Transit Justice, Aneesha Solomon, Tanvi Muruges, Valerie Bravo

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

As a group of three design students from USF, we collaborated with SOMCAN to design a series of posters and stickers in support of their transit justice campaign. SOMCAN is a non-profit organization that provides services to help community members with common struggles such as evictions, searches for affordable housing, employment, childcare, discrimination, and most recently transit justice. The transit justice campaign is meant to bring awareness to the high cost of MUNI fares and the impact it has on communities who depend on it the most. We created a series 7 posters that each represented a variety of SF …

The Borders Between Us: Analyzing The United States’ Border Policies & Repercussions, Louise De Oliveira

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This poster addresses the United States’ current southern border situation. It begins by analyzing the historical precedent for discrimination against immigrants to provide a background of understanding for the current situation. It then explains how this aided in President Trump’s election and his resolution to curb illegal immigration by reinforcing the southern border. It also analyzes the Trump Administration's zero-tolerance policy that led to family separation and the personal and political effects of the policy. Furthermore, the poster analyzes the executive order that attempted to end family separations. Finally, the poster examines the current state of border conditions and immigration …

Rising Feminism In South Korea: A Timely Counter To Sexism, Neha Cariappa

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

My aim in this research is to create awareness about protecting women’s rights as well as supporting the feminist movement in South Korea. Using archival sources, as well as survey results from South Korean women, I assess the impact that the #MeToo movement, examine the reaction of South Korean men to the rising feminism movement and the impact of social media on the culture of protest in South Korea. In short, this research investigates discrimination against women in South Korea, how it has affected its society today, and thus analyzes a few positive solutions to this perennial and critical issue.

Communicative Challenges Of Reintegrating Veterans, Arnaldo Gallegos

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Research shows that communication in the transition from active duty to military veteran provides several challenges. Communication on active duty is reported as clear and explicit in its hierarchic relations. Communication with civilians can at first be cryptic and only implicitly hierarchic. On active duty, a service member relies on the chain of command for medical needs. Afterwards, veterans must take initiative to ensure healthcare needs are met. Veterans communicating about employment must put military experience into terms that civilian employers understand or risk settling for less prestigious and lower paying jobs in the civilian workforce.

Mentality: Promoting Social Change Through Design, Rommel Ballesteros

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

In “Mentality: Promoting Social Change Through Design,” I will discuss design’s potential to spark discussion and inspire social change. These themes will be explored through the examination of Mentality, a concept for a men’s self-care kit, which aims to normalize and promote the awareness of mental health while also bringing to light certain gender disparities in attitudes towards such topics. Through this analysis, I hope to demonstrate the importance of curated aesthetics in everyday life as a powerful tool for social change, as well as to highlight the designer’s responsibility to be aware of the implications and influence of their …

“Paying” The Way For A Better Bart Future: A Call For Better Enforcement Of Fare Evasion Policies And Strategic Planning At Bart, Ethan S. Tan

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system has undoubtedly shaped the way the San Francisco Bay Area operates today. BART has molded itself to becoming a popular form of transportation for citizens of the area. However, numerous problems have arisen in recent years in regard to the overall “healthiness” of the BART system with its ex-aging fleet of trains, undertrained staff, lack of BART Police presence, rampant illegal drug use, etc. which has made BART unpopular with riders. The root cause of these problems through, is the lost revenue through “stolen” rides. At any one of BART’s 48 stations in …

What's Left Of Gender?: The Metaphysics Of Woman, Man, And Non-Binary Identities, Nina Kamangar

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

There is a gender revolution underway. Progressive movements urge acceptance of transgender and non-binary gender identities apart from the male or female designations assigned at birth. Surrounding this, there has been confusion about what gender is and what it means to identify with one. Some accuse new perspectives on gender to be incoherent. Others support this movement, but acknowledge gender as an inherently restrictive concept to eventually be abolished. Is it true that genders are becoming empty categories, or can something be salvaged? I offer a pro-revolutionary theory of gender that is inclusive of these new identities while remaining intelligible.

Modernizing The Hermit Kingdom: Bridging The Economic And Cultural Gap Through Soft Power Diplomacy, Jane Son

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Modernizing the “Hermit Kingdom”:

Bridging the Cultural and Economic Gap through Soft Power Diplomacy

Following the Korean War, the Republic of Korea embraced modernization and rose as an economic power while its Northern counterpart employed isolationist policies and acquired the name “Hermit Kingdom.” In recent years, however, the “Hermit Kingdom” is exhibiting potential for change in under the Kim Jong-Un regime. In the wake of continued economic strife, shifting East Asian political dynamics, and insecure power consolidation, Kim appeared in the international scene with a different attitude: eagerness for dialogue. Such change in Pyongyang’s political stance engenders renewed hope for …

Bloom, Marisol Reyes

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Bloom is an herbal apothecary that uses natural remedies to help boost one’s mood, while simultaneously starting a conversation about mental health. Branding for this hypothetical company was inspired by both traditional herbal apothecary designs as well as modern prescription medication bottles. The figure of a relaxed hand interwoven with delicate flowers adds a humanistic touch to the brand’s identity.

Simply Mo., Marjolijn Jaliene Oskam

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Small portfolio presentation of design work by Marjolijn Oskam, branded under simply mo. The poster includes school work as well as professional work.

Disillusioning The Illusion Of Choice: A Rogerian Approach On Electoral College Reform, Mei Lin

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

The Electoral College is used by the United States of America to elect the president every four years. It has been amended and updated several times; however, it remains an extremely convoluted and outdated system. Four presidencies were the product of incongruent elections –– the candidate won the electoral college but lost the popular vote –– and each of these presidencies resulted in immense consequences. Reforming the current electoral college will be difficult, but it is extremely vital and necessary. The American election system must be restructured so that it may fairly and adequately represent the voices of its citizens.

Timeless Leather Studio, Pengxin Guo

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Timeless Leather Studio is an envisaged non-profit institution, specifically for retirees to learn leather crafting skills. We invite retired timeless people to work with the timeless material—leather. The mission is to encourage retirees to learn how to create handmade leather products in our studio and connect retirees in the community. Timeless Leather Studio provides the platform for people to learn, to share and to enjoy. We offer a handmade leather pouch, along with some basic tools for beginners.

Interpreting San Francisco Identities, Grace Hanford, Grace Hale

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This presentation provides an overview of the exhibition, Interpreting San Francisco Identities, organized by art history students in ART 200 Museum Studies. This exhibition features rare books, photographs, prints, and other material from the collection of the Donahue Rare Book room. It explores how guidebooks, travelogues, world’s fairs, and various print material have shaped and reflected San Francisco’s various identities over the past 150 years. The exhibition is on display in the Donahue Rare Book room beginning Monday, April 30th.

Shake My Hand, Karenna R. Versalovic, Whitney Bagley, Linwan Lewis, Sarah Hoffman, Vernae Gallaread, John Hammond, William Bernick, Clifford Phillips

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

The purpose of this project is to explore the inevitable intertwining of the worlds of dance and disability. It investigates what can happen when a group of people of all abilities use movement as a source of connection. This project was based on a nine minute dance piece created over a seven month period with rehearsals once a week for three hours sessions. The final piece consisted of seven dancers, five of whom had intellectual and developmental disabilities. The performance utilized improvisation, discussions, choreography, and contact work as tools for the creative process. The intent of the piece was to …

Korean-Ness: Creating And Embracing New Identities Through Language And Culture, Damon Dohe, Daniel Shin

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Technological advances in communications and transportation have unlocked new pathways for mobilizing transnational flows of people, information, and culture. The cyber-networked landscape in which we now live has enabled a pluralistic existence, no longer restricted to singular definitions of citizenship, identity, and cultural membership. In the era of the internet and globalization, the world is often said to be “shrinking.” However, instead of a smaller or simpler world, our project illustrates far more layered and complex relationships and positionalities. This multi-sited research project focuses on the ways in which Korean immigrants and Korean Americans use language to establish cultural networks, …

“They’Re Badass. You Defy The Odds”: First Generation Students With Immigrant Parents Communicate About College Experiences, Madison J. Amido

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Using qualitative research methods with a phenomenological approach, this study aimed to learn how first generation college students with immigrant parents communicate about their college experiences. The duality of researching first generation college students with immigrant parents, rather than solely researching students who identify as first generation, lends itself to the revelation of new, unheard, and often overlooked experiences. Data was collected through six in-depth, one-on-one interviews with participants, each lasting between thirty minutes to an hour. Five of the six participants were current college students, and one participant was a recent graduate. Each participant stated their parents’ place of …

Redefining Medicine: The Epistemology, Political Theory, And Phenomenology Of Health And Disease, Jacqline J. Murillo

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This thesis argues that health needs to be redefined in a more comprehensive fashion, namely as a physiological/biological state, with social, environmental, and individual determinants always related to one’s personal needs to achieve one’s life plan. The benefits of this new definition include more emphasis on the distribution of health as a social good.

Additionally, redefining health puts the value of the individual’s life rather than the strict monetary value of their needed treatment as a focal point. It also draws more attention to medicine as a practice of care, rather than viewing it simply as a technology or science, …

A Look At Boys Love, Douglas Mejia

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

In an attempt to shed some light on the overlooked genre of graphic novels and, more specifically that of the homoerotic Japanese comic books of the Yaoi and Shounen Ai genre, this presentation examines multiple representations of the young male body ( i.e., the concept of Bishounen or "beautiful boy") in contemporary Japanese popular culture. My presentation demonstrates that Shounen Ai and Yaoi comic books, by women and for women, rely on the well-established concept of the Bishounen body to transcend traditional gender roles that restrict women from exploring their sexualities or experiences outside the domestic sphere. While retracing …

Toxic Treasure Island: Finding Radium Instead Of Gold, Nicole Rejer

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This presentation explores the Navy’s controversial use of radioactive materials in former decades on Treasure Island. It highlights the incomplete cleanup of contaminated soil and radioactive materials, and how current radiation measures are damaging to present-day residents’ health. Finally, it explains the city’s current plans for redeveloping the island, and how many public officials are ignoring the entire radiation problem, as long as other environmental issues Treasure Island residents face on a daily basis.

Reparations For Slavery In The United States, Alicia G. Kinsellagh

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

After the Civil War, freed slaves were promised “40 acres and a mule” to start new lives. This plan was opposed and following proposals for reparations have been opposed since. The majority of U.S. citizens believe that reparations are unnecessary because no living person is responsible for slavery, arguing that there is no “legacy of slavery.” However, others believe that African Americans today are still impacted by the vestiges of slavery. Thus, all U.S. citizens share responsibility for slavery’s legacy. This project explores the arguments for and against giving reparations to African Americans.

Keywords: reparations, “legacy of slavery,” collective responsibility

National Human Rights Museums: An Engine For Social Or Economic Growth? A Comparative Analyses Of Conscience Museums Of Canada, Usa And Russia., Shabnam Shermatova

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Human rights have become highly discussed topic and one of the dominant themes in the museum field. The main reason that the idea of social inclusion is popular is that society constructs a sense of reliability and creativity, and hence becomes an important power element in politics. Therefore, social issues can be discussed, constructed and politicized in museums. More specifically, this research will compare and analyze three case studies – Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg, Canada, Civil and Human Rights Center, Atlanta, USA and GULAG, Perm - 36, Kuchino, Russia). While these three museums are treated as important …

Deconstructing The Digital Divide: Critical Media Literacy Implementation In The Classroom, Evelyn C. Obamos

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

In this presentation I explore the complexity of the digital divide and propose to use the framework of critical praxis put forth by Paolo Freire in the Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970). Using Freire we are able to build on existing research on the digital divide, contextualize the multi-dimensional issue of the divide, and respond to the social, cultural, and political issues within and beyond the classroom environment.

The Visit, Jiordan Castle

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

I will be reading a creative essay constructed for Professor Ryan Van Meter's spring 2012 workshop in nonfiction. English Department Chair Dean Rader assisted me in getting my paper chosen for presentation (with a Q&A session) at the upcoming Sigma Tau Delta International Convention this month. The essay is about visiting my father in prison as a teenager and relates to race relations and our justice system in a personal, yet unsentimental way.

The Readability Of Historical And Modern Writing, Sophia Chong

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This research explores the difference in readability of historical and modern writing. The goal of this project is to determine if modern academic rhetoric is easier to comprehend than a historical primary source about the same topic. This has been done using a variety of quantitative methods widely used to analyze the accessibility of writings to compare sections of “The Confederate Reader” by Richard B. Harwell. Upon examination, it can be seen that despite the widely perceived convenience in comprehending modern writing that in fact, a primary Civil War period source is more readable than its current day academic counterpart.

Exploring The Problem We All Live With: The Motivation And Ambition Behind Norman Rockwell’S Civil Rights Depictions, Kelly Richman

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Using Norman Rockwell’s The Problem We All Live With (1964) a Civil Rights-era depiction of the integration of black and white students in 1960, I argue that Rockwell chose to portray Civil Rights themes in order to make an altruistic plea for equality. To demonstrate my claim, I have researched academic sources, journal articles that explore Rockwell’s views and painterly approach to race, and documents of important political events of the Civil Rights Movement. Through this research, I use textual evidence to conclude that Norman Rockwell was genuinely committed to promoting Civil Rights in his work.

The "Light Of The Intellect": Botticelli's Drawings For Dante's Divine Comedy, Kelsey Fox

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Dante’s Divine Comedy had a substantial history of illustration before Sandro Botticelli (1444/5-1510) was commissioned by Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici to produce 102 drawings to accompany the text. Botticelli is often described as a studious, humanist artist, incorporating his understanding of classical texts and observational knowledge into his works. This research paper will explore the innovative nature of Botticelli’s series of drawings, especially as it relates to his graphic style, varying modes of composition, and conceptual priorities. It will also analyze the conceptual differences between the Inferno and Paradiso.

Museum Funding, Natalie Mccann

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

This essay analyzes the various strategies that museums have employed over the years in order to obtain the money necessary for acquisitions, conservation, and operating costs. It touches upon taxation, endowments, investment, debt, public and private donations, corporate sponsorship, earned profit, deaccessioning, and innovative financial solutions that can only be described as ‘miscellaneous.’ The essay makes a distinction between three different types of museums: nonprofits, for-profits, and “hybrids.” It delineates numerous fundraising and cost-saving methods, and highlights the sheer diversity of funding sources available to museums. These findings are particularly relevant in light of the current financial crisis.