Honors Conference Call for Papers
Kentucky Honors Roundtable (KHR)

This year's KHR conference will be held at Western Kentucky University, March 2-3. If you have a current project, work it up for an individual presentation or coordinate projects for a panel discussion. Proposals for KHR must be in the Etscorn Honors Center TBA. Remember that research presentations range from data-rich projects to those reporting on Honors-related activities such as our Overseers International Seminar trips. Too often students pass by the Honors conferences because it is hard to recognize your own work as conference material. Another misconception about conferences is that the papers are heavy and the presentations large. Not so. Presentations are given in small venues with small groups of interested and friendly listeners. Check the Etscorn Honors Center literature rack for application forms (coming soon) and return to the Etscorn Center or Luke.  

Christopher Cunningham is shown above at a peacewall in Northern Ireland. To read about his experiences as a Rotary Ambassdorial Scholar, read below.

Voices From Abroad:
by Christopher Cunningham, Rotary Ambassador

In the segregated neighborhoods of West Belfast, a stranger is struck by the conspicuous remnants of conflict. Still prevalent from the “Troubles”, which dominated daily life in Northern Ireland for thirty years, are the British Union Jacks and Irish Tri-color flags, paramilitary graffiti adorning sidewalks, houses and ‘peacewalls’, and colorful murals depicting the divergent political viewpoints. Even in affluent South Belfast, I am told that even though the violence largely subsided in the early 1990s, the coffee shops and restaurants have all only opened back up in the past few years. Some changes occur slower than others. In neutral territory such as the city center, the veiled language of Northern Ireland kicks into gear: strangers never ask what side the other is from, but rather "what school did you go to?” In many pubs signs in the window warn “No Hats or Jerseys of Any Kind” so as not to indicate which team patrons cheer and thus confess they are Catholic or Protestant. Language, dialect, clothing, hair, colors, and name: “It's all political here,” one bartender frequently tells me.

As a Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholar studying comparative ethnic conflict at Queen’s University in Belfast, these are the considerations I’ve had to begin making. Every day, I am conscious about such things as where and with whom I practice my developing Irish language skills, how I discuss and refer to the history of this place, and why do I think of this place as Irish, British, or whatever it might be. Perhaps most importantly, I encounter the daily frustrations of a people who want no more of this conflict.

From the moment I arrived on a rainy day in September, I’ve seen how the conflict in some way permeates every aspect of this community. Only minutes after being picked up from the airport, I was soon kicking about the state of the political situation with my scholarship counselor for the year, a charming ‘chap’ named Eric Rainey. “You'll find, Christopher, that here in the North of Ireland most people get on with their days and their lives, and only wish to leave the Troubles behind them,” he told me. “But I don't know that they have much confidence left in the politicians, who fight, who bicker. And that's the way it's always been.” As the dominant Catholic and Protestant political parties, Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party, recently appear to have hit another stalemate in their attempt to share devolved power, Eric’s warning appears particularly salient today.

But with or without the politicians, there are signs that Belfast and the North are changing, and I am only too happy that my scholarship is allowing me to work with people bringing about some of those changes. This includes Eric. As director of the Northern Ireland division of the Edinburgh Award, a high-profile charity in the United Kingdom which encourages youth to pursue a challenging program of personal development, he has for years worked with young people who, despite their surroundings, are committed to bettering themselves and those around them. Another person is Jim Lynn, a local YMCA director. “I remember when the city center used to be empty,” Jim says as we had lunch one day outside bustling City Hall. “Only a few years ago, you were searched automatically if you came down to the city center. We used to have to get out of our car and leave it behind in the streets every time there was a bomb scare.” Jim is director of the Ballymena chapter of the Friends Forever program, which selects youths from both sides of the conflict and brings them to America to learn about conflict resolution – together. He is one of many figures, who impact the ongoing peace process at the grassroots level, and he has the battle scars to prove it; more than once, his life has been threatened by paramilitaries. Still, Jim sees the change. “It's all different here now, than it used to be” he tells me, while motioning to the downtown pedestrian traffic, street vendors, coffee shops and retail stores that have all recently arrived as part of a new vision for Belfast.

My Rotary scholarship has also allowed me to meet some of the “legends” of the peace initiative in Northern Ireland. At a Rotary district conference in Londonderry/Derry (known to Protestants as the first name, and to Catholics as the second), Baroness May Blood inspired the assembly with story after story unfolding her journey from a Belfast linen mill to the British House of Lords, where she was granted lifelong peerage in 1998. For her thirty-year quest fought on behalf of women and families caught in the crossfire of conflict, she earned from the assembly a thunderous standing ovation. Nobel Laureate, politician and Rotarian John Hume, who spirited the peace process through its darkest days and who one Rotarian described to me as “the closest thing we have to a saint here in Ireland,” also attended the conference. He spoke of his vision for Northern Ireland’s future as one of peace, but perhaps those who were there will best remember joining Hume in a stirring rendition of the Irish hymn “Danny Boy,” the brave melody of troubled Ireland’s sons and daughters departing for America.

These people, and all of their portrayals of Northern Ireland backed by experiences accumulated from a life’s work, have offered a tale of hope. But is the idea of lasting peace in Northern Ireland a fool's paradise? I live in a divided society and am somehow reminded of that every day. But the streets are now safe, British tanks and random searches are no longer even occasional occurrences, and the people on both sides are warm, inviting, receptive, and the best storytellers I have ever met. It is certain that Northern Ireland is a complex place and the Northern Irish a complex people. But the mood that now pervades here is overwhelmingly one of optimism.

‘Normalization,’ as it is called, continues in Northern Ireland. I suspect that is because of people like John Hume, May Blood, Jim Lynn, Eric Rainey, and all those who decided long ago that past will no longer become prologue.

To learn more about Chris and his experiences in Ireland check out his blog at cunningspamodia.blogspot.com

REMINDER
Keep Our Classrooms Clean!

Please also note that in addition to food and drink being prohibited in the Honors House computer lab, we also kindly request you refrain from eating and drinking in the Etscorn Honors Center classroom, rm. 132. Exceptions to this rule will be made for meetings, study sessions and other events, but only as approved by Dr. Richardson.

Calling all Honors Students!
Calling all Honors Students!

The Current is now taking art and writing submissions. Art submissions can be in any medium, but a picture will need to be taken in order to include the work in The Current. All submissions must be original and are subject to content review by the Honors staff. Share your talent, share your passion, and share your hobby! Please contact Nichole Burruss with questions and submissions.

Honors Employment Opportunities
We are looking for a few good student workers!

Openings for Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, as well as closing on Thursday, are available for any interested, would-be student workers. Responsibilities would include opening the building (Honors House or Honors Center as needed) as well as being available for filing, copying, errand-running and serve as on-hand support for students needing paper -- and just about anything else. If you are interested, please contact Will Armstrong at will.armstrong@louisville.edu with information on your availability for work next semester.