The Honors College at the University of Maine is a community of nearly 800 students who, along with nearly 100 faculty members, are committed to taking intellectual risks through exploring questions both within and outside their academic disciplines in the course of a four-year curriculum. The College is committed to both broadening and deepening the academic experience of its students, providing them with the resources and skills needed to critically engage important questions and issues.
For those students who graduate from the Honors College, their journey ends with the writing of their Honors thesis. Over the course of the senior year, they work with a faculty mentor completing independent research or a creative project in their discipline. At the end of the two-semester experience, they present the thesis to their thesis committee of five faculty members and professionals in their field. For these students, this is the culmination of their work at the University of Maine and a springboard to future opportunities and achievements.
“The intense supervision of my Honors thesis was the most important academic experience of my life. My advisor’s personal guidance and insistence that I couple precise research with creative and original thought has served as a benchmark for me for over thirty years.” – James E. Tierney ’69, Attorney General of Maine (1980-1990)
The first four theses were written in 1937, in recent years the number has approached 100. We plan to populate this digital archive with many of the over 1300 theses that have been written in those over seventy-five years.
For more information, contact the Honors College at honors@maine.edu or 207-581-3263.
Honors Theses from 2026
Characterization of Blood-Borne Pathogens and Their Effects on Antler Growth in Maine Moose (Alces alces), Marina McManus
Honors Theses from 2025
THE EFFECTS OF ECOTOURISM ON THE BEHAVIOR OF WHALE SHARKS (RHINCODON TYPUS), Allison Andersen
Navigating the Trails of Private Landownership: Exploring Factors Shaping ATV Trail Use, Management, and Policy Preferences, Gabriella Binette
Characterizing the Type I Interferon Response in a Zebrafish Model of Influenza Virus Infection, Emma Boudreaux
WORK, LIFE, AND THE BALANCE IN-BETWEEN: MOTHERS AND NON-MOTHERS WORKING IN CHILDCARE, Chloe Boyes
Creation of a Trading Card Game Through the Exploration of Emergent Gameplay, William Bradley
Discovering Virulence Factors of Candida Albicans That Affect Host Immune Responses, Emma Bragdon
Phenological Changes in Arctic and Common Terns Across Maine’s Coastal Islands, Elizabeth Brennan
Organizational Responses to Athlete Activism in the Long- and Short-Term, Emily Brieva
Arcadia, Annabel Castillo García
Queer Community Resilience Factors for College Behavioral Health, Kalina Chazin-Knox
The Role of Diabete Mellitus During Co-Infections of Streptococcus agalactiae and Candida albicans, Logan Christian
Travel Behavior on Sargent Mountain in Acadia National Park, Erin Ciampa
Between the Static: A Personal Exploration of WMEB and College Radio's Cultural Influence, Jessica Cleary-Reuning
EFFECTS OF DITCH DENSITY ON AVIAN BIODIVERSITY IN ATLANTIC COAST SALT MARSHES, Braden Collard
Growth and Survival of Tree Saplings of 10 Species Across a Large Climate Gradient in Maine, Paige Cormier
From Generalized Advice to Personalized Insights: Designing a Mobile App for Prediabetes Self-Management With Health Coach Input, Samson Cournane
Impact Of TTRPGs On Mental Well-Being And Social Self-Efficacy, Jenna Cox
Framing Competitive Values: How Three Newspapers Reported on STEM and Humanities Curricula in American Universities, 2014–2024, Virginia Crossland
Architectural Acoustics and Their Effects on the Performance and Reception of Choral Music, Julianna Day
Ecology, Mythology, and Ecomyth in Robert Frost, Matthew Day
Deformable ProtoPNet: An Interpretable Image Classifier Using Deformable Prototypes, Jon Donnelly
How Sleep Is Related to Cognition in Middle-Older Adults, Juliette Dutton
How an Individual’s Niche Makes the Population Behave: Evaluating Behaviour’s Role in the Niche Variation Hypothesis, Kenneth Farris
Pulchrum Monstrum: Exploring the Connection Between the Queer Community and Monsters Through Self-Portrait Photography, Edward Feeney
FROM EXPOSURE TO OUTCOME: EXAMINING THE ROLE OF RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY IDENTITY IN THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN TRAUMA AND YOUTH SUBSTANCE USE, Aalliyah Ferreira
A Critical Analysis of Yourself: The Examination of a Multicellular Organism Belonging to the Species Known Colloquially as “Human”, Rory Flaherty
The Toxic Irony of Pharmaceutical Agent Cetylpyridinium Chloride: An ELISA and Molecular Dynamics Examination of Tyrosine Phosphorylation and Lipid Interactions in Mast Cell Immune Response, Patrick J. Flemming
Between Two Mirrors: Beauty Standards in the U.S. and South Korea and Their Effects on Anxiety and Depression, Lauren Fracassa
Evaluating Environmental Education with Non-Readers, Laini Frager
Immunity Profiling in Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larvae During Pathogen Challenge, Audrie French
A MUCH-NEEDED REVIEW: A SYNTHESIS OF CHYTRID IN AMPHIBIANS, Caoilinn Gass
“Keep Kids Muddy”: The Value of Nature Preschools In Early Childhood Education, Kathryn Gatewood
Regulation of Microtubule Dynamics During the Pheromone Response in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Loren Genrich
The Characterization of the Antioxidant Effects of Cedar Bark, Ashley Helene Geydoshek
Climate-Driven Saltwater Intrusion and the Potential of “Plainsman” Grain Amaranth for Climate Adaptive Agriculture, Tovin Gordesky-Hooper
Measuring Economic Resilience: Business Cycle Analysis Across Maine's Economic Summary Areas, Ruth Griffith
Exploration of Mothers’ Experiences When Choosing a Communication Modality for Their Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing Child, Seraphina Hodgson
Asymmetric Organocatalysts: Synthesis and Function in the Augmentation of Antisense Oligonucleotide Stereochemistry, George Horvat
A Study of the Prevalence of Climate Anxiety in College Students and Its Effects on Activism and Climate-Corrective Behaviors, Shaelyn Huber
Politics in Education: A Climate of Polarization, Tyler Kahkonen
For the Benefit and Enjoyment of the People: The Impacts of Recreation.gov on Visitor Experiences at Acadia National Park, Isabelle Kostelnick
Democracy at the Dock: Mapping Bar Harbor’s Cruise Tourism Constituencies, Baylor D. Landsman
Regulation of Septins Through Epsin-Receptor Interactions During Polarized Growth, Sarah Grace Latario
Impacts of Climate Language on Rural Maine Community Resilience Initiatives, Sonia Leone
IMPACTS OF CLIMATE LANGUAGE ON RURAL MAINE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE INITIATIVES, Sonia Leone
HOW TO REINVENT A BLOODLINE: MY EXPERIENCES AS A THIRD-GENERATION IMMIGRANT, Amanda Levesque
Comparison of Mycorrhizal Abundance and Diversity in Organically Versus Conventionally Managed Wild Blueberry Fields in Maine, Sarah Marcotte
Analyzing and Writing Childhood Anxiety in Children’s Literature, Rebekah Mellor
Analyzing and Writing Childhood Anxiety in Children’s Literature, Rebekah Mellor
Stock Market Reaction to Multinational Divestments in Russia, Aidan Michaud
Synthesis of a Novel Fluorescent Probe for Biomass Degradation, Mary Milligan
Examining Social Support Offered via Instagram Accounts Targeted Toward Generation Z Pre-Medical Students, Sydni Moores
The North Atlantic Right Whale’s Future: Balancing Conservation and Industry Needs, Kiran Morrill
GHOSTS: AN EXPERIENCE IN WRITING, PRODUCING, AND RELEASING A FIVE SONG EXTENDED PLAY, Alexander Morrissette
The Role of NMD5 in Candida albicans Immune Evasion and Virulence, Mya Muthig
Biochar in Concrete: A Sustainable Internal Curing Agent for Reducing Autogenous Shrinkage, Madeline Noble
Investigating the Potential for Behavioral Differences Amongst Betta Fish (Betta splendens) Color Morphs, Riley Palazzo
Resource Recovery From Manure Waste: A Blueprint for a Small-Scale Biofiltration System, Gunnar Palm
Studying Adult Neurogenesis With Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase (TERT), a Putative Adult Stem Cell Marker, Joshua Passarelli
Antimicrobial Agent Cetylpyridinium Chloride Disrupts Immune Mast Cell Signaling: Elucidation of Molecular Mechanism With a Focus on Calcium Mobilization, Christian Malcolm Potts
Clarion: An Exploration of the Female Brass Playing Experience, Isabelle Puccio
THEY HOLD HANDS! A MUSHROOM MAP OF MAINE, Elyeah Schweikert
They Hold Hands! A Mushroom Map of Maine, Elyeah Schweikert
Applying Mathematical Methods for Verifying Authorship to Texts Attributed to Virgil, Zachary Scott
Can Zebrafish Be Used to Model Human Chronic Granulomatous Disease?, Katherine Stevens
THE ROLE OF COLOR MORPHS ON MATE PREFERENCE AND ANXIETY-LIKE BEHAVIOR IN FEMALE BETTA SPLENDENS, Camille Stiverson
Living and Dreaming With Hyperphantasia, Maxine Straub
How Geographic Information Systems Can Help Roosevelt Campobello International Park With Climate Mitigation and Adaptation Procedures, Nathaniel Swanson
Evaluating the Potential of Porous Foam Metals to Enhance Retention of Tags in Fish, Jennifer Triana
Drowning in Air, Emily Voight
Wood Turtle Behavior in Relation to Season, Sex, and Temperature, Maple Waltner
Molecular Mechanisms Underlying the Effects of Antimicrobial Agent Triclosan on Cellular Function and Signaling: Triclosan Disrupts Immune Cell Function by Depressing Calcium Influx via Acidfication of the Cytoplasm, Alan Yael Baez Vazquez and Suraj Sangroula
Honors Theses from 2024
Intrinsically Career-Motivated Women & Motherhood, Paige Allen
Ecological Effects and Ethics of a Species Range Shift to High Elevation Ponds, Ava Ardito
Relations Among Self-Disclosure, Digital Communications Behavior, and Mental Health in College Students During and After COVID-19, Estephanie Baez-Vazquez
Exploring and Understanding The Experience of Transitional Supports By Former Youth in Care, Abigail Bagley
The Conservation Project: An Exploration of Multimedia in Ocean Conservation, Ilaria Bardini
Shostakovich, Soviet Cultural Policies, and the Fifth and Thirteenth Symphonies: A Contextual Evaluation, Nathanael Batson
What is Marxian Communism? Limning the Post-Revolutionary Utopia By Implication, Teodora Blejeru
Exploring Nitrogen Applications in the Crop Year of Wild Blueberry Production, Abby Cadorette
Learning About Learning: Classroom Communication and Its Impacts on Students, Hope Carroll
Assessing the Influence of Interseeded Cover Crops on Beneficial Arthropod Abundance in a Northeastern Agroecosystem, Charles Cooper
Evaluating the Effects of Parasite Infections on Reproductive Ability in Maine Moose, Isabella Costa
Using the Tarot to Heal: A Study of the Use of Tarot in Therapeutic Settings and the Creation of a Major Arcana, Venae DeMarte
A Phenomenological Approach to Classic Maya Kingship, Griffin Dever
Sustaining Community and Identity Through Food at the University of Maine, Elizabeth DuDevoir
Relations of Emotional Functioning and Hormonal Contraceptive Use in UMaine Female Students, Shannen Fitzjurls
An Investigation Into Problem Solving in the Calculus III Classroom, Joseph Godinez
Temperature and Energy Interactions in Small Tropical Mammals, Abe Grunwald
Physical Forcing of Productivity, Biomass, and Demography of Ascophyllum Nodosum, Henry Guy