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At the 2025 UM Conference on Undergraduate Research (UMCUR), held in the University Center on Friday, April 25, several History Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ showcased their original research on a range of fascinating topics. One especially compelling panel, moderated by Professor Jody Pavilack, featured Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ whose projects began in her Fall 2024 writing class on U.S.–Latin American Relations.

Ava DeBourg presented on U.S. responses to a 1954 strike against the United Fruit Company in Honduras, set against the backdrop of rising Communism in neighboring Guatemala. Logan Stabnau examined how Henry Kissinger, while holding no official government role, worked to undermine President Jimmy Carter’s human rights agenda in Argentina. Ruby Lopez expanded our understanding of the Bracero guest worker program by exploring the experiences of Mexican migrant laborers in Montana.

The panel also included Riley Carney, who shared findings from his Honors College capstone on a 16th-century Valencian jurist—one of the earliest voices in Spain to debate the moral implications of long-term incarceration. Rounding out the session, Caelen Milligan, a Social Sciences Education major, presented a paper he wrote in Professor Richard Drake’s writing class, exploring the missionary efforts of Henry and Eliza Spalding among the Nez Perce in the early 1800s.

With a large and engaged audience, this panel offered a rich and thought-provoking intellectual exchange. We’re thrilled to share that Riley Carney and Logan Stabnau received UMCUR’s 2025 Outstanding Research Paper awards in the Humanities. Congratulations to them—and to all our outstanding History Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ who presented at this year’s conference!