Honors Students Take Research to UC Riverside Stage
Student research spanning public health, history, anthropology, and the arts was showcased March 28 at the 26th annual Building Bridges Research Conference, hosted by the Honors Transfer Council of California in partnership with the University of California, Riverside.
Held on the UC Riverside campus, the statewide conference brought together community college honors students to present original research through poster sessions, oral presentations and creative performances. The event continues to serve as a platform for emerging scholars to engage with interdisciplinary audiences while contributing to academic conversations across fields.
Moreno Valley College honors students were among those selected to present, representing a range of research topics grounded in both local and global inquiry. Melissa Murillo, mentored by Joanna Werner-Fraczek, presented a poster titled Bugs, Barcodes, and Bacteria: Tracking Wolbachia in Local Arthropods, examining the presence of Wolbachia bacteria in insect populations within Moreno Valley.
Oral presentations from Moreno Valley College students reflected similarly diverse inquiry. Marlon Cuaya, mentored by Kanya Godde-Chrisco, explored how intersecting factors such as age and sex influenced mortality during the Black Death. Jakob Tagliaferro, working with mentor Rikki Tremblay, examined the relationship between writing and performance as research, analyzing how creative works are adapted across mediums while maintaining intent and thematic integrity.
Additional presentations included Pamela Mancilla’s research on immigration enforcement and its impact on the mental health of children of immigrants, mentored by James Bany; Michael Davis’s anthropological reflection on cross-cultural learning in Kenya, mentored by Larisa Broyles; and Asra Jafri’s analysis of student loan debt and the role of financial literacy in addressing its long-term effects, mentored by Lauren Johnson.
Faculty engagement played a critical role in the conference, both in mentoring student researchers and in supporting the academic review process. Moreno Valley College faculty members Kanya Godde-Chrisco, Joanna Werner-Fraczek, Lauren Johnson and Rikki Tremblay contributed as abstract readers, evaluators and mentors, joining colleagues from across California in reviewing hundreds of submissions and helping to elevate the quality of student scholarship presented at the event.
“I want to take a moment to say thank you for pouring into our scholars through the Honors program,” said Noemí Hernández Alexander, Ph.D., dean of instruction for languages, humanities, social sciences, communications, and visual and performing arts. “Your support and belief in your students make a huge impact on their lives now and for years to come.”
Participation in the conference reflects the broader opportunities available through the Moreno Valley College Honors Program, where students engage in advanced coursework, faculty-mentored research and transfer preparation. Presenting at a conference hosted at UC Riverside, a nationally recognized research institution, provides community college students with direct exposure to academic environments that emphasize inquiry, analysis and scholarly contribution.
Students interested in pursuing similar research and presentation opportunities are encouraged to explore the Moreno Valley College Honors Program. For additional student success stories, visit the MVC Honors success stories page.