University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo students earned two first-place wins in a national sociology competition. The student team received a perfect score.
The team award went to Dylan Bibilone, Frances Rayla, Ghelie Lei Tamayo and Melinda “Mindy” Yagin, while Kassidie Hayashida earned the individual research paper award.
“They knocked it out of the park!” said Ellen Meiser, assistant professor of and the team’s coach.
The students participated remotely in the Association for Applied and Clinical Sociology’s conference, October 16–17.
The team challenge asked students to solve a problem for a Texas nonprofit working for social justice and developing community leaders.
The students tackled misinformation surrounding voting and issues at the polls. Their plan included voter rights tools, community education and ideas to recruit young people as poll monitors.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a perfect score before!” said Lindy Hern, sociology professor and department chair.
Hayashida’s paper, “Autism and News Media,” examined how news coverage portrays autism. Her research explored how coverage can contribute to stigma, including whether stories include autistic voices.