As a part of EMU’s annual Academic and Creative Excellence (ACE) Festival , many students prepared to present the culmination of, in some cases, a year of work. Every year the ACE Festival provides students with the opportunity to share research projects, presentations, and the art they have created so far in their EMU journey. This year the main events took place on April 16 at various locations around campus. The day was broken up into time slots with different presentations and posters available for students to see what their peers have been working on.
One such presentation from political science majors Genesis Figueroa, Dia Mekonnen, and Caleb Metzler, came together from Figueroa and Mekonnen’s continued work and research on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Figueroa and Mekonnen presented on the issues of unjust enforcement of immigration law by ICE and the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. The two have been in touch with these issues for some time now. “Immigration’s just been a big passion of mine for a while,” said Figueroa. Many of her papers have centered around these topics. Mekonnen had the opportunity to intern for CASA de Maryland, an immigration advocacy-and-assistance organization, during which she had the opportunity to work and observe the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Mekonnen said the case helped her realize “how important it is for people to know their rights.”
After discussing the possibility of presenting at the ACE festival for over a year, they decided to also ask Metzler to present on his experiences in Guatemala last spring. As a part of that intercultural experience, Metzler had the opportunity to visit the U.S.-Mexico border, where he learned first-hand the struggles of immigrants attempting to enter the U.S. The group also gathered a panel of local leaders to discuss how ICE has affected the community. Ji Eun Kim, Associate Professor of Political Science, who was a resource for the presentation said, “I’m so proud of them for really showing passion in this important topic.”
Many similar presentations were happening around campus and throughout the day. Posters from the natural sciences and the social sciences filled the Suter Science Center as guests and students had the opportunity to browse all the studies and projects students have been working on throughout the year.
Students in the arts were also able to perform and present their works. The music department hosted a recital during the day where several students had the chance to perform vocal and instrumental pieces. Later in the day a showcase was held for Visual and Communication Arts (VACA) students in Hartzler Gallery. The gallery consisted of five senior capstone exhibitions. Various artistic mediums were present, including photography, ceramic works, and two documentaries.
Donovan Arnason debuted one of the documentaries on civil rights and urban renewal, a project he had been working on for a year. The documentary included interviews with three Harrisonburg community members who experienced first-hand the effects of Jim Crow laws and urban renewal. One of the interviewees was Deanna Reed, the mayor of Harrisonburg and Director of Alumni Engagement and Community Connections at EMU. Arnason said, “I feel like people hear about civil rights all the time, so I kind of tried to humanize the history.”
To cap off the day, the EMU wind ensemble performed in Lehman Auditorium as a culmination of a semester of work and practice. EMU’s other ensembles including university choir, Chamber Singers, orchestra, and jazz band also performed and prepare to perform their final concerts of the year. With less than a week left until finals, the school draws to a close with the ACE festival as an exhibition of the work so many students have done here at EMU.
