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Brief: From the Classroom to the Concert
Karolin Miranda present her project in the Master of Science in Community Engaged Medicine during Furman Engaged in Plyer Hall on April 12, 2024. Photo by Owen Withycombe.
Classrooms on Furman University’s campus buzzed with panel discussions, presentations and performances as students shared what they’ve learned in the 16th annual Furman Engaged.
Furman Engaged, held this year on April 12, is set aside to provide students opportunities to present work they’ve accomplished in engaged learning, a hallmark of The Furman Advantage. Internships, research, study away, writing seminars and musical works were all on display.
The topics ranged from business and accounting internships to piano music of Bohemia, the intersectional class resistance in the book “Bastard Out of Carolina” (by Greenville native Dorothy Allison) to cryptological warfare. The day wrapped up with the traditional end-of-day celebration followed by the Spring Concert with Teezo Touchdown.
“Our students are inspiring, and Furman Engaged gives them a chance to shine and transcend their positions as students and become experts, sharing their knowledge with the community,” says Beth Pontari, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “It’s equally inspiring to see our faculty and staff pour so much into making this happen. The entire day is extraordinary.”
This year, a record 689 students participated in 724 sessions that took place across campus.
Karolin Miranda M’24, a student of the Master of Science in Community Engaged Medicine program, presented research on the underdiagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among Latino children. ASD, a neurological condition affecting communication, learning and behavior, requires early diagnosis for optimal development. Yet, Miranda’s findings reveal that Latino children are diagnosed later than their non-Latino peers, a gap she attributes to educational deficits and various systemic and cultural barriers.
Miranda also spent time at Unity Health on Main, a community center specializing in culturally competent care. “Being in the clinic gave me insight into what was going on,” she noted. Miranda plans to continue her work at Unity Health while applying to medical school, intending to bring her experience into a future medical practice in family medicine or pediatrics.
Catherine Farr ’26 took another look at “Thelma & Louise,” the hit movie released in 1991, and found it groundbreaking. “In the 1990s, a feminist message was distressing,” Farr said. “It marked a shift in notions of social dynamics and gender, aided in a more feminist society.”
“Thelma & Louise” played the tropes of a road movie and a buddy movie, and elements of an on-the-run movie, but its rebellious spirit was “distinctly unique,” Farr said. When Louise (spoiler alert) killed a man who was trying to rape Thelma, the women were freed of a lot of norms that previously shackled them. They start living more dangerously.
The end of the film, where (another spoiler alert) Thelma and Louise drive off a cliff, presumably to their deaths, might not be as clear-cut as it seems, noted English Professor Willard Pate. Like in the movie “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” Farr said, viewers don’t see the heroes or heroines die. Maybe, she says, they lived, they continue, and they’re still making a point for feminism.
Marie Cecil ’24, Summer Marsden ’25 and Reagan Ogburn ’24 unveiled their journey in large-scale data collection and how they use it to propel sustainability. Marsden, a climate assessment fellow, shed light on the pivotal role of her position in developing and implementing Furman’s new Climate Action Plan. “Furman actually created their original Climate Action Plan back in 2007, with the goal of being carbon neutral by 2026,” she explained. “We’ve made a lot of progress, but not enough,” underscoring the need for continuous evaluation and revision to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions and consumption, urging the entire campus community to participate in this critical endeavor.