Humanities Edge Undergraduate Research Symposium | Spring 2022

Dr. Trinidad Argüelles is Associate Professor of Psychology at MDC West Campus, and faculty convener for this discipline. At the college, she serves as IMPACT / Changemaking co-chair for West Campus. She has been active in mentoring students in undergraduate research through the School of Science (SOS) since 2014 and the Humanities Edge Grant (since 2020).  Dr. Argüelles is also the founding and lead advisor for both West Campus Psychology Club and the West Campus Chapter for the Psi Beta Honor Society. Her classes have amounted to more than 9,500 hours of Academic Service and she has been awarded Faculty of the Year by ICED (Institute for Civic Engagement and Democracy) at the West Campus several times. Last year, Building a Better Society Through Mental Health, an agency that she created to bring awareness and advocacy for health and mental health to everyone on her campus, received ICED Partner of the Year Award. She has also represented the college in several national forums, including AshokaU and AAC & U (within the past two years). Recently, she has co-led efforts to create a Mental Health CCC in Neuroscience and Aging.

Sarah Jacob, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Miami Dade College’s (MDC) West Campus, is a proud alumna of MDC (Wolfson Campus). She graduated with her AA  in 1997 before earning a BA in Philosophy from Florida International University (FIU) in 2000. Following her studies Sarah worked as the Marketing Director for a wellness company for over fifteen years before returning to FIU’s philosophy department to earn her MA in Liberal Studies (with a focus on environmental philosophy). Sarah is currently finishing her Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of South Florida, writing her dissertation on the Buddhist influences on Nietzsche’s philosophy of the future.

Sarah has been teaching at Miami Dade College since 2013 and has been full time since 2017. She serves on the Earth Ethic Institute Council, co-Advises for the YES! Club and the Nothing Café Philosophy Club. She also serves as a faculty lead for Humanities Edge.

Jairo Ricardo Ledesma is a Professor of History and Sociology at Miami Dade College’s Homestead campus. For over twenty years, he has worked at private and public institutions serving in different higher education roles, including student counselor, career counselor, academic adviser, Grant Director, and as an adjunct instructor. Professor Ledesma holds a Bachelor of Science in communications and a Master of Arts in sociology from St. John’s University in New York City. He also holds a Master of Arts in history and is currently a third-year history Ph.D. student at Florida International University.

Throughout his career, Professor Ledesma has worked with underrepresented groups. The hundreds of students he has advised or taught are now industry leaders or educators throughout the world. He is former USDA Kika the la Garza Fellow, and a Humanities Edge Grant recipient where he led undergraduate students in historical research. Currently he is a board member of the Homestead City Hall Museum, sits on the F.I.U Statewide Federal Government Conference committee, and is the Chair of the Hispanic Heritage Month committee.

Dr. Terri Mitchell, Associate Professor  Senior of Music at MDC West, is an accomplished flutist and a consummate musician and educator. Dr. Mitchell teaches Music Appreciation, Jazz and Popular Music.  She is the UFMDC Vice President for West Campus.  She is the advisor for the Dialogues for Democracy Club,  and co-advisor for The YES! Club and the Creative Arts Club at MDC West Campus. In 2011, she was a Fulbright Senior Specialist, going to Curitiba, Brazil to teach about American classical and jazz music. Her acclaimed CD Ponteios, available on Amazon, contains music by Brazilian and American composers. She received her Doctorate in Music from the University of Miami in 2003 where she received the Award for Academic Achievement and won the Concerto Competition in her first year at the University. She was principal flutist with the Ars Flores Symphony Orchestra for over ten years.

Ray Morales has been an active ceramics artist and a Professor of Art at Miami Dade College for over 20 years. His expertise in the field of ceramics range from creating both functional and sculptural forms, glaze chemistry, firing kilns, and developing a range of clays. His artworks are widely sought out and are held in collections all over the world. As a professor, Ray Morales has built curriculums that attract members of the community as well as traditional students. His teaching methodology focuses on putting theory into tangible action and creative problem solving.

Murphy is a sociologist. His courses explore how the empirical realities of everyday life are related to broader public issues. His students are active with the Earth Ethics Institute and the Institute for Civic Engagement & Democracy and he advises the Global Medical Brigades Club and the Sociology Club. He is currently researching the relationships between meaning, purpose, and housing in the tiny house movement.  His work has appeared in Sociological Forum, Qualitative Sociology, Journal of Higher Education, Review of Higher Education, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, Florida Public Health Review, and Higher Education.

He earned a B.A. in Social Science from the University of Northern Colorado, a M.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies from San Diego State University, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Sociology from the University of California-Riverside.

Yane Nemeroff is a Communications/Speech Professor at Miami Dade College: Hialeah Campus. Professor Nemeroff has been teaching at the college for over 5 years. His focus in the classroom is for students to understand the complexity in Communications. Mr. Nemeroff ultimately inspires students by deconstructing Communication, and reconstructing effective communicators. He holds a Masters degree in Communication Studies from Florida Atlantic University. Yane also earned a Bachelors degree in Intercultural and Organizational Communication from Florida Atlantic University as well. This is his first year collaborating with the Humanities Edge Undergraduate Research Mentorship Program.

Matthew Nesvet is an anthropologist and critical security studies researcher. He is also an assistant professor at Miami Dade College, where he leads a federal grant-funded social anthropology and human rights lab focusing on medical and psychological anthropology, STS, and the science and technology behind militarization, policing, governance, and state and extra-state violence. Prior to joining Miami Dade College’s faculty, Dr. Nesvet was a policy expert at the U.S. Congressional Research Service, Congress’ nonpartisan internal think tank, where he led a criminal justice policy portfolio. Dr. Nesvet’s writing has been cited by academic researchers and in popular publications such as The Nation, and he has been interviewed by The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and other media. Find Dr. Nesvet’s research and reportage at MattNesvet.com and reach out to him via Twitter or Academia.edu.

Marina Rodriguez is a proud MDC alumna. She later earned a Bachelors in Elementary Education, a master’s in teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL), and a doctoral degree in Curriculum and instruction at Florida International University (FIU). She worked as a Miami Dade Public School teacher and then was charged as a District Curriculum Specialist to improve scores in at risk schools. Meanwhile, she taught graduate level TESOL and literacy courses as an adjunct for the FIU College of Education. She was then honored to be hired as an MDC professor of Developmental Reading. After a year, she was elected by her peers to chair the Learning Outcomes Assessment Team and led an initiative that increased college-wide inter-reliability and intra-reliability in holistic scoring. As a former discipline convener, she led a workgroup in writing program goals, aligning the program outcomes to the curriculum map, and designing, piloting and analyzing student artifacts. She has also represented the college in national and state curricular initiatives, and consequently earned an Endowment in 2015. Currently, she co-chairs the International Education Committee and co-organizes student led changemaking events.

Yomarie Silva –O’Neal is an active sculptor whose work focuses on small and seemingly insignificant biological forms. Her pieces express the intersection of her love of art and science by using microscopic imagery of fungi and lichen. Her work’s intention is to display the order in nature and the artistry in science.

Ms. Silva-O’Neal has also been a Professor of Sculpture, 3-D Design, Drawing, and Art Appreciation at Miami Dade College for over 16 years. Her teaching focuses on a hands-on approach to problem solving and self-expression through a variety of materials and subject matter.