Jan 5, 2020 - Four history majors presented papers at the 2020 Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention in San Antonio, Texas, on January 2-4. Led by Drs. Stephen and Alice-Catherine Carls, the group flew from Memphis to San Antonio on January 1.
The students, along with their paper titles, were: Katie Allison, “Biblical Feminism: An Oxymoron?”; Leah Atkins, “Poisonous Women: Gender and Power in Ancient Rome”; Megan Ledbetter, “The Disabled Character: Representations of Disability in American Film”; and Luke Sower, “The Lords of All Creation: Environmental Transformation in the Rise of Tenochtitlan.” They were among 256 presenters at the convention.
The Carls served as panel chairs/commentators. Stephen Carls chaired a panel called “Modern Europe” that included papers on the twentieth-century philosophers Martin Heidegger and Emmanuel Levinas, the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, and the ideas of nineteenth-century housing reformer Octavia Hill. The title of Alice-Catherine Carls’s panel was “The Holocaust” where the topics of the two papers presented were the motivations behind the collaboration of citizens in towns near Nazi concentration camps and the role of the Catholic Church during the Holocaust. In all, some 50 faculty members acted as panel chairs/commentators at the convention.
Phi Alpha Theta gave special recognition to Stephen Carls at the Presidential Banquet on January 4. Vice President Dr. Jacob Blosser named him, along with four other current or former national officers (two presidents and two executive directors), a dean in a newly established honorary group called Deans of Phi Alpha Theta. The society created this distinction as a way of showing appreciation to its highest-ranking officers for their dedicated service to Phi Alpha Theta. Carls served as national president from 2014 to 2016. Interim Executive Director Wendy Tunstall in turn installed Blosser into the group of honorary deans as part of his inauguration ceremony as the society’s new national president.
The Union delegation also did several activities beyond the convention while in San Antonio. On the evening of January 1, they strolled through parts of the city’s River Walk. The next day group members visited the Alamo, the Briscoe Western Art Museum, and the Villita Historic Arts Village. On January 3, they had dinner at Schilo’s Delicatessen, a German-themed restaurant that opened in 1917; Schilo’s is the oldest continuously operating restaurant in San Antonio. Following dinner, the group went to the observation deck of the Tower of the Americas to get a panoramic view of the city. On the afternoon of January 4, some of them took a river cruise, saw the city’s main cathedral, and walked through San Antonio’s historic Mexican Market Square.
The Union group returned to Tennessee on January 5.
Members of the Union University delegation to the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention in San Antonio visit the Alamo on January 2, 2020. They are (left to right) Katie Allison, Luke Sower, Leah Atkins, Megan Ledbetter, and Dr. Alice-Catherine Carls. Dr. Stephen Carls, the leader of the group, took the photo.
A stagecoach is among the many art items on display at the Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio. The Union University group at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention visited the museum on January 2, 2020.
Dr. Stephen Carls (left to right), Katie Allison, Megan Ledbetter, Luke Sower, and Leah Atkins attend the opening reception of the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention on January 2, 2020.
Union University students sit together as they wait for a panel titled "Gender/Sexuality" to begin on January 3, 2020, at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention. They are (left to right) Leah Atkins, Luke Sower, and Megan Ledbetter.
Members of the Phi Alpha Theta convention panel called "Gender/Sexuality" pose for a photo prior to their session on January 3, 2020. They are (seated, left to right) Allison Draheim, Kendra Garcia, Alondra Morillon, and Katie Allison. Dr. Tiffany Fink (panel chair/commentator) stands behind the student presenters.
Union University history major Katie Allison answers a question about her paper on "Biblical Feminism: An Oxymoron?" during her panel at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention on January 3, 2020.
Union University students attend the Phi Alpha Theta convention luncheon on Friday, January 3, 2020. They are (left to right) Katie Allison, Leah Atkins, Megan Ledbetter, and Luke Sower.
National Vice President Dr. Jacob Blosser delivers the Phi Alpha Theta convention luncheon address on "Behaving Badly in Church: Colonial Virginia's Inattentive Anglicans" on January 3, 2020.
Participants in the Phi Alpha Theta panel titled "Roman History" pause for a photo prior to the start of their session on January 3, 2020. They are (left to right) Leah Atkins, Chandler Burrows, Kevin Twohig, and Dr. Kimberly Reiter (panel chair/commentator).
Union University history major Leah Atkins presents a paper titled "Poisonous Women: Power and Gender in Ancient Rome" as part of a panel called "Roman History" at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention on January 3, 2020.
Members of the Phi Alpha Theta convention panel called "Latin America & Mexico" get ready to start their session on January 3, 2020. They are (left to right) Jessica Thrasher, Dr. Maria Arbelaez (panel chair/commentator), and Luke Sower.
Union University history major Luke Sower presents a paper on "The Lords of All Creation: Environmental Transformation in the Rise of Tenochtitlan" on January 3, 2020, for a Phi Alpha Theta convention panel titled "Latin America & Mexico."
Student members from Union University at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention prepare to order their dinners at Schilo's Delicatessen on January 3, 2020. They are (left to right) Megan Ledbetter, Katie Allison, and Luke Sower. Schilo's is the longest continuously operating restaurant in San Antonio, having started in 1917.
The observation deck of the Tower of the Americas offers a stunning night view of San Antonio on January 3, 2020, for members of Union's delegation to the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention.
Members of the Phi Alpha Theta convention panel on "Literature and Film" take time for a photo prior to the start of their session. They are (left to right) Renee Williams, Megan Ledbetter, Dr. Roger Davis (the panel chair/commentator), and Juliana Thompson. Jan 4, 2020.
Union University history major Megan Ledbetter delivers a paper on "The Disabled Character: Representations of Disability in American Film" during the panel titled "Literature and Film" at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention on January 4, 2020.
One of the scenes that Union University participants in boat cruise along San Antonio's River Walk saw on January 4, 2020, is of people enjoying the Walk's picturesque setting.
Members of Union's delegation to the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention stand by a Christmas tree located in front of the San Fernando Cathedral in downtown San Antonio on January 4, 2020. They are (left to right) Luke Sower, Katie Allison, and Dr. Alice-Catherine Carls.
Ornate objects liven up the ceiling of the Mexican Market Square. Members of Union's delegation to the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention visited the square on January 4, 2020.
Members of Union's delegation to the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention pose for a photo at the start of the Presidential Banquet on January 4, 2020. They are (left to right) Katie Allison, Megan Ledbetter, Luke Sower, and Dr. Alice-Catherine Carls.
Dr. Jacob Blosser congratulates Dr. Stephen Carls at the end of Carls's induction as an honorary Dean of Phi Alpha Theta on January 4, 2020. The ceremony took place during the Presidential Banquet of the society's biennial convention.
Phi Alpha Theta President Dr. Clayton Drees (left) prepares to pass the spoon of authority to incoming president Dr. Jacob Blosser (right) at the society's Presidential Banquet on January 4, 2020.
Union University students with Drs. Alice-Catherine Carls of the University of Tennessee at Martin (second from right) and Dr. Stephen Carls of Union University (right) following Presidential Banquet on Jan 4, 2020. The students are (left to right) Luke Sower, Megan Ledbetter, and Katie Allison.
Recipients of the newly created honor of Deans of Phi Alpha Theta stand together following the Presidential Banquet at the society's biennial convention on January 4, 2020. They are Drs. Jacob Blosser (left to right), Clayton Drees, Jochen Burgtorf, and Dr. Stephen Carls. Blosser began his presidential term at the end of the banquet, while the other three previously served as president.