Mentor Profile
Ken Wald
Mentor to Jeff Corey
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Department of Political
Science
Center for Jewish Studies director and political science professor Ken Wald does not hesitate to sing the praises of being a University Scholars Program mentor. "With the size of our departments, it's hard to get those one-to-one relationships with undergraduates. The USP answers that and gives back something that has been lost during Florida's massive growth."
Wald acts as mentor for Jeff Corey , a senior political science major conducting research on the Christian Right's involvement with the Florida Constitution Revision Commission. "In the absence of this program, Jeff and I would probably be doing a senior thesis. But it wouldn't be nearly as good. We wouldn't have the resources or the aura of legitimacy the USP confers. Jeff's been able to get the cooperation of many busy people because of the way his research is endorsed by the University."
"I'm helping him convert a vague interest into a researchable problem, which may be the hardest part of the research process," Wald continues. "And I'm a sounding board. But he's an exceptionally motivated student; I give him the broad contours and he goes and works with it." Wald says that his mentor role with Corey often works as a partnership. "To a remarkable degree, the way I work with Jeff is how I work with graduate students. We should produce publishable research. In fact, we proposed a paper to the next national meeting of the American Political Science Association. I've never before done this with an undergraduate."
Wald also believes that the Scholars Program offers a unique opportunity for students to participate in the academic life of the university. "It is very uncommon to produce this kind of undergraduate knowledge in the social sciences, and I think the power of doing this is overwhelming. The Scholars Program has built a life-long connection to UF for Jeff."
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