From the Eastern Shore town of Exmore, Virginia, Bott鈥檚 hobbies include fishing, boating, and scuba diving. Through these interests, he observed that small boat anchors, crucial for positioning the boat as well as for safety, often get stuck and have to be cut loose and abandoned, which inspired him to research better anchor designs.

He began his presentation with explaining how anchors work.

鈥淭here is a misconception that an anchor is just a big weight that you drop off the side of the boat and then the weight alone holds the boat in place. That鈥檚 not how they work. To properly operate them, you let out enough anchor line, then pull, allowing the anchor arms to burrow into the ground.鈥� He added an important thing to consider when choosing an anchor, is the makeup of the seabed. 鈥淥n the bottom could be sand, mud, rock, grass, clay, or a combination. If the boat is over a wreck, a reef, rocks, or trees, you might use a grappling hook style anchor, because instead of burrowing, it鈥檚 designed to hook onto something underwater.鈥�

Bott explained challenges with grappling hook anchors.

鈥淎nchor arms might hook under a rock, a log, or a hard piece of wreckage and get stuck. Unless you have someone who can put on scuba gear and dive down to wedge it free, you will have to cut your anchor line and leave the anchor. That is not a pleasing prospect, since some anchors can cost hundreds of dollars.鈥�

To prevent loss of equipment and money, Bott wanted to construct an electromechanical anchor to drop over shipwrecks for divers who enjoy exploring wrecks like he does. He designed his anchor to be compact, have the look and feel like a regular grappling hook anchor, be intuitive to operate, use a physical and electrical tether, and realistically manufacturable. He envisioned a seatbelt-style release mechanism, so with a press of a button the anchor arms unfold, and the user can easily pull up the anchor.

After a lot of design and redesign work, much calculation regarding forces, friction, and water pressure, Bott鈥檚 design was ready to be tested. He engaged the expertise of engineering department lab technician Michael Cullen, and machinist Marco Floyd, who were instrumental in bringing the anchor to life.

鈥淏uilding this thing was a fun process, because I would take my design down to our machinist, and he would look at it and say, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e crazy. We can鈥檛 make this on our equipment.鈥� So, we would sit down together, and he would come up with ideas on how we can break up this complex geometry to a bunch of little pieces, so that one piece became five different pieces that fit together like a little jigsaw puzzle.鈥�

Bott concluded by sharing the next steps for his project are putting the electronics into the housing of the anchor, performing a leak test, and a final load test underwater. 鈥淚鈥檓 very happy with how far we鈥檝e gotten, and I鈥檓 very excited to get this thing in the water and make sure it actually works like we hope.鈥�

Col. Gerald 鈥淛ay鈥� Sullivan, professor and head of the聽Department of Mechanical Engineering, served as Bott鈥檚 advisor on the project. Sullivan stated that given Bott鈥檚 hobbies鈥攅specially wreck diving鈥攁nd all the mechanical maintenance that goes along with them, he wasn鈥檛 too surprised that he came up with this project.

鈥淐onnor is very good with his hands and highly analytical. He was able to bring together all these really great analytical skills that he has in mechanical engineering, with superior manufacturing skills, and intense creativity, to bring this project to fruition.鈥�

Bott is the son of Charles Bott 鈥�96. He is an alumnus of Norfolk Academy, and plans to pursue a graduate degree in marine or subsea engineering following graduation.

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Ben Bowen 鈥�26, an English major at 麻豆传媒入口, introduced his honors presentation by disclosing that it is not intended to prove an esthetic point or make a literary argument. Rather 鈥淲riting Happy Endings: Practice and Theory鈥� is a work of literature. 鈥淚鈥檓 simply trying to write a story and tell you why I wrote it,鈥� he stated.

Bowen confessed that because he has a deep love for reading, he did not think creative writing would be hard for him. 鈥淎nd then I started writing, and I found it to be extremely difficult and painful. I didn鈥檛 want to turn in any assignments. I wanted to keep revising.鈥� To help overcome his struggles, he sought to discover why people read books, and the elements of a good story. He examined the underlying driving principles of two of his favorite authors: Edgar Allen Poe, who evoked emotion 鈥� especially melancholy 鈥� to grip the reader; and John Gardner, who believed good literature should have a moral aim and should have staying power and keep the reader engaged.

To illustrate the two writers differing points of view, Bowen used examples in his own creative writing. In both his short story, 鈥淪tarbs Run,鈥� and his novella, 鈥淲ild Turkey,鈥� Bowen applies Poe鈥檚 principle of using strong emotional language, which he confessed was a great effort to write. He explained the purpose in writing the difficult scenes was to make the story real and not overly sentimental. 鈥淣obody wants to read about a protagonist who is perfect. They want to read about a real person,鈥� he explained. Bowen also wanted to genuinely represent trauma in his work, and make the reader question what they would do if placed in the character鈥檚 position.

Additionally, Bowen applies Gardner鈥檚 principle of using staying power. 鈥淣o one is going to read a story for pleasure that doesn鈥檛 entertain them or isn鈥檛 interesting. So, I had to constantly think about using devices to keep the reader interested. I was constantly trying to use stories or little side tangents of action or of comedy to keep the reader entertained.鈥�

Bowen concluded his presentation by sharing with the audience that his novella is not yet complete, and in keeping with the title of his honors presentation, he anticipates a happy ending. 鈥淭here are a lot of good things coming, like hope and romance.鈥�

Bowen鈥檚 advisor, Col. Polly Atwell, professor in the Department of English, Rhetoric, and Humanistic Studies, shared that what has impressed her most about Bowen is his enthusiasm and curiosity. 鈥淗e鈥檚 one of the only students I鈥檝e ever had who actually seeks out the work of his professors, not to get points, but just because he鈥檚 genuinely interested in what interests them. When I first read Ben鈥檚 fiction, I found he was a very talented and dedicated writer, and advising him on his novella has been incredibly fun and rewarding for me. His work ethic, his genuine desire to learn, his humor, and the connection he鈥檚 found between his writing and his personal ethics have all made him a true pleasure to work with.鈥�

Bowen鈥檚 concentrations under his English major are writing and rhetoric, philosophy, and literary studies. He is the son of Floyd and Lisa Bowen of Forty Fort, Pennsylvania, and attended Wyoming Valley West High School. Following graduation, he will commission into the Marine Corps.

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He worked closely with his advisor, Col. Glenn Sullivan, professor in the Department of Psychology, on his research. Analyzing articles and legal cases, he learned a lot about what solitary confinement looks like and how it can greatly impact one鈥檚 well-being, especially those already facing serious mental illness.

In defining solitary confinement, he reminded his audience not only of the small space, often the size of a parking space with no social interaction, but also of the unnatural light that could remain on for up to 24 hours a day, which can greatly impact sleep and sanity. Originally designed in the late 18^th century to be humane and provoke reflection and repentance, Rogers鈥� research shows the practice of solitary confinement today often lacks oversight and pushes the legal boundaries of medical neglect. One key detail Rogers noted was that prisoners are not normally told the length of time they鈥檇 be placed in solitary confinement, basically another 鈥渧ersion of torture,鈥� he explained.

Many countries and groups have focused on solitary confinement reform, aiming to lessen the cruelty inflicted on inmates. While countries like Norway, Germany, and Turkey have taken strides in this, the United States is behind. Countless bills have been proposed, but rarely move forward. One such bill stated that the prison system has lost its vision to reform an individual. While Rogers acknowledges that some in decision-making positions identify solitary confinement as something that needs to be reviewed, he believes many of those decision makers only focus on issues that impact them.

While Rogers determines he鈥檚 not against solitary confinement as a practice, he does conclude in this thesis that prolonged solitary confinement of those with serious mental illness is cruel and unusual punishment.

 鈥淛ack Rogers鈥� thesis sits right at the fault line between psychology and the Constitution. He shows that what prisons call 鈥榤anagement鈥� often exacerbates the symptoms of serious mental illness,鈥� shared Sullivan. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 especially impressive is that he doesn鈥檛 just summarize the law鈥攈e anticipates it. His analysis of past Supreme Court cases suggests that the Court is slowly moving toward recognizing prolonged and indefinite solitary confinement of the seriously mentally ill as incompatible with the Eighth Amendment. He makes a compelling case that solitary confinement has become a kind of shadow on the mental health system鈥攐ne that isolates rather than treats鈥攁nd that the legal framework is struggling to catch up with what psychologists have known for decades.鈥�

Rogers, an NCAA lacrosse player, came to 麻豆传媒入口from Suwanee, Georgia, after graduating from North Gwinnett High School.  His parents, John and Rebecca, attended his presentation and note that he has thrived in the 麻豆传媒入口environment. Once Rogers completes law school, he hopes to go into the U.S. Army JAG Corps.

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Vijayan, who will commission into the U.S. Army as a logistics officer after he graduates in May, explained the definition of military logistics as the practice of moving armies, including transporting military forces, keeping them supplied, planning and road building, and the administrative work carrying out those activities. The focus of his thesis was the final, crucial step of the supply chain; moving supplies from friendly, established bases to contested front lines, known as 鈥渢he last mile,鈥� specifically, to the Solomon Islands following the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor, Southeast Asia, and the South Pacific in 1941.

The Solomon Islands are a chain of islands in the South Pacific, northeast of Australia, and include Guadalcanal, New Georgia, and Bougainville, all locations of significant WWII battles. The Japanese attacks threatened the American supply lines to Australia and New Zealand. For that reason, the Solomons became decisive in ensuring those supply lines remained open and the Japanese advance was halted.

鈥淕uadalcanal is widely regarded as an allied tactical victory, but a logistics disaster. Initially, isolated Marines were forced to subsist on two rations per day and captured Japanese rice. Aircraft sat idle because there was not enough fuel. Gradually, the allied forces were able to sustain their offenses in New Georgia and Bougainville, thanks to the idea of 鈥榠sland hopping,鈥� taking control of the islands one by one, and turning them into support bases,鈥� explained Vijayan.

He went on to report that most historians agree that the U.S. logistics system was a big factor in winning the war for the allies, but they differ on what part of that logistics system was significant. To that end, Vijayan sought to answer the research question, 鈥淗ow and why did last-mile logistics improve past the crises at Guadalcanal?鈥�

To answer his question, Vijayan examined the various logistics methods the military incorporated during the three operations to secure the islands. He discovered the successes, the failures, and how the methods progressively improved throughout the 鈥渋sland hopping.鈥� The first, the Battle of Guadalcanal, codenamed Operation Watchtower, took place from August 1942 to February 1943; followed by the invasion of the New Georgia, codenamed Operation Toenails, from June to October 1943; then the Battle of Bougainville, codenamed Operation Dipper, from November 1943 to May 1944.   

He concluded by confirming that circumstances improved with each new operation due to improved access to military facilities, shortened supply lines, absence of time pressure, and diminished enemy capabilities. 鈥淚t鈥檚 easy to understand why the last model was much more effective. Improvements helped the allied forces avoid the crises that took place on Guadalcanal. There was better unloading coordination, supply lines were deliberately planned and proactively built inland, and supply dumps were deliberately placed for a more effective system. All these decisions improved last-mile logistics. There was definitely a learning curve that moved past the mistakes at Guadalcanal,鈥� closed Vijayan.

Vijayan鈥檚 advisor, Lt. Col. Joel Christenson 鈥�99, associate professor in the Department of History and director of the John A. Adams 鈥�71 Center for Military History & Strategic Analysis, said it was a pleasure working with Vijayan. 鈥淛ai鈥檚 project is thoughtful, innovative, timely, and applicable, and I think his investigation into logistics and the Solomon Islands campaign in the Second World War proves that there is new information even in the most studied of conflicts.鈥�

Vijayan is minoring in military history and Chinese. He is an alumnus of the Canadian International School in Singapore and the son of Bharat Vijayan and Archana Velukutty of Tully, New York.

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Adams presented his 2025 Summer Undergraduate Research Institute project titled, 鈥淪criptural Monster: A Study of Tolkien鈥檚 Jonah,鈥� in which he connects J.R.R. Tolkien鈥檚 translation of the Old Testament book of Jonah for the Jerusalem Bible 鈥� a Roman Catholic translation of the Bible 鈥� to the theme of mercy in Tolkien鈥檚 classic, 鈥淭he Lord of the Rings.鈥� Adams shared what he likes about the Book of Jonah is that it fits well with Tolkien鈥檚 ethos. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very mythical book of the Bible, and it鈥檚 got a lot of fairy tale elements that Tolkien used in his fiction.鈥� Adams added that his experience at SHC was marvelous. 鈥淚t was exciting to be able to present in front of professionals, and engage in great conversation with them.鈥�

Tiller鈥檚 presentation entitled, 鈥淏rAInpower or ConstrAInt? The Importance of Human-Made Art in an AI World.鈥� His research took up the question of why people respond to a work of art more positively when they know it is created by a human, as opposed to artificial intelligence (AI). He drew on research in psychology as well as the philosophies of G.W.F. Hegel and Susanne Langer. Tiller agreed with Adams that SHC was a wonderful opportunity for them to share their research with other scholars.

鈥淪ince we were the only undergraduates, our presentations caught the attention of many professors and academics. This was the first time either of us have presented research, but it certainly won鈥檛 be the last. 麻豆传媒入口molds a cadet to do things that they never imagined.”

The cadets were accompanied by Col. Robert McDonald, associate dean for academic affairs and director of the honors program, and professor of English and fine arts; Col. Steven Knepper, professor of English and holder of the Bruce C. Gottwald Jr. 鈥�81 Chair for Academic Excellence; and Maj. Henry A. Wise III 鈥�05, assistant professor of English. The three delivered a panel presentation called, 鈥淭he Art of Past-Haunted Places: Photography, Fiction, and Poetry,鈥� which focused on the role that place plays in their respective creative endeavors. Knepper noted, 鈥淧lace is more than a backdrop. It actively shapes people and carries both vestiges of the past and a sense of possibility.鈥� McDonald presented photographs from his recently published book, Wise read excerpts from his novel, 鈥淗oly City,鈥漚nd discussed the relationship between the fictional county described in the book and the factual region of Southside, Virginia. Knepper read poems about his family鈥檚 Pennsylvania dairy farm. The trio also talked about VMI鈥檚 Department of English, Rhetoric, and Humanistic Studies, and how it encourages both interdisciplinary and creative work.

The cadets鈥� travel was supported with a grant from the 麻豆传媒入口Center for Undergraduate Research.

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A lifelong resident of Virginia, Smith grew up in Appalachia in humble surroundings. Though she went without many modern comforts, her childhood provided a rich tapestry of experiences from which to draw for her creative writing. Her father was a carpenter and her mother cared for the family at home. The family spent many hours outdoors fishing, hunting and exploring the wilderness. Smith even acknowledged having relatives who were moonshiners.

The first of her family to go to college, she received her undergraduate degree from Hollins University where she double majored in biology and English literature. She continued her studies at Hollins, earning a master鈥檚 degree in English literature and creative writing. 鈥淢y intent was to write poetry because I was really interested in science and poetry. Poets represent different aspects of our worldview, which comes primarily from scientific awareness,鈥� said Smith.

Smith often gets inspiration for poetry from nature. She is particularly drawn to metamorphosis, a change of physical form like that of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, and fractals, geometric shapes with complex, repeating patterns, like seashells. She also collects things that stir her, like rocks. 鈥淎nd then there are things that haunt me that I write around. Once when my husband was outside raking leaves, he uncovered remnants of toys our children had played with when they were young. He brought them in and placed them on a windowsill. Seeing those little leavings was very emotional to me, and I wrote a collection of poems about them called, 鈥淟eaving October.鈥�

麻豆传媒入口cadets also inspire Smith. In her writing and rhetoric class, a cadet once challenged her to spontaneously write a haiku, a short, unrhymed Japanese poem of three lines with a five-seven-five syllable pattern. She responded quickly with 鈥淭he Water Washes.鈥�

The water washes stones.
Smooth as time鈥檚 sand-filled hour,
everything glass sighs.

Smith keeps a tall stack of notes on her desk. Each note holds a starting line of a poem. 鈥淚f I don鈥檛 write it down, there is no poem. As long as it鈥檚 over there in the stack, I know a poem is in there.鈥�

Smith sees her appointment as poet laureate as an honor and a call to service. 鈥淚鈥檇 like to teach people in the community who are struggling with secure residency or food security how to unveil their own voices, and realize their experiences are important enough to write about. I also want to have readings to benefit the local food pantry.鈥� She hopes to have a series of workshops for cadets on post.

Col. Emily Miller, head of Smith鈥檚 department, is thrilled with this appointment. 鈥淢attie will bring the same dedication to that position that she shows every day in teaching our cadets. With her considerable talents, she will be an excellent proponent of the power and beauty of poetry,鈥� stated Miller.

Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins 鈥�85, superintendent, stated that Smith鈥檚 recognition is well deserved and a testament to the quality of faculty cadets interact with every day. 鈥淥ur cadets have benefited from Dr. Smith鈥檚 creativity and expertise for many years. Now, the 麻豆传媒入口community is proud to share her talents and passion for teaching with the rest of the commonwealth as poet laureate.鈥�

Brig. Gen. Robert Moreschi, dean of the faculty and deputy superintendent for academics, agrees.

鈥淏eing named the commonwealth鈥檚 poet laureate is a significant honor that recognizes Mattie鈥檚 poetic talent. She is dedicated to her craft and to cadets, and all of us who know her are absolutely delighted at her appointment.鈥�

Smith鈥檚 poetry has appeared in many periodicals including Poetry X Hunger, The Timberline Review, and Phi Kappa Phi Forum Magazine. She has written screenplays with her husband and 麻豆传媒入口peer, Douglas N. Smith. Their documentary film, 鈥淏etween Two Fires鈥� garnered a CINE Eagle and Best Documentary of the Show in the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded the film an Oscar for excellence in graduate student filmmaking.

Smith is currently working on a book of poetry titled, 鈥淥ptics and Doubt.鈥� The title comes from Christian visual images and spiritual experiences likened to light. 鈥淪piritual words like halos and auras are optical phenomena. That is troubling to me, but delightful at the same time. That鈥檚 what that collection is about,鈥� she shared.

Three days after she took her oath as poet laureate in Richmond, Smith successfully defended her dissertation, and earned her doctorate from Virginia Tech.

Since 1988 the governor has appointed the honorary position of poet laureate of Virginia. Smith will serve a two-year term.

Marianne HauseCommunications & Marketing
VIRGINIA MILITARY INSTITUTE

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