Dyer Fellowship Program
The Edgar Dyer Institute for Leadership and Public Policy brings together a group of Coastal Carolina students from all colleges and degree programs to participate in the Dyer Fellowship Program.
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The Edgar Dyer Institute for Leadership and Public Policy engages students in active learning opportunities where they gain knowledge in various areas of policy research. Students connect academic theory to practice, becoming engaged civic-minded citizens.
Dyer Fellows receive a monthly stipend and their expenses paid for a spring trip to Washington, D.C. They also meet regularly with a dedicated faculty adviser to guide their research throughout the semester.
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2021 Dyer Fellows
Lily Howie is from Fayetteville, N.C., and earned a master’s degree in coastal marine and wetland studies in 2020. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in coastal and marine systems science. Howie earned a bachelor’s degree in geology from East Carolina University, assisting with paleoclimate research on North Carolina’s barrier island systems, and is now studying the effects of modern climate change and flooding on resource-poor communities in South Carolina. Her research will examine the need for climate education in South Carolina and help develop educational resources that can be put to use both in public outreach and in South Carolina’s schools. By tailoring resources on climate science, sea level rise, and flood mitigation to the South Carolina Academic Standards for Science, her work aims to create and distribute educational resources that are accessible and user-friendly for both K-12 students and the general public. Upon completion of her dissertation, she plans to pursue a research career in public outreach and climate policy.
Research Topic: The need for accessible public education about climate change and flood mitigation in South Carolina.
Bryce Ross is from Conway, S.C., and is a communication studies major with a minor in political science, with interests in social justice, queer politics, and critical theory. As a part of his fellowship, Ross will analyze public knowledge and opinion of South Carolina’s dated sexual health curriculum within the public schools. With this research, Ross hopes to develop updated and inclusive means of teaching students about sexual health and related resources. Upon graduation, he plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in academia.
Research topic: Analyzing opinions of abstinence-based and queer-exclusive sexual health education.
Holly McGrath is from Northeastern Connecticut, and is a double major in intelligence and national security, and psychology with a pre-law minor. She also is a member of the Chanticleer Dance Team. As part of her fellowship, she will be researching the balance of the protection of civil rights and civil liberties with the importance of maintaining national security. Her research will look into legislation having to do with privacy laws and how it has impacted the intelligence community. With this research, she hopes to identify a middle ground from which possible policy recommendations can be developed. Upon graduation, she hopes to attend graduate school abroad.
Research Topic: Privacy laws and their impact on the U.S. intelligence community.
Madison Earl is from Odenton, Md., and is an honors student studying political science with minors in marketing, international political economy, and women and gender studies. As part of her fellowship, she will research parental leave and focus on the impact and relationship between paid leave and the duration of leave. She hopes to find a policy solution that benefits parents in the state of South Carolina. After graduation, she plans on either joining the U.S. Air Force or attending grad school to study public policy as it relates to women's issues.
Research Topic: Parental leave and how it can be improved in the state of South Carolina.
Sarah McGonigle is from Bear, Del., and is a political science major with a minor in English. She is interested in how the growth of technology and its importance will continually affect the world in terms of social media. As part of her research, she will study the myriad of issues arising from social media culture to then assess the benefits of having media literacy taught in South Carolina classrooms. Media literacy is defined as the ability to think critically and identify messages from several media platforms, which can help students as they enter an electronically communication driven environment. McGonigle hopes to spread awareness about mental health repercussions and disinformation on social media through reaching younger generations in school. Upon graduation, she hopes to attend graduate school to pursue a master’s degree in political communication.
Research Topic: How media literacy lessons in South Carolina schools can reduce negative side effects of internet platforms.