Hulsman Undergraduate Library Research Award Winners 2025

The Jim and Mary Lois Hulsman Undergraduate Library Research Award program recognizes excellence in undergraduate research that incorporates the use of University Libraries resources and demonstrates sophisticated information literacy skills. Student award winners receive a cash prize  – $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd place, $200 for 3rd place – and recognition for their outstanding efforts. Submissions are posted in the UNM Digital Repository.

The College of University Libraries and Learning Sciences sincerely thank UNM Alumni, Jim and Mary Lois Hulsman, for supporting our student recognition and engagement efforts. We are grateful and celebrate Mr. and Mrs. Hulsman for generously donating nearly $1 million to our college since 2007. 

 View the full submissions in the Digital Repository.

Advanced Researcher Category

1st Place

Sara Dent

Senior
Sociology & American Studies Major
Faculty Sponsor: Lisa Broidy, Distinguished Professor and Department Chair of Department of Sociology & Criminology
From Inside the House: Alumni Depictions of Homeschooling, Family, and Childhood
 
Sara recently graduated from The University of New Mexico with double majors in Sociology and American Studies. Her undergraduate research and honors thesis were supported by independent studies, interdepartmental mentorship, and The Undergraduate Research Arts & Design Network (URAD). She plans to pursue graduate school in the fall.

 
2nd Place
Charles Aguirre

Junior
BA/MD Program
Faculty Sponsor: Ana P. Milan Hinostroza, Economics Ph.D. Student
The Predestined Path of Nursing for second-generation Filipino Americans
 
Charles Aguirre is a Filipino-American student in the BA/MD Program at the University of New Mexico, where he serves as Executive Director of Housing for the Residence Hall Association. As founder and CEO of CampusCore, he leads development of an innovative student platform that has won multiple competitions including UNM's 2024 Pitch Deck Competition. His research on Filipino American cultural values and career pathways, conducted through the El Puente Research Fellowship, was selected as a finalist at UROC 180. Aguirre was recently named RHA President of the Year by IACURH, representing UNM among universities across eight states. His work focuses on improving student life through technology, research, and leadership initiatives.
 

3rd Place
Simon P. Doane

Senior
American Studies
Faculty Sponsor: David Correia, Professor of American Studies
Naturalizing Dispossession: How Bosque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge Reproduces Settler Colonialism
 
Simon Doane is a University of New Mexico undergraduate student in American Studies with minors in Sustainability Studies and Geography. He is interested in landscape restoration, social and environmental justice movements, history, political economy and political ecology. When not in school, Simon can be found gardening, hiking, restoring habitat, and organizing community. 
 

Emerging Researcher Category

1st Place
 Susan D. Perrone

Junior
East Asian Studies
Faculty Sponsor: Adrienne Warner, Assistant Professor and Undergraduate Engagement Librarian
Editing the largest online encyclopedia one article at a time
 
Susan Perrone is a junior majoring in East Asian Students and minoring in Art.
 

2nd Place

Polly Elizabeth Bungum

Freshman
Environmental Planning and Design
Faculty Sponsor: Elspeth Iralu, Assistant Professor of School of Architecture and Planning
Emergency Food Access Relative to Household Incomes in ABQ
 
My name is Polly Bungum and I really believe that we need to develop community resilience in order to thrive in coming decades - it's no secret that the climate is changing, and the cost of living is rising as greedy people control most of our resources. My mission is to connect with my community, get to know my neighbors, and work together to build something beautiful: my vision for my community is to cultivate free local food, air (plants), clean environment, community involvement, community safety, connection to nature, cultured living, emergency preparedness, freedom of movement, having a voice in things, health, healthcare, imagination... I volunteer for an urban garden, a pedestrian alleyway system, and for a earthen architecture organization in Belen to meet the basic needs of neighbors and make our interconnected reality better for the both of us.

3rd Place 
Maria Clara Pedroza Santos

Sophomore
Economics
Faculty Sponsor: Bianca Lucero, Graduate Teaching Assistant in Department of English Language and Literature
Inside the Margins: Favelas Beyond the Tourist Lens
 
Maria Pedroza Santos is a sophomore at the University of New Mexico, majoring in Economics with a minor in Latin American Studies. Originally from Brazil, she is passionate about political economy and hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Latin American political economy. She enjoys reading and is currently finishing The Open Veins of Latin America by Eduardo Galeano. Her awarded paper was particularly meaningful, as it reflects her commitment to ethical tourism and the importance of community-based tourism in Brazil.
 

3rd Place 
Dimitri E. Kittrell

Sophomore
Civil Engineering
Faculty Sponsor: Renée Faubion, Lecturer III, Honors College
Christ-Like Deaths in Nineteenth-Century Gothic Literature
 
Dimitri Kittrell is a sophomore student in civil engineering, studying as a Regents Scholar. He is originally from Little Rock, Arkansas. He hopes to earn a graduate degree, and is passionate about expanding public transportation infrastructure, finding environmental solutions, and economic development, especially in rural areas. He hopes to be at the forefront of promoting equity in urban environments, the development of sustainable transit, and pollution reduction initiatives.