Mahan Manuscript Honors Award

Established in 2016, the Mahan Manuscript Honors Award recognizes the best essays by Academic Foundations I students enrolled in the Adrian College Honors Program. These projects are the outcome of a semester- long process of... [ view full abstract ]

Established in 2016, the Mahan Manuscript Honors Award recognizes the best essays by Academic Foundations I students enrolled in the Adrian College Honors Program. These projects are the outcome of a semester- long process of inquiry-based writing and research on topic developed by each student.

Named for the first President of Adrian College, the Rev. Asa Mahan, this award honors the outstanding tradition of liberal arts scholarship Mahan instituted and particularly his rhetorical legacy as embodied in his published and unpublished works. Chief among these unpublished manuscripts is Mahan’s diary, newly preserved and housed in the Shipman Library Archives, which details his time at Adrian College and outlines some of his most important moral philosophy–including his thoughts on the United States Constitution and his idea of “intrinsic worth”–the idea that all individuals regardless of race, class, or sex have inherent value that should be protected. Indeed, it is the aim and goal of a liberal arts education to prepare scholars and citizens who can articulate this ideal of intrinsic worth in the contemporary world.

All of the essays nominated for this award in some way accomplish and embody this vision and for their contributions we honor them here.

Students presenting in this session include: Theophilis J. Harvey and Laura Piechulik