05/26/2026
Falvey Library is proud to celebrate the inspiring work of our 2026 Falvey Scholar Award winners. Presented each spring, the Falvey Scholar Awards recognize outstanding individual and group projects by graduating seniors whose undergraduate research reflects exceptional scholarship. These honors highlight work that demonstrates deep engagement with scholarly literature—work made possible through the rich resources and support of the Library.
This year’s scholars brought their research to life in presentations at Falvey Library, sharing their discoveries with an audience of students, faculty, and University leadership. Each presentation sparked thoughtful questions and dynamic conversation, transforming the event into a vibrant exchange of ideas and insight.
We are proud to celebrate the accomplishments of Miami native Katie Lewis ’26 as a Falvey Scholar for her research analyzing higher education through a literary lens under the guidance of mentor Megan Quigley, PhD, Associate Professor, English, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Lewis developed a thesis exploring the portrayal of higher education in three significant works of literature: Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (1943), Jhumpa Lahiri’s Interpreter of Maladies (1999), and Zadie Smith’s On Beauty (2005). She gravitated toward these books as novels that avoid the stereotypical portrayal of the college life by exploring immigrants' experience in higher education.
As Lewis began the research process in the fall, she met with Sarah Wingo, Falvey's subject librarian specializing in English literature. Wingo provided valuable advice for how to find high-quality journal articles on the research topic, as well as introduced her to the research software Zotero. Since then, Lewis has used this bibliography tool to organize all her sources and research notes.
"Sarah made an overwhelming project feel much more manageable. I am very grateful for the resources and support for my project provided by Falvey staff!" she says.
Read more about her research on Falvey Library's blog: https://blog.library.villanova.edu/2026/05/18/katie-lewis-26-reflects-on-education-through-literature/
