{"id":40802293962,"date":"2026-04-08T11:00:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T15:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/?p=40802293962"},"modified":"2026-04-08T20:39:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T00:39:42","slug":"ross-named-nrhc-2026-honors-professional-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/ross-named-nrhc-2026-honors-professional-of-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Ross Named NRHC 2026 Honors Professional of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Honors School Director Jennifer Ross was named 2026 Honors Professional of the Year at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrhchonors.com\/2026-conference-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Northeast Regional Honors Council (NRHC) conference<\/a> held in New Haven, CT, on March 29. The award recognizes outstanding honors professionals who continually demonstrate a dedication to honors education at their honors program\/college.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ross served as a featured speaker at this year\u2019s event, presenting on honors education as a space for impactful and effective practices. The 2026 theme encouraged attendees to consider how honors &#8220;serves as a haven,&#8221; exploring the ways in which honors education is a &#8220;welcoming space for administrators, faculty, and, most importantly, students to grow.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ross was joined by six students who were accepted to the conference, where they participated in a wide range of academic discussions. Their engagements spanned topics from gaps in medical care to the ethics of true crime media, among many others, reflecting the depth and diversity of their scholarly interests. These students and their research were:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cIt\u2019s a Bloody Mess! \u2014 The Gaps in Medical Care for Reproductive-Endocrine Disorders,&#8221; by Anastasia Awadalla, health science<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cSpiritualism, the Spectral, and Sherlock Holmes: How Shifting Religious Beliefs Impacted the Literature of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,&#8221; by Ellie Curatolo, English<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cWhat is Your Doctor Not Telling You?: A Discussion on Patient Provider Transparency Centered Around Skin Cancer,&#8221; by Lojine Elrais, health science<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cNot Like in the Movies: A Content Analysis of Conflict Talk in Film,\u201d by Olivia Fazio, Spanish and English with a concentration in creative writing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cOur Obsession with True Crime Media and the Ethics Involved,&#8221; by Ashleigh Kennedy, business administration with a concentration in marketing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cMore than Merit: Creating a Space in Honors to Support High-Achieving Student Mental Health,\u201d by Delaney Nadeau, sociology<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrhchonors.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NRHC<\/a> is an organization of students, faculty, and administrators dedicated to the encouragement and support of undergraduate honors learning. The NRHC provides its members with opportunities for the exchange of information, ideas, and assistance through its annual conference, its newsletter, and its scholarships. The NRCH encompasses Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Quebec, Ontario, and the Maritime Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. Currently approximately 200 different colleges and universities are members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"745\" style=\"object-position: 53.345714285714% 39.697857142857%\" src=\"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/NRHC-students-1024x745.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-40802294036\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/NRHC-students-1024x745.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/NRHC-students-300x218.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/NRHC-students-768x558.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/NRHC-students.jpeg 1312w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Honors School Director Jennifer Ross with honors students at the NRHC conference<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Honors School Director Jennifer Ross was recognized at the Northeast Regional Honors Council (NRHC) conference, where she was also a featured speaker. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2239,"featured_media":40802293965,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104,417],"tags":[2048,6764],"person":[6755],"audience":[11,8,1961,128],"school":[116],"program":[],"class_list":["post-40802293962","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-excellence","category-awards-publications-research","tag-honors-school","tag-nrhc","person-jennifer-ross","audience-current-student","audience-faculty","audience-parent","audience-prospective-undergraduate-student","school-honors-school"],"squareimage":{"id":40802293989,"rendered":"<img width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" style=\"object-position: 51.575% 40.46%\" src=\"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Jennifer Ross, director of the Honors School at Monmouth University\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-560x560.jpg 560w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-280x280.jpg 280w, https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/16\/2026\/04\/Jennifer_Ross-120x120.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" 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