Holy Cross Junior Receives Prize for Work During Semester in Washington, D.C.

WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross junior Kristen Shaw has been selected by the College’s Center for Interdisciplinary and Special Studies as the 2008-09 fall semester Maurizio Vannicelli Washington Semester Away program award. She will present her thesis, “What it Means to be Homeless in America,” on Wednesday, April 15 at 4 p.m. in Rehm Library in Smith Hall.

While in Washington, Shaw interned with the National Coalition for the Homeless. During her time there, she worked on various projects including writing the 2008-09 Criminalization of the Homeless Report and visiting local parks to register homeless individuals to vote. She also participated in several “Speakers Bureaus,” where homeless individuals were invited to tell their stories to raise awareness of the issue in today’s society.

“From my experience in D.C., I have gained insight into what it is to be homeless in America and the terrible injustices our fellow citizens endure,” Shaw said. “I learned what it is to be an advocate for these powerless individuals and I’m inspired to continue working on their behalf.”

Shaw’s lecture will follow her thesis, which focused on the federal government’s failure to adequately address homelessness, and state governments’ tendency to criminalize homeless individuals.  Shaw will also discuss her research on  alternate social programs and policies that have the potential to effectively address the issue of homelessness in a long-term, solution-based way.

A pre-law sociology major, Shaw hopes to attend law school after she graduates from Holy Cross. She wants to concentrate her studies in “public interest law to help [her] become an effective advocate for the powerless in our society…and effect policy changes that will help eliminate their struggles.”

On campus, the North Reading, Mass. native has been involved with several service organizations. She’s worked in a homeless family outreach program through Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD), the largest student-run community service organization on campus; as well as at the Hope Lodge for cancer patients; the Mass Audubon Society; and Quinsigamond Elementary School. Shaw has also been a member of the dance ensemble for the past three years, and is currently a choreographer for ballet.

The Vannicelli Prize is awarded each semester in honor of the late Holy Cross political science professor and Washington Semester director, Maurizio Vannicelli, for best research paper produced in the Washington Semester Away program. The recipient of the prize is accorded the opportunity to give a public lecture at the College on his or her thesis. In addition, the recipient receives a bound copy of the thesis and is presented the book award during commencement exercises.