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Junior Douglas Burke (Cape May Court House, N.J.) presented his research on sports and politics in Russia March 13-15 at the 17th annual National Conference on Undergraduate Research at University of Utah in Salt Lake City.
“My research discusses the effects that the transition from communism to democracy has had on the sports community in Russia,” says Burke, a government and law major. “I have a great love for sports and came up with the unique idea of combining sports and politics. I have found it to be a very challenging and interesting topic.”
Burke was one of 23 Lafayette students who earned the distinction of being invited to make presentations on their scholarly research at the conference (see related story). His intensive research project grew out of a paper he wrote for a class with Katalin Fabian, assistant professor government and law.
Fabian has shared her research through numerous articles, book chapters, and conference proceedings. In 2002, she published articles in European Journal of Women’s Studies, Hungarian Studies Review 2002, and a Collegium Budapest-Institute for Advanced Study web site; wrote book reviews published by iCanadian-American Slavic Review and Voluntas; and presented papers at Congress of the Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Toronto, and a conference held by International Studies Association, New Orleans. She has received many honors, awards, and prizes, including grants from the Ford Foundation, the Institute for the Study of World Politics, the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, and the Institute for International Peace Studies.
“Doug really connected to this project, because he has such a personal passion for sports,” says Fabian, his adviser. “It was exciting to watch him combine that interest with scholarly research. He may, in fact, go on and expand the paper into an honors thesis topic.”
Burke notes that sports and politics have mixed since ancient Greece. During the Soviet era, sports played a significant role in the nation’s history and politics, but the transition from communism to democracy in Russia has weakened the sports community.
“My study revealed that sports and politics in Russia are very closely connected to one another, and the political climate of the region often greatly affects the attitudes and significance of sports,” he says.
Burke credits Fabian with advising him on the project and steering him toward a subject that interested him.
“Professor Fabian has been an unbelievable help to me,” he says. “From helping me construct the paper to preparing me for my oral presentation, she has been there every step of the way. I could not have asked for a better mentor. She was a great help in my research and assisted me in fine-tuning my paper and my presentation for the NCUR.”
“Lafayette gave me a great opportunity to share my research with students from around the country,” says Burke. “Lafayette was one of the most represented schools at the conference, showing the emphasis put on education and undergraduate research.”
Burke is considering a career in the sports world and interned last summer with the Philadelphia Phillies in the marketing and promotion department.
“Lafayette definitely provides an academic environment that is both challenging and rewarding,” he says. “If you are willing to put the work in, there is no telling where you will end up.”