Mason Allred, a BYU-Hawaii junior history major from Las Vegas, Nevada, recently returned from a Student Research Associates Assistantships-funded trip to New York City where he presented a paper at the annual conference of the prestigious American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE).
The BYU-Hawaii Student Research Associates Assistantships program provides opportunities for selected students to gain valuable and/or development experience in their chosen fields by working with a sponsoring faculty mentor.
Allred, who worked with BYU-Hawaii history and religion professor Dr. Kerry Muhlestein as his mentor, noted his paper dealt with "the symbolic use of snakes in ancient Egyptian afterlife books. Animals were often appropriated in religious contexts and for explanation in ancient Egypt," he said.
"In my study I focused on the use of snakes in drawings and texts as symbols for renewal and resurrection. I argued that this use is tied to the snake's process of renewal found in the shedding of its skin and specifically the waxing and waning of the snake's eyes throughout this process, which then speaks to the course of the sun and moon as the 'divine eyes' that perpetually renew."
"I was interested in dualistic symbols in ancient Egypt, and I also had some experience with snakes when I was younger: My father bred snakes for a time and we had over 30 in our home at one point. I cleaned the cages and fed the snakes," he continued. "So, I combined some of the knowledge I had gained through this and my fascination with symbols and solid research."
Allred emphasized that his mentor, Dr. Muhlestein, "was integral in guiding me to sources that required consultation. He was also very helpful in reading my chaotic drafts, research notes, and jotted-down ideas, and offered advice for improvement."
"He was incredibly encouraging and optimistic through the whole experience as well. He is the kind of guy that when you leave his office, you feel like you are the smartest kid in the school, although you are sure just about every student feels that way after talking or working with him. He treats you how he knows you can become, and evokes your best self, academically and spiritually."
Dr. Muhlestein admires Allred's accomplishments, too, and said his presentation at the conference was excellent. "I believe he was the only undergraduate who did a presentation. It was smooth, interesting and enlightening. In fact, he did a better job in the delivery aspects than most of the seasoned scholars who also spoke at the meeting."
"Mason is interested in attending graduate school in Egyptology, and I arranged for at least two people in programs to which he would apply to be at the lecture," he said. "They were both very impressed, and sought me out a number of times to talk about his presentation and abilities. Mason established a good reputation for himself and the school by the quality of his research, his speaking and PowerPoint™ abilities. The lecture did much to enhance his chances to get into the graduate programs he would like to attend."
"Mason also let the people know that he was there as part of a student mentoring program, in which not only had he been able to work one-on-one with a professor in preparing his material, but which also provided the funding for his trip to the conference."
"Mason did his presentation on the first day, then both he and I were approached often for the rest of the conference as people came to congratulate him on a job well done. Those who knew that I had worked with him came to me — not to talk about what I had done with him, but to tell me how impressed they were with him and the university for having such a program," Dr. Muhlestein said.
"The conference was a fantastic opportunity," Allred agreed. "I was intellectually fed. I was also able to witness scholars and their style of work and presentation. They were very kind, and the feeling at the conference was that of friends in scholarship and common interest."
"I got very good feedback from many of them. It was a great feeling, and the experience definitely helped prepare me for graduate school," he said. "This may be a small school, but with the faculty we have and the programs the university offers, we have some serious advantages at BYU-Hawaii."