Brook Haight and Emily Kovacic Present Research to Cache Valley Historical Society

English Department creative writing undergraduate, Brook Haight, and folklore master’s student, Emily Kovacic, presented at the Cache Valley Historical Society (CVHS) monthly lecture on April 9, 2025. As CVHS’s scholarship winners, they had a chance to show the research the society had helped fund. They presented alongside fellow scholarship winner, Braydon Wright, history and philosophy major.

Brook’s research on May Swenson explores the relationship between the poet and her visual art, from iconographs to ekphrastic poems to sketches. Her project started in Professor Christine Cooper-Rompato’s archival research class after Brook found one of May Swenson’s old sketches, which led her to find other sketches and poems in Washington University’s archives.

“I had never done research using primary materials before, so this was an entirely new experience. There was a lot of work I had to do both with Washington University Archives and USU's Special Collections and Archives,” Brook says. “I learned so much about research in general. I had never viewed it as a creative thing until this project. It helped me realize that there is so much out there to be learned and studied, and I can be the person to do that.”

Emily’s presented her current master’s thesis, an oral history of the Little Logan River: “Through fieldwork and archival research, I am collecting, documenting, and archiving the narratives, oral histories, and historical documents that illustrate the significant impact the Little Logan River has on the daily lives, traditions, and collective memory of those living in Logan.”

In her presentation, Emily talked about the uncertainty of the river’s future and the importance of documenting folklore for community members. “With my project, community feedback is integral. This presentation allowed me to discuss the project and meet with community members afterward, which I always love doing. I've got some good leads,” she reflects.

For Brook, being a scholarship recipient and presenting at the society’s lecture has contributed to her understanding of her place within research. She comments, “I didn't feel like I could actually add anything to the field of knowledge on May Swenson, but the further I dove into my research project, the more I realized that not only could I actually bring something new to the table, but I was also actually having a ton of fun doing it. It was a really exciting process, which isn't a word I thought I'd ever apply to research.”

Emily added presenting with the other scholarship recipients was a valuable experience to learn from peers about other research happening surrounding Cache Valley. “I'm thankful that the Cache Valley Historical Society was able to offer this scholarship to three recipients this year. It means a lot that they supported and valued my work as a folklorist,” she says.

Brook and Emily thanked the professors in the English Department for their support and CVHS for providing funding. “I really think that the English Department professors are something special. Dr. Cooper-Rompato not only pointed me in the direction of this opportunity but also followed through with me during every step of the process,” Brook reflects. “I don't know if I would've gotten that level of encouragement and support from anywhere else, and I'm so truly grateful to be surrounded by so many professors who want to help me succeed.”