Honors Program Student Spotlight: Lelani Williamson

In a university landscape often dominated by STEM achievements, Lelani Williamson demonstrates the innovation of Humanities students. Williamson is currently studying English with a concentration in Professional Writing, as well as pursuing minors in Political Science and Africana Studies.

She is a second-year student in the University Honors Program (UHP) and a Caldwell Fellow. She is also a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., works as a writing consultant for the Academic Success Center and is a Student Ambassador for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the English Department. 

Williamson received an email from the English Department inviting students to apply to present their work at the inaugural 2025 Triangle Undergraduate Literary Conference (TULC). Trinity College at Duke University hosted the event, and it involved students from Duke, UNC Chapel-Hill, NC State and North Carolina Central University. The goal of the conference was to exchange information among peers with expertise in similar areas.

These opportunities feel rare for undergraduate Humanities students, and Williamson knew that she wanted to participate. She decided to present on Paul Laurence Dunbar, an African-American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries best known for tackling his experiences as an African-American man in postbellum America. She focused on Dunbar’s poem “Sympathy,” a commentary on the oppression that he experienced and his desire to escape it. Williamson focused on his experience, and also on the misconception that emancipation meant freedom and equality for African-Americans.

Williamson especially wanted to explore Dunbar’s work because of its relevance to the current day. 

She emphasized the debate around DEI and the feeling of losing progress in the fight for equality. To her, Dunbar’s work is no less relevant now than it was when he wrote it over a century ago. 

“There are still issues with discrimination, especially with recent events. This is still a present day issue. We are almost trying to cage the bird again.”

She also noted that she was happy to delve past surface level with an audience that understands literature, an experience unique to a space dedicated to research in the humanities. “Everyone had a mutual understanding of the importance of literature and the message behind it.” 

“I wish I could tell myself to be less nervous,” Williamson reflects on how she felt on the day of the conference.

She says that when she arrived at the conference itself, she realized it was not daunting at all. Williamson had previous experience with public speaking from her “Introduction to International Studies” Honors Seminar. She says that the discussion-based nature of the class “really helped me advance my public speaking and be less afraid to speak out.” 

Making the decision to present on Dunbar did not come easily to Williamson, who struggled to decide between topics. Per direction from the original invitation to apply for the conference, she reached out to Anne Auten, a UHP assistant director and former member of the English department for help. Auten helped talk her through each of her options and focus on what message she wanted to convey. Through their discussions, Williamson realized that she wanted to focus on Dunbar. 

“His message and his impact are never lost. It is all a common theme, especially in the time that he was writing and trying to be an advocate through his poetry.” 

Williamson recognizes the importance of UHP in assisting with her research and her participation in the conference, saying “I would not have done the conference if it was not for the Honors Program.” 

The UHP has helped Williamson with more than just her public speaking and research skills. Honors Forum events, UHP sponsored book clubs and book signings are all ways UHP students in the humanities can interact with students with similar interests.  

“Some of the most fun I have had on campus was in UHP events like book-signings. It’s such a cool way to connect with other people who have been successful in the humanities.” 

What is Williamson’s advice for any humanities students looking to get involved with undergraduate research? Find a topic that you find important, and stick with it. 

“Humanities research can be very solo and dependent upon you,” Williamson reveals. It is therefore important to focus on a topic you love and are genuinely interested in. 

Though the process was very independent, Williamson still credits the UHP with some of her skill-building, saying, “the UHP helped encourage those opportunities within the humanities that I otherwise would not have known about.” 

In a STEM-focused environment like NC State, an extra little push from a mentor that wants to see you succeed can make a world of difference.