Eric Connon
Eric Connon graduated from SVSU in 2006 with a degree in History and Political Science, and is now a graduate student in a master’s program at Central Michigan University, where he is studying 18th and 19th Century military history.
While at SVSU, Eric spent a year and a half completing an honors thesis project, and over the course of this time, Eric had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. and to Greenwich, England to do archival research.
Eric’s thesis title is, “The Historical Lessons of Seapower Reconsidered: Comparing the Napoleonic-era Royal Navy and the Modern U.S. Navy.” His paper examines and compares the various purposes to which the two governments have put their navies, and based on his conclusions, revises the opinion of established scholars of the field.
Eric was awarded one of the first SVSU Student Research and Creativity Institute grants, which in part underwrote his trip to England. The grants recognize and reward outstanding student innovation. Any student may submit an application for financial assistance in support of any research or creative endeavor. Each student project is eligible to receive up to $10,000.
During his internship in Washington, D.C., Eric worked at the Naval Historical Society for three months in the summer of 2005. He gained firsthand experience in handling and studying rare historical documents, and as part of his internship responsibilities, got to transcribe early American Revolutionary War documents.
The idea for Eric’s honors thesis project began when he took a class on War and Politics taught by Dr. Mark Nicol of the political science department.
“It has been great working with my advisor, Dr. Nicol,” Eric explained. “He has helped me in areas other than academics, such as helping me prepare to take the GRE entrance exam for graduate school, and in preparing me to enter the job market.”
Eric chose SVSU in part because of the Award for Excellence Scholarship he was awarded, turning down two other offers to attend Saginaw Valley.
“The best part about SVSU is the small class size, and the opportunity to be able to see how professors work. As a student, I really got to know my professors well, something that my friends from larger universities definitely do not get a chance to do.”
“I knew I wanted to be a history major when I was taking Dr. Renna’s class on the Renaissance. I just really felt that I was in the right place.”