The Phi Alpha Theta regional conference in Jacksonville at the University of North Florida was a good opportunity for me to spend time with some of my classmates who are also interested in history.  I really enjoyed attending their presentations and learning more about the subjects they researched.

The other Rollins students who attended the conference with me were very professional and knowledgeable, and I was grateful to be able to travel with them and especially grateful for their support, since I was quite nervous for my own presentation.  After this positive experience, I hope to be able to get involved in another such regional history honors society conference next year. I also hope to be able to encourage other students interested in historical research to participate in future Phi Alpha Theta regional conferences and inform them about this opportunity for learning outside of lectures, applying learning from the classroom, and cooperating with others from the same field, including, of course, their own classmates.

At first, I was personally very intimidated by the idea of speaking at a conference, but ultimately it was a fun and successful day, so I hope I can help other history-interested students like me similarly practice their public speaking and communication of research skills.