Senior Adina Miles already has a pretty strong scholarly identity. The double major in psychology and English specializes in developing a Judaic perspective on medieval literature, an interest she discovered while reading The Pearl Poet for a class assignment. 
    The Pearl Poet –an unknown 14th Century poet who is widely considered one of the greatest English writers of the Middle Ages--wrote, among others, a piece called Patience, which critiqued the biblical book of Jonah.
    “My perspective is to compare this text to the Torah,” says Miles, a Jew who speaks fluent Hebrew. She even presented her research on the topic at an undergraduate research conference last Spring, thanks partly to the encouragement of English professors Matthew J. Burgess and Karl T. Steel.
    However, Mile’s interests do not solely reside in the 15th century. She has also completed an Honors class where she conducted independent research under psychology Professor Laura Rabin. “I went to assisted home facilities on a weekly basis to do arts and crafts projects with seniors and we gathered information,” explains Miles, also a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, a Presidential Scholar, a tutor in the BC Learning Center and editor of Night Call, a newspaper for night students at BC. “We had to gauge how they responded to verbal instructions or how efficient they were at hands-on activities.” She also was analyzing some of the social aspects that came along with the seniors’ participation in the activities.
     “My studies here laid the foundation for what I want to pursue long term,” she says.    

“I’ve had wonderful classes and excellent professors who made me realize that I love literature.”
    With such notable scholarship under her belt, Miles plans to apply to graduate school to pursue a Ph.D. in comparative literature following graduation in December. She’s thankful to Brooklyn College for giving her some academic direction.
    “My studies here laid the foundation for what I want to pursue long term,” she says. “I’ve had wonderful classes and excellent professors who made me realize that I love literature.”