ABINGTON, Pa. — Penn State Abington senior Ariel Hooks’ undergraduate career is peppered with accomplishments. She is a Schreyer Honors College scholar, a double major in history and English, and at the May 7 commencement will graduate one year early with highest distinction.
Hooks is president of both the Abington Review, the campus literary and arts magazine, and the Abington chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the international English honor society. For the past two years, she has also worked 10 hours a week on campus at the Center for Student Achievement as a writing tutor.
“I’ve always had the expectation from myself to be a good student. I really like a challenge. I hope to apply that same tenacity to grad school,” she said.
Hooks is the 2021 recipient of the Thomas R. and Eileen Walton Smith Award for Achievement in the Arts and Humanities for her honors thesis "I Didn't Mean To Get You All Riled Up, or The Gruesome Tale of Buster Malone: Pikachu’s Last Survival."
A compilation of short stories about Generation Z’s fascination for nostalgia, "Buster Malone" was hailed by the Smith Award judging committee as “polished, relevant, innovative, and thought-provoking, ushering in nuanced approaches to traditional genres in ways that are relatable to the current generation of students at Abington and beyond.”
Many of these stories discuss, either overtly or subtly, issues of gender, sexuality, stereotypes and mental health in order to navigate modern society’s perception of such topics.
“Buster Malone is this faceless person who asks us to think really deeply about societal issues that come up in each story,” Hooks said.
“I wanted to be creative with my thesis because it reflects me. I don’t think I would have been able to complete my thesis anywhere besides Penn State Abington. The professors and the Abington Review helped me hone my writing, and I always felt supported,” she said.