Congratulations to Honors College Student Hailey Patchett: 2025 Portz Interdisciplinary Fellowship Award Recipient

By Gary Hyatt, WSU Honors College, gary.hyatt1@wsu.edu

The Honors College is proud to congratulate Hailey Patchett, an incoming senior majoring in Microbiology and minoring in Spanish, on receiving a 2025 Portz Interdisciplinary Fellowship Award. Hailey is one of only six students nationwide selected for this prestigious honor, which supports creative and innovative undergraduate research that crosses disciplinary boundaries.

Hailey received a $5,000 top-tier award for her project titled “A new human-dog co-evolutionary paradigm via social media positive feedback loops.” Guided by her faculty mentor, Dr. Joanna Schultz, Hailey’s research explores the enduring bond between humans and dogs in the context of the digital age. By measuring oxytocin

levels in participants before and after watching curated dog-related content on social media, her project seeks to uncover whether virtual interactions can trigger emotional responses similar to those experienced during in-person interactions with dogs.

Reflecting on her work, Hailey shared: “This project will explore the long-standing relationship between humans and dogs; specifically, whether watching dog-related content on social media can elevate oxytocin levels and trigger emotional responses similar to those experienced during in-person interactions with dogs. … By measuring participants’ oxytocin levels before and after viewing curated dog videos, we hope to discover how this ancient, interspecies bond may be evolving in the digital age!”

Launched in 2010 through a gift from John and Edythe Portz, the Portz Interdisciplinary Fellowship is one of the most competitive awards in honors education, supporting bold, cross-disciplinary projects by exceptional undergraduate scholars. Hailey is the second Honors College student to receive this prestigious award, following Teva Mayer, the College’s first recipient in 2017.

Hailey expressed gratitude for the support she has received along the way: “Deepest thanks to my mentor, Dr. Joanna Schultz, the WSU Honors College, and the National Collegiate Honors Council for supporting my work. Go Cougs!”

Hailey’s achievement highlights the intellectual curiosity, creativity, and research excellence at the heart of the WSU Honors College. We are excited to see how her project will expand our understanding of the human-animal bond in an increasingly digital world.

Congratulations, Hailey!