One of the 2025 recipients of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence Scholarly/Creative Grant was Victoria Hess, a fourth-year student double majoring in Theatre and Integrated Educational Studies. Thanks to this funding, she spent this past summer on a creative project adapting a children’s book into a one-act play.

Hess leveraged her double major to create an interdisciplinary thesis project. “I knew I wanted to combine theatre and education…So I decided to create a children’s play, but of course that costs money,” said Hess. “I was looking at my different options, and my advisor had suggested applying for the CUE grant.” Hess only had about a week to put together a proposal before the deadline with the help of Dr. Jocelyn Buckner, Hess’s faculty mentor. 

Hess had the idea to adapt the children’s novel The Borrowers by Mary Norton, which is a story about tiny people who live in human homes and borrow items for their survival. Her partner and Chapman University alumni, Sam Trott, helped write the adaptation while Hess directed and produced the show, as well as building the set herself. Due to the nature of the play being about tiny people borrowing regular sized objects, she had to build props such as a giant egg cup and a giant spool. “I feel like I had such a specific vision in mind that I was also like ‘let me just build the whole set,’” said Hess. “I was just creating things in a way that I have never really done before, which was really exciting.” Hess’s work experience as an Assistant Technician for the College of Performing Arts allowed her to use her previous knowledge of building sets and props to create scenes for her play. Hess worked on her play at the start of 2025 and was able to bring it to the stage on August 7 at the Orange Public Library to an audience of children, as well as a show for family and friends at the black box theatre in Moulton Hall at Chapman University a few weeks later.  

“It was such a learning experience,” said Hess, while reflecting on this project. She explained how putting on this play shaped how she would take on more creative projects as she continues in this field of work. “Maybe if I did it again [in the future] I’m already imagining something different or a different approach to directing and leadership.” As Hess is finishing up her time at Chapman, she is working on graduate school applications to work towards a certification to teach theatre in high schools.  

The Scholarly/Creative Grant assisted Hess in bringing her creative project to life. When asked about advice to students who are considering applying for a scholarly/creative grant, Hess said, “Just apply…I wasn’t sure if I wasn’t going to get [the grant], but it doesn’t hurt to apply.” She also stressed the importance of giving yourself time and grace to get your research/creative project done. 

For students who have scholarly/creative projects in mind and are in need of funding, the fall deadline to apply for the Undergraduate Scholarly/Creative is October 31 at 4pm. To learn more about Victoria Hess and other students supported by CUE grants, visit the Argyros Forum Student Union Gallery display, on view through January ’26.