Honors College at WSU Lands18 Award Spots for Auvil Scholars Fellowships for Undergraduates
PULLMAN, Wash.—Eighteen Honors College students at Washington State University have received word that they are among the 43 recipients of 2011-12 Auvil Scholars Fellowships awarded to support undergraduate research.
With majors ranging from Spanish to biochemistry, and from economics to organic agriculture, the Honors students include the only freshman to receive an award this year.
“We are very pleased to announce the largest number of awards ever from the Auvil awards fund,” says Shelley Pressley, director of undergraduate research, a program in the University College at WSU.
“We received 91 total applications from students, so the competition for awards this year was great. Our reviewers faced difficult decisions. Those selected to receive an Auvil award are representative of disciplines across the university, and their individual research projects strongly merit this funding support.”
Dean Libby Walker complimented the Honors students. “Our college encourages students to explore topics that interest them, and pursuing undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative activity—which WSU defines as ‘research’—with a mentoring faculty member is a wonderful, enlightening experience. We are very proud that so many Honors students applied for Auvil awards, and also that 18 students received them. We look forward to hearing the results of their research.”
In alphabetical order by last name, of the 43 Auvil Fellows, these 18 are in the Honors College:
- Hannah R. Balash, senior Spanish and basic medical science major mentored by James Pru
- Omar Bayomy, senior neuroscience major mentored by James Krueger
- Sarah E. Brewer, sophomore agricultural biotechnology and genetics major mentored by Norman Lewis
- Ryan W. Christian, junior agricultural biotechnology major mentored by Amit Dhingra
- Shealyn M. Comstock, senior speech and hearing sciences major mentored by Teresa Cardon
- Graham C. Dart, senior music and economics major mentored by Shannon Scott
- Megan M. Elsarelli, junior neuroscience and pre-vet major mentored by Sue Ritter
- Elizabeth Graham, junior neuroscience major mentored by Gary Wayman
- Fiorella C. Grandi, sophomore biochemistry major mentored by Wenfeng An
- Quinn Langfitt, junior mechanical engineering major mentored by Grant Norton
- Emily Martin, junior biology and Spanish major mentored by Jeb Owen
- Evelyn Quezada, junior English major mentored by Olusola Adesope
- Lauryn Ringwood, senior economic sciences/international trade major mentored by Robert Rosenman
- Ryan P. Scott, senior history/political science major mentored by Jeffrey Sanders
- Erin M. Sebring, senior speech and hearing science major mentored by Phyllis Erdman
- Brody L. Teare, freshman organic agriculture major mentored by Colin Campbell
- Steven A. Turi, senior economic sciences major mentored by Glenn Crellin
- Rachel Wanty, senior neuroscience and Spanish major mentored by Krzysztof Czaja
The Auvil Scholars Fellowship program began with a 2006 gift from the estates of Grady and Lillie Auvil, Wenatchee tree-fruit entrepreneurs. Grady Auvil is remembered as believing in the importance of education and research. Throughout his life, he and his wife contributed generously to the WSU community.
These awards in their name provide up to $1,000 awards each to undergraduate researchers from all majors. Awards are typically made in fall semester, but since the program began some awards have also been made in spring and summer.
Through the University College at WSU, undergraduate research is given a university-wide focus. The unit provides information about on- and beyond-campus opportunities to participate in hands-on learning and discovery with the guidance of a mentor experienced in research. It hosts a one-week fundamentals program in summer for students new to research, and hosts an annual symposium where students across the institution can display and discuss their work and findings with others. Auvil Fellows participate in the symposium, scheduled this spring for April 2, 2012. Undergraduate research is identified by experts in higher education practice as a high-impact activity for student participants
For more information on the program at WSU, visit UndergraduateResearch.wsu.edu. [http://UndergraduateResearch.wsu.edu]
SOURCE: Shelley Pressley, Director, Undergraduate Research, University College at WSU, 509-335-5443
MEDIA: Deven Tokuno, Communications Assistant, Honors College at WSU, 509-335-8070
Beverly Makhani, Director, Communications, Honors College at WSU, 509-335-6679, makhani@wsu.edu