MEDIA: Shelley Pressley, Director of the Office of Undergraduate Research, WSU Undergraduate Education, 509-335-5488, spressley@wsu.edu
Emma Epperly, Communications and Marketing Junior Assistant, WSU Undergraduate Education, 509-335-9458, UCHCCommMar.5@wsu.edu
PULLMAN, Wash.—Twenty- nine Washington State University students at Pullman, Vancouver, and Tri-Cities campuses have received three types of awards from the Office of Undergraduate Research, part of WSU Undergraduate Education.
“These industrious students will work with faculty mentors throughout the 2015-16 academic year on research and creative projects, advancing or creating new knowledge in a specific field,” said Shelley Pressley, undergraduate research director. “On March 28, they will share their results, along with about 150 other students, at the fifth annual Showcase for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (SURCA),” said Pressley.
Gifts since 2006 fund one-third of a million dollars in awards
“Supporting student research aligns with a key focus of our land-grant university. The three types of awards made so far this year are typically $1,000 each. They bring the total amount of our awards made since the Office of Undergraduate Research began in 2006 to around one-third of a million dollars. We are grateful for our generous alumni and friends whose gifts have enriched the academic experience of hundreds of students.”
The Scott and Linda Carson Undergraduate Research Endowed Excellence Fund is the newest award, established in 2013. The Carson’s are WSU alumni who have supported the university with their service and numerous financial gifts. The Carson Fund is the first to give preference to recipients who are upper- division students (juniors and seniors).
The Fuentes- Kirk award was created in 2012 by Norma C. Fuentes and Gary M. Kirk, supporters of the Office of Undergraduate Education. Their award was created to support students pursuing research with a mentor.
The first undergraduate research award fund in the Office of Undergraduate Research — the Auvil Scholars Fellowship — began in 2006 with a gift from the estates of Grady and Lillie Auvil, Wenatchee tree-fruit entrepreneurs. Auvil awards are available to undergraduate researchers from all majors, in all grades, across all WSU campuses.
Carson Fellows for 2015-16
Beija Robbins, a biology major at WSU Vancouver mentored by Allison Coffin
Juan Ramirez, a biology major mentored by Erica Crespi
Fuentes-Kirk Award Winner for 2015-16
Holly Lane, an organic agriculture systems major mentored by Michael Neff
Auvil Fellows for 2015-16
Arill Bartrand, a civil engineering and mathematics major mentored by Vikram Yadama
Jennifer Callanan, an animal sciences major mentored by Amber Adams-Progar
Kevin Cavender, a mechanical engineering major mentored by Jacob Leachman
Donald Cundy III, a bioengineering major mentored by Anita Vasavada
Chloe Erikson, a neuroscience major mentored by Brendan Walker
Kent Evans, a mechanical engineering major mentored by Arda Gozen
Jaren Files, an entrepreneurship major mentored by John Osiri
Alistair Fortson, a history major mentored by Lydia Gerber
Mitchel Go, a biochemistry major mentored by Brian Kemp
Giselle Gomez, a computer science major at WSU Vancouver mentored by Alex Dimitrov
Nicholas Greene, a neuroscience and psychology major mentored by Rebecca Craft
Samantha Grover, a bioengineering major mentored by Alla Kostyukova
Jacob Hall, a bioengineering major mentored by Amy Arguello
Bryan Heer, a materials science and engineering major mentored by Amit Bandyopadhyay
Natalie Hurst, an animal sciences/pre-veterinary major mentored by Jennifer Zambriski
Dana McCurdy, an animal sciences and biology major mentored by Cliff Berkman
Alan McGinnis, a digital technology and culture major at WSU Vancouver mentored by Dene Grigar
Kari Mitchell, a microbiology and geology major mentored by Sergey Lapin
Daniel Mortensen, a chemical engineering major mentored by Steven R. Saunders
Austyn Orvis, a zoology major mentored by Kwanhee Kim
Hannah Pulcastro, a neuroscience major mentored by Bertrand Tanner
Olivia Ranft, a chemical engineering major mentored by Jacqueline Burgher
Ryan Summers, a computer engineering major mentored by Zhiwu Zhang
Matthew Waldrip, a physics major mentored by Brian Collins
Logan Wickham, a computer science major at WSU Tri-Cities mentored by Nikolaos Voulgarakis
Jan Yochim, a public affairs major at WSU Vancouver mentored by Dana Baker