Formed to honor Senator Barry Goldwater, the Goldwater Scholarship awards $7,500 per year, for up to two years of study, to students studying the STEM fields. The foundation seeks to “foster and encourage outstanding students to explore careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.”
Category: Features
Typically longer in length and relevancy than content in the news category. Features content is more likely to be republished over time.
Video and photos from Spring Celebration of Service and Leadership 2016
University of Washington students make a difference outside the classroom each and every day.
On and off campus, students work with communities to make a positive impact. The Spring Celebration of Service and Leadership celebrates these students and their diverse and inspiring experiences.
As students strive to address important social issues and bring about positive change, three important distinctions hold true: They lead with humility, partner for impact and strengthen communities.
Photos from the event
UW alumnus Benjamin Lee selected as Carnegie Junior Fellow
For 2015 University of Washington graduate Benjamin Lee, the opportunity to participate in the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Junior Fellowship program is a dream come true. The Carnegie junior fellows work as research assistants alongside the endowment’s more senior associates. The work is centered on international issues related to security and economics. Lee will be part of the Asia Studies division, working with Dr. Michael Swaine, a preeminent scholar on US-China security.
For Lee, this work is deeply personal and stems from his background as a Korean-American. “Most people ask why a Korean-American is interested in China,” explains Lee. “But, it’s actually a direct result of my experience growing up hearing about the tragic memories of the Korean War that sparked my interest in China’s security. In my international relations class, we discussed how throughout history war has been inevitable between the established and rising powers. If there is anything I can do to help prevent China from going through a war and experiencing the losses of innocent people, I want to help.”
The Carnegie Junior Fellowship is a first step in working towards this goal. Lee’s work will focus on China’s security. He will help Dr. Swaine prepare articles for the journal “China Leadership Monitor” and attend conferences related to US-China relations and the Asia–Pacific region. It will give him insight into working on public policy and issues of security. He anticipates this experience will be formative in determining his next steps, which tentatively include graduate school.
Lee first applied to the 2015 Carnegie Junior Fellowship program. After not being selected he was encouraged to re-apply by Robin Chang, Director of the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards. “I didn’t get this scholarship because I worked hard. It was truly a group effort,” reflects Lee. Robin supported me through the process, as did David Bachman of the Jackson School. He always welcomed me to office hours and encouraged me in my studies and application process. Jackson School Honors Program Director Deborah Porter had a huge influence on my intellectual development. During our work on my honors thesis, she showed me how to be a scholar. She pushed me to work very hard – both in my writing and thinking. I learned so much through the process. Professor William Boltz of the Asian Languages & Literatures also encouraged me to apply for the fellowship and wrote me a strong recommendation letter. All of these experiences helped prepare me for this fellowship.”
“It’s been a privilege to study at the University of Washington. My four years were really wonderful.”
After graduating in 2015, Lee moved to Beijing to study at Tsinghua University, part of the Inter-University Program. He’s studying Mandarin in order to better communicate with scholars in his field. His fellowship starts in August, and he looks forward to being in Washington D.C. during the election season.
UW student and alumna named Gates Cambridge Scholar
“My undergraduate research experience creating software for developing countries has motivated me to pursue a career as an academic researcher,” reflects UW senior and Gates-Cambridge scholar Krittika D’Silva. D’Silva is one of two University of Washington students selected for the prestigious, international scholarship.
2014-15 President’s Medalists contribute to a world of good, as undergraduates
Each year, undergraduate students of the highest caliber are selected for the prestigious President’s medal. For 2014-15, the President’s Medalists are active within and beyond the four walls of a classroom. Whether it’s through research, teaching dance or volunteering in hospitals, these students aren’t waiting until they graduate to contribute to a world of good. They’re busy making the world a better place right now.
Video and photos from MLK Week 2016
In January 2016, the University broadened and deepened our recognition of the MLK holiday and expanded our recognition from a day of service to a week of service, leadership, learning, legacy-building and celebration. Check out a wrap-up video and view some photos from various events from the week.
Remembering King: Students’ voices push arc toward justice – and we should listen
Some 48 years after his death, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day will undoubtedly bring protests to college campuses around the country, including here at the University of Washington. The students will march peacefully and forcefully. They will ask how long it will take to create a climate that welcomes every student. They will ask how we, as a university, plan to address “economic colonialism“ and how administrators plan to create a true multiracial campus that will serve as prelude to a “multiracial nation where all groups are dependent on each other.”
Welcome to fall quarter!
Each year, new Huskies come together on the field at Husky Stadium for their entering class photo. Thousands of them —stretching from one 10-yard-line to the other — form one giant W for their class photo. As students prepare to participate in opportunities all across campus over the coming years, they can find meaning in the time when they stood together at the start of their Husky career. The next time they will stand together (though not in a W) will be at commencement.
Here’s a little peek into the giant W taking shape.
https://youtu.be/9qF6hfL_urM
Transfer students realize their dreams, thanks to Martin Family Foundation
For 20 years, the Martin Family Foundation has supported students transferring to the University of Washington from Washington state community colleges. Martin Scholars cite not just the financial help in supporting their dreams of a college education, but also the encouragement that came with the recognition.
Undergraduate researchers find the UW to be an awesome “summer camp”
Each summer, when campus is quieter and Mt. Rainier is out more often, undergraduates from the University of Washington and from universities across the country participate in the UW version of a wonderful childhood tradition: summer camp. The UW, however, is quite a bit techier than the thin-walled, mossy-roofed cabins of yore.
Here, the hum, buzz and whir of high tech lab equipment replaces the song of the mosquito; lab coats are worn instead of polar fleece; and student researchers’ “camp counselors” are faculty members whose interests push the boundaries of innovation and contribute to a world of good.
Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium
Hear undergraduate researchers discuss their drive to discover innovations that contribute to a world of good.
Symposium highlights work of more than 120 undergraduates who have participated in STEM research over the summer.
August 19, 2015, 9 a.m.–12 noon
Mary Gates Hall Commons
This summer, more than 120 undergraduates brought their innovation mindsets and drive to discover to faculty research projects across campus. The projects varied from understanding pain to better alleviate it, to photonics, genome sciences, engineering and more.
New programs bring new opportunities for undergraduates
Of particular note is a new program in which undergraduate researchers are better understanding and contributing to the alleviation of pain. Millions of people in the US alone suffer from debilitating chronic pain. In the new Innovations in Pain Research Summer Program, students work alongside doctors and researchers from UW Medicine to better understand pain and treatment mechanisms, develop new therapies and improve access to evidence-based pain care.
Rising senior Alta Steward worked with Dr. Kushang V. Patel from the Department of Anesthesiology conducting epidemiology research with an emphasis on chronic pain and cellular aging. “Many older people suffer from chronic pain, and chronic pain has been linked to early death,” explains Stewart. “By looking at the relationship between cellular age and pain, we hope to shed light on what factors lead to earlier death and what can be done to combat these.”
This project is the first research project Stewart, a mathematics and neurobiology double-major, has worked on. She “had no idea what to expect going into this experience and had never even thought of doing epidemiology research before. I realized within the first week that this was a really great fit for me and I am thrilled to be able to continue this research in the coming year.”
Tom Gebert, a rising senior in neurobiology, researched different aspects of pain in children. In one study, he and his fellow researchers “analyzed a national database to study pediatric pain patients and subsequent development of psychiatric disorders in adulthood.” In the project he’ll present at the August 19 symposium, the team studied trends in opiod prescriptions in children, adolescents and their family members over 15 years. Given the high potential for misusing opiod prescriptions, results from this study could guide future studies and clinical practices around opiod use.
Even though Gebert has participated in undergraduate research for two years, he says that this summer’s projects have been “an incredible experience to be able to peek further into the world of academic research, and it is encouraging to see that with enough passion and drive there are opportunities to pursue just about any intellectual curiosity.”
The Innovations in Pain Research project is funded by a gift from Scan Design to the Department of Anesthesiology, which, in turn, is collaborating with the Undergraduate Research Program.
Another new opportunity for undergraduates is a collaboration with the UW’s CoMotion. Students in the CoMotion Mary Gates Innovation Scholars program spent the summer interning with faculty-led initiatives to create real-world impact from University research. Students work alongside UW teams in bringing discoveries to the marketplace and extend their classroom-based work into the realms of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Undergraduate research opportunities abound in the summer
In addition to these research opportunities, students are making advances in faculty-led research in organic chemistry, materials science and engineering, physics, electrical engineering, chemical synthesis, and more. Undergraduates are finding research opportunities in such programs as Hooked on Photonics, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Exceptional Research Opportunities Program, and the Center for Selective C-H Functionalization as well as others across campus.
The Undergraduate Research Program supports students in these summer research programs through advising, by building a community of researchers, and facilitating the application process to connect students and faculty researchers.
