Outstanding students looking for some money to do original research will be in luck this year, since the Harrison Undergraduate Research Awards will increase in both the number of recipients and the amount of money awarded this year.
The number of recipients will grow from 25 to 40, said Faculty Senate Scholarship Chairman Bill Kehoe. The recipients, who are teamed up with a faculty mentor, receive $3,000 while the mentor receives $1,000. Past projects have helped students study everything from religion in the United States to medical practices in Kenya.
"This is a different way of getting an education ... it's a spectacular way of creating student-faculty relationships," said Robert Grainger, former scholarship chairman, Faculty Senate chairman-elect and biology professor.
The application process begins with the student formulating a research proposal in the intended area of study.
The proposal should include what the student plans to do, how the research will be executed, when the project will be completed and what the predicted final results will entail.
The student should then work with a professor to discuss ideas and a current budget. If the professor agrees to help the student with his or her research, the professor must then write a letter of recommendation in support of the student's project.
"Students should find faculty members whom they've taken courses from and with whom they share a common interest," Kehoe said. "I'd welcome students proposing ideas to me. [This process] fosters student-faculty relations as well as advancing knowledge and stimulating learning."
Once the applications have been completed, they are reviewed by the Research and Scholarship Committee. The Committee looks for a blend of "motivation, creativity, excitement, and clarity of thinking," said Grainger.
Last year the Committee found strong applications in all areas of study and chose approximately one-third of the applicants from each proposed discipline.
Grainger said he was overwhelmed by the articulate presentations and the unique ideas of all of the applicants.
The total funding, primarily from a donation from alumnus David A. Harrison III and funding allocated by University Provost Peter W. Low, will be increased from $100,000 to $160,000.
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