The University announced last week the recipients of the Harrison Undergraduate Research Award, a grant worth up to $3,000 for a research project. The award was given to 24 undergraduate students looking for in-depth research opportunities about subjects ranging from the effects of anti-depressants in the treatment and prevention of post-traumatic stress disorder to contemporary Ugandan artists.
Students were asked to submit research proposals to the Center for Undergraduate Excellence, which works in conjunction with the Faculty Senate to select and advise the recipients of the award.\n"Faculty involvement in this program is so important," said Lucy Russell, director of the Center for Undergraduate Excellence. "From reviewing research proposals to advising students throughout their projects, professors play an invaluable role."
Second-year Engineering student Carolyn Pelnik said her advisor was crucial to the success of the project. "I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do, but my advisor helped formulate the idea and will be guiding me throughout the process." Pelnik will be working in a chemical engineering lab researching the ability of bacteria to migrate to or degrade harmful chemical pollutants.
Dr. Wendy Lynch is the advisor for Catherine Miller, a third-year College student double majoring in psychology and cognitive science. Lynch will help Miller collaborate with a Virginia Commonwealth University lab in her research on the impact and treatment of nicotine addiction.
"Throughout the year, I've been working on the behavioral part of nicotine addiction, and over the summer I'll be working on analysis of the tissue [in rats]," Miller said. This past year, she's been working in a Charlottesville lab and will use the grant money to further build off some of their research.
All undergraduate students can apply for funding, regardless of their area of interest.
"This multidisciplinary aspect makes the Harrison Awards particularly special," Russell said. "In the past, students have studied renewable energy in Scandinavia and the building of an international telescope in Chile. They have taken on questions about diabetes, neurogenesis, butanol production, microfinance and the healing aspects of an Indian martial art - just to name a few."
The award is often a stepping-stone for further research. Tyler Spencer, a 2008 graduate of the College, was inspired by his undergraduate research in South Africa to establish a non-profit organization in Washington, D.C. devoted to HIV prevention, Russell said, adding that Spencer is now studying at Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship.
"I'm definitely really excited, it's really cool to have the resources to do your own project," Pelnik said.
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