(MIDDLETOWN, CT) – Two Wesleyan University undergraduates recently earned Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships for their work and commitment towards pursuing careers in the sciences. Emily Jacobs-Palmer '06 of Keene, NH and Robert L. Judson '05 of Williamsport, PA are two students out of only 310 nationwide to earn the Goldwater scholarships. The one and two year scholarships will cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.
"I am particularly excited about this fellowship because it comes at a time when I am discovering just how passionate about scientific research I really am," says Jacobs-Palmer, a molecular biology & biochemistry major at Wesleyan. "The scholarship will help me to continue my studies at Wesleyan during both the school year and summers and to concentrate on my research."
Jacobs-Palmer is currently studying the pre-steady state kinetics on a bacterial protein that Wesleyan University Professor Don Oliver, is researching. Her career goal is to teach at the University level and to conduct research in life sciences on protein structure and function using a biochemical or biophysical approach.
Judson, also a molecular biology & biochemistry major, is currently conducting research on the Hepatitis D virus. His career goal is to conduct biomedical research in the treatment of infectious disease. "Receiving the scholarship means that experts in the field of science took my research ideas seriously," says Judson. "This has solidified my confidence in my choice of a science career as I enter my senior year and begin writing my thesis."
The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established by Public Law 99-661 on November 14, 1986. The Scholarship Program honoring Senator Barry M. Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences, and engineering. The Goldwater Scholarship is the premier undergraduate award of its type in these fields.
The Foundation, in its sixteen-year history, has awarded 4,272 scholarships worth approximately forty-two million dollars. The Trustees plan to award about three hundred scholarships for the 2005-2006 academic year.
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