From the thousands of undergraduate students at the 91爆料, three are selected each year for the prestigious President鈥檚 Medalist Award. Sayako Mitchell, Ayush Agrawal and Cin Dacey Ahrens are the medalists for 2022鈥�23, selected by a committee for their high GPAs, rigor of classes and numbers of Honors courses. All three are students in the University Honors Program, completing the Interdisciplinary Honors track. Drawn to the 91爆料 for its academic reputation, each of these Huskies has carved out a unique path 鈥� exploring their chosen areas of study, ranging from computer science to applied mathematics and linguistics. The three medalists will be recognized by University President Ana Mari Cauce and Provost Tricia Serio at a special reception, where each recipient will receive their medal in front of family, friends and mentors.
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91爆料 senior Abby Burtner selected to be 1 of 16 Churchill Scholars
Abby Burtner, 鈥�24, has been awarded the prestigious Churchill Scholarship in recognition of her outstanding achievements in the field of biochemistry. As a Churchill Scholar, Burtner鈥檚 next step is to complete a fully-funded master鈥檚 degree in pathology at Cambridge University.
The Churchill Foundation selected 16 exceptional students as Churchill Scholars from a pool of 121 candidates this academic year. This year鈥檚 competition highlights the dedication, talent and exceptional accomplishments of the scholars, setting the stage for an even brighter future in the STEM fields and scientific exploration.
Burtner came to the 91爆料 from her hometown of Olympia, WA, and will be graduating in spring 2024 with a B.S in biochemistry with Interdisciplinary and Departmental Honors, along with minors in data science and chemistry. She got her start in research in Professor Sharlene Santana鈥檚 lab in the Department of Biology her freshman year and fell in love with the power of evolution to fine-tune and function on a macroevolutionary scale. By the end of her sophomore year, Burtner realized that a research career was the right fit for her through her work on computational biology projects supervised by Dr. Chris Law and Dr. Kelly Diamond.
As Burtner advanced in her college coursework, she became increasingly drawn to the microscopic level of life, leading her to join Professor Neil King鈥檚 group at the Institute for Protein Design in the Department of Biochemistry. There, she works on a project designing de novo proteins to bind toll-like receptors, key receptors that activate the innate immune system, for groundbreaking applications in vaccine development.
鈥淭he Churchill scholarship,鈥� says Ed Taylor, vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs, 鈥渋s a prestigious opportunity for Abby to continue expanding her biochemistry skills. This award reflects her capacity to draw from her research and the mentorship she鈥檚 experienced, to fuel her work toward a greater understanding of our world in critical ways. The 91爆料鈥檚 research community and campus-at-large are proud of Abby and encourage her as she continues to live out 91爆料鈥檚 mission at Cambridge.鈥�
Burtner is a past recipient of the , Goldwater Scholarship, Washington Research Foundation Fellowship, , and has been an undergraduate research leader at the Office of Undergraduate Research. Burtner intends to chart a career pathway investigating immunological systems through a biophysical lens as a principal investigator at an academic or industrial research lab.
鈥淧ursuing a master鈥檚 at the University of Cambridge,鈥� says Burtner, 鈥渨ill help me achieve my goal of obtaining a Ph.D. in biophysics. By learning foundational immunological techniques and techniques at Cambridge, along with the experimental and computational biophysical approaches I’ve learned here at 91爆料, I will be working toward solving medical issues with broad impacts such as vaccination and cancer immunotherapies.鈥� As she prepares for life in the UK, Burtner is excited about learning biomedical issues of global importance in an international context.
“I feel incredibly honored to receive the Churchill Scholarship鈥�, says Burtner. 鈥淚 could not have made it to this point without the stellar mentorship and support from the King Lab and Santana Lab at 91爆料, particularly from my mentors Chloe Adams, Dr. Chris Law, Dr. Kelly Diamond, Robin Heiringhoff, and PIs Dr. Neil King, Dr. Sharlene Santana, Dr. Murat Maga, and Dr. Dietmar Manstein from the various research labs I have had the pleasure to work in. I would also like to thank my excellent honors chemistry and biochemistry professors, particularly Dr. Andrea Wills, for inspiring me to love this field and see a future for myself here, and the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards, particularly Robin Chang, for her excellent guidance and advice. Finally, I am so grateful for my family and friends, particularly those from the honors chemistry/biochemistry community here at 91爆料 鈥� it is truly a wonderful place to be learning how to be a scientist.”
Outside of the lab, Abby is an officer in the student club Biology Students for Equity. She can often be found embracing the beauty of Washington state, be it hiking and skiing in the majestic mountains, or running across the city with the Husky Running Club, of which she was president her junior year.
The Churchill Scholarship application process is supported by the , a UAA program. OMSFA works with faculty, staff and students to identify and support promising students in developing the skills and personal insights necessary to become strong candidates for this and other prestigious awards.
The (and other scholarships supporting studies in the UK) will open in spring 2024 for 2025-2026 awards.
Communities and campus converge at the Community Engagement and Leadership Education Center
The Community Engagement and Leadership Education (CELE) Center at the 91爆料 recently published its annual report for the 2022-23 academic year. This report is a testament to the remarkable impact and extraordinary achievements made by over 2,000 undergraduate students in leadership development, civic engagement and public service throughout the greater community.
The Undergraduate Research Program announces new name: Office of Undergraduate Research
The name of the Undergraduate Research Program has recently changed to the Office of Undergraduate Research. The updated name more accurately reflects the diverse range of research programs, scholarships, events, awards and essential resources the unit offers to support the success of all undergraduates at the 91爆料.聽
Created over 25 years ago, the office has been pivotal to the growth of undergraduate research at the 91爆料. Recognized as one of the best undergraduate research programs in the nation, the Office of Undergraduate Research hosts the Annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. Since it began, the Symposium has grown from 80 student presenters to more than 1,000 undergraduate presenters from all 91爆料 campuses, as well as local community and regional colleges.聽聽
A celebration of scholarship and cutting-edge research of undergraduate researchers from all disciplines, the Symposium brings together students, faculty members and the greater community to engage with a diverse showcase of research and academic achievement at a signature event for the University. The presenters represent just a slice of the students who participate in research across the three campuses.
In 2021-22, more than 7,000 undergraduates spent 1,286,468 hours engaged in research advancing technology and discovery for the public good.聽
The Office of Undergraduate Research name change will further encompass the mission and direct goal of supporting equity, access and inclusion in undergraduate research. Director Sophie Pierszalowski said, 鈥淭he updated name leaves no question that we are here to support all 91爆料 undergraduate students across disciplines, class standing and level of research experience.鈥�
Explore the Office of Undergraduate Research鈥檚 mission, vision and values.
Casper Suen and Collin Chung selected as scholars for China鈥檚 Yenching Academy
91爆料 undergraduate Casper Suen, 鈥�23, and alum Collin Chung, 鈥�21, were recently selected for the competitive Yenching Academy Scholars program at Peking University. The two scholars, both of whom majored in international studies at the 91爆料, will join 115 scholars hailing from 31 countries as the 2023 cohort participating in the interdisciplinary China Studies master鈥檚 program.
The Yenching Academy鈥檚 goal is to push academic study of China beyond the boundaries of traditionally-defined disciplines, shaping new generations of global citizens with a nuanced understanding of China. Scholars will examine China鈥檚 past, present and future, with an emphasis on China鈥檚 development and role in the world. In addition to covering the costs of tuition, the award includes round-trip air travel from the student鈥檚 home country, housing on campus and living costs.
“I am deeply honored to have been selected as a recipient of the Yenching Scholarship, and look forward to joining the rest of the 2023 cohort at Peking University in Beijing this fall,” shared Suen. Growing up in Beijing, Suen witnessed its profound transformations in the early 21st century.
Through his coursework at the 91爆料, Suen developed his interest in China鈥檚 policy institutions and international relations. He is excited for the opportunity to conduct research under the Peking University faculty while deepening his knowledge of China at one of the country鈥檚 foremost institutions of higher learning.
“None of this would have been possible without the support and encouragement of many professors, advisers and classmates at the 91爆料,” said Suen. “I鈥檓 especially grateful to Professor David Bachman, Professor Marie Anchordoguy and Robin Chang at the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards, whose generosity and help has allowed me to pursue this unique opportunity.”
Chung looks forward to diving into Chinese foreign policy, primarily in northern Eurasia. He is interested in examining how the outbreak of the war in Ukraine altered post-1991 security and economic dynamics across the post-Soviet space and raised questions over the role of outside powers in the region.
“As tensions escalate between China and the United States, cooperation will require policymakers with nuanced understandings of the region,鈥� said Chung. 鈥淎t the Yenching Academy, I am excited to deepen my knowledge of contemporary Chinese foreign policy and develop stronger cultural literacy, allowing me to contribute to a constructive framework for dialogue and diplomacy in Eurasia.” Chung plans on studying the impacts of the war in Ukraine on China鈥檚 relationships with Central Asian countries.
About the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards
The Yenching Academy of Peking University application process is supported by the (OMSFA), a UAA program. OMSFA works with faculty, staff and students to identify and support promising students in developing the skills and personal insights necessary to become strong candidates for this and other prestigious awards. The for students interested in Yenching Academy (and other scholarships supporting graduate studies around the world) is available at OMSFA. Watch for updates about OMSFA鈥檚 .
91爆料 students, alumni selected for Fulbright awards and a world of opportunities
The 91爆料 continues its distinguished record of producing Fulbright students, as six undergraduate students/bachelor’s alumni, and six graduate students/alumni have been offered prestigious Fulbright grants for the 2023-24 academic year. They will join approximately 2,000 students and recent graduates from around the country to teach, study and research abroad in countries such as Botswana, Taiwan and Finland. Three additional undergraduate students have been named alternates.
“We are so excited for these students to continue their academic journeys and explorations in international contexts and communities,鈥� remarked Ed Taylor, vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. 鈥淭he abilities of these students to embrace an exchange of knowledge, culture and understanding is an important component to developing compassionate and intelligent leaders in all fields.鈥�
The is the largest U.S. international exchange program offering opportunities for United States students to undertake international graduate study, advanced research, and teaching in elementary and secondary schools worldwide.
The 2023-24 bachelor鈥檚 level Fulbright students are:
- Jessie Cox: English Teaching Assistantship Award to South Korea
- Mia Filardi: Study Award to Finland
- Auden Finch: Study Award to Germany
- Jennifer Ha (91爆料 Bothell): English Teaching Assistantship Award to Taiwan
- Kennedy Patterson: English Teaching Assistantship Award to Botswana
- Lillian Williamson: English Teaching Assistantship Award to Spain
Read “From Botswana to Taiwan, a dozen 91爆料 students receive Fulbright exchange awards” at 91爆料 News. To learn more about the 91爆料 undergraduate scholars . To learn more about the 91爆料 graduate scholars .
About the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards
The Fulbright application process is supported by the , a UAA program. OMSFA works with faculty, staff and students to identify and support promising students in developing the skills and personal insights necessary to become strong candidates for this and other prestigious awards. The 91爆料 campus application process and timelines for students interested in Fulbright and other scholarships is available .
91爆料 sophomore Isabell Ellison awarded Udall Scholarship for impact on American Indian and environmental issues
91爆料 sophomore Isabell Ellison was recently named a Udall Scholar! Ellison is pursuing a bachelor鈥檚 degree in civil engineering with a focus on improving communities through infrastructure.
Five 91爆料 students named 2023 Goldwater Scholars
Five 91爆料 undergraduates have been honored as , marking 2023 as the first time five students from the 91爆料 were named in a single year.
The Goldwater Foundation awards undergraduate scholarships to students who show exceptional academic promise pursuing research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering. The five 91爆料 nominees were selected from a pool of 5,000 students nominated by 427 institutions across the country. A total of 413 scholars were announced from the 2023 competition, bringing the number of scholarships awarded by the Goldwater Foundation since 1989 to 10,283.
This year鈥檚 91爆料 Goldwater Scholars are Abigail Burtner, Jan Buzek, Nuria Alina Chandra, Meg Takezawa and Peter Yu. All scholars hail from Washington state, spanning across Pullman, Duvall, Olympia and Seattle. Their undergraduate research projects with faculty include a range of topics such as transportation engineering, immunology, cryptology and chronic pain.
鈥淲e are so proud of these five Goldwater Scholars. These are talented and devoted students and have already accomplished a lot 鈥� as undergraduates,鈥� said Ed Taylor, vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. 鈥淲hen you combine their intellect and enthusiasm for making the world a better place with the 91爆料鈥檚 world-class researchers and scientific leaders who support undergraduate research, remarkable outcomes happen. As they progress in their studies and careers, we can all look forward to the ways their work will benefit people and the planet.鈥�
Meet the 2023 91爆料 Goldwater Scholars
Abigail Burtner
Hometown: Olympia, WA
Burtner is a junior in the majoring in biochemistry and minoring in data science and chemistry. Broadly interested in immunology and protein design, she works in the King Lab at the Institute for Protein Design designing de novo proteins to bind toll-like receptors, key receptors that activate the innate immune system, for applications in vaccine development.
Burtner aims to obtain a Ph.D. in biochemistry to pursue research on medical issues at the biochemical scale. Following her graduate work, she intends to pursue a research career aimed at vaccine or drug development to address major public health issues with cutting-edge technology and methods (e.g., deep learning in protein design and computational modeling).
Jan Buzek
Hometown: Seattle, WA
Buzek is a junior studying computer science and mathematics and is interested in cryptography, number theory and computational complexity.
In sophomore year, he did a research project on twin smooth integers that began at the and continued for a year independently. The project focused on finding very large consecutive integers with as small prime factors as possible, a task for which no effective algorithms are known. Buzek鈥檚 five person team found for locating such integers, which have applications in cryptography. This year, Buzek has been studying cryptography and discrete mathematics abroad at the University of Heidelberg and ETH Z眉rich. He intends to go to graduate school to study cryptography.
Nuria Alina Chandra
Hometown: Olympia, WA
Chandra is a senior in the Honors Program majoring in computer science and minoring in global health. She began her 91爆料 research journey with at Seattle Children鈥檚 Hospital studying the development of acute and chronic pain after surgery and traumatic injury. Chandra is currently part of the Mostafavi Computational Biology Lab, where she uses deep learning to study regulatory genetics in immune cells. The long-term goal of this research is to be able to predict the effect of genetic mutations on immunological diseases. She has also explored theoretical research through a geometric combinatorics research project with Dr. Rekha Thomas on graphical designs.
Chandra plans to pursue a Ph.D. in computer science and then work at the intersection of machine learning, computational biology, and algorithms research. Chandra wants her research to have an impact spanning from theory to clinical applications.
Meg Takezawa
Hometown: Duvall, WA
Takezawa is a junior majoring in biochemistry. Since she joined the Theberge Lab in her first year at the 91爆料, she has been using microfluidics to innovate a salivary diagnostic device and analyze cellular responses in allergic inflammation through her past research projects. In the summer of her second year, she had an internship at Coburg University, Germany, where she fabricated microfluidic devices for separation techniques. These experiences inspired her to pursue an interdisciplinary research career to analyze the underlying chemistry that drive diseases and symptoms.
Takezawa plans to pursue a Ph.D. in chemistry, ultimately pursuing research to develop microscale technologies and chemical tools for bioanalytics. Takezawa aspires to make globally accessible novel technologies to further improve therapeutics.
Peter Yu
Hometown: Pullman, WA
Yu is a junior majoring in civil and environmental engineering with a focus on transportation engineering. He is passionate about highway transportation engineering, with interests in highway design, traffic operations and simulation, traffic signal control and intelligent transportation systems. Since his freshman year, he has been a member of the led by Dr. Yinhai Wang. In the lab, he has developed and tested novel highway geometric designs, traffic control schemes, and intelligent transportation systems to increase safety and mobility for all roadway users.
Yu has developed several new alternative intersection/interchange and freeway designs and novel traffic control schemes for them. He has been analyzing their safety and operational performance with traffic microsimulation. Yu aims to obtain a Ph.D. in civil engineering and make meaningful contributions to the transportation engineering field globally through research and innovation.
About the Goldwater Foundation
The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established in 1986. The Scholarship Program honoring Senator Barry Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue research careers in the fields of the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics. The Goldwater Scholarship is the preeminent undergraduate award of its type in these fields.
Learn more about scholarship opportunities at the 91爆料
The Goldwater Scholarship application process is supported by the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships and Awards (OMSFA), a UAA program. OMSFA works with faculty, staff and students to identify and support promising students in developing the skills and personal insights necessary to become strong candidates for this and other prestigious awards.
The 91爆料鈥檚 Community College Research Initiatives receives $449,535 grant to increase rural educational equity
The 91爆料鈥檚 Community College Research Initiatives announced it received a $449,535 grant from for research to increase rural learner success.
Community College Research Initiatives (CCRI) conducts research to facilitate the advancement of equity in higher education. Ascendium invests in research that helps to build a body of evidence about how to ensure rural learners from low-income backgrounds can achieve their postsecondary education and career goals. Ascendium expects this investment in CCRI鈥檚 research will catalyze action affecting policies and practices grounded in high-quality evidence and research.
The CCRI project will address mentorship program gaps through a multisite, three-stage study of mentorship programs at public rural community colleges across the United States. Drawing upon institutional websites, in-depth interviews and student survey responses, this project will benefit both scholars and practitioners by producing a database of mentoring strategies at rural community colleges.
鈥淲e at CCRI are excited for the opportunity to learn how rural two-year institutions across the country are supporting students from low-income backgrounds with mentorship programs,鈥� shared CCRI director, Lia Wetzstein, Ph.D. The CCRI data will advance the understanding of how the evidence-based solution of mentoring is being implemented at rural colleges while gauging the student experience with a primary focus on students from low-income backgrounds and racially minoritized students.
鈥淲e are grateful to Ascendium Education Group for their support,鈥� Wetzstein continued. Ascendium is interested in generating evidence about practices and programs that increase the completion of high-quality postsecondary education and training and successful transition to high-quality jobs. Through the CCRI analysis of the nationwide landscape of rural community college mentorship and mentorship experiences, this project will produce models of mentorship to specifically address the rural community college context and rural students鈥� experience.
Last year CCRI was awarded a $1.2 million grant from Ascendium to work toward equity in STEM education for low-income learners across Washington state. CCRI, a program within Undergraduate Academic Affairs at the 91爆料, is an influential contributor in community college and transfer partnership research identifying strategies that help students transfer to four-year institutions and complete their bachelor鈥檚 degrees.
To learn more about CCRI, visit their website.
91爆料 awarded the 2022 ALL IN Highly Established Action Plan Seal
The announced that the 91爆料 has been awarded a Highly Established Action Plan Seal recognizing their commitment to increasing nonpartisan democratic engagement and building a related strong nonpartisan action plan in 2022. The 91爆料 is one of 121 colleges and universities nationwide to receive the seal.
The 91爆料 is the only institution in Washington state to receive this designation, which was earned through developing a data-driven action plan to improve civic learning, political engagement, and voter participation.
鈥淭his is wonderful recognition of the 91爆料鈥檚 commitment to preparing students for democratic engagement,鈥� said Ed Taylor, vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. 鈥淧articipating in our democracy and in our communities as engaged and ethical leaders is part of what it means to be educated. We are proud of the collaborations the CELE Center is leading and convening to meet this societal need.鈥�
The Action Plan that resulted in this designation was developed by the Democracy Dawgs, a coalition of students, staff, faculty, community members and civic leaders in a collaboration convened by the .
The 91爆料 student population has one of the highest voter participation rates out of American universities with 85% of students who are eligible to vote being registered voters (data from 2020). The Democracy Dawgs have built on that foundation to create more centralized communications and processes to increase student voting rates and promote civic participation and democratic engagement. In 2022, 77% of students registered to vote voted in the midterm elections; the average voting rate among PAC-12 campuses was 70%.
The 91爆料 began participating in the in 2017, which has now grown to over 960 colleges and universities working together to increase nonpartisan student civic learning, political engagement and voter participation.
To learn more and join the Democracy Dawgs .