ATHENS, Ga. ֖ Twenty-nine University of Georgia students have been awarded summer fellowships through the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities (CURO) to work on research projects in disciplines ranging from literature to genetics.
CURO, part of UGA’s Honors Program, manages the program that gives undergraduates eight weeks of intensive, hands-on experience to explore individual research projects guided by faculty. The fellowships are funded by the Provost’s Office, the Biomedical and Health Sciences Institute and the Office of the Vice President for Research. Additionally, one summer fellowship has been funded to work in UGA’s Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases.
“We are very pleased that our summer fellowship continues to attract talented students interested in working collaboratively with faculty and making their own discoveries,” said Pamela Kleiber, CURO coordinator and an associate director of the Honors Program.
Cara Altimus, a genetics major from St. Simons, Ga., has been working in Jonathan Arnold’s lab for more than a year. She has been awarded a summer fellowship to continue studying the genetic origins of the biological clock in Neurospora crassa, a type of fungus. Through these opportunities, Altimus has learned valuable laboratory techniques usually acquired in graduate school.
“Few universities have institutionalized the support of undergraduate research the way UGA has,” said Arnold, a professor of genetics. “This kind of opportunity is what turns on new scientists.”
Erin Bohan sees her summer fellowship as a stepping stone to a career in academia. The magazines and comparative literature major is comparing autobiographical and fictional accounts of emigrating to America, trying to find a common theme of how immigrants adapt their cultural identities into American lifestyles.
“I participated in the 2003 CURO Symposium and I found the experience to be exactly what I had been looking for at the university – a chance to research more closely a topic that was of immense interest to me,” said Bohan, an Atlanta native.
Students’ research projects often turn into journal articles, symposium presentations or fourth-year thesis papers. The fellows also can use their projects in applications for admission to graduate schools and medical schools.
All summer fellows are invited to CURO’s annual spring symposium highlighting undergraduate research. They also participate throughout the year in panel discussions on the processes, issues and applications involved in undergraduate research.
Students interested in applying for a summer fellowship must have a 3.4 GPA with a minimum of one year of coursework completed at UGA. Participation is open to all UGA students.
The 2004 summer fellows are mostly from Georgia. However, recipients Namrata Asuri, a genetics major, is from the United Arab Emirates and Janel Long, an undeclared major, is from Knoxville, Tenn. The other new summer fellows are:
Name / Hometown / Major
Cara Marie Altimus / St. Simons / genetics
Westin Amberge / Blairsville / microbiology
Erin Bohan / Atlanta / magazines and comparative literature
Rebecca Brantley / Pine Mountain / art history and art (painting)
Josef Broder / Watkinsville / math
Beau Bryan / Cochran/ biochemistry and molecular biology
Susannah Chapman / Roswell / political science and anthropology
Rena Driscoll-Dunn / Roswell / biology
Clayton Griffith / Lilburn / ecology
Christopher Hale / Statesboro / Romance languages
Catherine Hudson / Cumming / biology and Spanish
Douglas Jackson / Round Oak / chemistry and math
Andrew Leidner / Tifton / economics
John McWhorter / Summerville / microbiology
William Parker / Columbus / biochemistry and molecular biology
Gehres Paschal / Martinez / biochemistry and molecular biology
Kevin Patrick / Kennesaw / Latin and history
Katherine Price / Duluth / genetics
Matthew Rudy / Athens biochemistry and molecular biology
Desiree Smith / Milledgeville / women’s studies and sociology
Christopher Stokes / Tignall / psychology
Shana Strickland / Dunwoody / psychology
Adam Stroupe / Suwanee / undeclared
Teerawit Supakorndej / Athens biology
Tendoh Timoh / Decatur / cellular biology
Joro Vaso / Athens advertising
Leslie Wolcott / Decatur / English
For more information on CURO’s summer fellows program, see www.uga.edu/honors/curo.