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Goldwater Scholarship winners Boris Chernomordik and David Soleimani-Meigooni
Two Goldwater Scholars! For the first time ever we have two successful Goldwater scholarship winners. David Soleimani-Meigooni (biology, concentration in subcellular and genetics) and Boris Chernomordik (chemical engineering) have won this prestigious undergraduate award. The federally endowed scholarship program honoring Senator Barry M. Goldwater was designed in 1986 to "foster and encourage students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering" and is the premier undergraduate award in these fields. Most successful Goldwater candidates apply in their junior year; remarkably, both David and Boris are sophomores.
In his grant application, Boris writes that Dr. Mehendra Sunkara has currently entrusted him with a project involving diamond films and nano-wires for eventual use in creating more efficient electronics. In addition, he is currently working on undertakings that started after discovering the unintentional, but very interesting results, of spring-like nanotubes.
Since the beginning of 2005, David has been working with Dr. Paula Bates and Dr. Donald Miller of the University of Louisville Molecular Targets Group to study the use of guanine-rich oligonucleotide aptamers (AGRO100) for targeted treatment of leukemina (U937 cell line). The goal of his current research is to find the molecular and cellular changes that kill cancerous cells following treatment by AGRO100.
David Wright has been named a Fulbright teaching assistant to Malaysia for 2006-2007. David, an English major who graduates this spring, aims for a Ph.D. and a career in community college teaching. A non-traditional student, David earned his Jefferson Community College degree and now his university degree while working full time. Entering community college and the university after a period of manual labor, his need to support himself while working on his degree prevented him from exploring other cultures during his undergraduate education. He looks forward to cultural immersion and the investigation of current Malaysian literary activity.
JET Scholar Anna Vissman has been named a Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) scholar. The JET program offers a year or two in Japan teaching in a high school or middle school or other post serving Japanese youth.
U of L Quick Recall Makes Mark The U of L Quick Recall team beat Washington University in St. Louis during sudden-death overtime to place second at Vanderbilt's Commodore Classic tournament March 25. Monica Marks’ individual stats at ACF Regionals garnered her an invitation to compete at ACF Nationals, one of the two biggest College Quiz Bowl tournaments in the country, to play with other top-scoring Southern students as part of an all-star exhibition team. The U of L team has had a highly successful year, finishing in second through fourth place in a number of Southern competitions playing competitors such as Duke, Vanderbilt, University of Florida and Georgia Tech to become known and respected in the circuit. The team relies heavily on the participation of Nicole Alexander, Michael Giurgevich, Monica Marks, David Mayo, Amar Shah and Katie Widener.
HONORS CALENDAR April 13 Honors priority registration begins at 8 a.m.
Honors Student Council meeting, Etscorn Honors Center, 7 p.m.
April 14 Honors Modes of Inquiry student staff applications due in the Etscorn Honors Center by 4 p.m.
April 17 Honors Scholarship applications due in the Etscorn Honors Center
April 18 Undergraduate Research Symposium, 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., Belknap Research Building, first floor seminar room
April 24 Honors picnic begins about noon, come early, Honors folks are hungry folks!
May 12 2005-2006 awards convocation, Rauch Planetarium, 3:30 p.m.
May 13 Commencement, Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center, 1 p.m.
THE CURRENT, the University Honors Program online newsletter published every two weeks during the fall and spring terms, welcomes submissions. Material should be submitted by the Wednesday preceding the next Monday publication date. Electronic submissions are preferable. Please send to Ruth Spangler by e-mail at rlspan02@louisville.edu. Hard copy may be sent to the Honors House c/o THE CURRENT. The next issue of THE CURRENT appears April 24, 2006.
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Back issues: Current Issue, Aug. 22, Sep. 6 Sep. 19, Oct. 3, Oct. 17, Oct. 31, Nov. 14, Dec. 5, Jan. 9, Jan. 23, Feb. 6, Feb. 20, Mar. 6, Mar 27
University Honors Programonline bulletin
Volume 5, Number 15 University of Louisville ARTS & SCIENCES
April 10, 2006
HONORS PICNIC End-of-Semester Celebration! Honors has had yet another great year. On Monday, April 24 -- the last day of class -- join us around noon for a celebratory picnic. We’ll eat outside near the Honors House if the weather is nice, inside if it is wet. Remember, come early the food is first come, first served.
Call for Awards and Honors So that we may recognize students in The Current who have won special awards and honors, please share with us the news of special fellowships, scholarships or university or departmental awards you have won. We would like to include your name in the final 2005-2006 issue April 24. Please e-mail information by April 18 to honors@louisville.edu or Ruth Spangler at ruth.spangler@louisville.edu. Include your first and last name, the full name of the award and the organization sponsoring the award.
2005-2006 Awards Convocation Mark Friday, May 12, 3:30 p.m. at the Rauch Planetarium as the location and time for this year's academic awards. Honors Scholars, summa graduates, those with national and international awards and others achievers will be individually recognized and receive awards as well as medals and cords for use at graduation on May 13. A reception for awardees, family and friends follows the ceremony.
Undergraduate Research Symposium At the New Belknap Research Building Support the many Honors students presenting at the Undergraduate Research Symposium April 18 from 12:30 p.m. through 4 p.m. in the Belknap Research Building first floor seminar room. It's a great way to see what undergraduate student research at U of L is like, and to prepare for your own participation next year. It is also a good opportunity to get a good look at the new nano-technology building.
Honors Student Council Elections Coming Up Honors Student Council meetings offer you the opportunity to discuss and enact ideas and improvements for the Honors Program. We will be holding elections at the end of April; if you are interested in running for one of the following offices, please send e-mail to Luke Buckman at luke.buckman@louisville.edu to declare your intentions. Elected positions are: president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and sergeant-at-arms. If you plan to run for office, you must attend meetings. Our next meeting will be Thursday, April 13 at 7 p.m. in the Etscorn Center classroom. Please come and have a voice in the Honors Program!
Freshman Guides Program For the fall 2006 semester the Honors Student Council is organizing a peer mentoring program, Freshman Guides. Freshman Guides is an initiative from the Honors Student Council to help freshman and transfer Honors students navigate the social aspects of the Honors Program and the campus at large. If you have at least 24 hours earned at the University of Louisville and have taken at least one Honors course, we invite you to sign up to be a Freshman Guide. Applications are available here (doc). If you have any questions about the program, please contact Clare Kalb at cfgerv01@louisville.edu or Luke Buckman at luke.buckman@louisville.edu or stop by the Etscorn Center.
Walk-in Advising Walk-in Honors advising is now underway and runs through April 12. Priority registration begins April 13. Advising is from 8 to 11:15 a.m. and from 1 to 3 p.m. If you run into registration problems, check the registration Q&A page first. We update that page immediately if new information about registration is available. (A link to the Q&A page may also be found at the top of our online Honors Course Offerings, Fall 2006 page.)
An active HVP year comes to a close with the last meeting of the year still drawing a crowd of volunteers. A special thanks to those whose dedicated leadership has made HVP so successful including Tia Alton, Kate Brueggeman and Allison Martin.
JOBS Become a REACH Tutor REACH is now accepting applications for tutoring positions for the Learning Resource Center, Math Resource Center and Computer Resource Center for the 2006 fall semester. REACH tutors may work as few as four hours per week up to as many as 20 hours per week. Beginning tutors are paid $8.00 per hour. Applications are online.
Last Call Student Staff Applications for Honors Modes of Inquiry Honors Modes of Inquiry is an academic orientation that introduces freshmen to academic disciplines and campus life before the fall semester. The program is largely staffed by Honors students. The student staff is selected through an application process, with applications now available in the literature rack at the front desk of the Etscorn Honors Center. If you would like to assist with the event before school starts and get paid, fill out an application and return it to the Etscorn Center by 4 p.m., April 14.
VOLUNTEERS HVP - HONORS VOLUNTEER PROGRAM Those who wish to be notified about HVP events by listserv, please send your name and e-mail address to Tia Alton at tiaa123@hotmail.com.
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Honors students attending the Southern Regional Honors Conference (SRHC) in Orlando April 6 and 7 were Alison Burton, Andrew Feldman, Clare Gervasi Kalb, Rebecca Hernandez, Bobby Kimberlin, Paria Majd, Allison Martin, Courtney McKenzie, Emily Revels, Katie Schultz and David Soleimani-Meigooni.
SCHOLARSHIPS and FELLOWSHIPS Potential Overseers Scholars Faculty, now is the time to nominate exceptional students in all fields. Self nomination is also underway. Please contact Dr. Patricia Condon at: patricia.condon@louisville.edu
Fall 2006 Brit Scholarship Applicants Indicate your interest or ask questions about eligibility to find the best match for your area of graduate studies. Scholarships are available to any part of the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland (Juniors, graduating seniors, grad students, recent grads -- any major) Please contact Dr. Patricia Condon at: patricia.condon@louisville.edu
Fall 2006 Fulbright Applicants Declare your interest and explore your options. Make an appointment in April to talk with our scholarship/fellowship advisor by e-mailing Dr. Patricia Condon at: patricia.condon@louisville.edu
Junior Chelsey Stephenson pictured with a student from Celebration Station, North Charleston, S.C., during Alternative Spring Break.
Alternative Spring Break (ASB) By Chelsey Stephenson Political science Over the week of spring break, a group of 12 U of L students watched the sun gild the rooftops of the multi-million dollar homes of historic downtown Charleston, S. C., and the beatifically manicured beaches surrounding them. This group, however, did not make the journey to Charleston to sightsee and sunbathe. Instead, as Alternative Spring Break 2006 participants we spent our days tutoring GED students in the morning and elementary after-school students in the afternoon at Celebration Station, a local community center in the run-down, rough town of North Charleston. Amidst the boarded-up buildings and neglected apartment complexes, we surprised ourselves by doing more learning than teaching.
North Charleston is a community long forgotten by politicians and renovation projects. It is a place that exposed us to the harsh realities of racial and economic disparities and the way social problems are addressed by those experiencing the other end of the economic spectrum. Alternative Spring Break was a remarkable learning experience in every respect. The crew may not have brought back a souvenir tan, but we certainly have a new perspective toward those in need and all the rewards they have to give in return.
By Laura Bishop Biology Dr. Gary Gregg is the Mitch McConnell Chair in Leadership and the director of the McConnell Center at U of L. A graduate from Davis and Elkins College in West Virginia, he earned a bachelor degrees in both history and political science before continuing his studies at Miami University in Ohio where he received his master’s and doctorate in political science. Dr. Gregg has been at U of L for six years. The author and editor of numerous books and articles concerning political leadership, his latest book is Thinking about the Presidency. He has been the recipient of multiple teaching awards, and is periodically featured on radio stations and C-SPAN.
Dr. Gregg has previously taught an Honors seminar on political leadership and is currently instructing the international Honors seminar, “Roots of the Republic.” According to Dr. Gregg, “I really enjoy having the chance to interact with top students here at U of L and inviting them into new intellectual, political and social worlds here on campus and during travels with the McConnell Scholars. I have enjoyed building the McConnell Center’s reputation and seeing the program develop from a relatively small and insular institution into one that commands world attention and applications from top students.”
Last Call Honors Academic Scholarships Applications for several academic scholarships from Honors equivalent to full tuition for the 2006-2007 academic year are now available. In addition, a few smaller Etscorn scholarships of $1,000 are also available. Out-of-state students are encouraged to apply. Online applications may be found on the Local Scholarships page under Honors Program Academic Scholarships, with paper applications located in the information rack in the reception area of the Etscorn Honors Center. The Etscorn family supports these scholarships through a generous donation. Applications are due in the Etscorn Honors Center Monday, April 17 and should be returned to the attention of Dr. John Richardson.
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Malaysian
Fulbright
Honors
Faculty Spotlight