U of L Update: August 2004
Dear Colleagues:
In recent issues of this publication we stressed the role the University of Louisville plays in shaping our community-through medical advancements, high-tech research and economic development. In this Update we are turning our focus inward to spotlight some of the outstanding students at the university and our efforts to enhance their learning opportunities.
As you will see, we are blessed with many exceptional students. We have talented students literally coming and going. Today more top students than ever before are passing up offers at "big name" colleges and universities to stay in Kentucky and attend U of L.
And the students who do join us are benefiting from that decision. The most recent evidence shows that the University of Louisville is quickly establishing itself as a national leader in helping its students secure outstanding scholarship opportunities both before and after they graduate.We would like to thank each person on our campus and in our community who is helping our students reach their dreams and make a difference in the world.
Sincerely,
James R. Ramsey
President
Inside the Report
- U of L is Staking Its Claim
- Overseers Program Helps Students Compete
- Debate Team Making a Difference
- Athletes Set GPA Record
- More Top Students Choosing U of L
- ACTs Climbing
U of L is Staking Its Claim
U of L is staking its claim as on one of the nation's top producers of national and international scholarship recipients.
In 2004, the university's students claimed seven highly prestigious and competitive scholarships and teaching assistantships, including five awards from the Fulbright Association.
According to information supplied by the Fulbright Association, U of L ranks seventh among schools in the South for producing Fulbright research fellows.
In another Fulbright category-English teaching assistantships-the university ranks seventh in the nation, alongside universities such as Duke, North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Northwestern.
"We've always known U of L had incredibly bright and talented students," says Patricia Condon, associate director of U of L's Honors Program. "These rankings reflect more on the effort the students and the university have put into competing for the scholarships."
As national scholarship coordinator, Condon plays a leading role in helping students compete. Through the Overseers' Scholars Program she and a number of other faculty members help students identify scholarships they want to pursue. They then work with the students to refine their applications and prepare for the competition itself. (See the related brief on the Overseers' Scholars Program.)
"We're here to help any way we can," Condon says. "That may be offering an extra set of eyes to look over an application or helping them prepare for their interviews. We'll do whatever it takes to help earn that scholarship."
The list of scholarship winners affirms that success. They include:
- Daniel Sturgeon, a 2004 graduate with a master's degree in political science, who received the Rotary World Peace Two-Year Scholarship. He will use it to study for a master's degree in conflict resolution at the Rotary Center for International Studies, affiliated with the International Christian University in Tokyo. The scholarship, worth more than $100,000, is offered each year to no more than 70 scholars worldwide. Recipients are chosen "based on their ability to have a significant, positive impact on world peace and conflict resolution during their future careers."
- Disha Pancholi, a senior majoring in biology and political science, who received a David L. Boren Graduate Fellowship from the National Security Education Program. Among the criteria that this highly competitive merit-based program considers before making an award is how the applicant plans to use the knowledge and expertise gained from NSEP support to contribute to U.S. national security.
Then there are the Fulbright awards.
Four of the five U of L students who won Fulbrights will use them to begin teaching and studying abroad this fall. They are:
- Abby Crawford, a 2004 graduate who majored in Spanish and political science. She received a Fulbright teaching assistantship to Argentina. Abby, who was the university's student commencement speaker in May, will begin teaching and taking classes in politics and history this fall.
- Bethany Sharpe, a 2002 graduate in history and humanities and former AmeriCorps scholar. She will begin a teaching assistantship in South Korea.
- Adam Marlowe, a 2004 graduate with a degree in political science. He, too, will begin a teaching assistantship in South Korea.
- Leslie Van Howe, who received her master's degree in Spanish this spring. She will study business practices in Mexico City, conducting research at Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México as an intern with DuPont.
Other Fulbright winners include:
- Patricia Pollock, a 2004 graduate who majored in communications and photography. She won a Fulbright teaching assistantship to Taiwan. However, she turned down that opportunity to accept a Japanese Exchange Teaching (JET) Program award and will teach English in Utsunomiya, a city located near Tokyo.
- Elizabeth Jones, a 2004 graduate who helped lead the U of L debate team to national prominence this year (see related story). She was named an alternate. Daniel Sturgeon was named a Fulbright alternate, too, but he turned down that opportunity to accept the Rotary World Peace scholarship.
When they came to U of L "many of these students weren't aware of the opportunities that are out there," Condon says. "They will benefit in many ways from these experiences."
Condon notes that there are more Fulbright, Rotary, JET and other prestigious scholarships to come. This year's winners were selected from among nearly a dozen applicants. Condon said she expects the coming year to be even busier-and even more successful.
"Each year, I expect the number of applicants to keep rising," she says. "We've built some momentum now, and these students are setting the example for others.
"I think we're just getting started."
Overseers Program Helps Students Compete
U of L's Overseers Scholars Program was created by the university's Board of Overseers, an advisory group of business and community leaders.
The program identifies and recruits top undergraduate students, then works with them to enhance their ability to compete for some of the world's most outstanding scholarships and fellowships. The goal is to expand the students' sense of their own potential.
Eligible students must carry at least a 3.5 grade point average, demonstrate extensive independent activity in their classroom studies, have a record of achievement in their field and show confidence in dealing with others.
In addition to the Board of Overseers' continued support for the program, the U of L president's and provost's offices commit staff resources and funding.
In the 2003-04 academic year alone, Overseers Scholars earned a collective total of 28 top-echelon scholarships and other learning opportunities.
Debate Team Making a Difference
U of L's debate team has earned national recognition by placing at or near the top in several major national competitions this year, including fifth in the debate competition's equivalent of March Madness.
More significantly, the team members have used their debate skills to bring to the table for discussion serious social issues such as health care and housing.
"We don't just play the game to win the game," senior Elizabeth Jones told the Courier-Journal in a recent article. "We have something to say."
Still, they win.
Seniors Jones and Tonia Green, for instance, placed first and second respectively in the Cross Examination Debate Association National Tournament-the first African American women to reach those lofty heights.
The two Louisville natives also placed eighth and fifth respectively at the National Debate Tournament, the most prestigious debate competition in the country.
Jones and Green teamed up to finish fifth in both national tournaments.
Seniors R.J. Green of Mayfield and Corey Knox of Clinton also earned spots in the National Debate Tournament. Ede Warner was named national coach of the year.
The U of L students have been offered opportunities to teach at debate camps around the country over the summer. They also were featured in a documentary called Brain Sport: The National College Debate Championship airing several times this summer on the College Sports Television Network.
Athletes Set GPA Record
U of L's student-athletes are excelling in the classroom as well as on the court, track and field. Together this fall they had the highest semester grade point average for student-athletes in U of L history, say officials at the Olga S. Peers Academic Center for Student Athletes. This facility provides academic support for about 500 student-athletes at U of L.
The average GPA for all U of L athletes was 2.934 in fall 2003 compared to 2.696 in fall 1999, center officials say. A total of 223 student-athletes carry a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better. In addition, 266-more than half of all U of L student-athletes-earned a GPA of 3.0 or higher last fall.
The women's golf team had the highest GPA average for the fall at 3.451, while 11 of U of L's 20 teams averaged 3.0 or higher. Also last fall, 28 U of L athletes received the Conference USA Commissioner's Academic Medal, tying for first place in the conference. Another 168, a record number, made the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll.
More Top Students Choosing U of L
avid Soleimani-Meigooni, a graduate of Lexington 's Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School, could have gone to Stanford University or Johns Hopkins University this fall.
nstead, he will be attending U of L.
Soleimani-Meigooni, 18, wants to pursue a career as a cancer researcher. He is one of a growing number of students who are choosing U of L over big-name colleges and universities.
Soleimani-Meigooni plans to major in biology as an undergraduate, then go to U of L's School of Medicine through the university's Guaranteed Entrance to Medical School (GEMS) program. The U of L Grawemeyer Scholarship he is receiving will cover his tuition, books and room and board. Just as significant, it will give him the opportunity to work with faculty on undergraduate research.
"I think U of L will be perfect for David," says his mother, Sharifeh Dini. "I know he will get a great deal of personal attention."
Soleimani-Meigooni, who is working this summer as an intern at Simmons Oncology Center in Concord, Calif., strongly considered going to Stanford and Johns Hopkins. He visited and was offered admission to both universities. Then he came to U of L and met Donald Miller, director of the James Graham Brown Cancer Center.
"He and Dr. Miller really connected," Dini says.
"A few minutes after they met they were chatting about cancer research like old friends. And not only has David been assured that he will be doing research both as an undergraduate and graduate student, but Dr. Miller told him he could even pick his own lab."
Soleimani-Meigooni isn't the only freshman entering U of L this fall who turned down offers from elite colleges, says Jenny Sawyer, executive director of admissions.
Ft. Campbell High School graduate Charis Botelho was accepted at Yale University but will study biology at U of L instead, while Allison Martin, a Muhlenberg South High School graduate, passed up an offer from Vanderbilt University to study chemistry at U of L. Both Botelho and Martin plan to stay at U of L to attend medical school after they receive their bachelor's degrees.
Adam Pfendt, a graduate of Boone County High School in Florence, opted to study engineering at U of L rather than at the University of Illinois, and Sean Gardner, a Louisville Trinity High School graduate who plans to major in art or political science, picked U of L over the University of Kansas and St. Louis University.
"One reason was that I like U of L's honors program," Gardner says.
This program offers high achieving students a challenging curriculum that encourages them to tackle pressing societal concerns; pursue in-depth research on topics fitting their particular interests; interact closely with classmates, professors and special guests; travel abroad to experience new cultures and exchange ideas; and much more.
Finding a good fit with a school is becoming more important to students and parents when choosing a college, Sawyer says, adding, "People definitely are not as hung up as they used to be on the so-called prestigious schools."
The trend seems to extend to students after they earn their undergraduate degrees, too.
Ervin Dimeny, who came to the United States from Budapest several years ago, was accepted for graduate study at both Oxford and Cambridge universities in England but chose to pursue a law degree at U of L. He begins his third year at the Brandeis School of Law this fall.
"Professor [David] Leibson has been wonderful, and I've learned a lot from him," says Dimeny, who attends school full time and works full time.
Dimeny became a U.S. citizen in 1999. His wife, Melissa, received a law degree from U of L in 2002 and now works in Jefferson Circuit Court.
"We like Louisville a lot, and I will be very happy practicing law in this area," Dimeny adds.
Adam Travis of Madisonville, Ky., earned a bachelor's in biomedical engineering at Vanderbilt University in May, then interviewed at several medical schools. He was accepted at both Vanderbilt and Washington University in St. Louis but is starting medical school at U of L this fall.
"I was very impressed with U of L's dedication to clinical training," says Travis. "I know I will leave medical school just as well prepared as I would at any big-name medical school."
Kerline Ductan of Miami earned a bachelor's degree in computer science and mathematics from the University of Miami in December. She declined offers from medical schools at the University of Cincinnati and State University of New York in favor of U of L. She will start this fall.
Ductan already has proven just how determined she is to come to U of L. To attend a pre-orientation held at U of L's Health Sciences Center in downtown Louisville this past spring, she flew from Miami to Cincinnati, rode a Greyhound bus about 100 miles to Louisville, then took a city bus to campus. She repeated the journey on her way home.
"I liked U of L better than the other places," she says. "I just had a sense of fitting in."
ACTs Climbing
The academic ability of students entering U of L is going up, studies show. In 1999 the average ACT score for first-time freshmen was 21.5. That figure reached 23.4 in 2003.
Other indicators offer still more evidence of the trend. For example, over the same period the number of entering freshmen with ACT scores of 27 or above increased from 300 to 513 and the number of students enrolled in honors courses skyrocketed from 278 to 722.
U of L dramatically expanded its honors program over the past several years, which campus officials say has played a major role in the increases.