~ The original story was posted on the Winthrop University website. 

The Center for First-generation Student Success, an initiative of NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education – and The Suder Foundation, has designated Winthrop University as one of its 2021-22 First-gen Forward Institutions. 

The First-gen Forward designation recognizes institutions of higher education that have demonstrated a commitment to improving experiences and advancing outcomes of first-generation college students. Selected institutions receive professional development, community-building experiences and a first look at the center’s research and resources.

“As a first-generation college graduate, I am keenly aware of the challenges associated with navigating higher education: the use of unfamiliar terminology, the assumption that one knows how to ‘do’ college, or that one even knows what questions to ask,” said Shelia Burkhalter, Winthrop’s vice president for student affairs.

“Student Affairs is excited to work with TRiO Achievers Program, the McNair Scholars program and the rest of the Winthrop community to think more strategically about serving first-gen students at Winthrop,” she continued. “While we look forward to advancing the success of first-generation students, the student success literature confirms that efforts to advance first-generation students will ultimately benefit all students on campus.”

According to the U.S. Department of Education, 33 percent of higher education students today are the first in their family to attend college. Winthrop mirrors the national statistic, Burkhalter said, noting that approximately one-third of Winthrop students identify as first-generation, when defined as a student whose parent(s)/legal guardian(s) have not completed a bachelor’s degree.

That population includes Imani Belton, an integrated marketing communication major and chair of the Council of Student Leaders (CSL), Winthrop’s student government body.

“Throughout my time at Winthrop, I’ve been able to connect with first-generation faculty, staff and students, which has made my collegiate experience 10 times better because of bonds we’ve created,” she said. “Being a first-generation student is a point of pride for me and other Winthrop students who have benefitted from learning on a campus that provides outreach and services for students like us.”

Winthrop has already made significant strides in first-generation student support and outcomes:

*The TRiO Achievers Program has supported first-generation students for more than 15 years, providing students with a variety of services such as personalized academic counseling, tutoring, individualized needs assessment and more.

*Since 2009, the McNair Scholars program has prepared first-generation, low-income and underrepresented undergraduates to be successful in Ph.D. programs through research, extensive support, and transformational opportunities throughout the junior and senior years.

*Within the Division of Student Affairs, the Office of the Vice President as well as the Diversity and Student Engagement office facilitate events to celebrate first-generation students and graduates (for example, among the faculty and staff) and to raise awareness regarding issues impacting first-generation student success.

“Through the application process, it was evident that Winthrop University is not only taking steps to serve first-generation students but is prepared to make a long-term commitment and employ strategies for significant scaling and important advances in the future,” said Sarah E. Whitley, senior director of the Center for First-generation Student Success.

To learn more about first-generation efforts at Winthrop, contact Burkhalter at burkhalters@winthrop.edu or Kinyata Adams Brown at brownka@winthrop.edu.

About NASPA and the Center for First-gen Student Success

NASPA—Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education—is the leading association for the advancement, health and sustainability of the student affairs profession. Its work provides high-quality professional development, advocacy and research for 15,000 members in all 50 states, 25 countries and eight U.S. territories. The Center for First-generation Student Success is the premier source of evidence-based practices, professional development and knowledge creation for the higher education community to advance the success of first-generation students. Visit www.naspa.org and www.firstgen.naspa.org for more information.

~ The original story was written by Alexandra McQueen, University Communications on March 4, 2o20 was posted on the UNC Greensboro News website.
Photography by Jiyoung Park, University Communications

UNC Greensboro is among a cohort of academic institutions nationwide being recognized for their commitment to supporting first-generation students. UNCG joins 76 other institutions in the cohort and is one of three North Carolina universities to receive the designation this year.

The Center for First-generation Student Success made the announcement on March 2. The center is an initiative of NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education – and The Suder Foundation.

By federal definition, a first-generation student is a student whose parent or guardian did not graduate from a four-year institution.

The First-gen Forward designation recognizes institutions of higher education who have demonstrated a commitment to improving experiences and advancing outcomes of first-generation college students. Selected institutions receive professional development, community-building experiences, and a first look at the center’s research and resources.

“Now, in its second year, First-gen Forward institutions continue to lead the nation by their commitment to first-generation student success,” said Dr. Sarah E. Whitley, senior director of the Center for First-generation Student Success. “The 2020-21 cohort consists of diverse institutions across the nation, and we are pleased to welcome UNC Greensboro for their long-term commitment and demonstrated strategies for scaling first-generation student initiatives.”

As a First-gen Forward Institution, select faculty and staff will be able to engage with peer and aspirational institutions who are also creating environments that improve the experiences and outcomes of first-generation students. Selected institutions will send representatives to the First-gen Forward Workshop to be held in Baltimore in June and will participate in monthly phone calls, virtual professional development, goal setting, blog development, annual reporting, and more. After two successful years in the program, institutions are eligible to apply for the Advisory leadership designation.

“We are very excited to be one of the few schools in the state of North Carolina with this designation, and we want prospective students to see our desire to serve them and help them to be successful,” said Kelli Thomas, coordinator for Residence Life, who started UNCG’s First G at the G program and leads it alongside Shelley Wald, associate dean of students. “This designation honors the work of so many staff, faculty, and other students that have given their time and efforts to promote and advocate for first-generation students at UNCG. It is our desire that this recognition from NASPA inspires more students to proudly identify as first-gen and encourages more support for the students in our community.”

UNCG strives to be a leader in maximizing student success, opportunity, and access and was recently ranked as the top university in North Carolina for social mobility by U.S. News & World Report. In the fall of 2019, 31% of UNCG students were first-generation, and 25% of those students were considered to be from low-income backgrounds. The University offers multiple programs, events, and aid to support these students. Below is a list of some of these offerings.

• Student Support Services This TRiO support program is designed to maximize academic performance for UNCG students who are first-generation students from modest income backgrounds, or who have a documented disability and demonstrate an academic need for services. Services include individual instruction in the development of academic skills; personalized academic counseling, financial aid literacy counseling, graduate/professional school guidance, and career coaching; and one-on-one tutoring in up to two courses each semester. The program is one of the longest-running programs of its kind in the nation. 211 students are in the program and 90% are first-generation.

• McNair Scholars Program This federally funded TRiO program prepares undergraduate first-generation students from low-income backgrounds and students who are members of groups that are traditionally underrepresented in graduate studies for the pursuit of doctoral degrees. UNCG’s McNair Scholars Program has 49 total participants, with 33 being first-generation students.

• First G at the G This is a week-long series of events in November to help first-generation students learn about campus resources and connect with each other, faculty, and staff. The goal of the week is to make the transition into college easier for first-generation students.

• Guarantee Scholars Program  As UNCG’s flagship student success program, it provides its participants a financial aid package that minimizes student debt, community learning experiences outside of the classroom, and personalized support though mentorship. This program works alongside its students to identify barriers to student success and develop innovative community-focused solutions. 75% of students in the program identify as first-generation.

“By being part of First G at UNCG, I am more aware of how first-generation students are impacted on college campuses and the amount of resources that are available to them,” said Kiara Hickman, president of the 1stG student organization.

Learn more about UNCG’s first-generation efforts at sa.uncg.edu/firstg.

Learn more about the Center for First-generation Student Success at firstgen.naspa.org.

Karla Badillo-Urquiola ’14 ’15MS strives to break stereotypes through her work and her community activism.

The awards are piling up for UCF McKnight Fellow Karla Badillo-Urquiola ’14 ’15MS who in the past two months has been named a McKnight Award winner and an Order of Pegasus Award recipient.

Badillo-Urquiola, a doctoral candidate in modeling and simulation, is committed to academic excellence, diversifying the STEM field and making an impact in her community.

Badillo-Urquiola’s research focuses on investigating the challenges teens in the foster care system face online and ways to empower them to have more control of their online safety.

“Teens in the foster care system are some of the most vulnerable to the most serious online sexual risks, such as sex trafficking,” says Badillo-Urquiola, who earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and master’s in modeling and simulation.  “My goal is to understand the ‘why’ and ‘how,’ and find tangible solutions to help them engage safely online.”

Seeking to understand teens within the foster community does not end in the lab. Through her volunteer work with the Foundation for Foster Children, she connects with teens and ensures her work is grounded in their reality.

“I want to have a direct impact on the people I interact with daily,” says Badillo-Urquiola, who also serves as an ambassador for an anti-sex trafficking nonprofit organization. To her it is invaluable to first understand her “users” before interpreting her data.

The Russell V. Ewald Academic Excellence and Order of Pegasus Awards are presented to students who sufficiently demonstrate their commitment to academic excellence and to community service; Badillo-Urquiola uniquely takes this initiative to heart by improving her research through her community service, and she hopes in the end helping the community.

As a Latina, she takes pride in being a role model for minority women and breaking stereotypes through her academic work and community activism. Badillo-Urquiola says she is no stranger to the assumptions that can often arise because of gender, ethnicity and her identity as a mother. She is expecting her second child while balancing the pursuit of a doctorate degree.

There tends to be an unspoken rule that you must choose between the roles of mother and student, and the current climate of STEM does little to dispel this mentality, she says.

“In academia we have this sense of culture where you have to be ‘more professional’ and family doesn’t seem to fit into that mentality,” says Badillo-Urquiola.

But Badillo-Urquiola is an example that being an excellent professional and having a family is achievable. After earning her degree, she plans on becoming a tenured professor.

She says that when she succeeds, she will join the 1 percent of Latinas nationwide that are tenured faculty at universities.

She will be presenting her research during Student Research Week March 30-April 3.

~ The original story was written by Simone Rosseau on February 26, 2020, in UCF Today. 

George Walters-Marrah is a junior biotechnology and molecular microbiology major at UCF. (Photo by Steven Diaz)

George Walters-Marrah was awarded a 2018 Goldwater Scholarship, a prestigious honor that recognizes exceptional research work by undergraduate sophomores and juniors in the natural sciences, engineering and mathematics. This year’s pool was narrowed down from a field of 1,280 students nominated from more than 2,000 colleges and universities nationwide.

Established by Congress in 1986, Goldwater Scholarships reward students with up to $7,500 per year. Recent recipients have gone on to receive Rhodes Scholarships, Marshall Awards, Churchill Scholarships and Hertz Fellowships, among other distinguished awards.

Walters-Marrah, a biotechnology and molecular microbiology major at the University of Central Florida, was named as a scholar as a result of his research on Mycobacterium abscessus (Mab), an environmental mycobacteria often found in bodies of water and decomposing vegetation.

“I’m very honored to actually get this scholarship,” Walters-Marrah says. “I’ve heard a lot about the prestige of the Goldwater Scholarship. It is a magnet for other opportunities.”

Walters-Marrah is a McNair Scholar, Stokes Scholar, and was selected to participate in a National Science Foundation-funded research experience for undergraduate students at the University of Chicago. His involvement in three different research projects since his freshman year has secured him multiple small grants, as well as a spot on UCF’s Student Undergraduate Research Council. He is also an undergraduate research assistant in Kyle Rohde’s lab at the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences. His current research is seeking to discover virulence factors that allow Mab to persist in the body, avoid clearance by the immune system, and resist antibiotic therapy.

In the past two years, the UCF McNair Program has produced two Goldwater Scholars.

Original story written by Ashley Garrett was posted on UCF Today on April 5, 2018.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based masters and doctoral degrees at accredited U.S. institutions. The program’s purpose is to ensure a diverse population among the scientific and engineering fields. Benefits include a three-year annual stipend of $34,000, a $12,000 annual cost-of-education allowance, international research and professional development opportunities.

The three scholars awarded the fellowships are excited about their future research careers.  Antonia Bass is in her second year in the Doctoral Program in Cell and Molecular Biology at the University of Pennsylvania.  Stephanie Quiles-Matos is in her first year in the Doctoral Program in Engineering Education at Virginia Tech.  Samantha Mensah graduates this year from UCF and will be attending a doctoral program in Chemistry.

When asked how the McNair Program assisted them, each of the scholars emphasized the importance of the personal and graduate school preparation support the program provided. Quiles-Matos stated, “Honestly, I would not even be in graduate school without the support and mentorship that the McNair Scholar program provided me. As a McNair Scholar I was encouraged to participate in research, a concept I was unfamiliar with as a first-generation student. The McNair team helped me realize, that even as a non-traditional student, I could achieve my goals of graduating college and going onto graduate school.”

Mensah explained that she received much technical support in regards to the NSF GRFP application. “The staff of McNair are extremely knowledgeable on how to make a great application. We work on specific sections such as broader impacts and presenting research from the very beginning of the program. My entire cohort in McNair was working on our applications together and there was an entire team of people helping and checking each other’s work.” Beyond technical help, Mensah appreciated the community created by the McNair program. “McNair is a family. Scholars and mentors that support and lift each other up and always cheer the other on. It can be daunting to tread the waters of academia, especially graduate school, but McNair has been a large reason why I feel confident in my next step.”

Bass highlighted that the support she received from McNair inspired her to give back. “I believe my participation in the McNair program played a great part in getting to where I am today. Their effort to promote underrepresented and first-generation students in STEM fields was what inspired me to pursue a PhD and expand my knowledge within the field of biology. The experience I attained during my participation in the McNair Program motivated me to become a role model for other diverse individuals to pursue a STEM degree and career. I am proud to be a part of a group of graduate scholars focused on fostering the success of underrepresented scientists, which is an important goal that is supported by the NSF GRFP.”

Since 2007,  fifteen University of Central Florida McNair scholars have been awarded NSF fellowships and four scholars have received honorable mentions. The program sends a special thanks to Dr. Robin Walker from the University of Missouri, Columbia for her amazing work with the scholars over the past several years.

UCF McNair Scholar Winners, Current Graduate Institutions, and Year Awarded:

• Antonia Bass, University of Pennsylvania (2017)
• Stephanie Matos, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (2017)
• Samantha Mensah (2017)
• Serenela Pelier, University of Florida (2016)
• Monica Thomas, Duke University (2013)
• Tatiana Viecco, Cambridge University (2013)
• Lilian Milanes, University of Kentucky (2012)
• Christina Restrepo, University of Central Florida (2012)
• Elise Hernandez, University of Michigan (2011)
• Rene Diaz, Georgia Tech University (2010)
• Keon Vereen, University of Washington (2010)
• Anamary Leal, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (2010)
• Roberto Miguez, University of Michigan (2009)
• Melonie Sexton Williams, Vanderbilt University (2009)
• Enrique Ortiz, University of Central Florida (2007)

“Long gone are the days when students could graduate from a university and not do research. If you have any intentions of going on to do any sort of advanced graduate work, and if you have any intentions of finding funding for your research for your graduate studies, you must do research,” said Assistant Vice Provost for Access and Success E. George Simms.

Hosted by the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program at FIU, the FIU McNair Scholars Research Conference provides an opportunity for undergraduate students to present their research to peers, faculty and experts in their field.

The conference will take place Oct. 14-16 and is open to all FIU students, as well as students from universities around the world. Last year’s participants included students from Marquette University, Binghamton University, the University of the West Indies and more.

Simms said the goal of the McNair program and conference is to prepare students for top-notch universities and to apply for research funding once they’re in graduate school.

“In the highly competitive world that is now applying for graduate schools, having something like great research—and especially mentored research, where you have a well-known person in that field writing a letter of recommendation, working with that student on producing a really publishable project—really helps students stand out from the horde,” said Steven Fernandez, director of the McNair Program.

The McNair Conference is designed to guide undergraduate students through the research process and showcase their findings to the professional community.

At the conference, students will have the chance to present their research in both oral and poster formats, participate in a graduate school fair and hear from guest speakers who are leaders in their fields of study.

During the research process, students must work with faculty mentors who oversee their work and guide them through the process of gathering information and producing a paper ready for publishing.

“When you start at the undergraduate level, it gives you a really big step forward because you already know what you are going to use in your application if you go to graduate school,” said Department of Earth and Environment professor Florentin Maurrasse, who serves as a mentored with the McNair Program.

Maurrasse’s first mentee in the McNair Program was alumnus Jose Ilaguno ’14, who presented his research on sedimentology in Spain at last year’s McNair Conference. His research compared the current period of global warming to previous periods of global warming using the method of carbon sequestration, which compares carbon isotopes in layers of the ocean floor to determine climate conditions millions of years ago.

Because of his experience researching with Maurrasse and presenting at the McNair Conference, Ilaguno decided to continue at FIU to earn his master’s in geosciences.

“You get the feeling that they do want to help you from the bottom of their heart,” he said. “It’s almost like they’re your family.”

This article was originally posted on July 27, 2015 on FIU News . Click here to read the original article.

 The program prepares promising undergraduate students from groups traditionally underrepresented in graduate education to enter and complete doctoral degree programs. The program schedule can be found on the McNair home page at www.uwyo.edu/seo/mcnair-scholars-program/.

Dolores Cardona, UW associate dean of students, opens the program at 9 a.m.

McNair Scholars presenting research this year, listed by hometowns, titles of their projects and UW mentors, are:

— 9:20 a.m.: Norma Lira, Jackson, “La Batalla Invisible: Mexican Immigrant Women and Domestic Work in the Equality State,” with Lilia Soto, American Studies Program assistant professor, and Robert Perea.

— 9:40 a.m.: Ana Garcia-Ceballos, Laramie, “Calculating Minimum and Maximum horizontal stress from anisotropic properties in the Rock Springs Uplift, Wyoming, USA,” with Subhashis Mallick, Department of Geology and Geophysics professor, and Hema Sharma.

— 10 a.m.: Rex Yeigh, Buffalo, “Planet photometry using a robotized telescope,” with Department of Physics and Astronomy Assistant Professor Hannah Jang-Condell and David Kasper.

— 10:40 a.m.: Alexander Hampton, Gillette, “Signage in the West: Creating Museum Verbiage for the Hell Gap Site,” with Mary Lou Larson, Department of Anthropology professor, and Elizabeth Lynch.

— 11 a.m.: Jazlynn Hall, Laramie, “Finding bioclimatic spaces to extend the utility of modern pollen analogues,” with Department of Geography Associate Professor Thomas Minckley and Shannon Mazzei.

— 11:20 a.m.: Dylan McCurdy, Casper, “The Environmental Sociology of American Buddhists,” with Matthew Painter, Department of Sociology assistant professor, and Chloe Skaggs.

— 12:40 p.m.: Elizabeth Grindle, Pavillion, “An overview of stable isotope analysis methodologies for use in archaeological human remains,” with James Ahern, Department of Anthropology professor, and Les Brown.

— 1 p.m.: Brittney Arevalo, Rawlins, “Applying the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) to Parkinson’s disease,” with Division of Communication Disorders Assistant Professor Mary Jo Cooley Hidecker and Allison Long.

— 1:20 p.m.: Kathie Beasley, Laramie, “Let’s Talk about Shrimp! A Survey about Shrimp Consumption in Wyoming,” with Dannele Peck, associate professor, and Chian Jones Ritten, assistant professor, both in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics; and Jenny Beiermann.

— 1:40 p.m.: Rachel Surratt, Quitman, Texas, “Navigating the Everyday: Street-Involved Women and Provision of Services,” with Gender and Women’s Studies Program Associate Professor Susan Dewey, Rhett Epler and Joshua Kronberg-Rasner.

The McNair Scholars Program is a graduate school preparation program for students interested in earning a Ph.D. Services include a paid research internship, mentoring from UW faculty members, GRE (Graduate Record Exam) preparation classes, academic support and tutoring, and assistance with the graduate school application process.

To read the original article posted on July 27y the University of Wyoming, please click here.

TRiO programs at UW-Superior provide qualified students with the necessary assistance to achieve their educational goals. They include Student Support Services, which provides tutoring and assistance to qualifying students;Upward Bound, which helps high school students prepare for college;and the McNair Scholars program, which prepares first-generation college students and students from under-represented groups for graduate study.

Those receiving awards on April 17th this year included:

Academic Support Center Tutor of the Year – Ali Bergstrom, Superior, now a senior at UW-Superior who is majoring in Elementary Education and minoring in Early Childhood, works as a tutor for the Academic Support Center where her tutoring services are highly sought after. She has the knowledge, patience, and skills necessary to help her fellow students.

Academic Support Center Student of the Year – Mualigbe Keita, who was in his first year at UW-Superior, emigrated to the U.S. about eight years ago from Guinea. As a student, he is a hard worker, and tries his best to do well in school and to complete his assignments on time. He is not shy to seek out assistance when needed. 

Math Lab Tutor of the Year -Tom Minor, Superior, Wis.

Math Lab Student of the Year – Jacob Murto, Milwaukee, Wis.

McNair Scholars Program — Scholar of the Year – Kang Her, Roberts, Wis.

McNair Scholars Program — Scholar of the Year – T.K. Vang, Stevens Point, Wis.

Upward Bound Tutor of the Year – Jade Wong, Milwaukee, Wis.

Upward Bound Students of the Year -Sami Lego, Poplar, Wis.

UW-Superior Foundation Gulland Scholarship Recipient – Rachel Taylor and Sara Mathias both from Superior, Wis.

TRiO Achiever Award for Outstanding Faculty and Staff – Jeff Kahler, Budget and Policy Analyst at UW-Superior.

UW-Superior Chancellor Renée Wachter opened the program with a welcome and congratulated the students on their accomplishments. Josh Berlo, UMD’s Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, was the guest speaker for the TRiO Day Awards program. Wisconsin State Representative Nick Milroy, a UW-Superior alumnus, was the concluding speaker for the event.

 The University of Wisconsin-Superior has also been selected to receive funding through a federal grant to continue the successful Student Support Services Program, enabling the university to continue offering tutoring, remedial work, disability support services, and outreach to first-generation, low-income college students.

The Student Support Services (SSS) grant from the U.S. Department of Education provides $292,340 a year for an anticipated five years. The first year of this grant award takes effect from September 2015 through August 2016. UW-Superior also contributes funds to Student Support Services. In 2015, UW-Superior was one of 25 Wisconsin universities and colleges to receive grants through the competitive process. U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin notified UW-Superior that the school has once again been selected to receive the on-going funding.

“This grant will enable us to continue to serve students and families that need support to complete their dreams of a college education,” said Toua Thao, project director, SSS, (TRiO) at UW-Superior. “Our priority is to serve students who might need an extra boost to prepare them for a quality education,” he said.

Student Support Services is a federally funded program designed to serve students who are qualified according to federal income guidelines, who are first generation college students (neither parent has a baccalaureate degree), or who have a disability. UW-Superior will be able to award $33,000 in scholarships through this program. Last year, UW-Superior was awarded $292,340 and was one of 11 UW System institutions that earned a grant.

Read the original article posted on July 30, 2015 here.

Vaughn, Odessa, will graduate from Sul Ross State University in December with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. In the meantime, she is studying “The Effect of Pluralized Media on the Political Sophistication of Local Citizens of Alpine.” David Watson, assistant professor of Political Science, is her mentor.

“I am always interested in how people are affected visually, how an image can change beliefs or perception,” said Vaughn. “TV is present everywhere. My personal experience of not getting the full extent of a story shows how viewers can be misinformed by fleeting images. Misinformation leads to changed perceptions, which can cause people to become engaged or disengaged.”

Vaughn compiled a 30-question survey of media consumption and political knowledge. The survey included photographs of local, state and national officials to be identified by respondents. Over 160 persons, including Sul Ross students and community residents, responded.

“The survey contained no right or wrong answers,” said Vaughn. “We were seeking honest opinions on how they (respondents) were affected by the news. Depending on responses, including which election – national, Congressional, state or local – were deemed most important, respondents were assigned a political sophistication score.

“The results were mixed in the sense that they weren’t what I anticipated, but they did paint a very interesting picture,” Vaughn said. “The proposed pipeline question I added in the day before the survey was what was most mixed and not anticipated. The next biggest finding was that hard news significantly impacted the sophistication scores negatively.”

Results contradicted expectations, Vaughn said.

“I expected that those who were able to correctly answer the pipeline question were those who scored higher on the local sophistication score and that was not what we found. To sum it up, we found that citizens who are engaged more locally actually have a higher national sophistication score and the lowest local sophistication scores.”

“This research project and the survey to understand the effect of media on political awareness contained no right or wrong answers,” said Vaughn. “Citizens are not right nor wrong in their media preferences, and that is easily lost with the results.”

Watson added, “When Danie first approached me with an idea to survey local vs. national media consumption and the impact each has on political sophistication, I immediately thought it was an interesting project and was curious to know the results.”

“The vast majority of the published research in political science and the media deals with hard news and national sophistication, so having a focus on local media sources and knowledge of local issues, especially in an enclave like Alpine, Texas, was an interesting twist.”

After graduation, Vaughn plans to enroll in a Political Science Ph.D. program, with Texas Tech University or the University of Utah her preferred locations. She praised her McNair Program participation.

“It has been humbling in the sense that you never know what you are going to find. Sometimes, what you find can be scary. I am learning how to face these challenges and to be bold, tactful and honest.”

“I have so much more to learn about things I thought I knew about,” she said. “McNair has given me the tools to use mistakes so future research will be better and more accurate, and to learn how to respect and read others’ research in the same manner.”

The Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program is designed to encourage first generation, low-income students and minority undergraduates to consider careers in college teaching as well as prepare for doctoral study. Students who participate in the program are provided with research opportunities and faculty mentors.

Named in honor of the astronaut who died in the 1986 space-shuttle explosion, the program was established at Sul Ross in November 2007. It is funded through the Department of Education’s TRIO programs.

This article was originally posted on July 31, 2015 on Odessa American. Click here to read the original article.

A senior in the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts is the winner of this year’s McNair Scholars Summer Research Symposium at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Demetrius Green of Cairo, who is majoring in radio, television and digital media, won a $150 cash award for his presentation titled “Black Sitcoms and White Fragility: How to become a successful American television show.”

His mentor was Saran Donahoo, associate professor of educational administration and higher education.

The annual symposium, held July 16, highlights the work of SIU undergraduates in the McNair Scholars program.

The research institute is an intensive eight-week program during which the scholars work with their mentors to master advanced research skills, including fieldwork and literature review, compiling data and writing research papers.

This year, 12 students from the McNair Scholars Program and 10 students from the SI Bridges to the Baccalaureate program presented their research at the symposium.

The McNair Scholars Program is named for the late Ronald E. McNair, a physicist and astronaut who died in the 1986 explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.

The program provides enriched instruction for first-generation or otherwise underserved students.

 It emphasizes strong mentoring, professional development and research opportunities that promote academic excellence and encourage success at the graduate level.

The SI Bridges to Baccalaureate program is funded by the National Institutes of Health and provides paid biomedical and behavioral science research training and professional development for underserved community college students.

Students receive assistance in transferring to SIU and completing a baccalaureate degree in science, technology, engineering, math or social science disciplines.

SI Bridges is a cooperative effort among SIU, John A. Logan College at Carterville and Shawnee Community College at Ullin.

Among the other award recipients, with the title of their research and mentor were the following students from the Southern Illinois area:

Second place: Naomi Tolbert, a junior in political science from Carbondale for “Unequal Access: Factors Contributing to the Disproportional Representation of Marginalized Groups within Study Abroad Programs.” Her mentor was Chris Stout, assistant professor of political science.  Tolbert received a $100 cash award.

Fourth place (tie): Michael Sall, senior in horticulture from Carbondale, for “In vitro screening of native Trichoderma spp. isolates as potential biological control agents of seedling diseases of soybean caused by Macrophomina phaseolina and Rhizoctonia solani.” His mentor was Ahmad M. Fakhoury, associate professor of plant, soil and agricultural systems. Sall received a $50 cash award.

Students who also made presentations included the following students from the Southern Illinois area:

Leslie Murray, a senior in philosophy from Carbondale, for “The Immanence of the Eschaton & the Scientific Discoveries of the Present.” Murray’s mentor was Randall Auxier, professor of philosophy.

Luis Trevino-Pena, junior in philosophy from Cobden, for “Physician-assisted suicide: Addressing the ‘right to die’ argument.” His mentor was Andrew Youpa, associate professor of philosophy.

This article was originally posted on July 27, 2015 on AnnaNews.com. Click here to read the original article.