UW McNair Scholars Present Research Work

Aug. 10, 2006 -- University of Wyoming students presented research projects on topics ranging from wildlife diseases to writing memoirs, during the recent 14th annual UW McNair Scholar research conference.

McNair is a graduate school preparation program for students interested in earning a Ph.D. Services include a paid research internship of $3,600, mentoring from UW faculty, GRE (Graduate Record Exam) preparation classes, academic support and tutoring, and assistance with the graduate school application process. A minimum 3.0 grade point average is required and students must have completed 48 hours by the end of the 2005 fall semester.

The students in the current class were accepted into the McNair Scholars Program last fall. The program prepares promising undergraduate students from groups traditionally underrepresented in graduate education to enter and complete a doctoral degree program. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the McNair Scholars Program is part of the federal TRIO programs that help students to overcome financial, cultural, social or academic barriers. UW offers six TRIO programs with outreach sites located throughout the state.

Students eligible for the scholarship are those who are first-generation college students who meet income guidelines or students who are members of ethnic groups that include Hispanic, African-American or American Indian individuals.

For more information about the McNair Scholars process at UW, call Susan Stoddard at (307) 766-6525 or Zackie Salmon at (307) 766-3818.

UW McNair students presenting their projects, listed by hometown, major and name of project are:

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA -- David Frankford, mathematics, junior, "Program Design for the Computational Processing of the Kimberling Shuffle."

BARDSTOWN, KY -- David DeMar, zoology and physiology, senior, "Statistical Analyses of a Vertebrate Microsite from the Mesaverde Formation, Wyoming."

CASPER -- Amy Albertson, molecular biology, senior, "Development of an Ultrasensitive Assay for the Detection of Chronic Wasting Disease in the Bodily Fluids of Mule Deer."

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Jodi Frankford, English senior, "The Processes of Writing a Memoir Within the Creative Non-Fiction Genre."

DENVER, COLO. -- Stacy Gates, anthropology senior, "Wormian Bones as an Indicator of Mongoloid Ancestry."

JACKSON -- Daniel Mullendore, botany junior, "Detection of Low-Level Herbicide Exposure in Sunflowers."

LANDER -- Shannon Nelson, sociology senior, "Television News Broadcasts and Ownership"; Anthony Roberts, political science/economics junior, "Sino-Laotian Relations: A Case Study for Chinese Development of Southeast Asia-A World-Systems Analysis."

LARAMIE -- Gary Chaffee, secondary education English/journalism senior, "Effects of the USA Patriot Act on Wyoming Libraries, Library Professionals, and Non-Professionals"; Chelsie Hess, psychology junior, "Links Between Maternal Depression and Children's Behavior During Early Childhood"; Bonnie Youmans, molecular biology senior, Fluoroquinolone Resistance in E.Coli."

POWELL -- Michael Burnett, electrical engineering senior, "Investigating the Effects of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase on Acetaldehyde Toxicity in Myocytes."

ROCK SPRINGS -- Ryan Graham, psychology senior, "Religiosity and Depression: Relationships with Guilt and Rumination in College Students."

SHERIDAN -- Rebecca Buhl, history senior, "Wyoming's Gale McGee: Pro-Development and Pro-Environment."

WILLINGBORO, N.J. -- Elizabeth Hamilton, art senior, "The Sum of Her Parts: Pseudoscientific and Artistic Constructions of the African American Woman in the 19th-20th Centuries."

Posted on Thursday, August 10, 2006