Dubois Outlines Recent UW Accomplishments

May 16, 2003 -- President Philip L. Dubois today (Friday) presented to UW trustees a report of recent major accomplishments at and gifts to the University of Wyoming. Among them were:

Richard Cool of Casper, a senior in physics/astronomy and mathematics, received a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship valued at $114,000. Fellowships are awarded for graduate study leading to research-based master's or doctoral degrees in mathematics, science or engineering. Cool will pursue graduate studies at the University of Arizona, where he will do research involving the evolution of galaxies.

Kenna Matthews of Evanston, a UW Honors Program junior in psychology, is one of 76 students nationwide, from a field of 635 candidates, selected as 2003 Truman Scholars. Each Truman Scholarship provides $30,000 for college students to attend graduate school in preparation for careers in government or elsewhere in public service.

Rachel Schmidt of Loveland, Colo., a UW botany major, is among 300 students nationwide, from a field of nearly 1,100 mathematics, science and engineering students who applied, selected to receive a Goldwater Scholarship. Schmidt will use the scholarship to study next spring at London's Royal Botanic Gardens.

UW debaters Mike Owens of Sheridan and Josh Wilkerson of Modesto, Calif., defeated Long Beach State University to win the National Parliamentary Debate Tournament of Excellence championship at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore. Owens, for the second consecutive year, was named the elite tournament's top speaker, while Wilkerson repeated as the tournament's fourth speaker. The pair also won the 292-team open National Parliamentary Debate Association national championship at Portland State University.

Researchers in the College of Agriculture have been awarded a $2.4 million Department of Defense grant to pioneer a method for the environmental testing of the agent that causes deadly chronic wasting disease (CWD) in deer and elk. A collaborative team led by international CWD expert Elizabeth Williams of the UW Department of Veterinary Sciences, along with Molecular Biology Professor Randy Lewis and Veterinary Sciences Professor Merl Raisbeck, will conduct the five-year project.

The Council on Foreign Relations has awarded an International Affairs Fellowship to Jean Garrison, assistant professor in UW Department of Political Science. She will spend the year conducting research and working on American foreign policy issues with U.S. government agencies such as the state department or National Security Council. Only eight fellowships were awarded for the 2003-2004 academic year in the nationwide competition.

A group of UW scientists has received a $1.25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to study ways to increase oil recovery from fractured reservoirs. UW's research team, headed by Norman R. Morrow, J.E. Warren Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, aims to improve fundamental understanding of imbibition, a method of oil extraction whereby oil is produced as a result of water being sucked into the reservoir rock.

The UW rifle team captured the national title in the club division at the recent National Rifle Association Intercollegiate International 3-Position Smallbore indoor national sectional championships in El Paso, Texas. Competing in both smallbore and air rifle competitions, Jonathan Thompson, a UW criminal justice senior from Naches, Wash., was the individual champion among the 50 club division shooters.

A one-act play written by UW student Thomas Campbell of Arvada, Colo., won first place in regional theatre competition and was selected to be performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Campbell's play, "Blind Date," was selected for first place at the recent American College Theatre Festival in Bellingham, Wash., an annual competition for student actors, directors and playwrights representing colleges and universities in six states.

Graduate student Michelle Schwope of Lovell won second place in alumni stock seat reining at the 30th National Intercollegiate Horse Show Association competition at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. To win the "reserve champion" title, Schwope defeated competitors from throughout the country who had qualified for the national contest by placing first or second in regional events.

An interdisciplinary team of UW students captured first place in the best handling sled category at the recent Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Clean Snowmobile Challenge in Houghton, Mich. UW's entry placed second in acceleration in the 13-team contest.

Raymond Jacquot, professor emeritus of electrical and computer engineering, has been elected a fellow in the 12,000-member American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). The ASEE Board of Directors confers the grade of fellow to members with outstanding and extraordinary qualifications and experience in engineering or engineering technology education.

Four UW singers claimed first place awards during the recent Colorado/Wyoming National Association of Teachers of Singing annual competition at the University of Denver. UW's first place finishers were: Jennifer Croucher, Cheyenne; Jacob Smith, Rawlins; Christopher Will, Loveland, Colo.; and Leslee Wisdom, Sterling, Colo.

For the second straight year, the UW Model United Nations team was named "best school" at the recent Rocky Mountain United Nations competition in Denver. UW students represented Guinea, Cameroon, Costa Rica, Vietnam, Japan, and Brazil in multilateral policymaking simulations. Jennifer Leathers of Laramie, a senior in political science and women's studies, was named best country delegation (Japan) for the Economic and Social Council.

Peggy Falgien, manager of the UW Bookstore, is the new president-elect of the National Association of College Bookstores (NACS), with a membership of nearly 2,800 college and university bookstore retailers nationwide. A nonprofit association, NACS acts as a wholesaler of books and computer products to member stores, and promotes industry vitality through its research, educational, and professional development activities.

Posted on Friday, May 16, 2003