Twenty-One Pitt Students Receive 2013 National Science Foundation Fellowships

Twenty-one University of Pittsburgh students have received 2013 Graduate Research Fellowships from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The fellowships have been awarded to eight seniors who graduated from the University April 28 and 13 students who are pursuing graduate studies at Pitt.

The NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program is designed to ensure the vitality and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce in the United States. The program recognizes and supports outstanding students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees. Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $30,000 along with a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees.

The fellowship program has a long history of selecting recipients who achieve high levels of success in their future academic and professional careers. The support accorded NSF Graduate Research Fellows nurtures their ambition to become lifelong leaders who contribute significantly to both scientific innovation and teaching.

The names of the newly graduated Pitt seniors receiving the fellowships and their earned University degrees are: Ohiremen Louis Dibua, Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering; Sydney Michelle Gibson, Bachelor of Science in bioengineering; Naomi Rose Latorraca, Bachelor of Arts in history and Bachelor of Science in molecular biology; Elizabeth O’Reilly, Bachelor of Science in mathematics, Carsen Stringer, Bachelor of Science in physics and applied mathematics, Lisa R. Volpatti, Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering; Christopher Allen Zimmerman, Bachelor of Science in bioengineering and Bachelor of Science in neuroscience; and Andrew Charles Zmolek, Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering.

The Pitt graduate students from the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences who have received the fellowships and their academic departments are: Neal Cameron Barcelo, computer science; Shannon Diane Donofry, psychology; Stephen R. Groskreutz, chemistry; Kathryn Ann LeCroy, biological sciences; Sarah Diane Lichenstein, psychology; Bryce Leslie Lunt, biological sciences; Megan Miller, psychology; and Julia Diane Reuben, psychology. The Pitt graduate student from the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences receiving the fellowship is Nathan Scott Hogaboom, rehabilitation science and technology; the Pitt graduate student from the School of Medicine receiving the fellowship is Jeffrey Chiou, neurobiology; and the Pitt graduate students from the Swanson School of Engineering’s bioengineering department receiving the fellowships are Denver Michael Faulk, Sharlene Nicole Flesher, and Timothy Joseph Keane.

Visit www.fastlane.nsf.gov/grfp/Login.do to learn more about the Graduate Research Fellowship Program.