UGA National Scholars named

Over the past few months, a number of national programs have named their scholarship recipients, from the Goldwater Scholars to the new Rangel Graduate Fellowship. As such, here is a partial list of the UGA students who were named as scholars from these programs:

• Victoria Akin, a third-year student from Macon, GA and a graduate of Mount de Sales Academy, was named a 2011 Goldwater Scholar. Victoria has done research in epidemiology with faculty in the UGA College of Public Health, and the National Science Foundation Research Experience.
• Michael Burel, a third-year student from Acworth, GA and a graduate of Carlton J. Kell HS, was named a 2011 Goldwater Scholar. Michael has worked as a CURO apprentice in the lab of Dr. Steven Stice, was selected for the NYU Summer Undergraduate Research Program, and conducted research in France this past summer in stem cell work.
• Amar Mirza, a third-year student from Hiram, GA and a graduate of Marietta HS, was named a 2011 Goldwater Scholar. Amar has conducted research in biochemistry and molecular biology in the lab of Dr. Natarajan Kannan, and participated in CURO, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Exceptional Research Opportunities Program, and has worked in the field at a health clinic in Haiti.
• Ashley Bartlett, a fourth-year student from Longwood, FL and graduate of Lake Mary HS, is a Rangel Graduate Fellowship recipient, which has a focus on students pursuing careers as US Foreign Service diplomats. Ashley participated in the  World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms program, and studied in the UGA at Oxford study abroad program in 2009.
• Todd Pierson, a fourth-year student from Zionsville, IN and graduate of Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School, was named a Udall Scholar, with a focus on ecological studies. Todd has traveled to Guatemala, where he collected and studied new species of amphibians and reptiles, and has scheduled expeditions to Oman and the United Arab Emirates along with a return to Guatemala this year.
• Muktha Natrajan, a fourth-year student from Martinez, GA and a graduate of Lakeside HS, was named a 2011 Gates Cambridge Scholar (after being named a 2009 Goldwater Scholar and a 2010 Udall Scholar). Muktha has done research in Dr. Steven Stice's lab, has studied at Nanjing University in China, participated in the NYU Summer Undergraduate Research Program, and was an intern with the World Health Organization in Namibia. Upon graduation in May, she will receive a BS degree in Genetics and a Master of Public Health degree in environmental health science.

Congratulations to these students, along with all the other UGA scholars who have done so much and have so many great opportunities both in graduate programs and in the workplace! 

Go Dawgs!