Undergraduate students Mary (Tess) Overton and Nemah-Allah Saleh have received Goldwater Scholarships, as only the second and third students at the University ever to receive this award. The scholarship is the premier undergraduate award of its type in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.
Saleh, a Biology Honors student, is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in biology and is a biotechnology minor and chemistry minor. Overton, a Crown Scholar and University Honors Program student, is pursuing bachelor’s degrees in biology and chemistry.
“Tess and Nemah are ideal choices for these very prestigious national scholarships,” said Nancy Gutierrez, dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences. “Both are excellent scholars who have embraced interdisciplinary research. Through their work with an array of mentors, they are already contributing in a meaningful way to the intellectual life of our college, the University and the broader community.”
Saleh intends to pursue her Ph.D. in biochemistry or molecular biology. “After obtaining my Ph.D., I intend to conduct research in a university laboratory while teaching or in a government laboratory, such as at the NIH (National Institutes of Health), on the central compound necessary for life: the protein,” Saleh wrote in her scholarship materials.
Original story by Lynn Roberson. Published on April 13, 2017.