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April 4, 2013

Students win Goldwater, Udall awards

Katherine N. “Nikki” Luke

Katherine N. “Nikki” Luke

Four Pitt undergraduates, all juniors, are among the winners of prestigious national scholarships announced last week.

Katherine N. “Nikki” Luke was among 50 students selected as 2013 Udall Scholars and Adair Louise Borges, David Eckman and Michael Nites were among 271 scholars awarded 2013 Goldwater Scholarships.

Earning an honorable mention in the Goldwater competition was Kevin Andrew Day, a junior majoring in bioengineering and, in the Udall competition, Rachel E. Meyer, a junior majoring in mechanical engineering.

The University has had a total of 41 Goldwater winners and seven Udall winners since 1995.

Udall winner

Luke, a junior from Blacksburg, Va., is majoring in environmental studies and economics. She plans to pursue a PhD in agricultural economics. She aspires to a career in academia and plans to research desertification to encourage sustainable agriculture in semi-arid regions.

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Adair Louise Borges

Adair Louise Borges

This year’s Udall scholars, from 43 colleges and universities, were chosen from 488 candidates nominated by 230 schools. Each scholarship provides up to $5,000 for the student’s junior or senior year. The Udall Foundation is an independent federal agency established by Congress in 1992. Since its first awards were made in 1996, the foundation has granted 1,364 scholarships worth a total of $6.82 million.

According to the Udall Foundation, recipients were selected by an independent review committee based on the students’ commitment to careers in the environment, Native American health care or tribal public policy; leadership potential, academic achievement and record of public service. Winners will receive their awards at an assembly in Tucson, Ariz., in August.

Initially established to honor Morris K. Udall’s three decades of service in the House of Representatives, the foundation now also recognizes his brother Stewart L. Udall’s service in the House and as Secretary of Interior under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.

Goldwater winners

Borges, a microbiology major from Billings, Mont., plans to earn a PhD in microbiology. She aspires to teach at the university level and conduct research on medically relevant microorganisms.

David Eckman

David Eckman

Eckman, an industrial engineering major from Fargo, N.D., plans to earn a PhD in operations research. He aspires to teach at a university and conduct research in decision-analytic modeling.

Nites, an industrial engineering and mathematics major from Pittsburgh, plans to earn a PhD in operations research. He aspires to teach at the university level and conduct research in process modeling and computational techniques applied to health care.

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The Goldwater scholars were selected from a field of 1,107 mathematics, science and engineering students. Winners’ one- and two-year scholarships cover the cost of tuition, fees, books, and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.

Michael Nites

Michael Nites

The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation is a federally endowed agency established by Congress in 1986. Its scholarship program honoring Sen. Barry M. Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.

Since its first award was made in 1989, the foundation has bestowed more than 6,550 scholarships worth approximately $40 million.

—Kimberly K. Barlow


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