2009 Arts & Sciences Beyond the Book Winners Announced

A&S student projects addressing the evolution of the French language, embryology, analysis of skeletal remains from a penal colony cemetery in Costa Rica, and popular religion and peacemaking in Sudan are among 12 chosen for the 2009 Beyond the Book Scholarship.

Now in its third year, Beyond the Book encourages undergraduate students in the College to pursue research and intensive learning beyond traditional classroom study. The scholarship is competitive and dozens of proposals are received. Each year, a group of students are awarded a stipend to conduct research during the summer. Opportunities include, but are not limited to, lab research, field and archival work. Students are advised by faculty and have the opportunity to travel. Past winners have carried out research in the Library of Congress (Washington D.C), in Yucatán and the Bahamas.

Miles Kenney-Lazar '09, geography and regional studies, a Beyond the Book recipient last year, investigated the socioeconomic impacts of the changing agricultural production system in Laos. “I will always remember driving around on a rented motorbike from village to village with two thoughts going through my head: one, I can't believe I am doing this right now; and two, this is exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life,” he said. Kenny-Lazar proceeded to win the Fulbright Scholarship to continue his research in Southeast Asia.

Interim Dean Jacqueline E. Dixon will recognize the 2009 Beyond the Book Scholarship recipients during a luncheon on October 2nd. “Beyond the Book is a valuable program for A&S students to trust their own observations and take their academic interests further. Through research, travel, and working under the guidance of a mentor/professor they are certain to make many new discoveries,” Dixon noted.

The 2009 Beyond the Book recipients are:

• Kristina Astone '10
  Major: psychology and anthropology
  Project: Running Head: Pathological Analysis of Skeletons in Costa Rica
  Faculty mentor: Monica Faraldo, lecturer, Department of Anthropology
• Jordan Balke '12
  Major: biochemistry
  Project: Glomalin Extraction
  Faculty mentor: Dr. David Janos, associate professor, Department of Biology
• Julianna Ferro '10
  Major: French, economics and international studies
  Project: French Language Evolution and Globalization
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Subha Xavier, assistant professor, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures
• Enrique Garcia '10
  Major: biochemistry
  Project: miR-7 Blocking Impairs Insulin Production During Development
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Ricardo Pastori, research associate professor, Diabetes Research Institute
• Alexandra Lavery '11
  Major: chemistry
  Project: Development of New Catalysts for Asymmetric Synthesis of Medically Important Molecules
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Norito Takenaka, assistant professor, Department of Chemistry
• Janine Lux '10
  Major: international studies, FLAS
  Project: State Sponsored Development Projects in Panama and the Effect on Indigenous People
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Daniel Suman, professor, RMSAS Division of Marine Affairs and Policy
• Teresa Micotto '11
  Major: neuroscience
  Project: Fluorescent mimics of 5-hydroxytryptamine based on N-alkylated derivatives of 6-hydroxycarbostyril
  Faculty mentor: Dr. James N. Wilson, assistant professor, Department of Chemistry
• Gregory Michael Mlacker '10
  Major: neurobiology
  Project: embryology
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Isaac Skromme, assistant professor, Department of Biology
• Sean Murray '10
  Major: geological science
  Project: Free Living Corals and the Dominican Republic
  Faculty mentor: Dr. James Klaus, assistant professor, Department of Geological Sciences
• Daniel K. Thompson '10
  Major: religious studies
  Project: Popular Religion and Peacemaking in Central Africa
  Faculty mentor: Dr. David Kling, professor, Department of Religious Studies
• Austin Lane Webbert '10
  Major: history and Latin American studies
  Project: Youth, Culture, and Identity in Site Soley, Haiti
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Louis Marcelin, assistant professor, Department of Anthropology
• Kamilah Ziodeen '10
  Major: chemistry
  Project: Exploring the Catalytic Abilities of the "Copper Dimer" on Water Oxidization: A Pathway to Clean Energy
  Faculty mentor: Dr. Nita A. Lewis, associate professor, Department of Chemistry