UpDate - Vol. 11, No. 26, Page 3
April 9, 1992
Competitive fellowships awarded to 24 graduate students

     Twenty-four outstanding students have been selected by the Office
of Graduate Studies to receive 1992-93 Competitive Fellowships
     Each of the winners-most of them doctoral students-will receive a
stipend and full tuition for the upcoming academic year.
     According to Carol E. Hoffecker, acting associate provost for
graduate studies, the awards will allow the graduate students to
concentrate on their research and pursue their respective disciplines.
     To some previous winners, Hoffecker added, the fellowship has
been a critical factor in helping students complete their degrees
     "These fellowships free up departmental funds for other
students," Hoffecker said, "and they free up the recipients from their
work as research or teaching assistants, giving them more time for
study.
     In February, more than 70  students applied for the fellowships,
submitting nomination letters, academic transcripts, performance
evaluations, descriptions of research and copies of published works.
These materials were reviewed by a committee and selections were
announced last month.
     "These are the very best students," Hoffecker said. "It is
important for them to win this award in such a highly competitive
environment. The process prepares them for seeking research grants as
their careers evolve."
     The 1992-93 fellowship recipients and their disciplines are

       Eugene Balk, art history
       Sunita Gangopadhyay, physics and astronomy
       David W. Griffith Jr., electrical engineering
       Hyunghee Ham, urban affairs and public policy
       Catherine Herbert, art history
       Mary Hutchinson, individual and family studies
       Christopher T. Hyde, psycholog
       Kevin Michael Kit, materials science
       Styliani Korre, chemical engineering
       Leah Langsdorf, chemical engineering
       Mary T. Lewis, oceanography
       Maureen McKenna, art history
       Christine A. Modey, English
       Tamera B. Murdock, educational studie
       Sudhir K. Nadija, marine studies
       Saurabh Palkar, chemical engineering
       Christopher Pennington, computer and information sciences
       James Rogers, computer and information sciences
       Katy Ruckdeschel, psychology
       Michael Seidl, English
       Xiaoping Shao, materials science
       Nancy Van Dolsen, urban affairs and public policy
       James Welsh, marine studies
       Rebecca Wykoff, urban affairs and public policy


     Six other graduate students were selected to receive competitive
tuition scholarships during the 1992-93 academic year. They are
Richard Martin, electrical engineering; Ercument Murat Sozer,
mechanical engineering; Gretchen C. Hupfel, art; Steven O'Connor,
English; John Gary Daynes, history; and David J. Rossell, history.
     Articles on the research and study of the 24 competitive
scholarship fellows will be featured in UpDate periodically over the
next year.
                                        -Ed Okonowicz