Single mom shines as researcher
Lori Scardino and her daughters, Alexandria and Olivia.
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Q&A with Lori Scardino
Background information:
I am a junior with a major in chemistry. In 2004-05 I received the Phillip J. Chenier Scholarship, the David and Alice Katz Scholarship and other scholarships for single parents. I received the 2005-06 Kell Container Corporation Scholarship.
My postgraduation goals:
I want to continue my education and receive a doctorate degree in chemistry. My goal is to become a professor and continue to do research work.
How donors’ generosity has made a difference in my life:
I’ve been able to go to national meetings and be first author on a published paper. It’s not common to be at a university where as an undergraduate you can do research and become a published scientist. I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in collaborative research as an undergraduate. I believe it is the single most valuable experience I will have at UW-Eau Claire. The Kell Scholarship is making this experience possible.
What I’d like to tell my benefactors:
I am sincerely thankful to John and Betsy Kell and the Kell Container Corporation.
I feel I was fortunate to meet Mr. Kell and be able to personally thank him. I was impressed with his concern for my success. He was so kind and encouraging to me. He asked me to keep in touch with him and even offered to put me in touch with people he knew in Madison where I hope to go to graduate school. That faith in me means a great deal. I will always be grateful to the Kell family and corporation. |
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By Kate Hartsel
Lori Scardino, a UW-Eau Claire junior chemistry major who’s excelling academically while raising two young children on her own, has been the recipient of the several UW-Eau Claire Foundation scholarships, most recently the prestigious 2005-06 Kell Container Corporation Scholarship.
“The Kell Scholarship recognizes the potential of students as research scientists, and I can’t think of any student who has worked for me who is a more gifted researcher than Lori Scardino,” said chemistry professor Scott Hartsel, who is Scardino’s academic adviser.
With Hartsel and other UW-Eau Claire faculty and students, Scardino has had the opportunity to participate in research developing a new class of probes (or dyes) for fluorescence microscopy of live cells. The probes can potentially be used for a variety of medical and diagnostic purposes, ranging from mass screening of cholesterol-lowering drugs to stem cell or cancer research to studying metabolic diseases of lysosomes such as Tay-Sachs disease. The probes currently are going through the patenting process.
“In addition to collaborative work with me, Lori has helped develop our outreach chemistry demo program, is president of the American Chemical Society student affiliate and has close to a 4.0 grade-point average," Hartsel said.
Scardino has achieved her success on campus while juggling her role as a nontraditional single parent.
“She’s just as amazing as a parent, being very actively involved with her children’s school and extracurricular activities,” said Hartsel. “Frankly I don’t know how she does it all.”
Scardino had a difficult childhood, which makes her accomplishments even more amazing, said Hartsel. She came from a poor, troubled family and at 15 was placed in foster care. Still she finished high school early and enrolled at UW-La Crosse. But she withdrew from college after one semester when her father died and she decided to return home to care for her younger brother.
In 2002, Scardino divorced and found herself a single parent. With little income and two young daughters, she decided to return to college.
“I know I’ve taken a hard road, not an easy path, through life, but I’ve found there are people like John Kell and Dr. Hartsel who are role models and will help you if you are motivated and determined to succeed.”
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