The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire's Office of Research and Sponsored Programs has announced the 2021 student research award recipients for the Kell Container Corporation Scholarship for Student-Faculty Collaborative Research, James R. Larson and Vicki Lord Larson Undergraduate Research Fellowship and the brand new Outstanding Undergraduate Research Project Award. The Kell Container awardee receives funding for a research project (faculty stipend, student stipend and supplies) and a $2,800 scholarship. All Larson Fellowship awardees receive funding for a research project (faculty stipend, student stipend, and supplies) and a $2,500 scholarship. The Outstanding Undergraduate Research Project Award awardee receives a $2,500 scholarship.
The Kell Container Corp. Scholarship for 2021-2022 was awarded to Madeline Palubicki, Eleva, Wisconsin, a Geology-Hydrogeology major. She will work with Dr. Sarah Vitale, assistant professor of Geology, on research titled “A Case Study at Mud Lake: The Influence of Phosphorus Loading Through Lacustrine Groundwater Discharge on Eutrophication Events in a Stratified Flow-Through Lake in Western Wisconsin.”
The James R. Larson and Vicki Lord Larson Undergraduate Research Fellowship Award awarded three awards to student researchers for the following categories: College of Arts and Sciences: STEM; College of Arts and Sciences: non-STEM; and College of Business. The scholarship recipients are as follows:
The College of Arts and Sciences: STEM recipient is Caterra Leavens, Chetek, Wisconsin, a Biochemistry/Molecular Biology major. Leavens’ project with Dr. Jamie Lyman Gingerich, associate professor of Biology, is titled “Assessing Effect of DNA Variants on Splicing in Genes Related to Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis.”
The College of Arts and Sciences: Non-STEM recipient is Madelyn Loeffler, Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, an Environmental Geography major. Loeffler’s project with Dr. Karen Mumford, Associate Professor of Public Health and Environmental Studies, is titled “Assessing Community Needs Through the Perspectives of Non-Profit Leaders in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.”
The College of Business recipient is Sara Jane Hansen, Mondovi, Wisconsin, an Accounting major. Hansen’s project with Dr. Jidong Zhang, Assistant Professor in Accounting and Finance, is titled “The association between ethical hackers' behavior and cybersecurity disclosure.”
The Outstanding Undergraduate Research Project Award is a brand-new scholarship that is awarded to an undergraduate student majoring in chemistry, biology, or nursing. The student must be conducting outstanding collaborative research.
The Outstanding Undergraduate Research Project Award winner is Ashley Lutzke, Valders, Wisconsin, is a Psychology major. Lutzke’s project with Dr. Bradley Carter, Assistant Professor in Biology, is titled “Investigating developmental methylmercury toxicity with a knockout zebrafish line.”
More information about the Kell Container Corporation Scholarship for Student-Faculty Collaborative Research, the James R. Larson and Vicki Lord Larson Undergraduate Research Fellowship, and the Outstanding Undergraduate Research Project Award is available online or by contacting Dr. Catherine Chan, Executive Director for Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, at chancw@uwec.edu.
