WVWC receives grant
BUCKHANNON — Dr. Joanna Webb, assistant professor of chemistry, and the School of Science at West Virginia Wesleyan College were awarded a SURE Grant from the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, Division of Science and Research. This three-year grant totals $120,000 and will pay 10 students a stipend of $3,500 for eight weeks of research.
The grant also allows for summer travel funds so students can present their research findings at regional and national scientific meetings. Sixteen faculty from all departments in the School of Science are participating as mentors. Those faculty members come from biology and environmental science, chemistry and biochemistry, mathematics and physics and engineering.
Webb noted the importance of the grant for student experience. “We have some unbelievably bright and capable students in our school, and the opportunity to work on an individual research project is when you really hook them,” she said. “That is when they fall in love with their science and decide they want to solve problems.”
With heavy course loads to attend to, students can only devote six hours a week to research. The SURE grant allows students the access to campus over the summer to fully dedicate their time to their field.
“Research is where topics from class truly start to click,” Webb stated. “This grant was important to pursue because it gives our students an opportunity to stay on campus to focus on research in the summer in a one-on-one setting with a faculty member. This becomes their summer job. Our hope is students learn from and enjoy their experiences and decide to pursue a graduate degree in their scientific fields.”
Information on the grant and available research projects can be found at http://www.wvwc.edu/summer-undergraduate-research-experience. Applications are due by March 13.