January 28, 2022 - POUGHKEEPSIE, NY—Vassar College has received a $156,000 grant from the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation that will fund faculty-mentored research projects conducted by six students over the next three years.

The 2022 Beckman Scholars Program provides stipends and other expenses for exceptional students in the fields of biology, chemistry, biochemistry and neuroscience & behavior. The first two students will be selected in April and will start their research this summer, said Associate Professor of Biology Jennifer Kennell, Beckman Scholars Program Director.

Each of the six students will conduct research over two summers and one academic year. They will be paid $6,800 for each summer session and $4,600 during the academic year and will receive up to $2,800 for travel and other research expenses.

Kennell noted that Vassar competed with numerous other colleges and universities for the funding, which was awarded to 14 institutions this year. “It’s truly exciting that Vassar was selected,” she said. “It shows how respected Vassar’s science programs are to have received such a prestigious award. It speaks to the quality of our students and the quality of our faculty and the mentoring plans they developed.”

Faculty mentors for the program, in addition to Kennell, are: Assistant Professor of Biology and Biochemistry Colin Echeverría Aitken, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Zachary Donhauser, Associate Professor of Biology and Neuroscience & Behavior Megan D. Gall, Professor of Biology and Neuroscience & Behavior and Cognitive Science John Long, Assistant Professor of Psychological Science and Neuroscience & Behavior Lori Newman, Assistant Professor of Psychological Science and Neuroscience & Behavior Hadley Bergstrom, Assistant Professor of Biology Leroy Cooper, Associate Professor of Biology and Neuroscience & Behavior Kelli Duncan, and Associate Professor of Psychological Science and Neuroscience & Behavior Bojana Zupan.

Vassar College is an independent, coeducational, residential liberal arts institution, founded in 1861.

Contact: Larry Hertz, lahertz@vassar.edu, 845-518-3098, 845-437-7938 (Vassar College)