UWSP student earns top science Goldwater Scholarship
For the Metro Wire
A psychology and biology major at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has been awarded a prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship for excellence in science.
Brianna Havens, a sophomore from Lake Geneva, is among six students at Wisconsin universities and 496 in the nation named Goldwater Scholars this year. The Goldwater Scholarship covers tuition, fees, books, room, and board, up to a maximum of $7,500 per year. Winners who are sophomores are eligible for two years of paid expenses, up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.
The Goldwater Scholarship is designed to attract outstanding students into research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering.
“Brianna did an outstanding job putting her own unique research interests at the center of her research essay,” said Sarah Orlofske, assistant professor of biology and campus representative for the Goldwater Scholarship. “This is a reflection of Brianna’s outstanding work ethic and attention to detail. The project she proposed is ambitious, but she communicated it effectively to a broad scientific audience.”
Havens would like to do research work with primates. Her essay proposed research with bonobos, an endangered great ape. Much research is already done on common chimpanzees, the other Pan species, Havens said. She is interested in studying social structure and equality in this female-led egalitarian society.
Her career goal is to attain her Ph.D. in neuroscience and animal behavior and conduct research in social neuroscience of primate societies and apply this to human social stratification.
UW-Stevens Point has a rigorous process to compete for the Goldwater Scholarship nomination, Orlofske said. Students complete an online eligibility screening, followed by a campus application. Department chairs of the relevant disciplines evaluate and choose four potential UW-Stevens Point nominees, who are then evaluated at the national level.
Winners are selected from 5,000 applicants nationally, based on essays demonstrating an interest in research careers in the sciences, faculty recommendations and excellent academic records.
“When I saw my name, I was in shock,” Havens said. She is the first UW-Stevens Point student since 2012 to be awarded the Goldwater Scholarship and the 14th since it was established by Congress in 1986. Orlofske won in 2004.
Havens is already involved in two research projects with psychology faculty members Mark Ferguson and Heather Molenda-Figueira. One is on perceived vs. experienced prejudice. The other examines the environmental risk of BPS, or bisphenol S, a common replacement for BPA, used in making polycarbonate plastics.
The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation aims to develop highly qualified scientists, engineers, and mathematicians. Goldwater served in the U.S. Senate for more than 30 years.
