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| Suguet Lopez presents her research on Identification of Leptin in the Ovine Hypothalamus during the fifth Annual Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program Summer Symposium. |
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| After six months of graduate-level research, students in Cal Poly Pomona?s McNair Scholars Program presented their findings at a summer symposium on July 29 in the Bronco Student Center. |
After six months of graduate-level research, 20 students in Cal Poly Pomona's McNair Scholars Program presented their findings at a summer symposium on July 29 in the Bronco Student Center.
More than 100 people, including academics from UCLA and the Claremont Colleges and local high school students, attended the fifth Annual Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program Summer Symposium.
“The symposium was a tremendous success,” says Frank Torres, director of the program. “The scholars were masterful in their presentations, and there were so many parents, faculty and mentors who were there to support their efforts.”
The McNair Scholars Program is named for astronaut Ronald E. McNair, an advocate for education who died in the 1986 space shuttle Challenger explosion. The federally funded program encourages first-generation, low-income or underrepresented students to earn doctoral degrees. Scholars are provided mentors, financial aid and experience with research and seminars.
“The McNair Scholars Program is the only program at Cal Poly Pomona that provides a comprehensive array of services that prepares students for success at the Ph.D. level,” says Torres. “In the short amount of time we've had this program, we've been able to graduate more than 50 scholars, and about 70 percent of them are in graduate school either pursuing a master's degree or doctorate.”
Psychology senior Adipat Chaichanasakul says this program “is serving as a bridge between my undergraduate and graduate success.”
“The symposium provided me experience in research and presenting research, both major areas that graduate schools look for in applicants,” he says.
Each McNair Scholar chose a professor who guided the students research project from proposal to final paper. Research topics ranged from Indian gaming and the environment to spider silk-moisture interactions.
“It's really amazing to see how far these students come from when they started in January to the symposium in July,” says academic adviser Joan Hill. “This event is a culmination of all of their hard work, and to see them shine on this day is wonderful.”
For more information, contact Hill at (909) 869-3381. To view a list of this year's McNair Scholars, click here.