Nine Pitt Students Awarded 2019 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships

PITTSBURGH—Nine University of Pittsburgh students were awarded a 2018 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Seven Pitt students and one alumnus also earned an honorable mention.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program is designed to ensure the vitality and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce in the United States. The program recognizes and supports outstanding students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees. Fellows receive an annual stipend of $34,000 for three years, as well as a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees. 

The support accorded to NSF Graduate Research Fellows is intended to nurture awardees’ ambition to become lifelong leaders who contribute significantly to both scientific innovation and teaching.

“Receipt of an NSF Fellowship award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our undergrad and graduate students, and to their faculty mentors and advisors. It is also one of the most highly recognized indicators of early success in a scientific research career,” said Nathan Urban, vice provost for graduate studies and strategic initiatives at Pitt. “The University is committed to increasing support for future NSF-GRFP applicants through the application process while we congratulate this year’s winners.”

Current Pitt students who were awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship are:

Seniors from the Swanson School of Engineering:  

• Kalon J. Overholt (bioengineering)
• Nathanial Robert Buettner (civil engineering)

Graduate students from the Swanson School:  

• Dulce Maria Mariscal Olivares (bioengineering)
• Charles D. Griego (chemical engineering)

Seniors from the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences: 

• Samantha Shablin (ecology)

 Graduate students from the Dietrich School:

• Esther Esmeralda Palacios-Barrios (developmental psychology)
• Samantha Fontaine (evolutionary biology)
• Shirley Duong (developmental psychology)
• Tiffany Lynn Betras (ecology)

And seven current Pitt students received honorable mentions:

Swanson School of Engineering:

• Sommer Anjum (bioengineering)

Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences:

• Julia Sarah Feldman (developmental psychology)
• Mattheus De Souza (macromolecular chemistry, supramolecular chemistry and nanochemistry)
• Nick Chehade (neurosciences)
• Kevin Christopher Cassidy (biophysics)
• Anthony Travis Bogetti (chemical theory, models and computational methods)
• Sarah L. Aghjayan (clinical health psychology)

Ethan Schumann (ENGR ’18), who studied mechanical engineering at the Swanson School, was the sole Pitt alumni who received an honorable mention.

For a full list of fellows and honorable mentions, and to learn more about the Graduate Research Fellowship Program, visit the GRFP website.

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