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Known as “America’s Job Search Guru,” internationally acclaimed author and speaker Donald Asher is coming to West Virginia University.

Asher will speak to students in the WVU McNair Scholars Program, and any students who are interested, on Thursday, Sept. 9 from 6-8:30 p.m. in the Gold Ballroom of the Mountainlair.

“This will be Mr. Asher’s first visit to Morgantown and WVU and we are extremely excited and honored to have him,” said Betty Mei, assistant director of the WVU McNair Scholars Program. “He is an extremely dynamic speaker and an authority on the graduate school admission process. Our students should benefit greatly from hearing what he has to say.”

He will speak to students about writing a personal statement, resume and other things surrounding the graduate school admissions process.

Specializing in professional development and higher education, Asher is the author of 11 books. He has been published in The Wall Street Journal’s online edition, careerbuilder.com, USAirways Magazine, The San Francisco Examiner and The Los Angeles Times’ career development web pages.

He is a frequent guest on television and radio, and speaks at more than 100 venues each year.

The event is sponsored by the WVU’s Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program. It is free and open to all students.

The McNair Scholars Program is designed to help undergraduate, low-income, first-generation or underrepresented college students earn doctoral degrees.

For more information on the program or to download an application, visit http://www.wvu.edu/~mcnair.

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cd/09/02/10

CONTACT: Betty Mei, McNair Scholars Program
304-293-4316, Betty.Mei@mail.wvu.edu

Namratha Gudemaranahalli

West Virginia University junior Namratha Gudemaranahalli is intrigued by the complex and integrated workings of the human brain.

“I am fascinated by it,” said Gudemaranahalli, a biology and psychology major from Powell, Ohio and a WVU McNair Scholar.
“I am so thrilled. I have always wanted to go into research and now I have a great path to get there. My family and the mentors I have worked with through the McNair Scholars Program have been instrumental in my success. I could not have done it without them.”

Devoted to her research, Gudemaranahalli – originally from India – is one of nine students chosen nationwide for the National Health Institutes Undergraduate Scholarship Program.

“When Namratha asked me to write a letter of recommendation for her, I knew based on her past academic performance and the type of person she is that she will continue to do well in school and be able to fulfill the requirements set up by the institute,” said Betty Mei, assistant director of the WVU McNair Scholars Program.

“I am extremely happy for her because she deserves the acknowledgement. Needless to say, the WVU McNair Scholars Program is excited about her being selected as a NIH UGSP scholar. The WVU community should also be proud,” she added.

The scholarship program is designed for students from disadvantaged backgrounds who are committed to careers in biomedical, behavioral and social science health-related research.

Through the program, Gudemaranahalli will receive up to $20,000 to cover tuition, fees, living and other educational expenses for each academic year. The program is for one year, but Gudemaranahalli will have the option to renew the award for her senior year.

She will be required to complete two service requirements. She will have to complete at 10-week Summer Laboratory Experience, where she will work as a paid researcher at a National Institutes of Health research laboratory.

“I am so thrilled. I have always wanted to go into research and now I have a great path to get there,” she said. “My family and the mentors I have worked with through the McNair Scholars Program have been instrumental in my success. I could not have done it without them.”

Following graduation, she will be required to work for the National Institutes of Health as a paid full-time employee for at least one year for each year of scholarship awarded.

Ultimately, Gudemaranahalli aims to earn her doctorate and become a neuroscience researcher.

For more information on the scholarship, visit https://ugsp.nih.gov/home.asp?m=00 .

For more information on WVU’s McNair Scholars Program, visit http://mcnair.wvu.edu/ .

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cd/08/02/10

CONTACT: News and Information
304-293-6997

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Sixteen undergraduate students at West Virginia University will receive mentor guidance, research opportunities and financial assistance as part of WVU’s Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program.

The 2010 scholars will be given a $2,500 annual stipend, graduate school placement assistance and professional development opportunities to help them gain admission into masters and doctoral programs.

The 2010 McNair Scholars are Candice Arnwine, a psychology major from Charles Town; Renee Conneway, a horticulture major from Augusta; Shawn Douglass, a multidisciplinary studies major from Baltimore, Md.; Melinda Evick, a biology major from Wheeling; Simin Falsafi, a pre-chemistry major from Morgantown; Jacob Felton, an environmental geoscience major from Morgantown; Tahrea Flemming, a social work major from Rochester, N.Y. ; Namratha Gudemaranahalli, a psychology and biology major from Powell, Ohio; Michele Kelly, a secondary education and English major from Morgantown; Ashtin Larkin, a criminology major from Cerritos, Calif.; Erica McDermott, an animal science and nutrition major from New York; Adil Moghal, a biology major from Parkersburg; Sherline Montoute, a psychology major from Salem; Hellen Nditsi, a psychology major from Little Ferry, N.J.; Samantha Silvia, a pre-criminology major from Union City, N.J.; and Joseph Yaworski, a computer science and biometric systems major from Weirton.

“The McNair Scholars Program is extraordinary and life-changing for all involved,” said Betty Mei, assistant director of the WVU McNair Scholars Program. “The McNair family would be glad to know the kind of impact this program has on underrepresented students. I am looking forward to working with the 11th group of WVU McNair Scholars this summer.”

The 2010 scholars will participate in a McNair Summer Research Internship from May 17 to June 25. In July, the scholars will also participate in graduate school campus visits and attend a national McNair conference, where second-year scholars will present their research.

Of the McNair Scholar alumni, two have obtained doctorates and several are expected to graduate in August or December; 22 are enrolled in master’s programs; and 21 are enrolled in doctoral programs.

The McNair Scholars Program is funded by the U.S. Department of Education in honor of engineer, scientist and NASA astronaut Ronald E. McNair, who was killed in the 1986 Challenger explosion.

The program is designed to help low-income, first-generation or underrepresented college students earn doctoral degrees. Students enrolled in the program have the opportunity to travel to graduate schools across the nation, where they can meet with a variety of faculty members.

To be eligible for the McNair Scholars Program, low-income, first-generation or underrepresented students must have completed their sophomore year of study, be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program full-time, have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

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Seven people died when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on Jan. 28, 1986. One of those people was Ronald E. McNair.

On Thursday, Jan. 28, the West Virginia University Ronald E. McNair Scholars Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program will commemorate the anniversary of the explosion.

An information booth will be set up in the Mountainlair commons area from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. to inform the community about the anniversary. Students in the program will also be collecting small items and writing cards to military personnel who are serving overseas.

Items needed include money for postage, shaving cream, soap, beef jerky, crackers and candy, among other things. Donors that leave their e-mail addresses will be entered into a drawing for two movie passes and McNair t-shirts.

“To remember Dr. Ronald E. McNair as a person who contributed a lot to his community through volunteer services, we want to do our part in carrying on his legacy,” said Betty Mei, assistant director of the McNair Scholars Program.

A well-rounded individual, McNair was an astronaut, researcher, sixth-degree black belt in karate and saxophonist.

After his death, Congress created the Ronald E. McNair Scholars Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program to honor McNair and encourage undergraduate students to enroll in graduate school to earn a doctoral degree. The program targets students from low-income, first-generation or under-represented groups.

WVU’s McNair Scholars Program was established in 1999 and has already produced two alumni with doctorates. Three more students are expected to complete their doctorates in 2010.

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Anand Sunny Narayanan may be the first person in his family to attend college in the United States, but he has no small ambitions.

The West Virginia University McNair Scholar aims to some day work for NASA researching new devices and tools that allow for easy monitoring of astronauts’ health vitals while on expeditions.

Narayanan, a WVU junior double majoring in mechanical engineering and biology, is getting a head start on his future career through research for a chemotherapy drug detection biosensor using small strands of DNA. He recently presented his research at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students in Phoenix.

Through WVU’s Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program, Narayanan has been working with Peter Gannett, professor and associate chair of Basic Pharmaceutical Sciences at WVU, on his research.

Together, they hope to create a sensor that would easily and accurately determine the concentrations of the common chemotherapy drug cisplatin in a patient. The sensor would let doctors know when to reduce the drug dosage being administered to the patient, which in turn can lessen the painful side effects.

“The topic itself is incredibly interesting to me, not just from an intellectual standpoint, but also from the standpoint of wanting to potentially reduce the pain these chemotherapy patients experience,” said Narayanan, who is originally from Germany but moved to Morgantown with his family in 1997.

Based on his research abstract, Narayanan received a $1,500 travel award to attend the biomedical research conference. The research conference is the largest professional conference for students involved with biomedical/behavioral sciences. Students from more than 285 U.S. colleges and universities were invited to participate.

Narayanan’s experience at the conference gave him an opportunity to discuss his research in detail, learn about graduate schools and improve his overall presentation skills.

“It was an honor to be there and represent West Virginia University’s McNair Scholars Program,” Narayanan said. “The program has been an excellent portal in terms of making research at a lab of my interest accessible to me, as well as providing great help and support towards my graduate school pursuits. It has certainly assisted me to grow into a more well-rounded individual.”

The McNair Scholars Program, which is now accepting applications for its 2010 summer research internship, is designed to help undergraduate, low-income, first-generation or underrepresented college students earn doctoral degrees.

Students in the program are given a $2,500 annual stipend, graduate school placement assistance and professional development opportunities to help them gain admission into master’s and doctoral degree programs.
To be eligible for the program, students must have completed their sophomore year of study by May 2010, be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program full-time, have a minimum cumulative GPA of a 3.0 and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

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West Virginia University students have a chance to perform research, learn about graduate school and receive financial assistance as part of the Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program.

The program, which is now accepting applications for its 2010 summer research internship, is designed to help undergraduate, low-income, first-generation or underrepresented college students earn doctoral degrees.

“Most undergraduate students are deterred from thinking about graduate schools because of the fear of carrying more student loans or lack of knowledge about funding their graduate education,” said Betty Mei, assistant director of the WVU McNair Scholars Program. “The McNair Scholars Program provides answers to the funding question as well as prepares eligible students for the whole graduate school application process. The program provides research and mentoring opportunities, GRE prep and much more.”

Students in the program will be given a $2,500 annual stipend, graduate school placement assistance and professional development opportunities to help them gain admission into master’s and doctoral degree programs.

To be eligible for the program, students must have completed their sophomore year of study by May 2010, be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program full-time, have a minimum cumulative GPA of a 3.0 and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

The deadline for applications is Jan. 15.

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Seventeen West Virginia University students have been named 2007 Ronald E. McNair Scholarsa prestigious national award named after astronaut Ronald McNair, who was killed during the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion in 1986.

The program, funded by a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Education, assists first-generation, college students in minority and underrepresented groups in preparing for graduate school programs. Scholars receive academic stipends, faculty mentors, professional development opportunities and graduate placement assistance.

The newest class of McNair Scholars includes: Joseph Bailey , a history and English major from Prosperity, W.Va.; David Bello , an English major from Parkersburg; Kimberly Bonilla-Rodriguez , a journalism major from Montclair, Va.; Whitney Burks a pre-psychology major from Morgantown; Adam Cagle , a pre-journalism major from Weirton; Danielle Castillo , a pre-biology major from Morgantown, Ashley Daniels , a speech pathology and audiology major from Fairmont; Sparkle Davis , a marketing major from Decatur, Ga.; Chelsea Derlan , a psychology and Spanish dual major from Cumberland, Md.; Sean Dougherty , a forest resources management and wildlife/fisheries resources major from Maysville, W.Va.; Victoria Gilliam , an exercise physiology major from Charleston; Adrienne Gauna , a forensics major from Washington, Pa.; Katasha Leggett , a criminology major from McKeesport, Pa.; Jason Likens , a biology major from Terra Alta, W.Va.; Jesse Potts , an English major from Berkeley Springs, W.Va.; Adrian Sykes , a biology major from Moon Township, Pa. and Toby Vernon , an international studies and geography major from Morgantown.

The new class of McNair Scholars will participate in the McNair Summer Research Institute May 21-June 29. The six-week project will provide the students an opportunity to visit numerous college campuses, learn about graduate programs and meet with faculty and graduate students from the programs.

The McNair Scholars will also be enrolled in two McNair sponsored research classes and attend the National McNair Research Conference at State University of New York at Buffalo in July. During the conference first-year McNair Scholars will observe presentations by other McNair scholars from across the country and second-year scholars will present their research projects at the conference.

One of the many benefits of the program is the summer research opportunity,said Betty Mei, assistant director of WVU s McNair Scholars Program.The institute provides students training on conducting independent research and builds the skills necessary for entering a graduate program. They will have an opportunity to participate in seminars including Graduate Record Examinations test preparations, developing a personal statement and resume writing workshops.

The McNair Scholars Program is open to full-time, WVU students in their sophomore year with a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0.

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Some of the best and brightest college students in the region will gather at West Virginia University Saturday, April 1, to present their undergraduate research, ranging from a study of stereotypes of blacks in advertising to an analysis of the effects of therapeutic massage on stress levels.

The presentations are part of a WVU McNair Scholar Conference that features 20 young minds from Concord University , Indiana University of Pennsylvania , Ohio University and WVU .

The public is invited to attend Saturday’s sessions from 10:30 a.m.-2:35 p.m. in the Mountainlair. For a detailed schedule, go to http://www.wvu.edu/~mcnair/.

Not only will this conference help all presenters to sharpen their oral presentation skills, but it also provides students an opportunity to network and share their research findings with McNair students from other campuses,said Betty Mei, program coordinator.It also provides an educational experience and preparation for post-baccalaureate endeavors.

In addition, conference attendees will have a chance to learn about graduate school opportunities while exploring the WVU campus.

The following WVU students are participating:

• Joshua Austin (McNair Scholar), political science,The Influence of Armed Conflict and the Cold War on State Supreme Court Decisions Involving Eminent Domain

• Leilani T. Browning (McNair Scholar), multidisciplinary studies,The Canary in the Coal MineOral Health in West Virginia

• Damien Clement (minority doctoral student), sport and exercise psychology,Diversity Training in Graduate Sport Psychology Programs: A Survey of Students’Perceptions

• James F. Greene (McNair Scholar), journalism,Religious Socialization and Its Effect on Lifestyle Choices

• Maximo Martinez (minority doctoral student), political science,Implication of DR-CAFTA on Central American Migration

• Greta Martin (McNair Scholar), social work,Students’Attitudes Towards Their Expectations and Experiences at West Virginia University’s International House

• Katrina McCoy (McNair Scholar), psychology,Criminal Thinking Style and Self-Injurious Behavior among College Students

• Ryan Scott (McNair Scholar), communication studies,The Correlation Between the Media and Alcoholic Effects

• Renee Stasko (McNair Scholar), psychology and biology,Examining Posttraumatic Stress, Anxiety and Depression in Foster Children

• Heather Washington (McNair Scholar), criminology and investigations,African-American Male Incarceration: How Does It Contribute to the Deterioration of African-American Families?

• Jason Wilkinson (McNair Scholar), history and anthropology,Herodotus and the Archeological Record

For more information about the conference, contact the WVU McNair Scholars Program at 304-293-4316 or angela.derk@mail.wvu.edu.

Named after physicist and space shuttle Challenger astronaut Ronald E. McNair, the McNair Scholars Program is for low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students from all disciplines. Scholars take part in an intensive program that combines scholarly research, faculty mentors and graduate school preparation.

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West Virginia University senior Gino Degregori became WVU s first McNair Scholar to capture an award at the 8th Annual National McNair Conference held July 11-14 at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Degregori, a business management major from Alexandria, Va., received 2nd place in the oral presentation competition, capturing WVU s first-ever McNair Conference award.

Degregoris presentation,”Exploratory Study of the Representation, Recruitment and Retention of Hispanics in US IT Employment: Conceptual Model and Research Design,”was based on a year-long research project through the McNair Scholar Program with Dr. Virginia Kleist, assistant professor of marketing management at WVU , who was first author of the research.

A total of 80 student oral presentations were given in the following categories: humanities/education, social science, physical science/math/computer science and biological science/health. Participants are required to explain all aspects of their research project.

Also participating in the competition were Serena Gibson, a senior psychology major from Looneyville, W.Va., and Jonathan Glover, a senior history major from Morgantown.

Gibson, a second year McNair Scholar, said the conference was a good experience.

“It gave me a chance to present my research to a group of professionals, which is important,”she said.

Gibson has worked on her research project, titled”Reactions of College Students to Participating in Traumatic Stress Research”, for the past year. Her faculty mentor is Dr. Joseph Scotti of the WVU Psychology Department.

“The McNair program gives me a chance to prepare for my future by really looking at several graduate schools and having a solid research project,”Gibson added.

Jonathon Glovers project, titled”Black Studies in CyberspaceConceptualizing History and Technology”, was supervised by faculty mentor Dr. Katherine Bankole, assistant professor of history at WVU .

McNair Program Coordinator Betty Mei is thrilled about the success of WVU s McNair Scholars at the conference.

“Its a great encouragement for our program,”Dr. Mei said.”We definitely have something to look forward to for next yeareach of the students has done an excellent job.”

The McNair program, federally funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, assists first generation college students and minority college students in preparing for graduate education. The program bears the name of Ronald E. McNair, who died along with six of his astronaut colleagues aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1986.

McNair Scholars also receive a stipend for a six-week-long summer research internship, research writing and skills training, standardized test preparation, graduate school campus visits, graduate placement assistance and other professional development opportunities.

The program is open to full-time WVU students who have completed their sophomore

year of study, have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 and are considering graduate school.

Applicants must be U.S. citizens and/or permanent legal U.S. residents and be first generation college students with demonstrated need or a member of the numerically under-represented, such as African-Americans, Latino-Americans and Native Americans.

For more information, contact WVU s McNair Scholars Office at 304-293-4316 or visit the McNair website athttp://www.wvu.edu/~mcnair/IE/.