All four students recommended by the faculty and staff of Vanderbilt University have been selected as 2008 Goldwater Scholars. Each will receive a two-year scholarship worth $7,500 a year for educational expenses.
Each year, Vanderbilt and other four-year universities are given the opportunity to nominate up to four outstanding sophomore and junior students in the math, science and engineering fields. Two-year schools may nominate up to two students. Competition for the award is fierce: 321 scholars were selected on academic merit this year from a field of 1,035 students.
The Vanderbilt students who are 2008 Goldwater Scholars are Sesha Pinnaduwage, Ayla Gafni, Brittany Rohrman and Arunan Skandarajah.
Pinnaduwage is a junior from Knoxville who is studying chemical engineering, with minors in math and biotechnology. She plans to earn a Ph.D. in chemical engineering in order to pursue a career in cancer research. Pinnaduwage has been a council member in the Mayfield Living/Learning lodge for the past two years, is a team leader for Vanderbilt Student Volunteers for Science (VSVS) and serves as a V2 Mentor for first-year engineering students. She is currently in Sydney, Australia, where she is spending the semester as a student at the University of New South Wales.
Gafni is a junior mathematics major with a theater minor from Reno, Nev. After earning her Ph.D. in number theory, she plans to work in the field of cryptanalysis for the National Security Agency. Gafni is active in music and
theater, which includes serving as vice president of DOREbelles, Vanderbilt’s show choir. She is spending her spring term as a student at University College London.
Rohrman, a junior from Whiting, Ind., is completing a major in physics and a minor in piano. She intends to earn a Ph.D. in biophysics to become a research professor at a hospital-affiliated university. She has participated in full-time summer medical research projects for the past four summers and teaches science lessons in the greater Nashville area as part of the VSVS program. She is in Edinburgh, Scotland, this semester as part of the Vanderbilt Study Abroad program.
Skandarajah, a junior from Indianapolis, is majoring in biomedical engineering. After earning a Ph.D. in biomedical instrumentation, he plans to work with physicians in the development of diagnostic technology. Arnunan is active in the Vanderbilt community as a founding member of “Unite for Sight,” which offers free vision screening and information sessions in high need areas. He is the webmaster for the Vanderbilt Global Health Council, gives science lessons to and tutors students in area schools as part of VSVS and LOOP (Learning Opens Outstanding Possibilities), participates in Engineers Without Borders and serves on student government.
The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency established in 1986. The scholarship program honoring the late U.S. Sen. Barry M. Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering. The Goldwater Scholarship is the premier undergraduate award of its type in these fields. In its 22-year history, the foundation has awarded 5,523 scholarships worth approximately $54 million.
Media Contact: Missy Pankake, (615) 322-NEWS
missy.pankake@vanderbilt.edu