5,000+

he is starting research this fall in the Department of
Kinesiology and is a member of the Pre-Med Society on
campus. Alex is one of 15 members of his class to be awarded
a Day of Pride Scholarship, which offers full tuition, room,
and board.
Jonathan Gordils uses his natural
affinity for science to understand why
certain behaviors and experiences
correlate to specific thought processes.
That way, “I can aid individuals coping
with hardships that they cannot handle
alone,” the junior psychology/ cognitive
sciences major relates. Jonathan plans
to become a research/clinical
psychologist. To that end, he is currently working on research
in lexical learning and its links to memory for faces, words,
and things. Jonathan is a member of Psi Chi: International
Honor Society in Psychology and has served as secretary of
Wa Shin Ryu Jujutsu Club.
Patrice Hubert is a dietetics major now
in her senior year at UConn, plans to
attend a post-baccalaureate program after
graduation to finish her prerequisites for
medical school. Patrice, who studied in
the Coordinated Program in Dietetics in
Barcelona, Spain, during the summer of
2010, is also the recipient of a
Leadership Scholarship. To de-stress from a heavy load of
school work, she admits to giving in to a “slight shopping
addiction.”
Michael Johnson spent last summer in
South Africa doing research on
development of an artificial arm as part
of the International REU pilot program
of the Northeast LSAMP. A sophomore
majoring in environmental and material
science engineering, Michael made the
Dean’s List last year and was elected
secretary of NSBE. He is also a member
of the Pre-Med Society and the
Engineering Ambassadors. His future aspirations include
travel and environmental or biomaterials research.
J’Vaughn Johnson is on track to
graduate in December of 2012 with a
degree in computer science. He then
plans to go on to graduate school. He
completed an internship as a web design
tester for Pitney Bowes and served as
both president and vice president of
NSBE. In April, J’Vaughn received the
NSBE Leaving a Legacy Award.
Heather Leask, a chemical engineering major with a special
interest in electronics and systems, began conducting research
long before she enrolled at UConn. This standout member of
the class of 2014 worked with a grad student in Dr. Steven
Suib’s lab at UConn during her senior year of high school,
where she found a new method for
making memristive devices using a
traditional sol-gel technique. This
summer, after her freshman year, she
took on a SURE nanotechnology
internship at UMass Amherst in
which she studied the mechanical
properties of hydrogels. She
continues that research this fall.
Heather sees a Ph.D. in her future.
Francis Cardona Manuel aims to
earn his doctorate in pharmacy and
eventually work as a clinical
pharmacist in a hospital setting. His
goals were validated after shadowing a
CVS pharmacist over winter
intersession last year and volunteering
as a pharmacy student technician at
Mercy Hospital in Portland, Maine,
this summer. Francis, a junior, has served as both president
and secretary of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars
(NSCS) and is a member of the Student National
Pharmaceutical Association and Alpha Lambda Delta Honor
Society. He has taken part in the Learning Community
Ambassador Program and frequently makes the Dean's List.
“In my spare time, I have a huge interest in music,” Francis
shares. “I enjoy playing the guitar and singing.”
Joy Olayiwola will likely attend
medical school after getting her
bachelor’s degree in diagnostic
genetic science with a
concentration in cytogenetics, but
she is considering a career in
research, as well. Now in her
junior year, she made the Dean’s
List last year and has completed an
internship in the Biodynamic Lab
at the UConn Health Center. Joy is a member of Alpha
Lambda Delta Honor Society, National Society of College
Scholars, Cross Cultural Connections, Pre-Med Society,
Community Outreach, and Silver Wings--an organization
dedicated to social service and education about national
defense. She has also taken part in the Invisible Children
Challenge to raise money for children affected by the war in
East Africa..
Christian Osorio is now serving the
first year of a GEM Fellowship at
Stanford University after graduating
summa cum laude from UConn with
a B.S. in electrical engineering in
May. The choice to go to Stanford
wasn’t easy for Christian, who was
also accepted at such prestigious
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