This spring, the largest group to travel from WVU worked in rural Nicaragua for nine consecutive days, serving members of a highly resource-reduced region of the world. Fifty-seven WVU students and four faculty members traveled to Nicaragua to give medical care to the citizens of La Corona and Las Limas.
Brian Popp, assistant professor of chemistry at West Virginia University, has been awarded the National Science Foundation’s prestigious CAREER award.
This summer, two West Virginia University students will study abroad as recipients of the highly competitive U.S. Department of State’s Critical Language Scholarship. With the selection of Brandon Brown of South Charleston and Adam Craig of Wheeling, WVU will now have 30 students who have received this award since 2008.
Earth day is right around the corner, and the tree is probably the most iconic symbol of the holiday supporting environmental protection. A group of West Virginia University faculty, staff and students want to turn the tree from a symbol into an ecological representation of Mountaineer pride by forming a committee to pursue the Tree Campus USA designation.
Emma Harrison, a West Virginia University student who found her purpose through a college internship, has been awarded the Truman Scholarship, the country’s top award for students who aspire to careers in public service.
As a child in Texas, Rodney Elliott dreamed of going to college and studying science but it was a dream deferred because of family finances. He joined the Air Force and, after a 20-year career, enrolled at West Virginia University gaining accolades, not just from his professors, but by winning the most prestigious undergraduate scholarship in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering—the Goldwater Scholarship.
Similar to how microwave ovens heat soup but not the bowl, researchers at West Virginia University are exploring the possibility of heating one solution component selectively over others in chemical reactions. The research is led at WVU by Gregory Dudley, the Eberly Family Distinguished Professor and chair of the C. Eugene Bennett Department of Chemistry, in close collaboration with Albert Stiegman, a professor of chemistry at Florida State University.
Six West Virginia University faculty members have been selected for the 2018 Foundation Award for Outstanding Teaching, which honors exceptional professors who go above and beyond to inspire their students. g
As a critical component to the administration of justice, researchers are calling for more science in forensic science. Led by Suzanne Bell, chair of the West Virginia University Department of Forensic and Investigative Science, a group of academic scientists who were members of the former National Commission on Forensic Science’s Sub-Committee on Scientific Inquiry and Research are urging the larger scientific community to advocate for independent research and assessment in forensic science.
As West Virginia seeks to re-imagine its future both economically and culturally, new skills beyond technical training will be necessary to generate innovative paths forward. Ryan Claycomb, a professor in the West Virginia University Department of English and interim director of the WVU Humanities Center, is working to create pathways for more flexible doctoral degrees in the humanities, particularly English and history.