Five Swanson School students to receive 2017 National Science Foundation Fellowships

PITTSBURGH (March 17, 2017) ... Five students in the Swanson School of Engineering are among the seven University of Pittsburgh students awarded the highly competitive 2017 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. In addition, four Swanson School alumni received fellowships.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) is designed to ensure the vitality and diversity of the scientific and engineering workforce in the United States. GRFP supports the graduate study of U.S. citizens, nationals and permanent residents attaining research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) or in STEM education at institutions located in the United States. Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 as well as a $12,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees. 

According to NSF, awardees were chosen from over 13,000 applicants, represent a wide range of scientific disciplines, and come from all states, as well as the District of Columbia, and U.S. commonwealths and territories. The group of 2,000 awardees is diverse, including 1,158 women, 498 individuals from underrepresented minority groups, 75 persons with disabilities, 26 veterans and 726 undergraduate seniors. The awardees come from 449 baccalaureate institutions.

Among this year's Pitt cohort, two current students and four alumni received honorable mentions. 

Current Swanson School students awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship include Patrick Asinger (Chemical and Petroleum Engineering), Julie Fornaciari (Chemical and Petroleum Engineering), Abigail Loneker (Bioengineering), Drake Pedersen (Bioengineering), and Miriam Rathbun (Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science).

Current Swanson School students who received honorable mentions are Emily Ackerman (Chemical and Petroleum Engineering) and Stephanie Wiltman (Bioengineering).

Alumni who were awarded the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship include Olivia Creasy (Bioengineering/University of California - San Francisco), Michael DeLuca (MEMS, University of Colorado - Boulder), Gian-Gabriel Garcia (Industrial Engineering/University of Michigan), and Alexander Josowitz (Bioengineering/Yale University).

Alumni who received honorable mentions include Patrick Creamer (Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science (Georgia Tech), Michael Griffin (Bioengineering/Georgia Tech), Natalie Janosik (Electrical and Computer Engineering/Columbia University), and Emily Mihalko (Bioengineering/North Carolina State University).

Visit https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/grfp/Login.do for a full list of fellows and honorable mentions and to learn more about the Graduate Research Fellowship Program.  

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