CSE student receives Fulbright Award to continue tissue engineering research
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (04/21/2015)—A biomedical engineering student in the College of Science and Engineering is among seven seniors at the University of Minnesota who have been awarded grants to study and teach abroad following graduation by the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. The Fulbright grants cover all travel and living expenses for one academic year.
Julia Brekke, a College of Science and Engineering and University Honors Program student in biomedical engineering from Plymouth, will work in the lab of Professor Katja Schenke-Layland at the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology in Stuttgart, Germany to develop a system to visually monitor the progression of embryonic stem cell differentiation. A successful solution will be an important step in enabling the growth of mature cardiac tissue, which, in turn, can lead to tissue- engineered heart valves to resolve congenital heart defects. At the University of Minnesota, Brekke has worked on cardiovascular tissue engineering with Professor Robert Tranquillo, head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering.
Other University of Minnesota Fulbright Award winners are:
Julia Horn Potach, a global studies and Spanish major in the College of Liberal Arts and the University Honors Program, who has been awarded an English teaching assistantship in Spain.
Erik Katovich, a University Honors Program Student and economics major in the College of Liberal Arts, who will collaborate with Dr. Alexandre Gori Maia at the State University of Campinas in Brazil on an econometric study of the impact of education on productivity and inequality.
Tamara Marcus, a biochemistry major in the College of Biological Sciences, who will conduct research to evaluate environmental and climatic changes in Himalayan lakes at the University of Delhi’s Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies of Mountain & Hill Environment.
Alicia Nelson, a student in the University Honors Program and sociology major in the College of Liberal Arts, who has been awarded an English teaching assistantship in Korea.
Emily Parrent, a French/Italian and classical civilization student in the University Honors Program and the College of Liberal Arts, who will complete a master’s degree in medieval studies at the University of York.
Rebecca Rethwisch, a University Honors Program and College of Liberal Arts student majoring in both Spanish/Portuguese and global studies, who will be an English teaching assistant in Brazil.
Two other recent graduates were awarded Fulbright grants as well:
Theresa Chresand, a 2014 graduate of the College of Liberal Arts and the University Honors Program, majored in Greek and Latin and has been continuing her studies at Cambridge University.
McKenzie Stupica, a 2014 graduate from New Prague who majored in Art History and German in the College of Liberal Arts, has been awarded an English teaching assistantship in Germany.
The Fulbright Program was created and funded by Congress in 1946 to promote international good will through the exchange of students and scholars in all areas of education, culture, and science. The program currently awards approximately 1,900 grants annually in all fields of study, and operates in more than 140 countries worldwide.
Students at the University of Minnesota and recent graduates who are interested in the Fulbright Student Program should see the website at us.fulbrightonline.org and contact Timothy Jones in the Office of National and International Scholarships (natschol@umn.edu).