Miguel Baique, coordinator of the McNair Scholars Program, delivered welcoming comments recently to the College’s first group of students to enter the program, designed to prepare undergraduate students who are first generation and low-income or are underrepresented, for doctoral studies.
GENESEO, N.Y. – A group of 25 rising juniors and seniors have become the first SUNY Geneseo students to enter the McNair Scholars Program, designed to prepare undergraduate students for doctoral studies through involvement in research and other scholarly activities.
McNair participants are either first-generation college students with financial need or members of a group that is traditionally underrepresented in graduate education and have demonstrated strong academic potential. The goal of the program is to increase graduate degree awards for students from underrepresented segments of society.
“It’s a true pleasure for me to recognize our first group of McNair Scholars on the Geneseo campus,” said Miguel Baique, McNair Scholars Program Coordinator. “Geneseo is a perfect place for these talented students to succeed and move into graduate programs. They have outstanding research opportunities here and the faculty mentoring is exceptional.”
In the College’s first McNair Scholars class are (all cities/towns are in New York): Amy Farnham from Tonawanda; Ashley Miller from Syracuse; Ashlyn Nardi from Mountain Dale; Benjamin Leblanc from New York City; Bhumi Patel from Elmira; Brittany Bears from Medina; Camila De Vasconcelos from New Rochelle; Chalyne Barrow from the Bronx; David Akanonu from Buffalo; Dimitri Wing-Paul from Brooklyn; Eric Koessler from Albany; Jacob Wood from Hasting-on-Hudson; Jenna Perez from Far Rockaway; Johana Rocha from Queens; John Lepore from Pittsford; Julia Nicosia from Penfield; Karla Lora from the Bronx Leslie Tetteh from Patterson; Lorenzo Rodriguez from Pavilion; Malcolm Colson from Brooklyn; Mark Soto from Elmhurst; Ruth Ajiboye from Saint Albans; Samantha Branch from Greenlawn; Vanessa Cepeda from the Bronx; and Victoria Rivera from Rochester.
Geneseo’s McNair program will provide research-intensive experiences, extensive mentoring and support, stipends for student research work, opportunities to visit graduate schools and attend professional conferences and monetary assistance in support of the goals of the program. Summer 2018 is an exceptional year because of the inaugural Geneseo Introductory Research Opportunity (GIRO) Summer Program—a six-week summer program designed to teach rising juniors the foundations of research as they work in interdisciplinary teams to dissect a real research problem proposed by Geneseo faculty.
To qualify for the program, students must be studying a STEM discipline or psychology, anthropology, sociology, political science, international relations, geography, or economics. They must have a 3.0 grade point average both in their major and cumulatively, be a full-time, fully matriculated Geneseo student and have a minimum of 60 credit hours (junior status).
Launched in 1989, the McNair Program is a U.S. government-supported program, named after and dedicated to Astronaut Ronald E. McNair, who died in the 1986 Challenger Space Shuttle explosion. He earned his doctorate in physics from MIT. The program honors his extraordinary achievements by enabling students to achieve and succeed academically and personally.
For information on the program, email Miguel Baique or McNair Scholars Program Director Diedre DeBose or call at 585-245-6323.