Student selected for Goldwater Scholarship

A Virginia Commonwealth University student was selected last week for the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship, and another VCU student received honorable mention recognition for the award.

Elizabeth K. Proffitt, a Virginia resident who is majoring in biomedical engineering and biochemistry at VCU, was one of 317 undergraduates from across the country to be named a Goldwater Scholar for the 2007-08 academic year. Nitin K. Yerram, a chemistry major from New Jersey, was an honorable mention choice.

The Goldwater Scholars were selected on the basis of academic merit from a field of 1,110 mathematics, science and engineering students who were nominated by the faculties of colleges and universities nationwide. The one- and two-year scholarships will cover the cost of tuition, fees, books and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500 per year.

The Goldwater Scholarship, which honors Sen. Barry W. Goldwater, was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering. It is the premier undergraduate award of its kind in these fields.