St. Olaf receives prestigious Beckman Scholars Program grant
The Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation has awarded St. Olaf College a three-year, $156,000 grant to support undergraduate research in biology and chemistry.
Two St. Olaf students will be named Beckman Scholars each spring, and they will receive funding to conduct research over the following two summers and throughout the intervening academic year. Each Beckman Scholar will be paired with one of St. Olaf’s top research-active science faculty members, who will provide ongoing mentorship and instruction. St. Olaf’s program will also emphasize the importance of developing effective science communication skills, and each Beckman Scholar will work with a member of the St. Olaf Marketing and Communications Office to develop a press release and a website story that shares their research and results with a broad audience.
The grant also provides funding for research supplies, professional development activities, and travel — including the opportunity for scholars to attend an annual symposium held at the Beckman Center of the National Academy of Sciences and Engineering in Irvine, California.
“Undergraduate research is a transformative learning experience and a strategic priority. Our faculty are dedicated scientists and experienced research mentors, our research facilities are world-class, and many of our biology and chemistry students have outstanding research promise. I am eager to see what Oles accomplish with the resources and mentorship this new program provides.”
— St. Olaf President Susan Rundell Singer
Associate Dean of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Kristina Garrett, who will lead the program at St. Olaf, says providing students with the opportunity to engage in sustained research for more than a year, scaffolded by intentional programming to strengthen their research and professional skills, will provide a powerful learning experience.
“This commitment allows students to develop their research project, collect lab data, and analyze results under the supervision of a mentor with deep expertise,” she says. “The extended time period also affords students the opportunity to prepare their result for peer-reviewed presentation and publication.”
The Beckman Scholars Program at St. Olaf will leverage the infrastructure of the college’s successful Collaborative Undergraduate Research and Inquiry (CURI) program and the enthusiasm for research among students. More than 40 percent of St. Olaf students participate in an undergraduate research experience by the time they graduate, and the college’s new strategic plan aims to ensure that every student has expanded access to research opportunities.
“Undergraduate research is a transformative learning experience and a strategic priority. Our faculty are dedicated scientists and experienced research mentors, our research facilities are world-class, and many of our biology and chemistry students have outstanding research promise,” says St. Olaf President Susan Rundell Singer. “I am eager to see what Oles accomplish with the resources and mentorship this new program provides.”
St. Olaf was one of just 14 institutions across the nation to win a Beckman Scholars Program grant this year. “Receiving this award alongside some of the nation’s leading colleges and universities affirms that St. Olaf biology and chemistry faculty are viewed as top researchers with active undergraduate research programs,” Garrett says.
The Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation supports researchers and nonprofit research institutions in making the next generation of breakthroughs in chemistry and the life sciences. Founded in 1977 by 20th century scientific instrumentation pioneer Arnold Beckman, the foundation supports United States institutions and young scientists whose creative, high-risk, and interdisciplinary research will lead to innovations and new tools and methods for scientific discovery.