Three juniors at Washington University in St. Louis have been awarded the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship for the 2017-18 academic year.
The winners are Emily Goering and Hannah Olsen, who are majoring in biochemistry, and Emma Streff, who is studying chemistry, all in Arts & Sciences.
The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship is considered one of the most prestigious awards for undergraduates planning careers in the sciences, engineering or math. Congress established the scholarship in 1986 to honor the longtime senator.
Goering is studying life sciences with a concentration in biochemistry. After graduating, she plans to get both her MD and PhD in immunology. She hopes to conduct research in immunology and teach at the university level.
Goering spent the summer of 2016 working in the laboratory of Bruce D. Walker, MD, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and director of the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. She studied the exhaustion of CD8+ cytotoxic T cells in HIV infection.
She is currently working in the lab of Deborah V. Novack, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine at Washington University School of Medicine, on the pathology of osteomyelitis by examining its primary pathogen.
Outside of the classroom, Goering has served as a chemistry residential peer mentor for first year students and as president of the Campus YMCA Science Olympiad.
Olsen is studying life sciences with a concentration in biochemistry. After graduation, she hopes to complete her MD/PhD in neuroscience. She then wishes to conduct biomedical research on neurological disorders as well as teach at an academic research institution.
In 2015, Olsen began working in the laboratory of Andrew Yoo, MD, assistant professor of developmental biology at the School of Medicine. Olsen’s work involved modeling Huntington’s disease in cell cultures.
Outside of the classroom and the lab, Olsen is active in Heart for the Homeless, Each One Teach One and other campus organizations.
Streff is pursuing her undergraduate degree in chemistry. She aspires to get her PhD in organic chemistry and then become a chemistry professor who both teaches and conducts research.
Currently, Streff works in the laboratory of Vladimir Birman, associate professor of chemistry. Her research goal is to synthesize derivatives of lingzhiol, a chemical made by a fungus used in traditional Chinese medicine that has a novel structure and biological activity.
When she’s not in the classroom or the lab, Streff volunteers her time in Each One Teach One and also serves as a chemistry teaching assistant.