Cox Research Scholars Program Welcome Reception
Remarks of P. Sarita Soni, Vice Provost for Research
Indiana University
IU Alumni Association
Tent behind DeVault Alumni Center
September 5, 2008
It is my pleasure to welcome you here today to the Cox Research Scholars Program Welcome Reception. My name is Sarita Soni, Vice Provost for Research and I am delighted to host this wonderful occasion to recognize our research scholars who are among the best and brightest students in the state of Indiana.
This fall, we are honored to welcome twenty-three scholars to the Cox Research Scholars Program as part of the largest class of entering freshmen in IU's history. Four students are first generation college students. Intended majors among this group include neuroscience, theatre and drama, East Asian languages and culture, international studies, piano, legal studies, journalism, business, computer information systems and many more. Schools currently represented in the program include the Kelley School of Business, College of Arts & Sciences- including the LAMP program, School of Informatics, Jacobs School of Music, School of Journalism, and the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. If you haven't done so already, after the program, I invite you to take a look at the posters displayed that list all the scholars, their home towns, and high schools. It is quite an impressive list.
My colleagues and I share in the excitement of these students as they embark on what will be one of the most rewarding experiences of their lives, made even richer by the opportunity to participate in scholarly activities not experienced by the majority of undergraduate students on this campus.
We're here today not only to usher in a new class of research scholars, but also to recognize those who began this journey last year and the year before. All together, these two classes comprise four juniors and twenty-six sophomores. Would these students please stand or raise your hand to be recognized.
Now, please help me welcome our new class of research scholars to Indiana University. I ask the students to join me at the podium and remain here until everyone's name is called:
- MacKenzie Austgen
- Aaron Barnes
- Kamilla Benko
- James Byers III
- Katelyn Colvin
- Bryce Fathauer
- Grant Huebner
- Susan Keen
- Trevor Leslie
- Kimberly Long
- Johanna Lipp
- William McCarthy
- Thomas Miller
- Rebecca Rice
- Alyssia Robinson
- Kaitlin Roth
- Aaron Ryan
- Kate Sanders
- Clay Spencer
- Rebecca Stoops
- Scott Williamson
- Jennifer Yu
- Charles Zhang
Most important, we must first recognize the late Jesse Cox who passed away this past May. He and his late wife, Beulah Chanley Cox, committed $85 million to IU for scholarships for students. This represents the largest gift ever received by IU from individuals. Later, we'll hear from Tom McGlasson who will share with us more about this generous couple and the legacy they have left.
A program of this caliber requires the commitment and hard work of a large number of administrators, faculty, and staff on campus. If I'm not mistaken, not counting the academic units represented by faculty who mentor our students, there are six offices that are directly involved with this program. These offices are the Office of the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer led by VP and CFO, Neil Theobald, the Hutton Honors College led by Dean Matt Auer, recently appointed to this position, former Dean Jean Robinson, Assistant Dean Lynn Cochran and the staff at the Hutton Honors College who are always attentive to our students. Then there's the Office of Enrollment Management led by Vice Provost Roger Thompson and Associate Vice Provost David Johnson. The staff of the Office of Scholarships, directed by Sarah Booher have provided exceptional guidance and assistance, along with staff members in the Office of Student Financial Aid and Residential Programs and Services. Although they are too numerous to mention by name, we owe a debt of gratitude to academic deans, the program's faculty advisory committee, and more than 50 faculty who serve as mentors to our students. So, as you can see, our students are indeed in good hands. Please join me in thanking all of them.
There is one person who deserves to be singled out and who has transformed a young program into a sought-after opportunity for high school students in the state. Heidi Schulz, coordinator for the Cox Research Scholars Program, deserves special acknowledgement and thanks for moving this program forward in a positive way. She works with myriad staff and faculty to make sure that scholars receive a warm welcome to the program, to ensure that each scholar is well-matched with a faculty mentor, and to work with students to enable their successful completion of the program. She has worked tirelessly to arrange campus visits for scholars and their parents as well as coordinate countless administrative details. Without her eye for detail and good humor, I doubt our scholars would have had such a rewarding experience thus far, and for our new students, such a smooth transition to campus. Thank you, Heidi.
Finally, it gives me great pleasure to introduce to you IU's provost and executive vice president, Karen Hanson, whose former role as dean of the Hutton Honors College influenced the development of the Cox Research Scholars Program and helped to identify potential research scholars from a pool of outstanding students who applied to IU.
Provost Hanson has served Indiana University Bloomington with distinction for more than 30 years, teaching in the Department of Philosophy since 1976, serving as department chair from 1997-2002 and Rudy Professor since 2001. She also is an adjunct professor of gender studies, American studies, and comparative literature. All those who know Provost Hanson agree that she has a deep commitment to fostering the highest quality undergraduate education, and ensuring that students are offered the academic challenges needed to form a solid foundation for their future endeavors.
Please help me welcome and recognize Provost Karen Hanson.
Thank you, Provost Hanson.
A celebratory event that honors such a bright group of students would not be complete without hearing from a research scholar who has a few years of experience under her belt. Jenny Troyer, from Evansville, Indiana, has spent the past two years conducting research under the direction of Dr. Caroline Chick Jarrold in Physical Chemistry. Due to Jennifer's contributions to Dr. Jarrold's study of O2 and O4 complexes with organic molecules, she was listed as a co- author in the group's recent publication in the March 2008 issue of the Journal of Chemical Physics. As if being published as a sophomore isn't enough, Jennifer maintains a solid 4.0 GPA. This past summer Jennifer was selected to participate in the University Of Cincinnati College Of Medicine Summer Surgery Experience, took the MCAT, applied to medical school, and continues to be an active member of the community. She also participated in a medical relief trip to the Dominican Republic and spent part of her summer at Camp Kesem, a free summer camp for children who have a parent affected by cancer.
Please help me welcome Jenny Troyer.
Thank you, Jenny.
Now, I'd like to introduce you to Dr. Caroline Chick Jarrold, a scholar, teacher, researcher, advocate for women in chemistry, and mentor to Jenny. Caroline Chick Jarrold received her B.S. in Chemistry at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and her Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley. After being a University of California President's Postdoctoral Fellow at UCLA, she joined the Chemistry faculty at the University of Illinois, Chicago in 1997, and was there until her move to the Indiana University Chemistry Department in 2002.
Professor Jarrold's research, as we've just heard from Jenny, aids in issues of importance to energy and the environment. She has won a number of awards in her short tenure as a researcher; we are delighted that she is a member of the IU community and we applaud her deep commitment to undergraduate education and research.
Please help me welcome, Professor Caroline Chick Jarrold
Thank you, Professor Jarrold.
Our program is unique in this country & we are privileged to have the funding to support it. As I mentioned earlier, on May 12th, we lost our donor, Mr. Jesse Cox. Were it not for the generous gift from he and his late wife Beulah Chanley Cox, this program would not exist as it does today. Tom McGlasson, personal friend of Jesse and Beulah Chanley Cox is here to share with us about our donor and the legacy they have left.
Thank you, Tom.
This concludes the formal portion of our event today. Please join me in one last round of applause for our research scholars and their mentors before we send them off to another productive, fun, and rewarding year at Indiana University.
