Three Undergraduates Win Prestigious Goldwater Scholarships

Headlines – Tennessee Today


UT undergraduates Kimberly Bress, Christopher Neal, and Andrew Wintenberg ­­­­­­have been named 2017–18 Goldwater Scholars.One of the most prestigious scholarship programs for undergraduates, the Goldwater Scholarship Program was established by Congress in 1986 to honor Senator Barry M. Goldwater. It was designed to encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in mathematics, the natural sciences, and engineering.
Since 2006, UT has had 17 students named Goldwater Scholars.
“Kimberly, Andrew, and Christopher are outstanding students, creative thinkers, and future research leaders who have really benefited from close faculty mentoring at UT,” said Andrew Seidler, director of UT’s Office of National Scholarships and Fellowships. “Being named Goldwater Scholars means they have competed successfully with the finest undergraduate STEM students in the country. This is a tremendous accomplishment for each of them and, with three Goldwater Scholars in a single year, a clear indication of the quality of students at UT.”
Here is a look at UT’s three newest Goldwater Scholars:
Kimberly Bress, of Melbourne Beach, Florida, is a junior Haslam Scholar majoring in neuroscience and mental health through the College Scholars program. She received an honorable mention in the Goldwater Scholars program last year.
Bress, who has done research since 2015 with Associate Professor Matthew Cooper in the Department of Psychology, explores the biological, chemical, and neural foundations of brain function, with a specific focus on stress-related mental illness and models of neuropsychiatric disorders. Her goals are to pursue a medical degree and a doctoral degree in behavioral neuroscience while continuing her research on the neurobiological mechanisms underlying susceptibility and resilience to stress. She wants to increase the understanding of the biological foundations of mental illness and apply this knowledge to develop more effective treatments for disorders such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Bress has served as student director for the Center for Leadership and Service Ignite Outdoors ...

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