Biology Major Awarded Goldwater Scholarship

Wendy Clement, a junior biology major and mathematics minor, has been awarded a Goldwater Scholarship for the 2001-2 academic year. One of 302 undergraduates chosen from a national pool of 1,164 applicants, Clement will receive up to $7,500 for tuition, fees, room and board, and books.

"The scholarship program honoring former senator Barry Goldwater was designed to encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, natural sciences, and engineering," says Hans Mark, chairman of the board of the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, which awards the grants. "The Goldwater Scholarship is the premier undergraduate award of its type in these fields."

Students who apply for Goldwater Scholarships must first be nominated by faculty members. Each institution can submit the applications of up to four students each year.

"Wendy was nominated because of her academic record, her research experience, and the excellent essays she wrote for the application," says Martin Berlinrood, School of Humanities and Sciences associate dean and coordinator of the Goldwater Scholarship nominations. "Her accomplishments are evidence of the quality of students attracted to our science programs and the early opportunities we give qualified undergraduates to engage in individual research with faculty members."

Clement, whose chief interest is botany, began researching the begonia family when she was a freshman. At the end of her sophomore year, in collaboration with assistant professor of biology Susan Swensen, Clement began focusing on one species.

"Hillebrandia sandwichensis is found only on the Hawaiian Islands," Clement says. "But it’s older than any of the islands, and it’s older than all the other begonia species in the world. So the questions are, How did Hillebrandia get to Hawaii and where did it come from?"

Last summer Clement and Swensen took part in a field trip to three of the islands, where they collected samples of Hillebrandia. As part of her senior honors research project, Clement will work with Swensen to discover where the begonia originated and how it moved through the islands. Their findings could shed new light on the way species evolve genetically and their adaptation to ever-changing environments.

"A lot of different factors come into play," Clement says. "It goes beyond comparing DNA sequences. The Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanic activity, so they’re not all the same age. We have to incorporate molecular studies with what we know of the geologic history of the islands. It’s an interdisciplinary approach, and that’s what makes it interesting. You get to learn about a lot of things."

Clement has already presented various aspects of her research at a number of conferences and off-campus venues, including "Undergraduate Research Posters on the Hill," a poster session for the U.S. Congress sponsored by the Council on Undergraduate Research. In August she and Swensen will present the results of their begonia research at the national meeting of the Botanical Society of America in Albuquerque.

"Wendy is distinguished by her exceptional academic talent, her high level of maturity, and her ability to connect with other people," Swensen says. "During our time together, our relationship has developed beyond the supervisor-student relationship; I see myself as a mentor and friend."

"I love learning and I don’t want that to stop," says Clement, who is also an accomplished cellist. "I want to get my doctorate in plant evolutionary biology and learn more and then pass that knowledge on. My goal is to become a faculty member at an institution that focuses on research and teaching."

The Goldwater scholars program is 13 years old. Clement is the sixth Ithaca College student to be awarded a grant. The others were Michael Axtell ’98, Michael Mazourek ’99, Peter Yakowec ’96, Thomas Boyd ’94, and Joseph Bliss ’90.