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Honolulu, HI – Tuesday, August 1, 2006 --Twenty Chaminade University students will make individual presentations of their summer research projects to the public on Wednesday, August 2 and Thursday, August 3, from 9 a.m. to 12:40 p.m. at Chaminade University of Honolulu, Harold H. Castle Science Building Conference Room 120. They will also be available to share their research in a special poster exhibit held on Thursday, August 3, from 1:40 to 3:30 p.m. in Henry Hall, Room 102. The students are part of the Ronald E. McNair Achievement Program, a federal TRIO Program, funded at 156 institutions across the United States and Puerto Rico by the U.S. Department of Education.
“The McNair Program focuses on students who are from first-generation college and /or from economically disadvantaged backgrounds who demonstrate strong academic potential,” said Dr. Lynn Simek-Morgan, new Director of Chaminade’s McNair Program. “The program’s goal is to increase graduate degree attainment of students from under-represented segments of society.”
Chaminade University is the only institution in Hawaii to be selected for the McNair Program and recently received new funding for $240,000 through TRIO to continue with its program. The University has been awarded nearly $2.5 million since 1995 for its McNair scholars, many of whom have gone on to graduate studies upon graduation. Named after the late Dr. Ronald E. McNair, the McNair Program is designed to prepare participants for doctoral studies through involvement in research and other scholarly activities. Institutions work closely with participants through their undergraduate requirements, encourage their entrance into graduate programs, provide faculty mentoring, and track their progress to successful completion of advanced degrees.
“The McNair Program is an extraordinary opportunity for our students,” said Henry Halenani Gomes, Associate Provost for Chaminade’s Undergraduate Program and Summer Director of the McNair Scholars Research Program. “Working in pairs with faculty from different disciplines, students delved into subjects such as environmental biology, genetics, mathematics, education, business, history, psychology, and sociology. Their completed research is not only presented here at the University, but McNair Scholars and their mentors will also present their research nationally at conferences throughout the mainland this coming academic year. As an example, seven students and three faculty members will be attending the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) Conference in October.
Posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, Dr. McNair was assigned as a mission specialist on STS 51-L. Dr. McNair died on January 28, 1986 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded after launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, also taking the lives of the spacecraft commander, Mr. F.R. Scobee, the pilot, Commander M.J. Smith (USN), mission specialists, Lieutenant Colonel E.S. Onizuka (USAF), and Dr. J.A. Resnik, and two civilian payload specialists, Mr. G.B. Jarvis and Mrs. S. C. McAuliffe.
Celebrating 50 years of educating students for life, service and successful careers, Chaminade University offers programs of study grounded in the liberal arts with day, evening, online and accelerated courses. The main campus is located in Kaimuki at 3140 Waialae Ave., Honolulu, HI 96816, with 10 satellite locations around Oahu military bases and Catholic parishes and schools. For more information, visit the Chaminade University website at www.chaminade.edu or call (808) 735-4711.