The Hunter Envoy

Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: News

After an eleven-year hiatus, Hunter College can boast about another Goldwater Scholar.

Yelena Leitman, a junior biology major in the Thomas Hunter Honors program, recently won the Senior-level Barry M. Goldwater scholarship, an award "established by Congress in 1986 to honor Senator Barry M. Goldwater, who served his country for 56 years as a soldier and statesman, including 30 years of service in the U.S. Senate," according to the program's website.

"I didn't really know when I started college what I was going to go for," recalled the 22-year old from Belarus. Soft-spoken and articulate, she credited the Freshman-year science block program, including Dr. Alaie and Dr. Persell's Principles of Biology class, for piquing her interest in Biology.

Working in Dr. Melendez-Vasquez's laboratory and interning at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts has only cemented her commitment to biology research, she said.

Although Leitman is not affiliated with the Macaulay Honors College, she first received information about the scholarship from Mike Lamb, Graduate Fellowship Advisor, and James Airozo, CUNY Director of Student Academic Awards and Honors, who are both affiliated with Macaulay.

After spending nearly two months completing the grueling scholarship application, she is now the second Goldwater Scholar from Hunter College and one of the 23 New Yorkers who won this scholarship in 2009.

According to the Goldwater Scholarship's website, scholars receive up to $7,500 annually for a maximum of two years to defray the costs of tuition, fees, books, room and board.

The website also notes that the Goldwater Scholarship is highly selective and is awarded to 300 students annually across the United States.

To be eligible for this prestigious scholarship, prospective applicants must be matriculated sophomores or juniors maintaining at least a "B" grade point average and staying within the upper fourth of their class.

Students must also demonstrate academic excellence and exhibit interest in academic study and research of science, mathematics or engineering. Finally, the students must be U.S. citizens, nationals or permanent residents. \

As with many scholarships, the student must complete a general application consisting of forms, essays and recommendations from three professors. The student must also acquire an institutional nomination to be eligible for consideration by the award committee. For the 2009 application, Hunter College provided nominations to only four out of eight students who expressed interest in this scholarship.

"The Goldwater is a competitive prestigious national scholarship. Even though 1,034 students were nominated from across the country, in most schools there is an internal nomination process, so probably thousands of students express interest in the Goldwater every year. We are delighted that Leitman was chosen this year-she is well on her way towards a distinguished career as a scientist," Professor Robert Greenberg, the Hunter College liaison to the Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, said.

"I and others here work very closely with students to prepare them for these scholarships, to give guidance on the writing of personal statements, and to make sure that the students obtain the best possible letters of recommendation," he added.

"We are hopeful to nominate more and more students for prestigious scholarships such as the Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Mitchell, and Goldwater in the future."

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