As I reflect back on spring semester, I am excited about the various opportunities the Graduate School, the Graduate Student Council (GSC), and our Colleges provided our graduate students. The activities and events offered our graduate students opportunities to share their scholarly research, to recognize them for their academic and leadership accomplishments, and to express our appreciation for their contribution to teaching, research, and service/outreach.
Information about some of our events is featured in other articles including the Capitol Graduate Research Summit, Three Minute Thesis Competition, and K-State Graduate Research, Arts, and Discovery Forum.
In April, we celebrated Graduate Student Appreciation Month. Each academic college hosted one or more events for their graduate students to show their appreciation for their contributions to the college and K-State. The Graduate School and GSC hosted a networking event for graduate students featuring Call Hall ice cream. The GSC sponsored the Graduate Student Awards and Recognition Reception. More than 150 graduate students were recognized by their Colleges, the Graduate School, and GSC for their academic and leadership contributions. Dr. Rolando Flores, the Graduate School Alumni Fellow, returned to campus in April to network with graduate students and share career development advice.
Through the continuing support of Drs. Al and RosaLee Sarachek, Pragyesh Dhungel, a doctoral candidate in microbiology, was awarded a $17,000 Predoctoral Honors Fellowship in Molecular Biology. Brintha Parasumanna Girinathan, a doctoral candidate in genetics, and Ryan Greenway, a doctoral student in biology, were selected to receive a $2,000 Sarachek Scientific Travel Award to support their travel to present at professional meetings and network with researchers in their discipline.
Approximately 400 graduate students received travel awards from GSC to support their travel to present at regional, national and international meetings. The travel awards are funded from a variety of sources including: the Offices of the President and Provost, grants and the Student Governing Association. Without these awards, many graduate students could not attend professional meetings to present their research/scholarly work and network with researchers and leaders in their discipline.
Four special individuals have loaned the Graduate School art to display in the collaborative space on third floor of Eisenhower Hall. Graduate students appreciate the ambiance created by artwork. Many have commented that the art makes the space more inviting and interesting. Thank you Teresa Schmidt, Marvin Gould, Nelson Smith, and Gerry Craig for your generous spirit.
As spring semester ends, the Graduate School team extends our appreciation to everyone who contributes to the success of our approximately 4,000 students. Thank you for making a difference!