Mitchell Awards - University Co-op




Mitchell Awards


George Mitchell Co-op President

The George H. Mitchell Awards for Academic Excellence are awarded each year to students who have made an uncommon contribution to their fields of study by way of research project, literary work, musical composition, humanitarian project or similar undertaking. Awards range from $2,000 to a top prize of $20,000. This awards program was developed by University Co-op President and CEO George Mitchell and the Co-op's Chairman of the Board, Dr. Michael Granof and presented to UT President Dr. Larry Faulkner in 2000. Students with exemplary academic records are nominated by UT faculty members and winners are chosen by a selection committee. These award-winning students have embraced the opportunities around them with a passion and intellectual creativity.

Application

For more information on how to apply for the University Co-op/George H. Mitchell Awards for Academic Excellence, please click here. Please read the criteria below before submitting your application.

Criteria

Students nominated for these awards by faculty members have an exemplary academic record and have made an uncommon contribution to their fields of study by way of a research project, literary work, musical composition, humanitarian project, or similar undertaking. The selection committee paid particular attention to the nominating faculty member's explanation of the significance of the work / project in the context of the relevant field of study and to the project itself. Nominees submitted a one or two page curriculum vita or resume highlighting their activities and achievement at UT Austin, documentation of the project for which they were nominated (e.g., copy of a paper or thesis, a videotape or photographs), and a personal statement placing their work / project in the context of their educational experiences at UT Austin and their vision for themselves as a developing scholar in their field. Click here to see previous Undergraduate Grand Prize Winners.

2010 Press Release

Winners of the 11th Annual University Co-op George H. Mitchell Student Awards for Academic Excellence AUSTIN, April 29, 2010-Wednesday, the 28th of April was the culmination of hard work and dedication to a select few at the Eleventh Annual George H.Mitchell Awards for Academic Excellence presented by the University Co-operative Society at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. The awards celebrate students with exemplary academic records who have made an extraordinary contribution to their fields of study by way of a research project, literary work, musical composition, humanitarian project, or similar undertaking. Member of the University Co-opÂ´s Board of Directors and Distinguished Teaching Professor, Steven Goode, hosted the event. Attendees included UT President Bill Powers, Provost Steven Leslie and many Deans and Vice Presidents of the University, as well as past grand prize winners of the award. The $20,000 Grand Prize winner of the Undergraduate Student Awards for Academic Excellence was John Meyer, an English and Government major who was nominated by his professor James Loehlin, Ph.D., for his original play "American Volunteers", which draws directly from his own experience as a soldier in Afghanistan. The play follows a group of Army Airborne Rangers patrolling the Pakistan border, as John himself did, and for which he earned a Bronze Star for meritorious service. Meyer had no previous background in theatre, and participated in UTÂ´s Shakespeare at Winedale program in order to learn about ShakespeareÂ´s use of meter first-hand as he developed and wrote his play. In "American Volunteers," the characters must examine their own moral values and confront their motives for military service in the midst of the chaos of warfare. Three other undergraduate students, Lynne Chantranupong, a Cell and Molecular Biology major, James Hammond, an English and Psychology major and Krista Smith, an Astronomy major, won the second prize and received $5,000 each. The five winners of the $2,000 awards were Grace Eckhoff, a Biology and Plan II major, Keeley Steenson, a Radio-Television-Film and Plan II major, Kathleen Skinner, an English and History major, Anthony Wright, an Anthropology major and Om J. Neeley, a Business Honors & Corporate Finance and Plan II major. For more information, please contact Casey Ellis at (512) 322.7024, ext 6315, or cellis@universitycoop.com The University Co-op fulfills its 114-year old mission as a non-profit corporation by returning all profits to its owners - the students, faculty and staff of the University of Texas at Austin. Since 2000, the Co-op has given over 30 million dollars to UT in the form of gifts, grants and rebates.

2010 Undergraduate Grand Prize Winner Recipient of $20,000


	John Meyer Major: English and Government Shakespeare At Winedale Regents American Volunteers, A Play in Four Acts Nominated by: James N. Loehlin, Ph. D.,



2010 Undergraduate Winners Recipients of $5,000



	Lynne Chantranupong Major: Cell and Molecular Biology Enhancing the Kinetics and Stability of Human Arginase I- A Potential Chemotherapeutic Agent for L-Arginine Auxotrophic Cancers Nominated by George Georgiou, Ph. D.,	James Hammond Major: English/Psychology The Darkness of Memory: Post-Race in Premodernity Nominated by Geraldine Heng, Ph. D.,





	Krista Smith Major: Astronomy A Search for Binary Active Galactic Nuclei: Double-Peaked AGN in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Nominated by Gregory Shields, Ph.D.,



2010 Undergraduate Winners Recipients of $2,000



	Grace Eckhoff Major: Biochemistry The Challenges and Opportunities in Tuberculosis Control, from Texas to Afghanistan Nominated by Andrew Ellington, Ph. D.,	Om J. Neeley Major: Business Honors & Corporate Finance/ Plan II Changing Tactics: The Quiet Dalliance Between Pharmaceutical Companies, Lobbyists, and Medical Schools Nominated by Henry W Brands, Ph. D.,



	Kathleen Skinner Major: English/History Ships, Logs, and Voyages: Maria Graham Navigates the Journey of H.M.S. BLONDE Nominated by Lance Bertelsen, Ph.D.,	Keeley Steenson Major Radio-Television-Film/Plan II Show and Tell Nominated by Paul Stekler, Ph. D.,



	Anthony Wright Major: Anthropology Welcome to Pinewood: An Ethanographic Investigation of Poverty and Illness in Supportive Housing Nominated by John Traphagan, Ph. D.,



Previous Undergraduate Grand Prize Winners Recipients of $20,000


	2009 Winner	2008 Winner


	Yuxuan Wang Biochemistry Honors and Plan II Aptamer Antagonists of Myelin Promote Axon Growth Nominating Professor: Dr. Andrew Ellington, Wilson M. and Kathryn Fraser Research Professor In Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, College of Natural Sciences	Baltej Ludher Chemical Engineering, Cockrell School of Engineering Baltej Ludher was nominated by Professor Keith P. Johnston for his research paper "Novel Methods for Producing Micron and Sub-micron Pharmaceutical Particles for Pulmonary and Oral Delivery." Baltej's research has the potential to radically advance drug delivery, as well as disease diagnosis and treatment. He has helped develop two novel methods for producing high-surface area therapeutic and pharmaceutical particles: thin-film freezing method and pH flocculation method.

	2007 Winner	2006 Winner


	Christina Skelton Geosciences, Plan II, College of Natural Sciences Christina Skelton was nominated by Professor Thomas Palaima for a research paper that brought together her interests in Biology and Classics, “Methods of Using Phylogenetic Systematics to Reconstruct the History of the Linear B Script”. By adapting phylogenetic methods to a very different kind of evolution, that of an evolving script, Christina has taken a brilliant step forward toward the solution of several hitherto intractable problems in Mycenaean Greek studies.	W Seth Howes Germanic Studies, College of Liberal Arts Seth Howes was nominated by Professor Kit Belgum for his work "Negativ- Dekadent: The Cultures of Punk in Halle/Saale, 1978-1989" - richly textured and sophisticated work of original scholarship in the field of contemporary cultural studies, with a focus on the punk music movement in the German Democratic Republic.

	2005 Winner	2004 Winner


	Emily Barton Chemistry, College of Natural Sciences Emily was nominated by Dr. Keith Stevenson for her invention of a new technique, termed "confined dewetting lithography", which uses water removal to leave nano-sized patterns on many different kinds of surfaces. This technique may eventually be profoundly important for producing near- molecular sized patterns quickly and cost-efficiently, which is a critical challenge for the emerging nanotechnology industry.	Brian E. Hardin Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering Brian was nominated by Dr. Anthony Ambler for creating a sophisticated computer program, which generates unusual shapes for solar cells and maximizes their ability to collect light on a smaller space. His project, “Non- tracking Solar Concentrator Model” has long-range implications for the viability of solar power. A patent for his ideas has been filed by Oxford University.

	2003 Winner	2002 Winner


	Lauren E. Banta Radio-Television-Film Lauren was nominated by Dr. Paul Stekler for her documentary film “The Kiely Family”, an inspiring account of the everyday life of a foster family with six children - four of them with disabilities.	Abigail Green Biology, College of Natural Sciences Abigail was nominated by Dr. Ulrich G. Mueller for her vital contribution to a publication entitled “Extensive Exchange of Fungal Cultivars Between Sympatric Species of Fungus-Growing Ants” (published in Molecular Ecology) and for her two modules for teaching conservation biology in Spanish.

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