Two OHSU graduate students receive Roche/ARCS Foundation Scholar Award
OHSU School of Medicine graduate students Amy Williams and Holly Corbitt are among a group of select students nationwide, the first to benefit from a new partnership between ARCS (Achievement Rewards for College Scientists) Foundation and The Roche Foundation. Through this partnership, The Roche Foundation provides $663,000 in scholarship funding for up to 40 Roche/ARCS Foundation Scholars, nationwide, over three years.Corbitt studies cardiovascular genetics, using bioinformatics and computational modeling, working with faculty in the school’s Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics, while Williams studies memory and learning in PTSD and addiction with faculty from the school’s Department of Behavioral Neuroscience.
ARCS Foundation, a national women's group that aids advancement in science and technology by addressing the country’s need for new scientists and engineers, has a long history of supporting OHSU School of Medicine graduate students, selecting 98 OHSU scholars since the Portland chapter was founded in 2005. The Roche Foundation is one of the oldest charitable foundations in the U.S. and focuses its support
on health promotion as well as science and math education.“It’s a tremendous honor for two of our outstanding young scientists to be the first recipients of the Roche/ARCS Foundation Scholar Award,” said Allison Fryer, Ph.D., associate dean for graduate studies and professor of medicine, OHSU School of Medicine. “We are immensely grateful to ARCS Foundation for supporting our graduate students financially, intellectually and socially. These awards provide the critical early-career support and encouragement our students need to make great contributions to improvements in human health" she said.
“The award has already allowed me to purchase statistical software for my research and to attend the annual conference for the Society for Neuroscience in Washington, D.C.,” said Williams. “But beyond the funds, ARCS provides us with a network and opportunities to meet people in other departments and schools. There’s this great sense of collaboration. ”