McNair Scholar Program Alumni
2022 Scholars
Lauren Blume
Major: Psychology
Hometown: Waukesha, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Brian Wallace, Ph.D., Kinesiology
Lauren hopes to pursue a graduate degree in Occupational Therapy. Her hope is to work in pediatrics helping kids learn the skills needed to be independent.
Dan Cummings
Major: Sociology Minor: History
Hometown: Appleton, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Jeremiah Bohr, Ph.D., Sociology
Dan would like to pursue a Ph.D. in sociology. He is interested in social research and class analysis, and he would like to study class relations and class consciousness to gain a better understanding of social inequalities.
Brittany Dupree
Major: Biology
Hometown: Fond du Lac, WI
Graduation Date: December 2023
Mentor: Jessica Lucas, Ph.D., Biology
Brittany wishes to pursue a master’s degree in botany. She would like to research drought tolerance in plants and is deciding on a specialty within botany.
Yanet Fernandez
Major: Mathematics (Statistics emphasis) Minor: Information Systems Certificates: Computer Programming and Spanish
Hometown: Oshkosh, WI
Graduation Date: December 2023
Mentor: Jeremiah Bohr, Ph.D., Sociology
Yanet Fernandez will be conducting computational sociology research with Prof. Jeremiah Bohr. They will be examining sentiment on immigration from Latin America among the U.S. Congress using text analysis and Big Data from Twitter. Yanet would like to go to graduate school for information systems or data science because she aspires to do research and teach at a university.
Ethan Groshens
Major: Chemistry
Hometown: Kaukauna, WI
Graduation Date: December 2022
Mentor: Brant Kedrowski, Ph.D., Chemistry
Ethan enjoys the challenges offered by his field of study and looks forward to solving problems with chemistry. He has worked in multiple manufacturing industries, and one of those inspired him to become a chemist.
Kaddy Janneh
Major: Biomedical Science
Hometown: Sun Prairie, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: John Chan, Ph.D., Chemistry
Whether it be working in a hospital room treating a patient directly or in a lab researching and collecting data in hopes of finding a new treatment for a disease, Kaddy plans to go into the medical field to play a part in improving the lives of others. While still a little undecided about which pathway is for her, she knows that she wants to go into the field of medicine. She is interested in doing the “behind the scenes” work of medicine such as working in a lab, developing new technologies, or finding different and alternative treatments.
Madyson Majewski
Major: Biology
Hometown: De Pere, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Dana Merriman, Ph.D., Biology
Madyson would like to go to Vet School and pursue a career in Veterinary Medicine with a range of specialties of surgery and critical care. She wants to help all kinds of animals and get experience with zoology.
Mahad Osman
Major: Biomedical Science
Hometown: Madison, WI
Graduation Date: December 2022
Mentor: Robert Mitchell, Ph.D., Biology
Mahad is interested in pursuing a degree in Medicine, and his goals are to attend medical school after graduating. He sees himself working as an Anesthesiologist and in medically underserved areas.
Anise Shipley
Major: Sociology Minor: Women & Gender Studies Certificate: Equity and Diversity
Hometown: Oshkosh, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Juyeon Son, Ph.D., Sociology
After completing her bachelor’s degree, Anise will continue her education to pursue her graduate degree in Community Development and Nonprofit Organization.
Sheiana Taylor
Major: Biomedical Science Minor: Neuroscience
Hometown: St. Thomas, ND
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Dana Merriman, Ph.D., Biology
After completing her bachelor’s degree, Sheiana plans to continue her education at veterinary school. She plans to become a veterinarian and hopes to specialize in orthopedic surgeries and rehabilitation, however she is eager to see where research opportunities will take her.
Moriah Weeks
Major: Environmental Studies and Anthropology
Hometown: Milwaukee, WI
Graduation Date: May 2023
Mentor: Stephanie Spehar, Ph.D., Anthropology
This summer, Moriah is researching the agriculture plots on campus and wants to understand why sustainable agriculture matters, why people are renting the plots, and what they get out of it. She plants to further her education in graduate school where she plans to go into a program with agricultural education. After graduating, Moriah wants to work at a nature preserve and do education with field trips.
2021 Scholars
Lux Beibhinn
Major: Women’s & Gender Studies Minor: Sociology and LGBTQ+ Certificate
Hometown: Fond du Lac, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation: May 2022
Research Topic: Queer Teen Suicide Rates
Mentor: Kathleen Corely, Ph.D., Anthropology
Lux is interested in helping queer youth with their mental health in navigating society with their diverse or otherwise deviant sexuality and gender identity. They plan on studying human sexuality, sexual wellness and education, and counseling. Their dream career path is to become a guidance counselor in a high school who teaches the sex education/health course.
Matt Frisch
Major: Physics & Engineering Minor: Mathematics
Hometown: Rio, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation: May 2025
Research Topic: Origin of Crystalline Structure in Polymers
Mentor: Nenad Stojilovic, Ph.D., Physics & Astronomy
Matt would like to pursue a PhD in his educational journey. After graduation from a professional degree, Matt hopes to develop and design emerging technologies.
Anissa Garcia
Major: Women’s & Gender Studies Minor: Spanish
Hometown: Waukesha, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Barbie and Bratz Play
Mentor: Caryn Murphy, Ph.D., Radio TV Film
Anissa would like to go to law school and pursue a career as an attorney.
Em Garvey
Major: Physics (Professional Emphasis) Minor: Mathematics
Hometown: Appleton, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Charmonium Decays at the PANDA Detector
Mentor: Mark Lattery, Ph.D., Physics and Astronomy
Em wishes to pursue research in particle physics, as well as teach at a university level.
Kaycey Henning
Major: Nursing Minor: Psychology
Hometown: Hurley, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: December 2021
Research Topic: Isolation on Long-Term Care Residents During Covid-19
Mentor: Sarah O’ Connell, MSN, Nursing
Kaycey wants to get her doctorate degree as CRNA and plans to work as a nurse anesthetist in a hospital setting.
Kirandeep Kaur
Major: Biomedical Sciences Minor: Psychology
Hometown: Franklin, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: 2023
Research Topic: Schistosomiasis
Mentor: John Chan, Ph.D., Chemistry
While Kirandeep wants to explore her options, she is mostly focused on figuring out how to achieve the long-term goal of being a doctor.
Nick Morrissey
Major: Philosophy Minor: Art History Certificate: Ethics
Hometown: Neenah, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Evaluation of Metamodernism, Comparison to Info Aesthetics
Mentor: Evan Kreider, Ph.D., Philosophy
Nick plans to pursue a masters degree in journalism at UW Madison in 2022. He is looking to document new ideas in arts and culture through a range of media.
Jayda Newman
Major: Psychology Minor: Neuroscience and Philosophy
Hometown: Wausau, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Philosophy of the Mind
Mentor: Robert Wagoner, Ph.D., Philosophy
Jayda’s overall goal is to become a professor. While she is unsure as to what she wants to teach, she knows that she definitely will end up incorporating some mix of philosophy and psychology into her studies.
Hector Ortega
Major: Political Science and Philosophy
Hometown: Fitchburg, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: 2023
Research Topic: Tibet-China Relations
Mentor: Michael Baltutis, Ph.D., Religious Studies
Hector is considering a Law Degree and/or a Ph.D. in Political Science to help him get into the FBI or another part of the Judicial Branch of government.
Josh Roberts
Major: Music Performance (Instrumental)
Hometown: Waukesha, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Curriculum in Multiple Woodwind Performance
Mentor: Drew Whiting, Ph.D., Music
After receiving a graduate degree, Josh hopes to interview for jobs all around the country to be a professor of music in some regard. He hopes to be able to teach saxophone or be a lecturer of various music topics such as theory, aural skill, music business, or musicology.
Mia VanHooreweghe
Major: Kinesiology Minor: Chemistry
Hometown: Appleton, WI
UW Oshkosh Graduation Date: May 2022
Research Topic: Chrolinergic Signaling in Schistosoma Mansoni
Mentor: John Chan, Ph.D., Chemistry
Mia would like to work as a PA and work toward a specialty in Orthopedics. However, she would like to do more research and possibly work in neonatal, emergency, surgery or pediatric rotations before solely being in Orthopedics. Mia would like to help people as much as possible while also providing a much better bed-side manner than most physicians mornally give to their patients.