GSA announces recipients of 2015 Victoria Finnerty Undergraduate Travel Awards

Award provides travel grants to attend Drosophila Research Conference

The Genetics Society of America (GSA) and the Drosophila research community are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2015 Victoria Finnerty Undergraduate Travel Awards. These awards support travel costs for undergraduates engaged in research to attend the Annual Drosophila Research Conference sponsored by GSA. The six winners will present their research at the 56th Annual Drosophila Research Conference, which will take place in Chicago, IL, March 4-8, 2015.

"We are excited to provide what will likely be the first opportunity for these talented students to participate in an international scientific research conference," said Helen Salz, PhD, Chair of the Finnerty Award review committee and a professor at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. "The winners will be presenting their research to more than 1,500 scientists attending the largest assembly of fruit fly researchers in the world."

"It is inspiring to see the potential these students have already demonstrated for carrying out cutting-edge fundamental research," added Adam Fagen, PhD, Executive Director of GSA. "We look forward to their presentations at the conference and to their development as scientists in years to come."

The Victoria Finnerty Undergraduate Travel Award program was established in 2011 to honor the memory of its namesake, an exceptional geneticist known for her creativity in and commitment to the training of undergraduates. Finnerty was a long-time GSA member, a dedicated undergraduate educator at Emory University for 35 years, and an active member of the Drosophila research community and the genetics community at large. This is the fourth year the Victoria Finnerty awards have assisted undergraduates to attend the Annual Drosophila Research Conference, having already provided more than $20,000 to 27 undergraduates thus far.

Source: Genetics Society of America