KU announces new Self Graduate Fellows

LAWRENCE – Nine doctoral students have been selected to receive the University of Kansas’ prestigious Madison and Lila Self Graduate Fellowship for the 2015-2016 academic year.  They are among 161 students who have benefited from the fellowship since it was established.

Self Graduate Fellowships are four-year awards to new or first-year doctoral students who demonstrate leadership, initiative and a passion for achievement. The fellowship covers full tuition and fees, provides a $29,500 annual payment to new fellows and includes a unique development program. The Fellow Development Program provides general education and training in communication, management and leadership to assist Self Graduate Fellows in preparation for future leadership roles, complementing the specialized education and training provided in doctoral programs.

The fellowship’s mission is to identify and recruit exceptional doctoral students who demonstrate the promise to make significant contributions to their fields of student and society as a whole.

The late Madison “Al” and Lila Self of Hinsdale, Illinois, launched and permanently endowed the Self Graduate Fellowship in 1989, motivated by their strong belief in the vital importance of developing leadership for tomorrow. Madison Self was a 1943 KU graduate in chemical engineering. Lila Self grew up in Eudora and attended KU with the Class of 1943.

The new Self Graduate Fellows for 2015-2019:

• Lance Frazer, of Anchorage, Alaska; first-year doctoral student in bioengineering
• Leila Joyce Seals, of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico; first-year doctoral student in geology
• Cassidy Krause, of Algoma, Wisconsin; incoming doctoral student in mathematics
• Samuel Lane, of Pikeville, Kentucky; incoming doctoral student in physics and astronomy
• Alexandra Machen, of Quinter; first-year doctoral student in interdisciplinary graduate program in biomedical sciences, KU Medical Center
• Nicholas Oderio, of Romeoville, Illinois; incoming doctoral student in mathematics
• Lauren Schumacher, of Rolla, Missouri; incoming doctoral student in aerospace engineering
• Stephen Shannon, of Overland Park; first-year doctoral student in interdisciplinary graduate program in biomedical sciences, KU Medical Center
• Ian Weidling, of Leawood; first-year doctoral student in interdisciplinary graduate program in biomedical sciences, KU Medical Center.