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Science Foundation Arizona Injects Talent into State’s Workforce Pipeline with Graduate Research Fellows and Bisgrove Scholars Programs
Foundation to select new researchers, extend program funding for 2013
PHOENIX (Feb. 19, 2013) – Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz) announced that it will select new researchers in 2013 for its Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) and Bisgrove Scholars programs. Selected researchers for each program will be announced in April.
The GRF program, SFAz’s flagship program, has produced and funded 263 fellows at Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona since launching in 2007. This year, the Graduate Research Fellowship 2.0 program offers funding to Arizona’s three research universities to recruit graduate students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and from related research fields. Specific areas include bioscience, information technology and communications, clean energy and environmental sustainability as well as aerospace and defense. GRFs also work directly with teachers and students in K-12 classrooms throughout Arizona.
GRF finalists and their universities will be selected in early April with fellowships commencing in the fall 2013.
“The GRF program was created to help strengthen Arizona’s research universities by providing access to the best and brightest doctoral students,” said William Harris, president and CEO of SFAz. “The work by GRFs in K-12 classrooms is a required part of the program. It is meant help teachers understand how to teach modern science and to encourage K-12 students to developed analytical skills through hands-on experience, thus helping to grow Arizona’s talent pipeline at the earliest stages.”
SFAz’s innovative Bisgrove Scholars program also will select new researchers in April, who will begin their work at Arizona universities by fall 2013. The program was launched in 2010 with the goal of recruiting post-doctoral and early tenure track scientists and engineers to Arizona with the incentive of supporting recipients of the award at ASU, NAU and UA. The program is designed to attract and retain exceptional individuals who have demonstrated substantial achievements in their field and who have the potential to transform ideas into value for society.
Like its 2012 predecessor, the current program is competitive and up to five scholars statewide will be selected by SFAz from the candidates nominated by participating institutions. SFAz invites Ph.D. granting universities and nonprofit research institutes of Arizona to apply for the awards. One proposal per institution nominating up to five scholars in a given year is permitted. Interested scholars work with their university’s graduate research office during the nomination process.
Since its inception, a total of six nationally recognized Ph.D. candidates and early-career tenure track professors have been part of the program to conduct and lead high-level research at Arizona universities. The program is named in honor of businessman and philanthropist Jerry Bisgrove, who helped fund the launch of SFAz in 2007 and is a longtime proponent of science and its link to global competiveness.
“Bisgrove Scholars are helping to elevate Arizona by showcasing its research capabilities and creating awareness about the state’s talented corps of scientists and engineers,” said Harris. “In time, Arizona can produce research and scholarship on par with other national and international research hubs. Our Bisgrove Scholars are on the path to develop a reputation as prominent as that of the Rhodes Scholars.”
About Science Foundation Arizona
Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization initiated in 2006 by the Greater Phoenix Leadership Inc., Southern Arizona Leadership Council and the Flagstaff Forty in conjunction with the executive and legislative branches of state government. SFAz serves as a catalyst for high-wage, knowledge-based jobs and economic diversity through administration and strict oversight of research, development and education grants to public education and other non-profit research performing institutions. For more information, visit www.sfaz.org.
