Two UNLV students, Adria Carney and Karl Kingsley, have been selected to receive Regent Scholar Awards this year from the university's Board of Regents.
Carney, a senior majoring in biological sciences, was selected as the undergraduate recipient, while Kingsley, a doctoral student in biological sciences, was chosen as the graduate-level winner.
Each student will receive $5,000. They will be honored at a May 9 reception on the UNLV campus that will be hosted by the Board of Regents of the University and Community College System of Nevada.
As an undergraduate, Carney is doing research involving the collection and evaluation of genetics data and the documentation of evolutionary trends seen in desert plants. That work is being done with Cheryl Vanier, a biology doctoral student, in the laboratory of Daniel Thompson, associate professor of biology. She also did a chemistry research project with assistant professor Lydia McKinstry in which she ran and maintained a machine that detects the presence of organic compounds in unknown solutions.
Carney, who has minors in chemistry and sociology, has worked as an undergraduate teaching assistant, is president of the UNLV chapter of the Association of Pre-Health Professionals, and is vice president of the university chapter of the Golden Key National Honor Society. Since 1986 she has worked at the Nevada Donor Network, where her responsibilities involve the procurement of donor tissues. She also volunteers at a local hospice.
She plans to graduate in May and intends to apply to medical schools in the fall.
In a letter nominating Carney for the regents' award, Patricia Steubing, UNLV clinical assistant professor of biology, said "Adria's day must contain more than 24 hours because I don't see how anyone can do as much as she does, and has done, and do it so well.
"She has tremendous motivation and determination to reach her goal of being a physician, and she has all the qualities and qualifications required to be an excellent, compassionate doctor."
At the graduate level, Kingsley conducts research studying the movement of cancer cells throughout the body. The eventual goal is to be able to stop the spread of cancer cells, thus greatly undermining the deadly disease.
Kingsley, who is vice president of the UNLV Graduate Student Association, presented a poster on his research at the annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology in December.
In a letter nominating Kingsley for the regents' award, assistant biology professor George Plopper, who serves as Kingsley's graduate adviser, pointed out that Kingsley successfully courted a small biotechnology company, Desmos Inc., to become involved in his research, resulting in a university-industry partnership.
Plopper said of Kingsley, "Karl is a dedicated, motivated student who possesses extraordinary skills that will enable him to accomplish a great deal in his chosen field of study. He is an excellent example of the kind of student that UNLV wants to produce."
Kingsley, who is a graduate teaching assistant in biological sciences, volunteers with numerous organizations both on- and off-campus, including the National Juvenile Diabetes Association; the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; and the St. Therese Center, a group that serves people with HIV or AIDS.
"Karl Kingsley represents the best of what graduate students can be and do during their graduate school experience," said Paul Ferguson, dean of UNLV's Graduate College. "Not only has Karl excelled in the classroom and laboratory, but also he has excelled in reaching beyond his immediate scholarly focus to groups of less experienced students as well as community groups in need of support. In my discussions with Karl, it is clear that his motivation comes from simply wanting to do the right thing and to improve the experience of others."
