Michigan State University has nominated three students for the nationally competitive Udall Scholarship, including Abigail Livingston, a third‑year Honors College student majoring in interdisciplinary social sciences in the College of Social Science and environmental sustainability in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
The Udall Scholarship provides students $7,000 for up to two years of undergraduate study. Aspiring leaders in the environment, Tribal public policy, and health care are encouraged to apply, and a university endorsement is required.
Livingston examines structural racism in the U.S. food system as a research assistant with Assistant Professor Phil Warsaw, Ph.D., in the Department of Community Sustainability and the Center for Regional Food Systems. She previously conducted research on ecosystem restoration of Michigan’s Oak Savannas as a professorial assistant with Professor Lars Brudvig, Ph.D., in the Department of Plant Biology. Her work with Brudvig was funded by the Professorial Assistantship program, which provides MSU Honors College students a paid two-year research placement with a faculty mentor.
The other two MSU’s nominees for the Udall Scholarship are:
- Emma Andrechek, a third-year student majoring in environmental science and management through Lyman Briggs College. Andrechek examines morphological malformations in zebrafish as a research assistant for Associate Professor Karilyn E. Sant, Ph.D, in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology.
- Grace Gramza, a second-year student majoring in biosystems engineering through the College of Engineering. Gramza works on a project tracking harmful algae blooms in Lake Erie as a research assistant for Assistant Professor Subhasis Giri, Ph.D., in the Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering.
This story originally appeared on MSU’s Distinguished Student Awards Office website.