“During my freshman year of college at Kennesaw State University, I discovered my passion for biological research. I applied and got into First Year Scholars, a research program for freshmen. I also often attended research events and club meetings. At one of these events, I learned about Research for Undergraduates (REU), a summer internship program. Most of these internships are fully funded by The National Science Foundation (NSF). I applied and got into some, so I decided to do my internship at Cornell REU. For this year’s program, each student receives free housing , food/travel allowance AND an additional stipend for the entire summer. Each student is placed in a different lab where we conduct independent research under a mentor’s guidance. We’re expected to be in the lab 40 hours a week, but my mentor has been very flexible with the schedule, so my hours are lighter than my friends’. I am working in the Ecology and Evolution department.”

Par, who graduated from GVP in 2016, is now studying biology at Kennesaw State University. She was selected for a research internship at Cornell University and Boyce Thompson Institute last summer. During her 10-week program, she conducted research on the effects of fungicides consumed by the caterpillars on three different types of milkweed plants. She presented her findings at the George Helen Kohut Symposium.