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The following press release was issued by Michigan Tech’s Mark Wilcox:
Tessa Steenwinkel is Michigan Technological University’s 11th recipient of the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. When Thomas Werner, associate professor of biological sciences, talks about his student Tessa Steenwinkel, it is with a mixture of pride and sadness. “I’m very, very proud of Tessa and a bit sad because I am pretty sure that I will never get a student like her again.”
With pride and sadness, you might add confidence to the emotions Werner feels about his prize student. “When Tessa and I were waiting in front of her laptop for the Goldwater decision to come in, I told her that even if the competition were worldwide, I would still be sure she would get the award.”
Established in 1989 by Congress to honor the late Arizona Senator and administered by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, Goldwater scholarships are awarded to college sophomores and juniors. The awards are based on academic merit, research experience and intent to pursue a career in science, engineering or mathematics.
To say that Steenwinkel, a biochemistry major who has just completed her second year, hit the ground running is an understatement. Born in the Netherlands, she spent some time in Baton Rouge, Louisiana before moving with her parents, both scientists, and brothers to Madison, Wisconsin. While still in high school she toured Werner’s lab with her mother on Preview Day and was impressed with both the lab and the University. “I thought that when I left high school I’d have to go to a bigger university to do the research I wanted to,” Steenwinkel said. She was excited to find a smaller school that does the kind of research she wanted to be a part of. “It’s a nerd school in the best possible way. I knew I wanted to be here.”
Read the full story at https://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2019/may/tessa-steenwinkel-wins-goldwater-scholarship.html
