New Orleans student receives EPA science fellowship

Tara Joy Massad of New Orleans, Louisiana, recently received a Science to Achieve Results (STAR) fellowship from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Ms. Massad was one of 98 students chosen from more than 1,200 applicants nationwide for this prestigious fellowship.

Fellows can receive up to $37,000 per year to help complete master’s and doctorate degrees.

Ms. Massad attends Tulane University, where she is pursuing her doctorate. She is researching how to improve reforestation techniques by studying certain types of plants that produce their own “insecticide,” and therefore require less protection from man-made chemicals.

EPA’s STAR fellowship program helps to build capacity in universities with limited funding for research and development by awarding fellowships to students in environmental fields. Each year, students in the United States compete for STAR fellowships through a rigorous merit review process to ensure that some of the best students in the country are chosen for these programs. Students can pursue degrees in traditionally recognized environmental disciplines as well as other fields, such as urban and regional planning and decision sciences.

EPA is accepting applications from students for the 2008 STAR fellowship program as well as the Greater Research Opportunities (GRO) fellowship. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or be lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence. Application information can be found at http://www.epa.gov/ncer/rfa/.