Four KU students win prestigious Goldwater scholarships


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LAWRENCE — Four University of Kansas students have been chosen as recipients of prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships. The awards are the premier undergraduate recognition to honor academically gifted students to provide a continuing source of highly qualified scientists, mathematicians and engineers.

The four winners bring KU’s total to 53 Goldwater recipients. All four are members of the KU Honors Program.

Theodore Edward Christensen IV is sophomore biochemistry major from Topeka. A graduate of Washburn Rural High School, he is the son of Ted and Kelly Christensen. He hopes to complete both master’s and doctoral degrees and establish a career as a professor at a research university. He researches protein structures via X-ray crystallography and hopes to continue his biomedical research in the field.

Jeremy Hopper Ims is a junior majoring in physics, mathematics and astronomy. He is a native of Overland Park and was home-schooled. He is the son of Terri Hopper and John Ims. After graduation he plans to attend graduate school and study high-energy astrophysics, with an emphasis in computational mathematics and computer simulation. He also hopes to further his studies in computer science and engineering.

Rodi M. Torres-Gavosto is a junior majoring in chemistry. A native of Lawrence, he graduated from Free State High School and is the son of Estella A. Gavosto and Rodolfo H. Torres. Upon completing a bachelor’s in chemistry, he plans to obtain a doctorate and begin a career as a professor of chemistry, focusing on research in nanomaterials.

Brittany Nicole Krutty is a junior majoring in physics. Krutty graduated from Olathe Northwest High School and is a native of Olathe and Troy, Mich. She is the daughter of Daniel and Katherine Krutty. Her goal is to obtain a master’s in physics and begin a career in teaching and conducting research on the treatment and disposal of radioactive waste.

Congress established the Goldwater scholarship program in 1986 to honor the retired U.S. senator from Arizona. Recipients were selected on the basis of academic merit from a field of more than 1,000 mathematics, science and engineering students nominated by their colleges and universities nationwide.

Tue, 04/03/2012

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Mike Krings

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