Gannon University has announced that the provost and his family have made a donation to the university to support academic research.
The Steven A. Mauro and Melissa M. Mauro Student Research Endowed “Power” Scholarship will help support faculty-led student research.
The donation of $25,000 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the university under the provisions of the scholarship and will fund student research as well as support the presentation of findings at regional and national meetings.
Mauro, Ph. D., said that the scholarship could cover a number of different areas but essentially, it would allow funds to be available to students who are engaging in a research project under the guidance of a faculty member.
Mauro also said that the scholarship could cover costs anywhere from research creation, implementation, dissemination or communication.
“We do have student research funds that are available, but not as much as I would like to see,” Mauro said. “It’s just an extra cost that the student has to bear, but these types of experiences are ones that the student remembers forever, so [we’re] just trying to make it more affordable so that they’re able to get the full experience.”
Mauro said that scholarship is just one of the many ways that students can directly engage in their field and that it often leads to the experience that they need to get a job or to continue on in their education.
The money is matched by the university and becomes a total of $50,000. Each year, a percentage of that is taken out of the endowment and provided to the student. This concept allows the grant to be renewable into the forseeable future.
Mauro said that he thinks that faculty-led student research is a fantastic experience.
“I got the experience to do research in a lab and then I got to present my work for the first time at a national conference,” Mauro said. “It was just eye-opening for me.”
Mauro also said that it changed his thought process about what he wanted to get into and what he wanted to do in life.
“What we’re doing is we’re trying to give students the opportunity for these educational experiences so that they can have that eye-opening experience too,” Mauro said.
This scholarship is one of the 234 endowed scholarships that provide $914,000 in scholarship support annually to Gannon students from various locations, backgrounds and financial circumstances.
SAMANTHA GRISWOLD
[email protected]