Forth year Ph.D. student, Ryan Perroy, was recently awarded a highly prestigious Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Fellowship through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Ryan spent the 2004-2005 academic year studying soil erosion in Elbasan, Albania, as a Fulbright scholar before spending six months in Paris organizing a global conference on deforestation in Tunisia. While his work in Albania and France was clearly appreciable, Ryan also made a voyage to Berlin, Germany, where he was edged out by just a hair in the “All Natural Mustache” sector of the World Beard & Mustache Championships in September 2005. Ryan attributes his defeat to point “shaving” by the judges. Ryan’s STAR fellowship could not have come at a better time, as Ryan will soon have something else besides facial hair to cultivate. Ryan and his lovely life partner, Sharon, are due to have a third mouth to feed by the end of the year. Congrats to Ryan for all of his recent accomplishments.
Editor’s note: The EPA, as part of its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, offers Graduate Fellowships for master’s and doctoral level students in environmentally related fields of study. Master’s level students may receive support for a maximum of two years. Doctoral students may be supported for a maximum of three years with funding available, under certain circumstances, over a period of four years. The fellowship program provides up to $37,000 per year of support. The purpose of the fellowship program is to encourage promising students to obtain advanced degrees and pursue careers in an environmental field. For more, see:
Article contributed by graduate student Park Williams
