Our D1 swimmer

GraceCiaramitarosigned toswim at Vanderbilt University, aDivisionOne collegiate-level program on Dec 1, 2022 Inher final senior season, sheplaced second at TennesseeHigh School Stateinboththe200 and 500Freestyle, andat the Southeasternchampionship, sheplacedsecond inthe400 Individual Medley andfourth inthe200Backstroke

I startedswimmingat a very youngageandhaveloved it ever since" Ciaramitaro said "When askedabout swimmingincollege, I never had adoubt inmy mindthat I would not at least try I made my decisiontoswim at Vanderbilt becauseof thegreat learning andteam environment they provide I am excitedfor theamazing team of girlsI will get tobe withevery day andto experiencelifeinNashville"

Guyana to America

Leah Balkaranisfrom Georgetown, Guyana, and joinedtheClassof 2023in eighthgrade Sincethen, Balkaran hasmadeher impact onthegrade WithWashington andLeeUniversity asher top choice Balkaranhad tomake someseriousdecisionsabout stayingintheUnitedStatesor returningtoGuyana But openingher acceptanceasa QuestBridgeScholar, sheknew her choicewasmade

"BeingaQuestBridge Scholar isadream cometrue"

Balkaran said "Before QuestBridge, I knew I neededa scholarshiptobeabletogoto collegeinAmerica but I had noideahow I woulddothat Knowing that I cannow goto collegefor freeat ahighly competitiveandesteemed university likeWashington and Leeisaweight off my andmy family'sshoulders"

Our student researchers

St Jude Children's Research Hospital's High School and College Research Immersion Program ? Fia Arbelaez

"Thissummer I wasmentored by Dr HongLin thelead scientist of theNorthcott LabintheDevelopmental Neurobiology

Department Over thecourseof thestudy, I developedskillsinhistology, microscopy andbioinformaticsandbecamefluent inscientific termspreviously unknowntome EverythingI learnedfascinated me Throughdrawingsonnapkinsandpicturesonmy phone, I eagerly sought toshow my family and friendsmy new skillsand findings At St Jude, I learned what bringsmethemost joy: discovery"

Department of Psychology at Rhodes College, " How Group Dynamics Affect Child Learning" ? Alexandra Lafferty

"Over thesummer, I had themost amazingopportunity towork alongsideDr Kiren KhanandAbby Hultquist at Rhodes I got toanalyze childrentellingstoriesinakindergartenpreparednessprogram I discoveredthat different classroom environmentscangreatly impact the ability for achildtolearn Overall, thiswasoneof thebest experiencesI haveever had Thishastaught mesomuchabout how tobea researcher inthereal worldandhasgivenmeanew appreciationfor how mucheffort andtimegoesintoaresearchproject It hasalso givenmeaninsight intowhat I might want topursueasacareer inthefuture"

Department of Biology at University of Memphis, " Effects of Parasitism on Prothonotary Warbler Parental Behavior" ? Charlie

LaMountain

For my HIRSproject, I studiedthebehavior of aspeciesof wildmigratory songbirdscalledprothonotary warblers Thecoolest part of my researchwasthat I wasdoingfieldwork at Meeman-Shelby Forest StatePark I hikedthroughmilesof forest trackingnest dataand learningfrommoreexperiencedresearchershow toperform moreextensive advancedtechniquesfor handlingwildbirds I alsolearned how tediousit canbetocollect datafor aproject likethis; I spent over 70hourswatchingvideosof birdsintheir nestsandtrackingtheir behavior HIRSshapedwhat I am interestedinpursuingincollegeand inmy professional career, specifically that I now know I want to continuehands-onoutdoor fieldwork and research, whichissocool "

Overrton Park Conservatory, " Allelopathic Impacts on Tree Seedling Germination and Growth" ? Rachel Larkins

I hadtheopportunity towork inforestry, bothinthelabandout inthefield I vealwayshadapassionfor nature, but tobesurrounded by other peoplewhosharethispassionwastruly fulfilling I foundalovefor theresearchprocessandenvirnomental science While rampagingaroundinthewildernessthroughdensebrushisnot everyone'sjam I wasabletoreally findmyself Oneunforgettable memory that I haveisridingaround thezoo inthegolf cart toget toour plotswithmy team Overall, it wasanamazing experience, and I look forwardtodoingmoreresearchincollege

Community Legal Center, " The Lack of Attorneysfor the Elderly in Tennessee"

?

Shifa Panjwani

"My HIRSproject wasresearchingtheCounty Attorney inKentucky withtheCommunity Legal Center (CLC) toexaminehow their free legal aidinassistingtheelderly whoneedconservatorshipsworks Indoingso, I wanted toseeif Memphiscouldimplement asimilar County Attorney position After examining many Kentucky and TennesseestatutesoutliningconservatorshipsandCounty Attorneys I compiledapresentationandessay of my findings I enjoyedmy HIRSexperiencebecauseI wasabletonot only exploremy passionof local servicebut alsoseehow attorneysserveour communities Fromwatchingattorneysat theCLCinteract withtheir clients, I realized I want tobeanattorney inthefuture

AMICA (Cantabria, Spain), " Education and Workforce Training for People with Disabilities" ? Darla

Suitt

"I workedwithAMICA, anon-profit organizationwiththepurposeof discoveringthecapacitiesof eachperson andcreating opportunitiesinvolvingsociety created in1984inthenorthof Spain Theinteresting thingabout it isthat it workswithevery singletype of disability, andit offersseveral typesof programsdependingoneachperson'scapacity Havinglived withsomeonewhohas disabilities, it wasreally cool gettingtoexperienceit from amoreobjectiveperspective, especially withAMICA, whichnot only helps peoplewithdisabilitiesintheir daily livesbut alsoadvocatesfor their rightsinsociety "