Posted by Mary Wimberley on 2010-03-26

Ashley Spann, a Samford University junior biology major from Douglasville, Ga., has received a prestigious United Negro College Fund-Merck Undergraduate science research scholarship award valued at $35,000.

Spann is one of 15 students nationwide to receive the competitive award, which includes a $25,000 scholarship and two summer internships valued at $5,000 each. In addition, the Samford biology department will receive up to $10,000 to purchase equipment, supplies and to support scholarships for other students n the department.

As a UNCF-Merck Undergraduate Fellow, Spann will attend a “Fellows Day” in June at Normandy Farm Hotel and Conference Center n Blue Bell, Penn. During three-month summer research internships in 2010 and 2011, she will be mentored by a Merck scientist at one of three Merck research facilities in the northeast.

UNCF-Merck Fellows are selected on the basis of grade point average, demonstrated interest in their own scientific education and a career in scientific research, and their ability to perform in a laboratory environment.

Spann, a dean’s list student, is a member of Beta Beta Beta biology honor society and Alpha Epsilon Delta pre-medical honor society. During the summer of 2009, she was a student cancer researcher at Vanderbilt University.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.