Kelly Chen, MS3, has been awarded the prestigious Philanthropic Educational Organization (PEO) Scholar Award. Chen is one of only 100 scholars within the U.S. and Canada to receive the $20,000 award from the PEO Sisterhood.
Established in 1991, the PEO Scholar Awards program provides merit-based awards for who are pursuing a doctoral-level degree at an accredited college or university. What began as a bond of friendship among seven women in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, is now one of the oldest women’s organizations in North America with almost 6,000 chapter across the U.S. and Canada. Since 1869, PEO has helped women pursue educational goals by providing over $383 million in grants, scholarships, awards and loans.
Chen says she is humbled to be recognized by the PEO Sisterhood. “It is inspiring to know that I have this network supporting me and the other recipients in our future endeavors. The award motivates me to continue my research and pay it forward by mentoring the next generation of women leaders and scholars,” she says
Chen is motivated to pursue a psychiatry residency with a focus on neuropsychiatry. Her immediate goals are to stay involved in neuropsychiatry research as she begins clinical practice. Long-term, she aspires to be a physician-scientist who contributes to current understanding of the pathophysiology and behavioral manifestations of dementia.
The PEO Sisterhood has brought together more than a half a million women in the U.S. and Canada who are passionate about helping women advance through education, while supporting and motivating them.