April 16, 2009

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Two students from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) have been awarded 2009 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowships.

Graduate student Amanee Salaam and undergraduate Cierra Spencer were selected from thousands of U.S. student applicants for the honor, which the NSF says is one of the most competitive and difficult in the country to earn. The fellowships will fund the students' graduate-level research over three years, annually providing a $30,000 stipend, a $10,500 cost-of-education allowance and a $1,000 one-time international travel allowance.

Salaam is a graduate student in the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the UAB School of Engineering. The daughter of David and Linda Salaam, she is working towards her master's degree before seeking a Ph.D. The native of Pittsview, located south of Phenix City, is conducting collaborative research that uses ultrasound technology to discern how disease affects the biomechanical properties of skeletal muscle tissue.

"I was speechless when I received word of my fellowship award because fewer than 10 percent of applicants traditionally receive such notice," Salaam said. "This award opens up so many research possibilities as I look to take advantage of the unique collaborative opportunities between biomedical engineering and UAB's world-renowned medical facilities."

Spencer is an undergraduate set to graduate in May with degrees from the Department of Chemistry in the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and Department of Philosophy in the School of Arts and Humanities. The Monroeville native and daughter of Mira Brown is a member of the University Honors Program. She began undergraduate research projects in her junior year that focused on synthetic compounds that can selectively control the release of drugs in the human body. Spencer will utilize her fellowship funds for graduate research in pharmacology at Vanderbilt University.

"The opportunity for undergraduate research offered at UAB certainly had a positive impact on my receiving the NSF fellowship before even entering a graduate program," Spencer said

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