Kaitlin Luedecke, an Honors major in the Chemistry Department, has been selected to receive a 2020 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF). Selection as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow is a highly significant national accomplishment; recipients constitute an elite group of fellows who have gone on to distinguished careers in STEM or STEM education. This award reflects Ms. Luedecke's outstanding academic achievement and commitment to pursuing a career in the STEM fields. A recipient of the 2019 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, Ms. Luedecke conducts undergraduate research under the guidance of UGA Foundation Professor Gregory Robinson in his inorganic chemistry lab. She has presented at the southeastern and national meetings of the American Chemical Society, CURO Symposium, and UGA’s Summer Undergraduate Research Opportunities Symposium. She has been published in the journal Dalton Transactions. She was an invited participant at the American Chemical Society’s Inorganic Undergraduate Symposium. Her awards include the American Chemical Society’s Undergraduate Award, Undergraduate Student of the Year, and a CURO research assistantship at UGA. Ms. Luedecke plans to pursue a doctorate in chemistry, specializing in inorganic chemistry with a focus on carbene chemistry, and thereafter teach at a research university. She hopes to develop mentorship and outreach opportunities for females in STEM at the sub-collegiate level.
