Adrian College Student Selected for National Fellowship posted 4/14/10
Krystin Stiefel to participate in nuclear chemistry and radiochemistry summer program  

ADRIAN, Mich. – Adrian College is pleased to announce that junior Krystin Stiefel is one of 24 students across the nation to be chosen for the Division of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology of the American Chemical Society 2010 summer school in nuclear and radiochemistry.

This six week fellowship is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and includes all tuition, transportation, housing, food, textbooks, laboratory supplies, and laboratory manuals. Stiefel will receive six semester-units of transferable academic credit which will be awarded by San Jose State University.

Stiefel says she is very excited to be selected.

“I am honored and really lucky to have been chosen,” she said. “Not many people get the chance to do this and I am one of the very few.”

Stiefel will begin the program, which includes two intensive courses as well as unique field trips, in San Jose on June 13. Only 24 students from colleges and universities across the United States are accepted each year for this prestigious opportunity. The summer program is held annually at two locations: San Jose State University, San Jose, Calif. and Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, and each site takes 12 students.  

Dr. Michael Claus, asssociate professor of chemistry and department chair at Adrian College, says that this selection is a reflection on how good of a chemistry student Stiefel is.

“It’s also an indication on our program here at Adrian College,” he added. “We challenge our students in the classroom, encourage them to do research and push them to do things over the summer. Because of their hard work and going beyond the undergraduate boundaries, we have started to send our students to topnotch grad school programs across the country. We are very proud of Krystin for being selected especially since she is only a junior.”

The formal program consists of lecture and laboratory components which cover the fundamentals of nuclear theory, radiochemistry, nuclear instrumentation, radiological safety, and applications to related fields. In addition, there are special symposia, guest lectures, and field trips to nearby research centers; typical topics are: nuclear medicine, nuclear power, fundamental particle physics, and environmental radiochemistry. Students will have the opportunity to meet and interact with many leading scientists in these various fields.

Stiefel grew up around nuclear chemistry as her mother has worked for Enrico Fermi Nuclear Generating Station on the Fermi 2 in Newport, Mich.

“My mom always took us on fieldtrips when I was in elementary school,” says Stiefel. “My interest only grew as I got older.”

She hopes that this summer program will help her determine her career path.

“I hope it’ll help define if I really want to do it or try something else,” she said. “It’s a great experience to test the waters. I’m really interested to see how they set up their labs and be able to work in them.”

Krystin Stiefel is a junior majoring in chemistry with a minor in mathematics and is originally from Carleton, Mich.