Graduate Student Chosen for Prestigious Fellowship Program

A Marshall University graduate student is spending the Fall 2009 semester as one of 26 participants in the Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Graduate Fellowship Program.  Janet Fraser, a student in the Technology Management Graduate Program, is serving on the Transportation Research Board within the Technical Activities Division of the National Academies.  This Fellowship Program selects graduate students from an array of disciplines to introduce them to and engage them in the world of policy-making.  Fellows will leave the program with the fundamental knowledge and skills required to contribute to the development of policies that could have far-reaching impact on science and technology.  Named in honor of a former female Fellow, this program seeks to transform young minds into analytical tools that can detect and address problem areas to create a better future through policy change and development.   

Ms. Fraser, a Canadian native, received her BA in Economics and Political Science from Chatham University.  As an undergraduate, she focused her research efforts on transportation, examining how the rail system contributed to the development of North Africa and how safety affects busy highways in rural areas.   She began her Technology Management graduate program in the College of Information and Technology (CITE) at Marshall in Fall 2008 to continue transportation-related research.  

Receiving the Mirzayan Fellowship is an impressive feat for a graduate student in only her second year of graduate studies.  The brief biographies of current and past Fellows indicate that nearly all of them are currently enrolled in or are recent graduates from a doctoral program; many from universities such as Harvard, Yale, and Stanford.  Dr. Tracy Christofero, Ms. Fraser’s advisor and the Program Director for the Technology Management Program, said, “Given Janet's work ethic and enthusiasm for research, I have no doubt that she will excel in the fellowship program and any future endeavors she should choose to pursue.”

Ms. Fraser's pursuit of continued education in the field of transportation will not end upon her graduation from Marshall.  She is currently applying to the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California-Irvine for her doctoral degree.

MU-ADVANCE wishes Ms. Fraser well as she embarks on this adventure.  We also wish to thank Dr. Tracy Christofero for her diligent work as both Ms. Fraser’s academic advisor and as a female role model.