International Affairs

Richard Murphy Selected as an EWU McNair Scholar and Awarded Summer Research Internship

06/29/2022 by Liina Koivula Leave a Comment

Richard Murphy Selected as an EWU McNair Scholar Congratulations to new McNair Scholar Richard Murphy! Richard was selected by the McNair Scholars' selection committee on the basis of his passion for research, commitment to attaining a PhD, and overall potential for success in graduate school.

The federally-funded TRIO Ronald E. McNair Post-baccalaureate Achievement Program at EWU selects motivated and talented juniors and seniors who are first-generation and low-income college students, and/or from groups underrepresented at the doctoral level to introduce them to academic research and provide them with effective strategies for getting into and graduating from PhD programs.

Richard Murphy is an undergraduate student at Eastern Washington University. His three declared majors are Philosophy, Political Science, and International Affairs with an emphasis on Global Socio-Economic Development. Richard is also pursuing a minor in Spanish. As the Vice President of both the Philosophy Club and the International Affairs Community at EWU, Richard recognizes the utility of taking interdisciplinary approaches to our most sophisticated and pressing issues of the 21st Century. As a student ambassador with the People-to-People program, Richard experienced first-hand what traveling to other countries can provide to diversifying one’s exposure, and has translated that into his studies revolving around International Affairs. Under the mentorship of Professor Thomas Hawley, PhD, Richard plans to focus his research on the phenomena of societal internalization of Neoliberalism, and the societal consequences of establishing competitive markets in historically non-marketed realms of our lives.

We look forward to accompanying Richard as his research unfolds!

Badradin Mohammed Selected as an EWU McNair Scholar and Awarded Summer Research Internship

06/14/2022 by Liina Koivula Leave a Comment

Congratulations to new McNair Scholar Badradin Mohammed! Badradin was selected by the McNair Scholars’ selection committee on the basis of his passion for research, commitment to attaining a PhD, and overall potential for success in graduate school.

Badradin Mohammed is an undergraduate student at Eastern Washington University majoring in International Affairs with an emphasis on global security processes and a minor in Political Science and a certificate in Diversity & Inclusion. He is the president of the International Affairs Community and a member of the PoliSci Book Club. His research is focused on Water Security and economic development in the global south. For his 2022 McNair Summer Research Internship, he will be working on the Nile River Conflict with his mentors, Dr. Kristin Edquist and EWU McNair Alum, and Ph.D. Candidate Alberto Felix Beltran.

We look forward to accompanying Badradin as his research unfolds!

EWU McNair Scholar Richard Murphy Selected for the Jeffers Chertok Memorial Scholarship

06/13/2022 by Liina Koivula Leave a Comment

Congratulations to new EWU McNair Scholar Richard Murphy! Richard has been selected by the EWU College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences to receive the Jeffers Chertok Memorial Scholarship.

The scholarship was created to honor the life of Professor Jeffers W. Chertok, PhD, who worked at EWU for more than 34 years. He was well known on campus for his scholarship, generosity and passion for Eastern. Dr. Chertok passed away in 2004, but his legacy towards EWU continues with this scholarship.

Richard is an undergraduate student with declared majors in Philosophy, Political Science, and International Affairs with an emphasis on Global Socio-Economic Development and a minor in Spanish. Richard serves as Vice President of both the Philosophy Club and the International Affairs Community at EWU, advocating for interdisciplinary approaches to our most sophisticated and pressing issues of the 21st Century. As a student ambassador with the People-to-People program, Richard experienced first-hand how traveling to other countries can diversify one’s exposure, and has translated that into his studies in International Affairs. Under the mentorship of Professor Tom Hawley, PhD, Richard plans to focus his 2022 McNair summer research project on the phenomena of societal internalization of Neoliberalism, and the consequences of establishing competitive markets in historically non-marketed realms of our lives.

7 EWU McNair Scholars Participate in Gabriel E. Gallardo Research, Student Leadership, and Advocacy Symposium

04/29/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

EWU McNair Scholars Rachael Pentico, Lizeth Bañuelos, and Malachi Chukwu presented last week at the virtual Gabriel E. Gallardo Research, Student Leadership & Advocacy Symposium hosted by the University of Washington. Four other EWU McNair Scholars attended: Alexandria Coronado, Wendolyn Martinez, Christina Hudson, and Aulane Mpouli. This was the first annual Gabriel E. Gallardo Research, Student Leadership & Advocacy Symposium (GEG Symposium) hosted by the University of Washington’s Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity (UW OMA&D). This builds on UW McNair’s 28-year legacy of hosting a Pacific Northwest Undergraduate Research Conference and is intended to honor the legacy of Dr. Gabriel E. Gallardo who passed away last year after a lifetime of service to educational equity, particularly on behalf on TRIO McNair, TRIO-SSS, and CAMP students. This symposium provides an amazing opportunity for undergraduate researchers to meet other scholars and to share their research in a unique, exciting and supportive environment. A huge thank you to EWU McNair Faculty Mentors for encouraging and supporting scholars with their research and presentations! Below are some quotes from our scholars about the value of the experience.

On Attending the Conference:

Attending the conference was such an enriching experience for me. I had the opportunity to meet professors doing work in my area of interest at UW and to make important connections. I would recommend attending conferences to other students because it is an invaluable opportunity to ask questions and do some important networking."

- Christina Hudson, 2021 EWU McNair Scholar

Attending the conference was an insightful and meaningful. I attended: Finding Your Community, Imposter Syndrome, the Student Leadership Panel, Meditation and Stretching, Mental Health in Graduate School, Building Positive Mentoring Relationships, Self-Advocacy and Speaking Up for Yourself, and the Networking Fireside chat with Graduate Students from social sciences. These provided such honesty and great advice to successfully building relationships, your community, and taking care of your mental health."

- Lizeth Bañuelos, 2020 EWU McNair Scholar

On Presenting:

This was the first time that I pre-recorded a poster experience and it was such a great experience. It calmed the nerves I would have had if I presented live. I enjoyed familiarizing myself with this process. Take advantage of these opportunities, they are worth it. The nerves are worth it."

- Lizeth Bañuelos, 2020 EWU McNair Scholar

Check out Our Scholar's Presentations!

EWU McNair Scholar Presentations at the UW Conference:

To watch Lizeth's presentation" First-Generation Latinx Students' Academic Experience: The Role of Institutional Supports During the Pandemic, click here!

Click here to see Malachi's poster: Projects of Economic and Social Development in the Global South: The 20th and 21st Century Trends and their Effects.

Click here to see Rachael's poster: A Review of Plant Soil Feedbacks and their Importance for Palouse Prairie Restoration and Management.

EWU McNair Encourages Scholar Presentations at Conferences

EWU McNair encourages all of its scholars to present at conferences such as NCUR to network with those in their field and to build confidence, gain experience, and to strengthen Curriculum Vitae's (CV) for applying to graduate school. In addition to the UW conference, this school year scholars have presented at the Baylor McNair Research Conference, the Murdock College Science Research Conference, and the National Council on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) Conference. Typically most EWU McNair Scholars also present at the EWU Symposium. Last year we may have set a record with 18 scholars presenting last spring!

This year, to ensure our scholars have this opportunity, EWU McNair is partnering with CSTEM at EWU to host a symposium on June 2nd. The symposium will begin with a Social Justice in Research Panel with EWU McNair Alumni at 9 am. Click here to register for the event for free!

Green back drop (lime to jade), with title of article, names of scholars and an image of each

EWU McNair Scholars Lucia Roussa and Mori Williams Present at NCUR

By Jaeger, Corinne | 04/27/2021

EWU McNair Scholars Present at Murdock College Science Research Conference 2020

By Jaeger, Corinne | 01/27/2021

Nine EWU McNair Scholars Present at Baylor McNair Research Conference

By Jaeger, Corinne | 10/09/2020

18 EWU McNair Scholars Present at EWU Virtual Symposium

By Jaeger, Corinne | 06/10/2020

Darlene Gilroy, EWU McNair Scholar and Environmental Geology major, attends prestigious Murdock College Science Research Conference in Vancouver, WA

By Patolo, Najeda | 11/14/2019

Abdu Mohammed Visiting Congressional Reps

Abdulrazik Mohammed Travels to DC to Attend the 7th Annual International Symposium on Women and Genocide in the 21st Century: The Case of Darfur

By jlittleton1 | 12/04/2018

The EWU McNair staff are proud of all of our scholars for the hard work they've put into their research and sharing that research with the broader community.

EWU McNair Scholar Wendolyn Martinez Accepted by Fourth Masters Program

04/29/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Wendolyn Martinez Graduate School Acceptances 2021 AU

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Wendolyn Martinez!

Wendolyn has been accepted by the Masters of International Affairs program at the Bush School of Government and Public Service, a graduate college at Texas A&M American University. They awarded Wendolyn a competitive scholarship and instate tuition for her first year. This is in addition to being accepted by the Masters in Public Policy program at Pepperdine University with a full tuition scholarship, the International Relations Masters program at American University, and by the dual Masters degree from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and Moscow State Institute of International Relations where she also received a substantial scholarship rewarding her excellent academic background and specialization in the field. Wendolyn has decided to attend the Bush School where she will focus on nuclear security.

Wendolyn is double majoring in Political Science and International Affairs at Eastern and is dedicated to following her family's tradition of serving their country. In her case, she plans to go into foreign service where she hopes to decrease nuclear proliferation and increase peace and security in the world. In her 2019 EWU McNair Summer Research Internship, under the mentorship of Dr. Dorothy Zielser-Vralsted, Wendolyn studied interwar propaganda within the US and USSR relating to public works projects. Then in the fall of 2019 she studied abroad, with the help of the Gilman International Scholarship, at the prestigious Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia where she studied Russian language, history, and political economy. In the summer of 2020 she participated in the Public Policy & International Affairs Junior Summer Internship (PPIA JSI) through the University of Michigan.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Wendolyn and we know she'll do amazing things in graduate school and beyond! Click here to read more about Wendolyn or her research.

EWU McNair Scholar Malachi Chukwu Awarded Theodore A. LeGros Fellowship at WSU

04/22/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Malachi Chukwu! Malachi has been selected by Washington State University's (WSU) College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Political Science, Philosophy and Public Affairs for the Theodore A. LeGros Graduae Recruitment Fellowship. This fellowship comes through an endowment by the same name established by Jean Baumgarten LeGros in honor of her husband. Theodore graduated from WSU in 1942 in political science and, among many accomplishments, went on to be a lawyer and was president of the Japan-America Society of Seattle in 1976.

Malachi Chukwu is an International Affairs and Political Science major at Eastern Washington University with an emphasis on global security. He is interested in researching the effects of development on Sub-Saharan Africa, the connections between development, environmental degradation, and conflict in this region, and potential policy and implementation solutions. Malachi completed his 2019 summer research Economic development in the Global South: A case study of Niger Delta, Nigeria under the mentorship of Dr. Majid Sharifi. In 2020, Malachi participated in the Laney Graduate School Summer Opportunity for Academic Research (LGS-SOAR) Program at Emory University under the mentorship of Dr. Emily Gade at the Oppressions and Resistance Lab. Click here to read more about Malachi or his research.

Malachi has been accepted by the International Relations PhD program at Florida International University with funding, the Political Science PhD Program at the University of Oregon, and the Political Science PhD program at Washington State University with full funding plus now this additional award. Malachi plans to attend WSU in the fall of 2022.

The EWU McNair staff are so proud of Malachi and all of his hard work. We're excited to see all the amazing things he will bring to his field and his communities.