Computer Science student wins Anita Borg scholarship
Computer Science graduate student Megan Olsen has been awarded a $10,000 scholarship from the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology and Google Inc.
The Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship is given to undergraduate and graduate students completing their degrees in computer science or related fields. The scholarship is named for the late computer scientist who devoted much of her life to encouraging women to pursue careers in technology and computing.
Olsen, who received her bachelor’s degree in computer science last year from Virginia Tech, works in the Biologically Inspired Neural and Dynamical Systems (BINDS) Laboratory directed by Hava Siegelmann, associate professor of Computer Science. Olsen’s research focuses on cellular growth, death, mutations and tumor formation simulation and she is also interested in artificial intelligence and its potential use in biological inspired system and leanring.
She is one 19 students selected from 324 applicants for the scholarship. Eligible students must be entering their senior year of undergraduate study or be enrolled in a graduate program for the 2006-07 academic year at a U.S. university. Selection criteria include academic performance, letters of recommendation, answers to short essay questions and interviews with members of the review committee.
“We commend the dedication, achievement and contributions of these young, talented women in computing and technology,” said Telle Whitney, president and CEO of the Anita Borg Institute. “Programs like Google’s Anita Borg Scholarships pay tribute to Anita’s enduring legacy. But they also pave the way for more women to excel in the technical professions, creating diversity that benefits us all.”
More Information
Google announcement
April 25, 2006.
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