Williamson Resident Wins Prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship

Williamson resident Ryan Walvoord recently won a prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, the premier undergraduate award for students interested in pursuing careers in mathematics, the natural sciences or engineering.

This year, the Goldwater scholarship went to 323 sophomores and juniors selected from 1,081 nominees. Walvoord, a junior chemistry major at Rochester Institute of Technology, is one of 24 scholars from New York to win the award. He will receive a $7,500 scholarship covering tuition, fees, books and room and board, and will join an elite group of young scholars. Previous Goldwater scholars have gone on to win Rhodes Scholarships and Marshall Awards.

Walvoord has been involved in undergraduate research since his freshman year, carrying out organic synthesis with professor Tina Collison. His research involves the synthesis of natural products, which may have a use as antimicrobial agents or anticancer drugs.

Walvoord’s research has been published in Synthesis. He has presented his work at the national meeting of the American Chemical Society, as well as at several local meetings. Walvoord plans to earn his doctorate in organic synthesis and pursue a research career in either industry or academia. Walvoord, an RIT Outstanding Undergraduate Scholar, is in the RIT Honors Program and holds an RIT Presidential Scholarship. He also received a Danial Pasto Undergraduate Research Co-op Fellowship.