The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has announced the recipients of the 2013 Gilliam Fellowships for Advanced Study. Established in 2004 to honor the late James H. Gilliam, Jr., a charter trustee of HHMI who championed excellence and diversity in education and science, the program is designed to enrich science research and increase the diversity of college science faculties.

Nine students who have participated in the Exceptional Research Opportunities Program, which provides undergraduate students from groups traditionally underrepresented in the sciences with the opportunity to conduct research under the mentorship of HHMI scientists, were selected to receive an annual stipend of $46,500, for up to four years, in support of their Ph.D. studies. Fellows also will meet with HHMI scientists and receive professional development mentoring as they launch their academic careers.

The 2013 fellows (and their undergraduate universities) are Jawara Allen (Duke University), Donald Bryant (Emory University), Brian Castellano (San Jose State University), Kayla Lee (Hampton University), Fabian Ortega (Yale University), Sofia Quinodoz (Princeton University), Gabriel Rangel (Purdue University), Brenda Marin-Rodriguez (University of California-Davis), and Juan Ruiz (University of Miami).

"We have an exceptionally promising class of Gilliam Fellows this year," said program director David Asai. "Eight of them are undergraduates who plan to pursue a Ph.D. program, while one is already doing a post-baccalaureate and will be entering an M.D.-Ph.D. program. That speaks to the richness of the applicant pool among those who are still undergraduates."