2024-2025 RECIPIENTS

Ellie Anderson
Master of Landscape Architecture
UWRA Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging
“The UWRA-Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging will support my research and study of built environment design for dementia, including dementia villages.”

Heather Calderwood
MEDEX Physician Assistant Program
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“The UWRA scholarship will help lower my financial aid burden coming out of Physician Assistant school. This will aid in the focus on meeting the needs of my patients.”

I-Ling Chen, MD
Master of Public Health – Public Health Genetics
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“This fellowship has greatly boosted my confidence in advancing research with older adults. As an MPH student specializing in public health genetics and a family physician from Taiwan, I cannot wait to apply my skill sets to understand genetic factors related to dementia and to promote healthy aging.”

Almeda (Ally) Jones
Master’s in Social Work
UWRA-University House Scholarship in Aging
“I aim to provide assistance and patient navigation services to the elderly population. Upon graduation, I intend to work with diverse communities and practice social work in hospice/palliative care. The UWRA scholarship will help me continue my education, allowing me to focus on research related to aging or providing services to older adults.”

Brittany Jones
Doctoral Student in Social Welfare & Graduate Certificate in Demographic Methods
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“The UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging will provide me with protected time to begin my dissertation research. I will also be a new mother next year, and having time I can dedicate to my research goals will be precious. This opportunity will move me closer to a research career focused on interventions for older adults without care partners.”

Sumaya Uthmann
Undergraduate, Nursing
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“Receiving this scholarship will facilitate my journey towards becoming a gerontological nurse by removing financial barriers. With this support, I can focus entirely on specialized training and practical experiences, ensuring my readiness to provide exceptional care to older adults.”

Chhy Chhy Yeak
Undergraduate, Biology and Philosophy
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“This scholarship has opened up more opportunities for me to focus on my research, studies, and hobbies rather than worrying about tuition and housing. I am immensely grateful and excited to continue working with older adults because I believe that they are the leaders who can guide the younger generations toward a better and brighter future.”

2023-24 RECIPIENTS

Cait Brown
Doctoral Student in Rehabilitation Medicine
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“This fellowship will support my dissertation project, providing me precious time to focus solely on my research, and to expand my recruitment and improve the quality of my data analysis.”

Amanda Cotarelo Cardenas
Doctor of Nursing Practice
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“I hope to make a meaningful contribution to the field of geriatric care and improve the quality of life for older adults using a model of home health care that maximizes nurse practitioners’ capabilities in delivering comprehensive care to older adults. Receiving this scholarship enables me to pursue my passion for geriatric care and achieve my educational and career goals.”

Kibrom Feleke
Undergraduate, Nursing Science
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“Tuition fees for our nursing program are expensive and I have had to take significant loans for the program. This scholarship helps me reduce my financial burden and helps lower my student loan debt. Your investment in first-generation students like me changes lives beyond what you can imagine.”

Onna Jaeger
Master of Social Work
UWRA Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging
“My career goal as a hospice social worker is to provide equitable, accessible, and culturally relevant care to older adults who are reaching the end of life. This scholarship will support me in paying off substantial graduate school loans and allow me to pursue further training in end-of-life work and horticultural therapy for older adults.”

Emilie Martel-Rousseau
Doctor of Nursing Practice
UWRA-University House Scholarship in Aging
“Recognition through this scholarship validates my confidence in my potential to become a gerontologic primary care provider and encourages me to continue my pursuit. The financial assistance provided by this scholarship will permit me more flexibility when I seek employment after graduation, such as a rural setting where compensation is often lower.”

Natalie Turner
Doctoral student in Social Work
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“This fellowship will help fund my research, which examines cross-state differences in 1915(c) Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) waiver programs that allow consumer direction for older adults, with particular focus on racial and geographic inequities in HCBS.”

Xingyu (Maggie) Zhou
Doctor of Nursing Practice
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“This scholarship will allow me to focus on my coursework and practical training as well as dedicate more time to my thesis project, which involves improving patient quality of life in nursing homes through enhanced communication and responsiveness between patients, staff, and family members.”

2022-23 RECIPIENTS

Mayaka ‘Maya’ Barton
Second-year Medical SLP, Speech and Hearing Sciences
UWRA Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging
“I am deeply grateful for this scholarship, which will support me as I complete my master’s degree in medical speech language pathology and pursue a career as an SLP working with adults.”

Anna Campbell
MSW, School of Social Work
UWRA–University House Scholarship in Aging
“This scholarship has allowed me to practice hospice social work and to focus on my research in dementia care in palliative care and hospice. This experience has opened doors for me to join the geriatric mental health field.”

Amber McDowell-Reese
MSW, School of Social Work
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“UWRA’s financial support has truly made a difference in my ability to show up successfully as both a mother and student, without sacrificing my success in either role. I look forward to ensuring that equitable, trauma-informed and supportive services are provided to older adults.”

Athalie Miller
Second-year DNP, School of Nursing
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“The UWRA Scholarship in Aging has allowed me to reduce my work hours and focus on my courses while still supporting my family. I look forward to giving back to our community in the future as a Nurse Practitioner.”

Dale Summers
Fourth-year PhD, Speech and Hearing Sciences
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“I am incredibly grateful for this fellowship, as it provides dedicated time to focus on my research on clinical treatment tools for people with dementia.”

Jennifer ‘Niffer’ Supowit
Third-year PhD, Rehabilitation Medicine
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“The UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging will help me by providing protected time to begin my dissertation research to better understand balance and walking impairments in people with Parkinson disease. This will bring me closer to completing my PhD and moving into a research career focused on improving interventions for older adults with balance and walking impairments.”

2021-22 RECIPIENTS

Brittany Collins
Second-year MPA, Evans School of Public Policy
UWRA Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging
“I am continuing my work on health and human services-related research, so that I can help older populations age gracefully and with all the support that they need from local policies. Thank you so much for this scholarship and the opportunity it provides for me.”

Hazal Ercin
Fifth-year PhD candidate, School of Social Work
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“I’m so excited to finalize my analysis on state Medicaid policies on home- and community-based services and share it with scholars, practitioners, and policy-makers to make a difference. I feel really fortunate to receive this scholarship, because it means I can focus my attention on finishing my dissertation this summer, instead of carrying an additional workload.”

Chris Schad
MSW, School of Social Work
UWRA-University House Scholarship in Aging
“UWRA’s financial assistance has made my final quarter so much less stressful. I’m honored to continue my work at the Veteran’s Administration geriatric clinic, where it’s been my privilege to work with elder veterans and their caregivers.”

Fred Yeboah
3rd year PhD candidate, Molecular and Cellular Biology
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“I study Alzheimer’s disease, in pursuit of novel scientific discoveries that will help slow down the disease progression or lead to a cure. I am grateful for your generous support for first-generation and minority students like me. With this fellowship, I will be able to pursue new directions in my research projects without worrying about the funding and necessary costs incurred during my education. I hope to make you all proud.”

2020-21 RECIPIENTS

Brittany Bassett
Fourth-year doctoral candidate, pharmacy
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“Earning the UW’s Plein Certificate in Geriatric Pharmacy – being able to say “yes” to experiences like that – that came about because of you. Support from scholarship donors is such a wonderful thing! And your gifts lead to a workforce that will be more thoughtful and aware of the unique needs of older patients.”

Nicole Campbell
First-year master’s candidate, medical speech-language pathology
UWRA Scholarship in Aging
“I’m a student with a young child, and I want you to know that your scholarship is essential: It allows me to pay for childcare while I work on my master’s in speech-language pathology. Today, you’re improving my life. Tomorrow, I’ll be doing the same for older people who need me. Thank you so much.”

Lena Chaitesipaseut
Fourth-year doctoral candidate, pharmacy
Fourth-year master’s candidate, business administration
UWRA-University House Scholarship in Aging
“It has been so exciting to work with Era Living to research falls – and how to reduce fall risk – in older adult populations. Now, I’m looking for a post-graduate residency program, which can be a little expensive. But with your scholarship, my stress evaporated, and words truly cannot explain how grateful I am.”

Caroline (Callie) Freitag
Second-year doctoral candidate, public policy
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“You’re giving me the opportunity to spend a quarter without needing to work. I’m going to use that time to research poverty among older adults in the U.S. It’s an issue that’s really close to my heart, and I’m so thankful that you’ve made such generous donations to my studies.”

Woojung Lee
Second-year doctoral candidate, pharmacy
UWRA Patricia Dougherty Fellowship in Aging
“The fellowship is helping me study how older adults are represented in clinical trials about medication: How trials are designed, what evidence is overlooked, and what evidence is generated and incorporated in clinical practice. Your award was SO meaningful: It gave me great confidence in the value of my research. Thank you!”

Reva Zimmerman
Fourth-year doctoral candidate, speech and hearing sciences
Charles Chamberlin Scholarship in Aging
“I’m finishing up my research and my dissertation, which takes a lot of concentration. Having the scholarship gives me the time to focus on my research, without the need to work as a teaching assistant. From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much for this opportunity.”