In a ceremony held in the Building 1520 auditorium on June 28, Col. Michael Sauer, U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, Operations, distributed the awards for outstanding presentations and posters at the 2018 Spring Research Festival.

For Robert Vaughn, an internship at NCI at Frederick during the summer of 2015 was when theory met reality, changing the course of his life. While Vaughn had recently completed his undergraduate degree in mathematics, it was his internship with mentor Brian Luke, Ph.D., principal scientist, Advanced Biomedical Computing Center (ABCC), that showed him how to apply his knowledge to practical uses.

After interning under three mentors at NCI at Frederick, former WHK intern Nicole Pohida is currently preparing to complete her undergraduate nursing degree at the University of Maryland. The aspiring nurse practitioner is passionate about doing the detective work necessary to solve challenging medical riddles, and she credits her mentors for helping stimulate her already-budding interest in science, learn new skills, and pursue her goals.

Former Werner H. Kirsten (WHK) intern Janine Bahsali, who will be attending Adler University this fall to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology, credits her internships at NCI at Frederick with starting her down the path toward a Ph.D. Bahsali joined the WHK Student Intern Program during her senior year of high school, working in Occupational Health Services with mentor Sarah Hooper.

Whether it’s in a flowerbed or an art gallery, former Werner H. Kirsten (WHK) student intern Nathalie Walker can’t help but to cause a buzz. Since completing her WHK internship in the summer of 2015, Walker has been attending Loyola University Maryland, where she is striving to make a positive impact on campus.