The University of Kentucky secures a $350 thousand dollar grant for research projects focusing on alcohol and its effects.
Dr. Kim Nixon, Associate Professor of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Kentucky calls the grant a great win for the state. The Summer Training in Alcohol Research, or STAR Grant will provide student mentoring and continued research in alcohol-related disorders, a problem that continues to affect countless lives in the Bluegrass State.
“This helps us to address a disease that affects a huge number of Kentuckians. Over 30% of us in our lifetime will face an alcohol use disorder. If you look at your neighbor, one of you has a family member with an alcohol use disorder. That’s how broad this problem is.”
Dr. Mark Prendergast, with UK’s Department of Psychology believes one of the essential roles that any scientist can play is that of an educator, "training the next generation of scientists who will make the next generation of big breakthroughs in the STEM fields." He says the STAR Grant will give a diverse group of undergraduates the opportunity to become excited about a career in the fields of STEM research, particularly the biomedical and behavioral sciences.
The funds will make it possible for 55 undergraduate students to participate in a 10-week summer internship in one of 11 UK research projects such as fetal alcohol syndrome, addictive behavior, parental drinking and its effect on children and physical damage caused by alcoholism. The students will perform independent STEM research under the supervision of the alcohol research faculty at UK.