Two Students Receive AAUW Scholarships

Two Millersville University students won big recently when they received scholarships from the American Association of University Women (AAUW). Senior Mikesiha Mobley received the 2020-2021 Sally Chamberlain Scholarship and senior Rebecca Goldinger received the 2020-2021 Krausse STEM scholarship.

Mobley, who is from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, is currently working towards her bachelor’s degree in social work. She initially obtained a certificate in cosmetology in 2013 and her associate degree from Harrisburg Area Community College in 2018.

The Sally C. Chamberlain Scholarship, which Mobley received, was established to encourage women who are seeking to renew or resume academic work for credit. The scholarship is available for individuals who reside in Dauphin, Cumberland or Perry County. Mobley received the Sally Chamberlain scholarship based on her wiliness to advance her current career by seeking education to reenter the work force.

Goldinger, a native of Cumberland, Pennsylvania, is a senior chemistry major with a concentration in biochemistry. She applied for the Krausse STEM scholarship through the AAUW website.

The application had a requirement of a 300-word response to their prompt, which asked how other women can be encouraged to pursue careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields, as well as two references, one of which had to be academic. This year’s prompt was “AAUW’s mission is to advance equity for women and girls through advocacy, education, philanthropy and research. How did you develop an interest in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics and how can other women be encouraged to pursue STEM fields?”

Goldinger applied her work from inside the MU classroom to guide her response. “I wrote about an assignment I did for my Women and Media Culture class this summer. The assignment was to analyze a piece of media. I chose to analyze a GE commercial from 2017 in which women scientists were treated as celebrities. For my scholarship essay, I wrote about how we need to make that commercial a reality.”

Goldinger’s advice for other individuals in the STEM field is to put in the effort that they would like to see reciprocated. Students can find success by taking advantage of professor’s office hours and showing up to class consistently.

“Winning this scholarship was an honor because I have known I wanted to enter the STEM field for as long as I can remember. Being recognized for the effort I have put into my studies not only made me extremely proud of myself, but also gave me an extra push to continue with my education after graduation.”

After graduation, Goldinger hopes to attend graduate school in a chemistry or biochemistry program. She plans to work for the Innocence Project or a similar organization to improve forensic practices to prevent wrongful convictions.

A full list of the AAUW Harrisburg scholarship winners can be found at https://harrisburg-pa.aauw.net/files/2020/08/ScholarshipAwards2020-21.pdf.