| The College of Arts & Sciences

Goldwater Tradition Continues at Rollins

Emma Broming (Class of 2012), a Rollins College junior double majoring in physics and music in the honors degree program, has been named as a 2011 Barry M. Goldwater Scholar.

Among a long list of accomplishments and service activities, Broming serves as the social chair of the Mu Lambda Chapter of Alpha Omicron Pi and the vice president and ritual chair of Sigma Alpha Iota. She is also a member of Society of Physics Students, Cornell Council, Sigma Xi Research Honors Society, Dance Marathon Executive Board, Opera and the Bach Festival Choir. She has participated in the Rollins College Student-Faculty Collaborative Scholarship Program researching the X-ray diffuse gas and point source populations in compact and isolated galaxy systems. Broming plans to earn a Ph.D. in theoretical astrophysics and early universe cosmology.

"The constant support, high expectations and collaboration supplied by both the faculty and staff associated with my research project and my application were integral pieces to the puzzle,” said Broming. “The amount of collaboration I have experienced in the physics department was key to my high-level research and results."

Ashley Toth (Class of 2011), a Rollins College senior majoring in mathematics with a minor in computer science, has been named a 2011 Barry M. Goldwater Scholar Honorable Mention award winner. An earnest student, Toth has spent two summers participating in the Rollins College Student-Faculty Collaborative Scholarship Program researching graph theory and abstract algebra with Professor of Mathematics Mark Anderson. She has also served as a member of the Rollins Philosophy Club. After graduation, Toth plans to pursue a Ph.D. in math.

“The time I've spent working one-on-one with the professors has been crucial to my academic success,” said Toth. “I am very grateful for this opportunity to do research so early in my career.”

The Goldwater Scholars were selected on the basis of academic merit from a field of 1,095 mathematics, science, and engineering students who were nominated by the faculties of colleges and universities nationwide. One hundred seventy of the Scholars are men, 105 are women, and virtually all intend to obtain a Ph.D. as their degree objective. Twenty-four Scholars are mathematics majors, 194 are science and related majors, 52 are majoring in engineering, and five are computer science majors. Many of the Scholars have dual majors in a variety of mathematics, science, engineering and computer disciplines.

“Both Emma and Ashley stood out in the selection process in terms of passion for their work,” said Director of External and Competitive Scholarship Advising Jayashree Shivamoggi. “That is what this scholarship recognizes.”

The Goldwater Scholarship covers the cost of tuition, fees, books, and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500. In the last seven years, Rollins has had a remarkable number of six Goldwater Scholarships awarded to students: two in 2003; one in 2005; one in 2008; one in 2010; and now one in 2011. To be eligible for Goldwater selection, a student-scholar must be nominated by the College.

“Since the inception of the Goldwater Scholarship program in the 1980s, Rollins has had a strong tradition of producing scholars,” said Shivamoggi. “A previous Rollins’ Goldwater scholar is now pursuing a Ph.D. at Harvard and another is pursuing a Ph.D. at Cornell.”

Rollins students interested in the Goldwater program or other competitive external scholarships and fellowships should contact Jay Shivamoggi at jshivamoggi@rollins.edu or 407-646-2346.

The Goldwater Foundation is a federally endowed agency that was established by Public Law 99-661 in 1986. The Scholarship program honoring Senator Barry M. Goldwater was designed to foster and encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, natural sciences and engineering. For more information about the foundation, visit www.act.org/goldwater/.


By Brittany Fornof (Class of 2011)