(From left) Gloria Travis, RCUOG Interim Chief Business Officer; Travel Award recipients Gilbert Mangosong, Rita-Rose Hualde, Elizabeth Rutun, Mylisa Gillan, Rovee Ann Rios, and Cathleen Moore-Linn, RCUOG Interim Executive Director. (Not pictured: Travel Award recipients Melissa Gabriel and Ferdene Dela Cruz)

 

Seven University of Guam students received Research Corporation of the University of Guam (RCUOG) travel awards for education-related travel occurring through Dec. 31, 2018. The recipients will travel to Palau, the Philippines, Texas, and England to present their research projects, lead workshops, and enhance their academic experiences.

Melissa Gabriel, a graduate student pursuing her master’s degree in biology, will present her research at the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) conference in San Antonio, Texas. Her thesis research focuses on the response of a specific type of coral to environmental stressors.

Elizabeth Rutun’s research paper was accepted for presentation at the 23^rd Pacific History Association Conference, which will be held in early December at the Royal Academy of the Arts and the University of Cambridge in London, England. Rutun, who is pursuing her master’s degree in English, will present her research on traditional Yapese dance as narrative and marker of change and adaption as part of a panel presentation led by Dr. Evelyn Flores.

Mylisa Gillan will represent UOG at the Inter-Collegiate Finance Competition in Manila, Philippines this fall. Gillan is a senior pursing her Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in finance and economics. Along with her teammates, she will compete against 20 other universities on a series of finance-related topics. The competition helps prepare students to take the Chartered Financial Analyst Level 1 and Chartered Management Accounting examinations.

Four graduate students pursuing their master’s degrees in special education — Rita-Rose Hualde, Rovee Ann Rios, Gilbert Mangosong, and Ferdene Dela Cruz — received travel awards to Palau to provide a workshop session for staff and parents of the Palau Head Start program on the topic of early childhood special education.

“We are able to offer travel awards using mileage accrued from purchases made with the RCUOG official credit card in accordance with Public Law 32-019,” said Cathleen Moore-Linn, interim executive director of RCUOG. “We used 325,000 miles to support this current group of students and are delighted to play a small part in supporting their academic endeavors.”

RCUOG has awarded 10 travel awards since the beginning of the year.