Sheena Vasquez is a 20-year-old biology major who wants to be a microbiologist. Maurice Jones is a 40-year-old dad of three who is pursuing a long-time dream of becoming a doctor. And Olatide Omojaro is a computer science major who has won national kudos for his research on robotic reasoning.

All three are Georgia Perimeter College STEM students who are spending their summers at prestigious universities involved in Research Experiences for Undergraduates, otherwise known as REUs. STEM students are those involved in studies of science, technology, engineering or math.

Sheena Vasquez

Vasquez is getting a head start on a career as a microbiologist by working at the Whitehead Institute of Biomedical Research, which is affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

One of only 40 students nationwide selected for the 10-week program, Vasquez is working with some of the nation’s top research scientists as they explore Dihydroflavonol 4-reductase, an enzyme associated with plant color.

“When I found out that their program was ranked second after Harvard and had a 12 percent acceptance rate, I freaked out,” Vasquez says about MIT.

MIT’s summer biology undergraduate research program is “primarily designed to encourage students from underrepresented minority groups, first-generation college students and students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds to attend graduate school and pursue a career in basic research …”

The MIT internship is Vasquez’s second summer undergraduate research program through GPC; last summer she studied bacteria at the University of Florida. She will graduate from GPC next May.

As an honors student in high school, Vasquez could have chosen to attend a four-year university. “I looked at the University of Georgia first,” she says.

But when her mother mentioned that Georgia Perimeter was more affordable and that she could earn her associate degree and transfer easily to another college, she chose GPC as the first stop on her educational journey. Vasquez hopes to eventually earn her doctorate in microbiology.

Maurice Jones

Attending Duke University, taking medical classes and doing research alongside future doctors this summer, is affirming Maurice Jones’ decision to change careers. 

A former information technology technician, Jones came to Georgia Perimeter to begin fulfilling his dream of becoming a physician. An honors math student and father, Jones also is a Navy veteran who served in Croatia.

Jones is participating in Duke’s six-week Summer Medical and Dental Educational Program. He says his GPC advisor, biology professor Dr. Ilse Ricketts, and his criminal justice instructor, John Siler, inspired him and motivated him to apply for the Duke program. The support of his wife, Shatonya, has been vital as well, he says.

Jones says his experience at GPC has been inviting and accommodating, and he is happy he is changing careers.

“I’ve always had an interest in medicine but have put it off.  It was just the right time to do this,” he says.

Olatide Omojaro

Olatide Omojaro is in his second summer of research at Texas Tech. He is the only two-year college student accepted into the research program, which allows him to pursue his work on robotics and artificial intelligence.

In February, the computer science major’s research on cyber security, robotics and software engineering earned him first place in the Undergraduate Student Oral Poster Presentation Competition at the 2014 Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM.

Omojaro and Vasquez were encouraged to apply for their summer research programs as part of their participation in the National Science Foundation-funded Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program (STEP) at Georgia Perimeter.  

Jones participates in the Peach State Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (PSLAMP) program at the college.

The three are among 21 GPC students who are participating in research projects this summer at host institutions that include Emory University, Georgia Tech, Georgia State University, the University of Georgia-Griffin and Florida Institute of Technology.

“Those who participate in REUs or internships return with valuable experiences not often given to undergraduates, especially in community colleges,” says Diana McGinnis, GPC math instructor and PSLAMP faculty advisor. “I think it makes them more competitive and confident when they transfer to a four-year institution.”