Scripps Student First to Receive UCSD Outstanding Graduate Student Award

Serena Moseman, a graduate student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, has been honored with the inaugural UC San Diego Outstanding Graduate Student Award.

The university recognized Moseman for her stewardship, leadership, and scholarship. Her award indicated that "the initiative, leadership, talent, and pride that have characterized (her) time here are noteworthy and a key part of what makes student life at UC San Diego vital."

Among her efforts, Moseman was active in support groups for diversity students at Scripps and UCSD. She served as an advocate for undergraduate students participating in the Summer Training Academy for Research in the Sciences (STARS), a program that aims to increase the number of minority students with research experience and enhance their preparation for doctoral study. Moseman also was active in teacher-assistant training and undergraduate mentoring.

"Serena has contributed to UCSD and Scripps in so many different ways," said Lisa Levin, Moseman's advisor. "We are very proud that she has been recognized with this honor."

Earlier this year Moseman was a recipient of UC San Diego's Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action and Diversity Awards. She and fellow Scripps student Elisa Maldonado were part of a group recognized for contributions to diversity inside and outside the university community.

Moseman, the first in her family to graduate from a four-year university, received her doctoral degree on June 22. During her graduate studies she investigated the roles of nitrogen fixation in wetland ecosystems through laboratory and field work.

Along with the Outstanding Graduate Student honor, Moseman will receive $1,000 and a lifetime membership to the UC San Diego Alumni Association.

Nominations were submitted by students, faculty, and alumni who felt the importance of acknowledging the most talented and gifted students at UC San Diego deserving of special recognition by the campus.

Earlier she received honorable mention from the UC San Diego Office of Graduate Studies' 2007-2008 Jean Fort Dissertation Prize for her thesis on nitrogen fixation, microbes, and wetland plant structure.

Moseman's research has been presented at national and international meetings. She won several awards including Best Oral Presentation at the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science and the 2007 UC Sustainability Research competition.