ASU seniors named among top students by USA Today

Once again an ASU senior has been chosen as one of the top 20 students in the country by USA Today. Charlene Bashore, who at 22 already is involved in highly sophisticated DNA research, is featured in the newspaper’s April 29 issue as one of 20 students named to the All-USA College Academic First Team for exceptional intellectual achievement and leadership.

ASU has had more students named to the prestigious award than any other public university in the nation, with 12 students winning First-Team honors in 17 years. Only Harvard and Duke have had more students win the honor.

Eric Anderson, a senior majoring in bioengineering and medicinal biochemistry, was named to the Second Team of 20 students. Hundreds of students were nominated by colleges and universities across the United States.

A national team of judges selects top students based on grades, leadership, activities, and how students extend their intellectual talents beyond the classroom. Each first team member receives a $2,500 cash award, in addition to a photo and profile in the newspaper.

A biochemistry major in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Bashore’s undergraduate research is in rapid DNA sequencing, in the lab of Peter Williams, professor of chemistry and biochemistry. She hopes to move scientific knowledge toward a clearer understanding of certain diseases so that doctors will be able to more precisely identify effective new treatments.

She also is deeply involved in non-profit organizations, and has spent hours bringing science activities to elementary, middle and high schools. As a woman of Chinese heritage, she particularly hopes to spark interest in chemistry in young women and minorities.

“Charlene Bashore is one of the most interesting and versatile young women ever to study at ASU,” says Janet Burke, associate dean of Barrett, the Honors College, where she also is enrolled.

“She has enormous potential to make an impact in an important field, not only because she has accomplished so much already, but because she has the focus, drive and talent to propel herself to the top.”

Bashore puts on chemistry demonstrations at bookstores, schools and science expos, and she has organized leadership retreats for high school students and fund-raising for a school for women and girls in Malawi, Africa.

She is the president of Rotaract of ASU, a community service club, and is involved in service at the All-Saints Catholic Newman Center.

She also plays the violin at weekly services at her church and until recently was in the ASU Sinfonietta. She says her childhood passions of soccer, violin and tap dancing helped her develop the discipline she brings to scientific research, which can be painstaking and frustrating.

“Dealing with the dissatisfaction of yet another failed experiment is easy after spending hours dribbling in the back yard, suffering through scales, or shuffling in my basement,” Bashore says.

“People put up with the frustration of research so they can understand how complex systems tick and then use that knowledge to make life better. It’s an alluring blend of intellectual challenge and practical potential.”

Anderson has been doing brain and breast cancer research at Translational Genomics Research Institute for three years, investigating possible diagnostic and therapeutic genetic targets. Each year he has won a fellowship in the School of Life Sciences Undergraduate Research program.

He also is enrolled in the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering and Barrett. He volunteers each week in both the Mission of Mercy Medical Clinic and the Migrant Health Education Program, providing care to homeless patients and the uninsured. In the migrant program, he works to find funding and establish clinical partnerships. Anderson also has been a hospice volunteer.

Both Bashore and Anderson received Goldwater Scholarships during their time at ASU, as a recognition of the quality of their undergraduate research.

Bashore plans a career in biomedical research. After graduating from ASU on May 13, she will enter a doctoral program in molecular and cell biology at the University of California at Berkeley. Anderson will eventually attend medical school to become a doctor, but he plans to attend ASU one more year to complete a dual degree.