SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Five Wofford College students have received funding through the Student/Faculty Research Program of South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Inc. (SCICU) for 2016.

Of the more than 50 research proposals SCICU received from member colleges, 34 student projects were funded with a total of $90,000. The student researchers will have through December to complete their projects. They will present their findings on Feb. 23, 2017, at the 2017 Research Symposium at the Milliken & Co. headquarters in Spartanburg.

Wofford students receiving funding were: Lillian Gower Fant, a junior physics major from Greenville, S.C.; Aaliyah N. Keels, a junior biology major from Blythewood, S.C.; Madison Brook Capotosti, a sophomore chemistry major from West Columbia, S.C.; Katherine Elizabeth Howell, a junior English and government major from Greenville, S.C.; and Ian G. Rines, a sophomore biology major from Moncks Corner, S.C. Keels and Capotosti are conducting a joint research project.

Fant studying “Structural Studies of Cytochrome c and its Interaction with Cardiolipin.” Her faculty sponsor is Dr. Ramin Radfar, associate professor of chemistry.

Keels and Capotosti are researching “The Effect of Antifolates on the Activity of Folate-Binding Enzymes, Targets for Drug Therapy.” Radfar is their faculty sponsor. Howell is writing a “historically accurate, compelling work of fiction (a novel) that captures the traditions and tensions of the South during the Civil Rights Movement.” Her faculty sponsor is Dr. Deno Trakas, professor of English.

Rines is researching the “evolution of mating systems of the model organism C. elegans.” His faculty sponsor is Lori Cruze, assistant professor of biology.

Three Wofford students received funding from SCICU in 2015 and made presentations on their research in February of this year at the annual SCICU Research Symposium. There were Alexander G. Bentley, a senior biology major from Salem, Va. (Dr. Charles F. Smith, assistant professor of biology, sponsor); Lauren B. King, a senior psychology major from Lexington, S.C. (Dr. John C. Lefebvre, professor of psychology, sponsor); and Jordan A. Thomas, a senior chemistry major from Boiling Springs, S.C. (Radfar, sponsor).

Developed by SCICU in 1995, the Student/Faculty Research Program is designed to strengthen educational programs for students attending member institutions by providing quality undergraduate research experiences.