Three UA Students Earn “USA Today” All Academic Recognition

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Three University of Alabama students have been named as Honorable Mentions to this year’s “USA Today” All USA College Academic Team, taking their places among some of the nation’s top college and university students.

UA students Chere LeBerte, Stephanie Swindle and Heather Key were named to the prestigious academic list, selected as the “best of the best” from among the more than 800 students nationally who were nominated for the honor. The 100 students honored this year represent 74 institutions. With three students selected, UA tied for fourth place nationally with the University of Pennsylvania, Cal Tech and North Carolina State in the total number of students selected. Three universities ‚ Harvard, Emory and Johns Hopkins ‚ had four students listed.

The selected individuals were chosen as representatives of all outstanding undergraduate students for their grades, awards and activities, leadership roles and their ability to use their academic skills outside of the classroom. Since 1991, The University of Alabama has placed 14 students as either First, Second or Third Team, or Honorable Mention. Each of UA’s students has been involved in significant research projects.

Stephanie Swindle, a mechanical engineering student from Adamsville, recently led a team of UA students in a real-life NASA experiment aboard a KC-135A aircraft, also known as the “Vomit Comet.” The students tested prototype exercise equipment designed and built by NASA subcontractors for use on future space station missions. NASA recruited Swindle and the other UA students to test the exercise equipment, targeted for latter use by astronauts, in weightless conditions simulated by the aircraft. Astronauts who spend extended time in space are subject to bone density loss. Exercises are believed to counter this loss. Following analysis of the data compiled during the flight, information from the experiment will be given to NASA for further evaluation.

Swindle has garnered numerous honors while at UA, including being named a Young Design Engineers’ Paper Competition Winner, the Alabama Society of Professional Engineers Student of the Year, and a NASA Space Grant Scholar. She is involved in many organizations, both on and off campus, including the Society of Woman Engineers, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the National Society of Professional Engineers, Boys and Girls Club, and Project CREATE.

Heather Key, a quantitative finance major from Hoover, is a Computer-Based Honors Program Fellow at The University of Alabama. The fellowship is awarded competitively to only six people in each incoming freshman class and is based on academic superiority. Additionally, she is a Presidential Scholar and currently serves as president of the Alabama Finance Association at UA. She has received numerous other honors at the University, including the Randall Undergraduate Research Award, the Golden Key National Honor Society Undergraduate Scholarship and the Alabama Alumni Leadership Award.

Additionally, Key, who participates in numerous community and professional service organizations, belongs to the top University honor societies. Included among her memberships are Mortar Board, comprised of the top seniors at UA and dedicated to community service projects, and Omicron Delta Kappa, an honor society recognizing top seniors based on scholarship, athletics, community service and leadership.

Chere LeBerte, an interdisciplinary applied science major from Trussville, is currently following a pre-med track with the hopes of attending medical school in the fall. LeBerte has undertaken extensive research that focuses on the conservation of aquatic systems and the life forms that inhabit them. A member of Phi Mu sorority, LeBerte is also active in many other University organizations. She is an XXXI Women’s Honorary, which is comprised of 17 collegiate and 14 alumnae members at UA who have demonstrated leadership and service to the community. She is also a member of the Student Alumni Association, the Order of Omega ‚ a leadership/service organization recognizing the top two percent of Greek campus leaders ‚ and is chairperson of the Student Government Association’s New Student Orientation Committee.

LeBerte has also participated in numerous community-based projects, including serving on a medical mission trip to Granada and volunteering for the American Red Cross. LeBerte has served as an undergraduate research assistant in the department of biological sciences, and she currently serves the University as an Avanti counselor, where she helps with the orientation of incoming students. As a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Undergraduate Research Intern, she is involved in studies of freshwater animals.

Contact

Lance M. Skelly, 205/348-3782, or Cathy Andreen, 205/348-8322, Office of Media Relations