Four Holy Cross Students Majoring in Chemistry Receive CBIA/Pfizer Research Fellowships

Four students from the College of the Holy Cross have been selected to participate in an undergraduate research fellowship program, as announced by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association and Pfizer Global Research and Development in southeast Connecticut. The program helps students develop the research skills necessary for successful careers in the high-skill, high demand pharmaceutical research industry by providing research support scholarships.

The fellowships were awarded to the 25 most qualified students from participating colleges and universities in the greater Connecticut area. The students were selected for their academic achievement, enthusiasm for laboratory science and interest in pursuing a career in the pharmaceutical industry.

The four students are:

Christopher Aquina ’07 from Flanders, N.J., a chemistry major with a biochemistry concentration. At Holy Cross, he is a Relationship Peer Educator; officer and founding member of the American Medical Student Association (Holy Cross chapter); peer assistance leader for organic chemistry. He is a volunteer emergency medical technician in Flanders. Aquina plans on attending medical school.

Neal Biddick ’07 from Jamestown, R.I., a chemistry major with a pre-medical concentration. At Holy Cross, he is co-chair of the men’s club lacrosse team and founding member and treasurer of the Holy Cross chapter of the American Medical Student Association. This is the second year in a row he has been awarded this fellowship. Biddick plans on earning a Ph.D. in chemistry or attending medical school.

Justin Caramiciu ’08 from Dracut, Mass., a chemistry major with pre-medical and biochemistry concentrations. Caramiciu plays guitar and enjoys bicycling.

Brenton Franklin ’08 from Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., a chemistry major. He is in the premedical program at Holy Cross; a defenseman on the men’s division I varsity hockey team; and a member of SHAPE (Sexual Health Awareness Peer Educators). He plans on attending medical school.

The students will conduct a 10-week independent research project on campus, guided by a Holy Cross professor and a Pfizer mentor assigned to the College.

The fellowship is made possible through a U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) H-1B grant being administered by CBIA. The purpose of the grant is to increase the number of highly skilled U.S. workers in the bioscience and pharmaceutical industries and reduce employers’ dependence on foreign workers. Funding for the grant is made possible through H-1B visa fees paid to the USDOL by businesses that have found it necessary to hire foreign labor to fill high-skill, high-demand jobs.

CBIA is Connecticut’s largest business organization with 10,000 members.