Dawson Alum Eliana Crawford Receives the Barry Goldwater Scholarship
The Alexander Dawson School is very proud to announce that alumna Eliana Crawford, class of 2009, is the winner of the 2016 Barry Goldwater Scholarship. This prestigious award is given to highly-qualified college students pursing studies in the fields of science, mathematics, and engineering.
Eliana, currently a student at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, won the scholarship for research she conducted on surface plasmon resonance enhanced ellipsometry for biodetection, a promising but relatively new technique that may help provide more accurate diagnoses during medical screenings. Eliana notes that her research required a lot of troubleshooting "without a wealth of existing literature for guidance." To problem solve, Eliana had to draw from her knowledge of chemistry, biology, physics, nano science, differential multivariable calculus, and computer programming. She also came up against several engineering problems.
"I am honored to receive this award," said Eliana. "I am especially grateful to my research advisor, Dr. Frank Peiris, for giving me the opportunity to tackle a pretty lofty project and for believing in me. This project demanded a lot of outside research on topics that are usually complicated and intimidating. I often feel like I'm shooting in the dark."
Eliana credits her years at Dawson for instilling in her a sense of independent thinking and problem solving, and for not letting challenges or setbacks deter her. During her time at Dawson, she was pushed to tackle problems beyond her skill set and to take charge of her education.
"At Dawson, I learned that I don't have to understand every detail of a problem to formulate solutions," she said. "Feeling under-qualified is not a good reason to avoid an opportunity! I've learned that patience and a level of comfort with the unknown are often even more important to success than intelligence. These are the qualities I began to develop early on through challenging courses at Dawson."
Eliana credits several specific Dawson experiences that gave her the confidence and determination to pursue difficult and challenging problems no matter what barriers she encountered. Here are her top three Dawson experiences in her own words:
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Eliana, currently a student at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, won the scholarship for research she conducted on surface plasmon resonance enhanced ellipsometry for biodetection, a promising but relatively new technique that may help provide more accurate diagnoses during medical screenings. Eliana notes that her research required a lot of troubleshooting "without a wealth of existing literature for guidance." To problem solve, Eliana had to draw from her knowledge of chemistry, biology, physics, nano science, differential multivariable calculus, and computer programming. She also came up against several engineering problems.
"I am honored to receive this award," said Eliana. "I am especially grateful to my research advisor, Dr. Frank Peiris, for giving me the opportunity to tackle a pretty lofty project and for believing in me. This project demanded a lot of outside research on topics that are usually complicated and intimidating. I often feel like I'm shooting in the dark."
Eliana credits her years at Dawson for instilling in her a sense of independent thinking and problem solving, and for not letting challenges or setbacks deter her. During her time at Dawson, she was pushed to tackle problems beyond her skill set and to take charge of her education.
"At Dawson, I learned that I don't have to understand every detail of a problem to formulate solutions," she said. "Feeling under-qualified is not a good reason to avoid an opportunity! I've learned that patience and a level of comfort with the unknown are often even more important to success than intelligence. These are the qualities I began to develop early on through challenging courses at Dawson."
Eliana credits several specific Dawson experiences that gave her the confidence and determination to pursue difficult and challenging problems no matter what barriers she encountered. Here are her top three Dawson experiences in her own words:
- The Future City Competition, for which small groups of students work for the better part of a school year to design and model a city, learning the ins and outs of its infrastructure while tackling some key scientific problem. Water recycling systems was the main focus during my 8th grade year.
- An advanced math course in which we tackled topics such as geoprofiling and visualizing higher dimensions. This helped immensely in my study of calculus a few years later.
- An English course culminating in a group research project evaluating the country's transportation system. Requirements for this assignment included substantial outside reading - about five papers - and a presentation.
Eliana's goal is to receive her Ph.D. in Physics and pursue research in condensed matter physics, which explores the macroscopic and microscopic properties of matter. Breakthroughs in the field of condensed matter physics have led to the discovery and use of liquid crystals, modern plastic and composite materials.
Eliana may be working to change the world one atom and electron at a time, but she had this to say to the Dawson community, "I hope all is well at Dawson and that the students and teachers continue to step outside of their comfort zones. It made all the difference to me."
We are so proud of our Dawson alums! #AmazingDawsonAlums
Eliana may be working to change the world one atom and electron at a time, but she had this to say to the Dawson community, "I hope all is well at Dawson and that the students and teachers continue to step outside of their comfort zones. It made all the difference to me."
We are so proud of our Dawson alums! #AmazingDawsonAlums
The Alexander Dawson School
The Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain, an independent school located on 33-acres in the community of Summerlin, is Nevada’s first Stanford University Challenge Success partner school for students in early childhood through grade eight. Utilizing the unique Challenge Success framework, Dawson uses research-based strategies and programs that emphasize student academics, wellbeing, and a healthy school-life balance to create more engaged, motivated, and resilient learners and leaders. At Dawson, students achieve their individual potential while savoring life and meeting the challenges of the world.