Keri Swaby to coordinate Office of Undergraduate Research
Keri Swaby is named coordinator of the Office of Undergraduate Research at Virginia Tech.
Over the past four years, Swaby served as coordinator of the Scieneering program at Virginia Tech, which is funded by a prestigious Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Grant that was awarded in 2010. Through a combination of course work and research experiences, students are exposed to interdisciplinary work combining science, engineering, and law.
In her new role, Swaby will coordinate programs and services offered by the Office of Undergraduate Research, which has a mission of facilitating undergraduate student research projects with faculty members across the many academic units at Virginia Tech.
“Over the past four years, Keri has worked diligently to advance undergraduate research opportunities,” said Jill Sible, assistant provost for undergraduate education. “She has earned the admiration of students and their research mentors. I am so grateful that she has accepted this position to support undergraduate research university-wide.”
Swaby will serve as a liaison with departmental and college undergraduate research coordinators, while also interacting with students through training, workshops, and seminars as well as in an advising role, helping connect students to relevant undergraduate research opportunities, conferences, and grants.
“Research can be a rich part of the undergraduate experience and should be readily available to all students in an appropriate form, regardless of discipline,” Swaby said. “I am extremely excited about this opportunity to continue working with exceptional students, but also look forward to exciting others who might be a bit ambivalent about undergraduate research. I hope to connect more students and faculty across campus and make undergraduate research a signature experience at Virginia Tech.”
Swaby received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from McGill University, a master’s degree in earth and atmospheric sciences from Georgia Institute of Technology, and a master’s degree in business administration from Florida Atlantic University. She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in integrative-STEM education from Virginia Tech.
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
