UWF selected to join Gulf Scholars Program

"We are excited to receive funding from NASEM to continue to promote engagement and development of students at UWF to work on pressing issues in the Gulf of Mexico region," said Dr. Alexis Janosik, professor and graduate program coordinator in the Department of Biology. "We think this grant will be transformative for students, providing research opportunities, connections with community partners, and lay the foundation for career success beyond UWF."

The specific goal is to provide UWF students with expanded knowledge about and participation in topics specifically related to the Gulf of Mexico and coastal region while fostering the attitudes, orientation and cumulative expertise necessary to become responsible stewards of the region.

Jansoik and Dr. Kwame Owusu-Daaku, associate professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, are the co-directors of UWF's Gulf Scholars Program and they will be working with an interdisciplinary steering committee of faculty from across campus to select scholars, manage the program and offer a variety of programming to other UWF students who may not be selected as Gulf Scholars but would still like to engage with the Gulf Scholars Program. UWF undergraduate students selected as Gulf Scholars will receive funding and support to participate in the Gulf Scholars Program and will be a part of an interdisciplinary cohort of other scholars running from January to December of each year of the grant.

"UWF is ripe for a GSP - based on our mission as a regional comprehensive University located near the Gulf of Mexico," Owusu-Daaku said. "The program aligns with multiple UWF strategic plan goals, will help shore up the University's existing Gulf of Mexico focused initiatives, expand faculty course offerings and high-impact practices related to the Gulf of Mexico, and increase general university community awareness about our place and position within the Gulf of Mexico."

A call will be put out for the first cohort of UWF Gulf Scholars in Fall 2025 with the first cohort of Gulf Scholars beginning their tenure in the Spring of 2026. Degree seeking undergraduate students of any major will be eligible to apply to be Gulf Scholars.

For more information about the Gulf Scholars Program, visit nationalacademies.org/our-work/gulf-scholars-program.