FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - University of Arkansas alumna Erin Scherer, B.S. '02, is one of two students to receive the inaugural Skaggs Oxford Scholarship. This newly created scholarship provides funding for a joint graduate program in biology, chemistry and biochemistry at The Scripps Research Institute in the United States and Oxford University in Great Britain.

Scherer, a native of Little Rock, will use the award to continue research on HIV antibodies, work that is relevant to the generation of an AIDS vaccine. The second Skaggs Oxford Scholar, Joanna Rawling, is currently enrolled at the University of Oxford.

This is the first time in Oxford's 800-year history that it has offered a degree jointly with another institution of higher learning. It is also the first of its kind offered by Scripps The Skaggs Oxford Scholarship Program, which will support 10 students over five years, was made possible by supermarket and drugstore leader L.S. Skaggs and his wife Aline.

"The Skaggs-Oxford Program is an incredible opportunity, particularly because it allows students to take advantage of scientific expertise and facilities at both institutions," Scherer said. "The research possibilities are vast and very exciting. I experienced this firsthand when meeting with several potential collaborators at Oxford in July. I plan to continue my career in academia, with the focus of understanding mechanisms of viral pathogenesis."

Scherer graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in the Fulbright College of Art and Sciences in chemistry. An early internship in 1999 with the National Center for Toxicological Research started her on the path to research.

The next summer she received a research grant from the National Institute of Drug Administration to do research at UAMS. She then continued research on the UA campus, completing an honors thesis that earned her highest honors. She was also inducted into Phi Beta Kappa.

Don Bobbitt, dean of the Fulbright of Arts and Sciences and professor of chemistry, is delighted but not surprised by her continued success.

"Erin was a terrific student here, taking ambitious classes, always asking questions, always making connections," he said. "She is the perfect example of why we push our students to participate in undergraduate research.

"Students like Erin catch fire when they probe a little deeper and participate in the kind of interactive learning that student research affords. She was able to work one-on-one with Roger Koeppe, a distinguished faculty member in our college, and his advice, guidance and support over four years proved invaluable to the development of her career. I congratulate Erin and Professor Koeppe for this remarkable achievement."

"Erin came to the UA honors program with so many options. She wrote poetry, was a performing dancer and loved the sciences," Associate Dean for the Honors College Suzanne McCray said.

"She was as engaged a student as you could hope for, and that comes across-in person and on paper. The result has been a series of accolades, grants, and fellowships like this one, and most importantly to her, these keep pushing her closer to her goal-to do significant work in AIDS research," McCray added.

Erin is a former Chancellor's Scholar, a Barry Goldwater Scholar, a Pfizer Undergraduate Research Award recipient, and a SILO/SURF recipient. In 2003, she received an Honorable Mention by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute for Predoctoral Fellowship in Biological Sciences. She plans to complete approximately three years at Scripps Research before transitioning to Oxford for her final two years of graduate study.