News Release

Local angles: Chapel Hill, Concord, Greensboro,
Huntersville; Columbus, Ohio; Houston

From Ghana to Uganda, Edinburgh to India
Carolina’s Burch Fellows to learn, travel

By DEE REID
College of Arts and Sciences

CHAPEL HILL – Exploring topics from photo documentary to service medicine, six students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will pursue their passions this summer with Burch Fellowships awarded through UNC.

Each fellowship provides up to $6,000 for a student to participate in a self-designed off-campus experience. Stipends cover travel, research and living costs. The Burch program in the College of Arts and Sciences is made possible by a gift from alumnus Lucius E. Burch III of Nashville, Tenn.

This year’s fellows are Lisa Bolton of Concord, Nancy DeMaria of Greensboro, Matt Kiefer of Chapel Hill, Justin Randolph of Houston, Clare Rohleder of Huntersville and Kate Stratton of Columbus, Ohio.

Bolton, a junior English major and pre-medical student, is interested in pediatrics and public health. She will research health and nutrition practices at a clinic near her home, then work in a rural community health center in Uganda.

As part of her work with the university’s Campus Y hunger lunch project, she also will help establish a sustainable nutrition program in Uganda through a youth development center.

DeMaria, a sophomore biology and Spanish major, wants to become a doctor who helps underserved populations. She will work in remote areas of Mexico, helping a physician in rural clinics, teaching elementary students and providing support to single mothers at local missions.

When she returns to UNC, DeMaria plans to start a student organization that promotes continued volunteer work with the missions in Mexico.

Kiefer, a senior music major, has played violin most of his life. He will study at the ENCORE School of Strings in Cleveland with some of the best teachers and performers in the world. When he returns to UNC, he will give a concert of music learned during the summer.

Randolph, a senior business and political science major, has traveled to more than 21 countries and spent a semester studying in Spain. An avid photographer, he will document the impact of globalization on cultural identity in Bhutan and agricultural practices in India. He will study the effects of new policies and practices designed to preserve traditional cultures in those areas.

Rohleder, a junior communication studies and psychology major, plans a career as an international physical therapist specializing in children’s needs. She will do volunteer rehabilitation work with children at a community health clinic in Ghana, teach English at an elementary school and work at a local orphanage.

Stratton, a senior music and dramatic art major, has never traveled outside the United States. She will go to Great Britain and immerse herself in physical training techniques, including stage combat, mime, acrobatics and trapeze.

She will study at the Ecole de Mime Corporel Dramatique, the British Academy of Stage and Screen Combat, and The Circus Space, all in London. Also, she plans to take voice lessons, explore English theatre and attend the International Festival of the Arts in Edinburgh. She plans to teach a workshop in stage combat after returning to UNC.

Lucius E. Burch III, a 1963 Carolina graduate, heads the Burch Investment Group in Nashville. Funds from Burch also created the Burch Field Research Seminar Program, which allows undergraduates to join faculty members for semester-long research projects.

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Contact: Friederike Muehls, director, Burch programs, 919-962-9680

News Services contacts: Print, L.J. Toler, 919-962-8589; broadcast, Karen Moon, 919-962-9585