2024 Plastino Scholars
Photos courtesy of Charlotte Gotilla, Shanea Higgin and Jamie Milby / Photo illustration by Jaynell Keely September 11, 2024
Plastino Scholars follow their academic passions worldwide
University of Delaware Plastino Scholars have studied maternity and child nutrition in Bangladesh, investigated how Amazon’s stingless bees thrive, tackled health care reform, brainstormed how we can build more livable and environmentally responsible cities, bicycled across the U.S., promoted pop-up entrepreneurship, and implemented school lunch programs for students in need. And that’s just for starters.
In the 17 years since the program’s inception, more than 70 undergraduates have created their own experiential learning opportunities around their passions, with the goal of achieving transformational change in both their academic and personal lives.
The Plastino Scholars Program was established with a gift from UD alumnus David A. Plastino, who saw the impact that a similar program at another university had on his daughter. He wanted to pay it forward. Not long afterward, the Plastino Scholars Program was born.
This year’s scholars have traveled to or will travel to, Brazil, Tanzania, England and South Africa.
Shanea Higgin had meticulously planned out her Plastino Scholar research – she would survey residents in Rio de Janeiro’s favelas to learn their views on the influence of race, culture, poverty and politics on their educational system. Favelas are a collection of unregulated and informal neighborhoods that can be home to upwards of 300,000 people.
A senior triple majoring in psychology, Latin American and Iberian studies, and Spanish, Higgin became interested in favelas during an earlier research project in the McNair Scholar program. But there was just one problem with Higgin’s research plan – no one would talk to her.
“The irony is that I ended up having to switch from a research survey to doing a pilot study,” said Higgin, with a chuckle. “Whenever I would pitch my survey, people would say yes, they would open the link. And they would, but no one would take the survey.”
Higgin speculates that the favela residents were concerned that their anonymity wouldn’t be protected. However, the conversation flowed freely when she informally went out with locals for coffee or lunch and asked questions.
“When you talk in person, people can see and know who you are, and they feel more comfortable,” said Higgin. “If I go back in the future and have another survey or conduct a formal interview, they are more likely to do it. We built a connection.”
That’s not a theoretical wish. Higgin is applying to the Fulbright Scholars program to return to Brazil for post-graduate study.
The other component of her Plastino Scholar project – a computer science class -- was a big hit with locals. She taught middle school students at a community center under the auspices of a Brazilian nonprofit, Recomaçando. Higgin’s ultimate goal is to work in the field of educational technology on platforms and programs that enrich students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Jamie Milby racked up a lot of frequent flyer miles as a Plastino Scholar this summer. She did independent study at the Iziko South African Museum and the Maropeng Museum, both in South Africa; the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Pitt Rivers Museum and the British Museum of Natural History, all in England; and closer, to home, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. A senior anthropology major, she is interested in the ethical dilemmas that anthropologists and museum curators face while managing, caring for and displaying fossil and contemporary human remains.
“Dealing with human remains is oftentimes a difficult and sensitive task,” said Milby. “I investigated the differences in ethical conversations when it comes to fossil remains and contemporary remains to understand how and why it can differ from nation to nation.”
Her research and solo travel went smoothly, after a slightly rocky start. “The day before I left the U.S., my phone wouldn’t charge,” said Milby. “I was, like, ‘what do I do? Everything I need for my travel and research is on my phone.’”
“I couldn’t pull up the directions on my phone. So, I had to memorize them,” she said.
Milby’s experience as a Plastino Scholar has only solidified her plans to earn her Ph.D. in anthropology. “Part of the reason why I love anthropology is because I love traveling, and it’s a way that I can incorporate travel into a career,” she said.
“I think that the Plastino program is a really good experience, especially for young women,” she added. “Going out there and doing something like this all by yourself is really empowering.”
Charlotte Gottilla, an honors senior chemical engineering major, will spend Winter Session in Tanzania as a Plastino Scholar, studying energy access, especially as it relates to international development. Part of the time, she will be based at Arusha Technical College and the Kikuletwa Renewable Energy campus, visiting a power plant, hospital and other high-consumption energy users to understand Tanzania's investment into energy infrastructure better. She also will spend two weeks with very limited access to electricity, on a homestay with a family in a Maasai village.
“I hope this experience will answer questions I have about the realities of energy access in low-resource settings and the role of fossil fuels in development,” said Gottilla. She has accepted a position with Honeywell after graduation that will involve solo travel to remote international locations and noted that a month traveling alone in Tanzania should be a good “test.”
“It’s kind of intimidating to go alone but I know it’s going to help me with problem-solving and gaining confidence,” she said.
This isn’t her first trip to the African continent. As a member and now president of the University of Delaware chapter of Engineers without Borders USA, Gottilla has spent the last three summers volunteering in Malawi, assessing the need for wells and evaluating sustainable locations.
“In many villages, girls who are like, eight, nine or 10 years old have to carry 20- or 40-liter buckets of water on their heads for long distances,” said Gottilla. “The goal is to have potable water no more than a 30-minute walk away.”
Interest Meetings Sept. 16 and Oct. 1
The Plastino Scholars Program awards study grants up to $6,000 to selected undergraduate students who exhibit extraordinary talent, promise and imagination. These grants enable them to pursue a passionate interest to an otherwise impossible degree.
Find out what it takes to become a 2024 Plastino Scholar at interest meetings scheduled for Sept. 16 and Oct. 1. Both meetings will occur at 4:30 p.m. in Room 205/206 McDowell Hall, 25 North College Avenue, Newark.
Current Plastino Scholars will discuss their program experiences and the application process. UD undergraduates who are enrolled for at least 12 semester hours and have not completed more than five semesters are eligible to apply. For more information on the program visit www.cas.udel.edu/plastino-scholars.
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