On Nov 13, Mohammed Emdadul Haque, Research Associate in the Spremulli Lab, realized a dream 11 years in the making - he became an American Citizen. Emdadul came from West Bengal in India to UNC's Dept of Biochemistry and Biophysics as a post doc in 1998 and was promoted to Research associate in 2001. He joined the Spremulli lab in 2006.
The road to citizenship was a tedious one. Getting the green card was the hardest part, a 3-year process involving extensive forms, 8 recommendations, a letter from the employer, a background check and medical exam by a government doctor. Emdadul says he did not experience any problems that might be associated with his being Muslim.
Emdadul's wife and 13-year old son also became citizens at the same ceremony. When asked why he wanted to go through this process Emdadul said, "Because this is a great country. You can express your thoughts here - and people help one another."
Undergraduate Award winners were recognized at the Junior & Senior Banquet, held on November 4th, 2009, in the Chancellor's Ballroom at Carolina Inn.
Pictured from left to right are Kristen Black (Jason D. Altom Memorial Award for Undergraduate Research), Brittany Fotsch (James H. Maguire Memorial Award), Chen Cheng (The Sophomore Chemist Award presented by Alpha Chi Sigma), Michael Johnston (James H. Maguire Memorial Award), Liza Rathbun (Emmett Gladstone Rand Premedical Scholarship), Thomas Allen (The Undergraduate Award for Excellence in Physical Chemistry), Anthony Dang (GAT Teaching Award), and Nicholas Swisher (Jason D. Altom Memorial Award for Undergraduate Research. Lalitha Kundura, winner of the Tanya R. Ellison Scholarship, was not present at the ceremony.