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Congratulations to Matthew Cooper, one of seven recipients of the 2017 Undergraduate Faculty Research Mentor of the Year Award! He took the top honor in the Social Sciences division within the College of Arts & Sciences. Cooper is an associate professor in the Psychology Department whose lab aims to \u201cimprove understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying stress-related psychopathologies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cooper\u2019s students praise all facets of his laboratory and the leadership he provides there. One student, Elena Bagatelas, writes, \u201cDr. Cooper is very attentive to his undergraduate students in his research lab and is eager to give them responsibilities in the lab, encouraging a great hands-on learning environment. He teaches us how to understand research articles through interactive talks at our lab meetings, and allows us to present them as practice so we can learn how to interpret and explain articles.\u201d Kimberly Bress praises the lab community as the \u201cmost important aspect of Dr. Cooper\u2019s mentorship,\u201d including everything from lecture and guidance to the supportive atmosphere he creates through his graduate student assistants.<\/p>\n
Bress, who has taken Cooper\u2019s courses for five semesters, goes on to describe how \u201clast year, he made it possible for me and another undergraduate student to attend the Society for Neuroscience Conference in San Diego, California.\u00a0 This experience is the most academically and professionally significant opportunity which I have had as an undergraduate.\u00a0 It has defined and inspired my continued interest in pursuing a research career.\u201d<\/p>\n