Two arts and sciences senior honors students, Alexis Crockett (neuroscience and psychology) and Henry Tran (chemistry and mathematics), have been named 2016 Churchill Scholars.

The Winston Churchill Foundation awards 15 scholarships annually to graduating seniors and recent graduates who demonstrate exceptional academic talent, outstanding personal qualities and a capacity to contribute to the advancement of knowledge in the sciences, engineering or mathematics. The scholarship supports one year of graduate study in a relevant field at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.

Crockett and Tran were selected out of a pool of 91 nominees from 61 institutions. Each year, eligible institutions may nominate only two students for Churchill Scholarships. It is an extraordinary accomplishment for two students from the same university to be awarded the scholarship in a given year, and this is the first time Ohio State has accomplished this feat.

Alexis Crockett, from Macedonia, Ohio, has investigated the effects of the antidepressant ketanserin on chronic neuroinflammation, a potential contributor to major depressive disorder. Her advisor is Gary Wenk, professor of psychology and neuroscience and of molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics.

“This award will provide an excellent opportunity for Alexis to advance her knowledge and training in neuroscience,” said Wenk. “The year at Cambridge, as a Churchill Scholar, will be an important stage in her transition to one of the leading neuroscientists of her generation.”

Crockett’s work in Wenk’s lab culminated in a poster presentation at the 2014 Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting and co-authorship of two publications in the Journal of Neuroinflammation. Last summer, she conducted research on the neurobiology of depression as an intern at Friederich Alexander Universität in Erlangen, Germany. An Eminence Fellow and 2015 Goldwater Scholar, Crockett is active in neuroscience and STEM educational outreach. She also volunteers at the Columbus Alzheimer’s Care Center and as an Ohio State Neuroscience Ambassador.

After obtaining a PhD in neuroscience, Crockett plans to seek a faculty position at a research university to study the pathophysiology of depression and contribute to the development of more effective antidepressants.

Henry Tran, from Dublin, Ohio, is conducting research on Jahn-Teller distortions of the NO3 molecule in the theoretical chemistry lab of Ohio Eminent Scholar Terry Miller. Tran presented his analysis of NO3’s rotational spectrum and structure in oral presentations at the 2014 and 2015 International Symposia on Molecular Spectroscopy and the 2015 International Symposium on Free Radicals. Previously, he conducted theoretical mathematics research in Sergei Chmutov’s Knots and Graphs Working Group.

Miller, who also attended the University of Cambridge, said that “Cambridge is not for everyone, but for some students with special talents there is no finer place on earth to receive an education and Henry is such a student — I’m sure that he will take full advantage of this opportunity.”

Tran, a 2015 Goldwater Scholar, has received a number of grants for his research and academic performance, including the American Chemical Society Junior Chemistry Achievement Award, the Gary Booth Chemistry Scholarship, the Sophomore Organic Chemistry Award and the Goldstein Memorial Mathematics Scholarship. Also a Morrill Excellence Scholar, Tran serves as a peer mentor for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the University Honors Program.

After receiving a PhD in theoretical chemistry, Tran plans to pursue a faculty position to teach and conduct research on developing computational methods to understand the electronic structure of important molecules as a professor.

At Cambridge, Crockett and Tran will respectively pursue an MPhil in physiology, development and neuroscience and an MPhil in scientific computing. They are the fifth and sixth Ohio State students to be named Churchill Scholars.