Hampden-Sydney College (H-SC) recently congratulated one of its own for being one of only eight students in Virginia to receive the nation’s premier undergraduate scholarship in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering.

The college noted in a press release that junior biology major David Bushhouse has been named a 2018 Goldwater Scholar.

This year, 221 Goldwater scholars were chosen from a national field of candidates nominated by more than 2,000 colleges and universities, H-SC officials cited in the release. It is the third time in the past five years that a Hampden-Sydney student has received the prestigious award.
The release states that Bushhouse was inspired to apply for the Goldwater Scholarship after James Lau, a 2017 graduate, won the award two years ago. Bushhouse expressed his gratitude for the guidance he received from Hampden-Sydney faculty and staff during the lengthy application process.

“This win would not have been possible without the help of several faculty members,” he said in the release. “Most importantly, Dr. (Cristine) Varholy helped me work out how to clearly and convincingly express my personal and professional motivations for pursuing a career as a scientist, and Dr. (Kristian) Hargadon helped me develop a research proposal that demonstrated my competence applying the scientific method to unanswered questions. I also relied on the counsel and careful eyes of several other faculty reviewers and the Ferguson Career Center staff. It was really encouraging to see so many professors putting their shoulders to the wheel in order to help my application be the best it could be.”

School officials noted that in receiving the scholarship, Bushhouse was recognized for his ongoing research on tumor immunology with Dr. Hargadon, Elliott professor of biology and a Goldwater Scholar himself during his student days at H-SC. They are determining, on the molecular-genetics level, how a protein called FOXC2 regulates the spread and metastasis of melanoma skin cancer.

“Though we have shown that FOXC2 influences melanoma progression, the mechanism by which it promotes melanoma growth and metastasis remains largely unknown,” Hargadon said in the release. “David’s work has been instrumental in optimizing a technique that will allow for the identification of genes activated by FOXC2, which may, in turn, suggest novel targets for cancer therapies designed to delay or prevent melanoma progression.”

The release states that Bushhouse began his research last summer as part of Hampden-Sydney’s Honors Program. Although he put the project on hold this semester so he could study abroad in St. Petersburg, Russia, David looks forward to resuming his work in the lab next year as his Honors Capstone project.

In his three years at Hampden-Sydney, Bushhouse’s leadership across campus and across the academic disciplines has distinguished him as a true liberal arts scholar, officials said in the release. In addition to his substantial work in the lab, Bushhouse is a senior member of the college’s Union-Philanthropic (Literary) Society, president of the faith organization Cogito and the announcer for Tiger football. He has held editorial positions with The Tiger newspaper, the Hampden-Sydney College Journal of the Sciences and The Hampden-Sydney Poetry Review. He even won the college’s poetry prize last year at convocation.

Dr. Michael Wolyniak, director of H-SC’s Office of Undergraduate Research, said in the release, “Hampden-Sydney has been a great environment for David because it has allowed him to develop and integrate all of his talents into becoming a complete scientist: creative, attentive to detail, articulate, determined and unflappable.”

In the release, Dr. Varholy, director of H-SC’s Office of Fellowship Advising, credited the college’s recent success with the Goldwater Scholarship to the interdisciplinary nature of a Hampden-Sydney education, noting students’ ability to articulate their goals in a clear and engaging manner makes their applications stand out. Also important are the excellent student research opportunities available at H-SC.

“It’s really a testament to the quality of work that our science faculty is doing and the research opportunities that they give our students,” Varholy said in the release. “The time that Hampden-Sydney students spend in the lab, the tasks and the problem solving that they are allowed to do and the contact that they have with their professors definitely set them apart in the competitive process.”

College officials noted that all of the faculty and staff who worked with Bushhouse through the Goldwater Scholarship process welcomed the opportunity to help a young man with such potential.

“I could not be prouder of David and all of his achievements,” Hargadon said in the release. “He is one of the most talented students that I have ever worked with at any level, and he is most deserving of being named a Goldwater Scholar. This award will open so many doors for David throughout his career as a research scientist, and I expect his name is one that many will come to know outside the gates of H-SC very soon.”