Macey Scholars: Caruthers and Edwards

by George Zamora

SOCORRO, N.M., July 19, 2001 -- Albuquerque area natives James W. Caruthers and Lisa Marie Edwards, both seniors at New Mexico Tech, recently were named Macey Scholars at the university. The honor includes a $5,000 scholarship for each of the awardees. (Graduate student Bonnie Wayne was also named a Macey Scholar. For the story on her, please see Bonnie Wayne Named Macey Scholar for 2001.

Caruthers, the son of James R. and Joyce C. Caruthers of Albuquerque, is a graduate of St. Pius X High School. He currently is pursuing two bachelor of science degrees, one in math and one in physics, at New Mexico Tech.

Caruthers has worked at Tech as a technician for the school's Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research and as a supplemental instructor for classes in college algebra.

This summer, Caruthers is actively involved as team coordinator of New Mexico Tech's "Team FRACTAL" research project, in which 10 Tech students will participate in a reduced-gravity experiment aboard NASA's famed KC-135A aircraft--a military version of a Boeing 707 which has been affectionately dubbed by its various passengers over the years as the "Vomit Comet."

"New Mexico Tech is a great place to focus on education and research," Caruthers says. "The small enrollment is ideal for getting research experience at the undergraduate level. And, the professors at Tech are genuinely concerned with instructing the students, putting forth more effort than can expected."

Caruthers, who attends the state-supported research university on a Silver Scholarship, also was recently chosen as the recipient of the school's Abraham and Esther Brook Prize for Excellence in Physics.

Edwards, the daughter of Thomas and Cathy Edwards of Rio Rancho, is a graduate of Cibola High School. She also is pursuing two bachelor of science degrees at the university, majoring in mathematics and psychology with a minor in biology.

Edwards has served as a student ambassador for New Mexico Tech during New Student Orientations and MESA Shadow Days, a service she has been performing since she first arrived at the school. She also currently works as a tutor at the Tech Writing Center and conducts research on determining intelligence factors in laboratory rats.

"New Mexico Tech is a wonderful school," Edwards says. "I love the friendly atmosphere here--the small school size and personal attention from professors and staff members were the main reasons I decided to come to Tech. The education I have received here has definitely prepared me for the challenges of optometry school. . . . And, I'm looking forward to my final year here at Tech."

Edwards, who is the treasurer of the university's chapter of Tri-Beta, the international biology honor society, also attends New Mexico Tech on a Silver Scholarship.

(Tech student Bonnie Wayne also was chosen this year as a Macey Scholar, but was unavailable for an interview.)

Tech students chosen to participate in the William and Jean Macey Scholars Program are selected on the basis of their demonstrated academic accomplishments, both in the classroom and research laboratory, as well as their active participation in institutional service and co-curricular activities.

The Macey Scholars Program is funded by an endowment established by William B. and Jean M. Macey of Albuquerque and Tucson. William Macey graduated from the New Mexico School of Mines (as New Mexico Tech was known in its early years) in 1942 and also was awarded an honorary doctorate by Tech in 1984.