Curtis Awarded the NOAA Hollings Scholarship

We are very pleased to share news that Leila Curtis COS’26 was recently named a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hollings Scholar. Last year, Kiran Bajaj COS’25 joined that illustrious cohort.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hollings Scholarship Program provides successful undergraduate applicants with awards that include academic assistance for two years of full-time study and a 10-week, full-time paid internship at a NOAA facility during the summer.  This program is designed to increase undergraduate training in oceanic and atmospheric science, research, technology, and education and foster multidisciplinary training opportunities, increase public understanding and support for stewardship of the ocean and atmosphere and improve environmental literacy, recruit and prepare students for public service careers with NOAA and other natural resource and science agencies at the federal, state and local levels of government, and recruit and prepare students for careers as teachers and educators in oceanic and atmospheric science and to improve scientific and environmental education in the United States. Read below to learn more about Leila!

Leila Curtis COS’26, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Leila is an Ecology and Evolutionary Biology major from Dix Hills, New York fascinated by the evolutionary history of vertebrates. Their passion started in elementary school with a class project on the narwhal whale and expanded as they learned more, keeping a journal of handwritten “Wildlife Info Page” entries that contained more than 150 animals by the time they started high school. After completing their undergraduate degree, they plan on pursuing a PhD in Evolutionary Biology, wanting to focus on systematics and phylogenetic relationships in vertebrates. They hope to contribute to modern understandings of the diversification and classification of organisms and have tailored their coursework to target these areas of interest. Outside of academics, Leila is a member of Northeastern’s varsity Track & Field team, competing in both shotput and discus. They’re also a member of the NU TF/XC leadership committee, assisting with fundraising and development. Additionally, Leila is an eBoard member of oSTEM at Northeastern, a club dedicated to creating an open environment for LGBTQ students interested in STEM.