May 1,
1998
								Contact:
Ida Lee Wootten
									  (804)
924-6857

UNIVERSITY FINDS A WAY TO LET STUDENT DO
WHAT HAS NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE

	Some University of Virginia administrators gently grumble when
they hear the name "Katharine ('Kate') Weston Lopez."  That name has
caused them to venture into unprecedented waters, to create a new system
for tracking a student's progress.  
	But with that grumbling comes a deep respect and sense of awe
because Lopez not only finished her undergraduate requirements in three
years, she gained special permission to enroll in U.Va.'s Medical School
without having earned her bachelor's degree.
	It appears that she may be the first student at U.Va. to have
her graduation "postponed" to allow her to live on the Lawn with her
fellow fourth-year classmates while attending Medical School.
	A 1994 graduate of the Tower Hill School in Wilmington, Del.,
Lopez won a Jefferson Scholarship to attend U.Va. -- a scholarship that
pays for four years of academic work.  
	She entered U.Va. with 32 Advanced Placement (AP) credits.  Her
AP credits plus the flexibility of taking a variety of courses through
the interdisciplinary Echols Scholars Program allowed her to complete
her bachelor's degree requirements early and begin to fulfill her
medical school requirements.
	On May 17, when the 22-year-old receives her Bachelor of Arts,
she will also have completed her first year of medical school.  She
anticipates her grade-point average will be around 3.8.
	Lopez confesses to two central motivations that prompted her to
undertake such an unusual fourth year.  The first was monetary.  "The
Jefferson Scholars Program allowed me to use the final year of my
scholarship toward the cost of my first year of medical school during
what would normally be my 'fourth year.'  That has been a tremendous
help since my home state of Delaware has no medical school," she said.
	The second motive was a drive to learn material she finds
exciting.  "I was eager to begin learning what most interests me.  As
challenging as med. school is, I love what I learn everyday," said
Lopez, the daughter of John and Diana Lopez of Wilmington.
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	The decision to start medical school early, though, meant that
Lopez had to forsake spending lots of time with her classmates and the
activities that engaged her during her first three years.  She was
active with the University Guide Service and the Virginia Literary
Review.  She also volunteered through Madison House in the maternity and
pharmacy units, was director of cases for the University Mediation
Services and was an investigator for the Judiciary Committee. 
	"It was a difficult choice to start med. school early, and I
have missed most of the fun of my fellow fourth years, but for me, it
was the right decision," Lopez said.
	This year Lopez has been a representative to the Medical Student
Advocacy Committee and a volunteer at the Shelter for Help in Emergency.   
	She is a member of the Raven Society, Phi Beta Kappa and the
Golden Key National Honor Society.
	Although not yet a degree recipient, Lopez is one of the authors
on two research papers that have been published in national journals.
She started research in the organometallics lab of W. Dean Harman, an
associate professor of chemistry, during her first year at U.Va. and
began her work in the biochemistry lab of professor Ronald P. Taylor in
her second year.
	Such experiences have given her a great deal of satisfaction.
"I love U.Va. -- the people, the Grounds, the opportunities of a large
university in a small-town setting.
	"I particularly want to thank the administration of both the
undergraduate University and the Medical School.  I am very grateful to
have had such an ideal educational arrangement."

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	For more information, Lopez can be reached at (804) 243-2333.
Television reporters should contact the TV News Office at (804)
924-7550.


















U.Va. news online: http://www.virginia.edu.topnews