Congratulations or "Herzlichen Glückwunsch" to Joseph R. Seemiller, a 2009 graduate of Palmerton Area High School who will be traveling to Germany this fall on a Fulbright U.S. Student Grant.

Seemiller, the son of Joseph and Linda Seemiller, graduated cum laude from the University of Scranton on May 26 and earned a bachelor's degree in neuroscience with a minor in computer science. Seemiller is one of five University of Scranton students to be awarded Fulbright Grants for the 2013-2014 academic year.With his Fulbright Grant, Seemiller will research the neurological functional networks that characterize the progression of Alzheimer's disease while attempting to find ways to diagnose Alzheimer's and dementia in its early stages. Seemiller will be under the supervision of Professor Alexander Drzezga, M.D. of the University of Cologne during his research.According to the official website for Fulbright U.S. Student Program, Sen. J. William Fulbright introduced the program in 1945 as a bill to fund what he said was the "promotion of international good will through exchange of students in the fields of education, culture, and science." President Harry Truman signed the bill into effect on Aug. 1, 1946. Since its creation, the Fulbright Program has awarded grants to over 318,000 participants and Fulbright scholars have traveled to more than 155 countries to complete his or her program.The program awards approximately 1,900 grants to students to participate in international graduate study, advanced research, university teaching, and primary and secondary teaching. The grant provides funding for round-trip transportation to his or her host country, room, board, incidental costs and accident and sickness benefits.In his research, Seemiller will be using computer science to extract patterns from PET and MRS scans of the brain using a computer program he designed himself. Seemiller began writing computer programs that could scan large amounts of information to find patterns while in high school. He said he was working to design a computerized medical records management system when he realized the use of computer science had potential in the medical field."… My experiences in nursing homes have helped me to understand the devastating impact that dementia has on individuals and families. I have witnessed the trust that society places in medical technology, especially in imaging. Now, I want to use both computer science and neurological imaging to perform medical research, especially regarding dementia," wrote Seemiller in a personal statement for his application.Seemiller said he decided he wanted to attempt for a Fulbright grant during his sophomore year at the University of Scranton and began his application in the summer of 2012. He was in Chicago during that summer for a National Science Foundation internship at DePaul University.Susan Trussller, Ph.D., Fulbright advisor and associate professor of economics/finance at the University of Scranton, said the distance between herself and Seemiller made his application process more complex than the average applicant's. This was because Seemiller and Trusller had to communicate over the phone and via email where most students would meet with Trussler personally. However, during the last four-six weeks of his application process, Trussler said Seemiller was in and out of her office every couple of days."I want to congratulate Joe on his success in this very rigorous process and for maintaining not just an exemplary academic record, but also for his commitment to community service and community involvement. I am sure that his year in Germany will be a great success on both the academic and personal fronts," said Trussler.The application for a Fulbright Grant requires applicants to submit biographical data, a statement of grant purpose, an affiliation letter from a professor at the university he or she wishes to attend, a personal statement, foreign language forms, references, and his or her transcripts. Once submitted, the applications are reviewed by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.Trussler said at the start of the summer, she was working with roughly 30 applicants from the university, but the number of people who actually completed the process was only 13."It's complicated. They have to write a personal statement which many students write 15 drafts of. It's not the sort of application you can do in one afternoon," said Trussler.Seemiller said he wrote eight drafts before he finished his personal statement and included in his statement stories of his life in Lehighton. He wrote about volunteering weekly at the Community Thrift store, his heritage and his experience playing the clarinet in Palmerton's marching band. Seemiller said he plans to audition for Cologne's university band to continue playing and help him integrate into the community as well as joining the university's mountain biking club. Seemiller also plans to stay active in the Catholic church's service projects.Seemiller finished his application by the second week of October and found out he was a national finalist in January. Yet, it was not until March 27 when he was home from school on spring break that he was told he had been chosen."I just got back from a bike ride at the canal in Lehighton and had this very strange premonition that something important was in my email, and as it turned out, it was," said Seemiller.