BOSTON – One student each from Brown University and the University of Rhode Island were awarded research grants for their college tuition by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last month.

Rachel Nagy, a doctoral student in ecology at Brown, was awarded a STAR [2012 Science to Achieve Results] fellowship that encourages leadership in environmental science, research, restoration, pollution prevention and sustainability.

Nagy was recognized for her research work in the ecosystems services of secondary forests in the Mata Atlantica of Brazil.

Eric Kretsch, a URI student, received an undergraduate 2012 Greater Research Opportunities fellowship. The program, now in its 30th year, is part of a national effort to ensure that the United States continues to graduate students ready to meet environmental science, engineering and policy challenges.

Nagy and Kretsch were among 127 students nationwide to receive a total of up to $5.3 million from the EPA. •