Penn junior Christina Steele has been awarded a Beinecke Scholarship to pursue her graduate education. She is the 12th Beinecke Scholar from Penn since the award was first given in 1975.

A psychology major in the College of Arts and Sciences, Ms. Steele is among 18 Beinecke Scholars from throughout the United States chosen this year. Each scholar receives $4,000 immediately prior to entering graduate school and an additional $30,000 while attending graduate school.

Ms. Steele plans to use the scholarship funds to pursue a PhD in psychology and further her interest in studying how problems in the family environment can disrupt and interfere with healthy relationships and well-being. She also intends to research the factors that contribute to cycles of conflict within friend relationships and other social networks outside of the family. Her goal is to develop evidence-based interventions to help people build happier and healthier relationships in society.