The University of Toronto Physics Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships provide entry-level summer research experience to first and second year students. They involve undergraduate lab development and research with faculty within the Department of Physics.  Approximately six fellowships are available each year to full-time physics students.

From 2011 to 2017, Natalia Krasnopolskaia supervised 19 students in the SURF program and these students helped to develop experiments for the Advanced Labs and Second Year Labs. Several of these projects led to posters at the Canadian Undergraduate Physics Conference. Naming the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships after Natalia is a fitting way to honour and remember her.

Natalia started working in the Physics Department in September 2002, and became a Lecturer in 2007. Over the years, she taught many first year physics courses, as well as PHY291H1S “Quantum Mechanics I” for Engineering Sciences and PHY385 “Introduction to Optics”.

Natalia was an instructor for the Advanced Physics Laboratories for many years, and also served as the course Coordinator several times. This is a demanding position that involves one-on-one student mentorship, as well as maintaining and updating over 35 different experiments in condensed matter physics, optics, and high energy physics.

Natalia’s colleagues remember her “hard work, outstanding organization, enthusiasm for physics and caring attitude”. One student commented, “Dr. Krasnopolskaia’s efforts to make herself available to the students during lab hours has been invaluable in my learning and understanding of the experiments and associated theory.”

The Natalia Krasnopolskaia Memorial Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship is a tribute to the memory of an instructor who was well-loved by both colleagues and students.  She is greatly missed.  Donations will be used to expand and strengthen these student fellowships.

To contribute to this fellowship, please visit: https://donate.utoronto.ca/give/show/49