Thanks to a more than $150,000 fellowship, Roller will have another three years to study bacteria in the laboratory.

On Aug. 5, he was announced as one of 150 graduate students in scientific and engineering fields across the country to receive a three-year, $50,500 per year award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s, or DOE, Office of Science Graduate Fellowship Program. The money is divided among various expenses, including tuition, living expenses and a research stipend.

About 3,200 students across the country applied for money, DOE spokeswoman Lali Chatterjee said.

The fellowship was funded in part by $12.5 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Roller said he plans to use the money, at least immediately, to continue his research with the MSU Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics. Currently, he is working to understand the role that the life cycles of various bacteria play in carbon dioxide emissions.

“(I am) studying how bacteria affect carbon cycling in the environment,” Roller said. “Small things can have a big impact on the Earth.”

At the advice of his mentor, microbiology and molecular genetics professor Thomas Schmidt, Roller applied for three fellowships, including the DOE’s, in December 2009. He found out he would be one of the fellowship’s recipients in late spring.

“I did three of these fellowship applications and my research topic fit best with the objectives of the DOE,” Roller said.

Roller helps with every aspect of research, from designing, to carrying out, to interpreting experiments, Schmidt said. He was heavily recruited by MSU and has been a good person to have on the research team, Schmidt said.

“(Roller) has a great sense of humor and very creative mind, and so it is a real pleasure working with him in the lab,” he said.

Roller and the other students’ applications were reviewed by an external panel and judged based on academic performance, scientific merit of proposed plan and scientific contribution outside of classroom work.

The fellowship not only helps to fund deserving students, but helps to train scientists to work in subjects the DOE is interested in, Chatterjee said.

“We are very excited about this program because we got an opportunity to fund a lot of young people,” Chatterjee said. “Science and technical education agenda is very important and this helps because it is particularly DOE-mission oriented.”

Roller said he is potentially interested in teaching one day, but for now, he is happy doing research.

“Any job in research is terrific,” Roller said. “I have received three years of funding and that is my focus for the moment.”