William Burris
Research  |  2025-26

Japan

William Burris just graduated from UNM with a Bachelor of Science in biology with honors, minors in math and Japanese, and a certificate in honors interdisciplinary liberal arts. He has had a long-standing interest in Japanese culture and studied abroad there in the spring of 2023. He felt that one semester in Japan was not enough, and he is excited to attend graduate school at the University of Tokyo with the MEXT scholarship. Burris hopes to make discoveries through his research of neural stem cells that help contribute to our understanding of brain aging and treatment. He also hopes to be an active member of the University of Tokyo and the local community when he moves there.

“I am extremely grateful and honored to be a recipient of the Fulbright in Japan. Conducting research in Japan has been my dream since my sophomore year in high school. Not only to have my dream come true, but also to have the many years of hard work it took to get here be acknowledged, is an indescribable feeling. It would not have been possible without all the incredible supporters I have had along the way. I am greatly touched by this opportunity to connect more with Japan, and I hope to contribute to the international relations of Japan and the US, which have done so much for me,” said Burris.

At The University of New Mexico, Burris would like to thank Dr. Kiyoko Simmons, Dr. Aaron Neumann, Dr. Diana Northup and Dr. Amy Farnbach Pearson, and at the University of Tokyo, he would like to thank Dr. Taeko Kobayashi, who has supported me in this endeavor.