Melvin H. Knisely Endowed Scholarship

Established in memory of Melvin H. Knisely, Ph.D., former chairman of the anatomy department of Medical College of SC, who won distinction for his work on blood circulation, particularly for his studies of the phenomenon he called “blood sludge.” He and his colleagues demonstrated that many diseases cause red blood cells to stick together and impede the flow of blood. In the early nineteen-thirties, Dr. Knisely devised a technique, using “cold light” transmitted through a quartz rod, to illuminate living structures for microscopic study. He participated in a 17-year study that identified a substance produced by 40 common diseases that causes sludging, sometimes fatally. A graduate of Albion College in 1927, Dr. Knisely received a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1935 and served on its faculty from 1937 to 1948, prior to joining the medical school.

Selection Criteria:

• Merit
• Rising 2nd or 3rd year student in upper third of class
• a background of non-medicine discipline, in science, engineering or the humanities