Zach Bencan '07

Zach Bencan Ambler, Pennsylvania Major: Psychology, concentration in neuroscience Minor: Biology

Zach Bencan arrived at Duke determined to take advantage of every opportunity that came his way. Four years later, that positive approach is still evident.

"As a senior, you develop a sense of urgency. It comes from thinking about all the things you want or need to do before you leave," Bencan says. "I'm taking CompSci 4 now and 6 next semester, for example, because I think I will need them for whatever I do after Duke. And I'm kicking myself for not taking economics."

Bencan is equally busy outside the classroom. He is co-chair of the First-Year Advisory Council Board, which helps new students with all the choices they make their first year. And he's a strong supporter of the Greek system; in addition to serving as secretary and vice president of Alpha Tau Omega, he is a project head for Alpha Phi Omega, a nationally recognized service fraternity.

"Giving back is an important part of how I have been brought up," says Bencan, who started doing community service as soon as he arrived at Duke. "I try to be a positive influence, a positive change agent in everything I do."

Bencan, who misses his cats and dogs, gets his pet fix by volunteering at the Durham Animal Shelter. He also tutors Durham residents who have made bad choices in life, such as abusing drugs or alcohol or, frequently, committing crimes that result in jail sentences.

David Rabiner, a senior research scientist specializing in attention problems on student achievement and director of undergraduate studies, influenced him, Bencan says. Rabiner inspired him to work through the Community Outreach Program for Education at Oak Grove Elementary with children in kindergarten through second grade who have psychiatric disorders.

"As someone interested in psychology, you see that we have a special opportunity when we work with young people," Bencan says. "You get immediate positive feedback when after a one hour session a kid gets a new math concept."

Bencan's interests in the classroom are as varied as his outside activities. The aspiring psychologist is interested in leadership development, and recalls what public policy professor Tony Brown said on this topic during class: "Leadership is the process of collective, group accomplishment." Bencan agrees, adding that Brown is "unbelievably good. His leadership development class is really about personal development, attributes, values, obligations; he makes you really delve into yourself."

Bencan is also the co-author of a published research paper in neuroscience. The paper reports that nicotine, which has an antidepressant effect in humans, appears to make zebrafish less anxious. Zebrafish exposed to nicotine tend to swim at the top of the tank; other fish tend to be anxious and swim at the bottom of the tank. Bencan was the paper's second author to Edward Levin, professor of biological psychiatry, in whose lab he has worked for three years. His senior thesis extends his study of the effects of nicotine in zebrafish to include other drugs.

Bencan says he applied to a dozen schools, but Duke was the early leader. "When I first visited Duke, I felt comfortable almost immediately -- like I belonged there. That feeling has only been accentuated over my four years, and I think of Duke and Durham as home.

"It was a big thing for me to be able to walk about outdoors and not be trudging through snow to go to class," said Bencan, who grew up in a suburb a half hour from Philadelphia.

"I see Duke and Durham as the perfect fit, not a super huge school or a super big city," he says. "And the policy of putting all first-year students on the East Campus is a great idea. The tightest bonds you have are with the friends you made as freshmen."

"The reasons for choosing Duke, are the same reasons for loving it -- all the opportunities in the world, and feeling like you're at home," he says.