2019-2020+Awardees

Undergraduate STEM Research Scholarship Program provides awards of up to $8,500 to rising juniors and seniors who are enrolled full-time in a program of study in science, technology, engineering, or math (STEM) and have a specific faculty-mentored research project that has NASA or aerospace relevance. Applied Health Sciences majors are not eligible for this program.

Graduate and undergraduate papers will be posted soon.

Matthew Anderson

Matthew Anderson is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is modeling and positonal control of asteroid-tethered spacecraft beyond synchrononous radius.

Laura Barry

Laura Barry is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. Her research topic is air pollution-ecosystem feedbacks: observational constraints on ozone-forest interactions from an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Luca Beale

Luca Beale is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is the gas content of low-mass dwarf galaxies as a probe of galaxy evolution.

Andrea Korell-Clark

Andrea Korell-Clark is a Ph. D. candidate at Old Dominion University. Her research topic is folding of the intrinsically disordered Par-4 tumor suppressor under native and extreme conditions.

Brian Collister

Brian Collister is a
Ph. D. candidate at Old Dominion University. His research topic is remote sensing of marine particle properties using shipboard oceanographic Lidar.

Savannah Cuozzo

Savannah Cuozzo is a Ph. D. candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is quantum enhanced sensors for space applications.

Mary Angelique Demetillo

Mary Angelique Demetillo is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. Her research topic is assessing air pollutant exposure inequality using high-resolution nitrogen dioxode datasets.

Molly Finn

Molly Finn is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. Her research topic is environmental conditions of globular cluster formation.

Justin Garland

Justin Garland is a
Ph. D. candidate at Hampton University. His research topic is the polar atmospheric dynamics of Jupiter and Saturn.

Patrina Highsmith

Patrina Highsmith is a Masters candidate at Hampton University. Her research topic is the differentiating between cloud shadow and inundated land using VIIRS data.

Luke Huelsenbeck

Luke Huelsenbeck is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is thin film metal organic frameworks for membrane applications.

Ryan Katona

Ryan Katona is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is the atmospheric corrosion of stainless steels at elevated chloride and tempratures.

Christopher Krier

Christopher Krier is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is diagnosing the seasonal variability of upward-propagating, non-migrating diurnal tides.

Elizabeth Mack

Elizabeth Mack is a
Ph. D. student at Virginia Tech. Her research topic is screen-stream vane development and validation.

Renato Mazzei

Renato Mazzei is a
Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia.  His research topic is the role of magnetic fields in star formation from cloud to disk scales.

Patrick McArdle

Patrick McArdle is a
Ph. D. student at The College of William and Mary. His research topic is infrared properties of recluse spider silk strands.

David Payette

David Payette is a Ph. D. candidate at Old Dominion University. His research topic is the structure of the smallest building blocks of matter by using a particle dector.

Nikunjkumar Prajapati

Nikunjkumar Prajapati is a Ph. D. candidate at The College of William and Mary. His research topic is trace gas detection enhancement with the use of raman absorption on squeezed light.

Daniel Rau

Daniel Rau is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is hybrid additive manufacturing of multi-functional components for space applications from polyimide and conductive materials.

Steven Roberts

Steven Roberts is a
Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is practical multirate time integration methods.

Michelle Rodio

Michelle Rodio is a
Ph. D. candidate at Old Dominion University. Her research topic is the simulation of sound absorption by scattering bodies treated with acoustic liners using a time-domain boundary element method.

Margaret Rooney

Margaret Rooney is a Ph. D. candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is machine learning, signal identification, and signal classification to infer network processes.

Daniel Schmidt

Daniel Schmidt is a
Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is the implications of Hadley Cell expansion for North American drought.

Yasaman Setayeshpour

Yasaman Setayeshpour is a Masters candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is the biology of robustness: the role of SUMO in protecting cells against stress.

Rebecca Skelton

Rebecca Skelton is
Ph. D. candidate at the Univeristy of Virginia. Her research topic is the analysis of galvanic coupling between stainless steel and aluminum alloys in fastener/plate configurations.

Austin Tapp

Austin Tapp is a Ph. D. candidate at Old Dominion University. His research topic is modeling and simulation of pulsed electromagnetic fields to maintain bone mass during prolonged low gravity exposure.

Andrew Taylor

Andrew Taylor is a Masters candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is white dwarf gravitational waves.

Edem Tetteh

Edem Tetteh is a Ph. D. candidate at the Univerisity of Virginia. His research topic is ice adhesion measurement for various materials and conditions.

John Tomko

John Tomko is a Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is laser-based additive manufacturing for rapid microelectronic fabrication.

Katherine Mott-Wagner

Katherine Mott-Wagner is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. Her research topic is model-based design optimization of disaggregated satellite constellations.

Talia Weiss

Talia Weiss is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. Her research topic is the mechanisms of interfacial locomotion in the Indian Skipper Frog.

Robert Wilson

Robert Wilson is a
Ph. D. candidate at the University of Virginia. His research topic is a pilot study for an economical exoplanet characterization survey

Kaleigh Yost

Kaleigh Yost is a Ph. D. candidate at Virginia Tech. Her research topic is characterizing near-surface geologic profiles.

Zackory Biggers

Zackory Biggers is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is design and evaluation of spatial awareness enhancing system.

Ivana Daniels

Ivana Daniels is a Bachelors candidate at the University of Virginia. Her research topic is: Does Chlamydial LspA function the same as Pseudomonas LspA?

Lance De Koninck

Lance De Koninck is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is transpiration-powered water harvesting.

Lydia Dolvin

Lydia Dolvin is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is laboratory studies of atmospheric brown carbon lifetimes: photolyzing chromophore and secondary organic aerosols in the dry phase.

Gregory Hubbard

Gregory Hubbard is a Bachelors candidate at Old Dominion University. His research topic is costal industrial regions and atmospheric conditions.

Kelly Kopera

Kelly Kopera is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is investigating the electron transfer kinetics of Eosin Y on TiO2 using single molecule spectroscopy.

Jacob Kramer

Jacob Kramer is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech. His research topic is the validation of the REDD instrument for neutral wind testing.

Thomas Laverghetta

Thomas Laverghetta is a Bachelors candidate at Old Dominion University. His research topic is applying autonomous T & E framework.

Brianna Peterson

Brianna Peterson is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary. Her research topic is hindcasting the recruitment of a keystone species following a coast-wide disease outbreak against stress.

Justine Schulte

Justine Schulte is a Bachelors candidate at the University of Virginia. Her research topic is elucidating the contribution of crack-tip oxidation to the high temperature fatigue cracking of nickel-base superalloys.

Diego Terrones

Diego Terrones is a Bachelors candidate at Old Dominion Unviersity. His research topic is employing dielectrophoretic (DEP) forces in the synthesis of ice-templated porous ceramics and understanding the structure-property relationships for lightweight materials design.

Kenneth Bittner

Kenneth Bittner is an Associates candidate at John Tyler Community College majoring in Engineering.

Steven Dollyhite

Steven Dollyhite is an Associates candidate at Central Virginia Community College majoring in Engineering.

Jena Essary

Jena Essary is an Associates candidate at Tidewater Community College majoring in Computer Science..

Sophia Keniston

Sophia Keniston is an Associates candidate at Piedmont Virginia Community College majoring in Engineering.

Trevor Mushung

Trevor Mushung is an Associates candidate at Germanna Community College majoring in Mechanical Engineering.

Henok Abiey

Henok Abiey is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Aerospace Engineering.

Daniel Alex

Daniel Alex is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Aerospace Engineering.

Agota Banks

Agota Banks is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Biological Sciences.

Daniel Burdisso

Daniel Burdisso is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Computer Science.

Riya Dani

Riya Dani is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Computer Science.

Raymond Daniels

Raymond Daniels is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Electrical Engineering.

Donnell Debnam Jr.

Donnell Debnam Jr is a Bachelors candidate at Hampton University majoring in Computer Science.

Alvaro Delgado

Alvaro Delgado is a Bachelors candidate at University of Virginia majoring in Aerospace Engineering.

Kyle Ebanks

Kyle Ebanks is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Mechanical Engineer.

Surabhi Ghatti

Surabhi Ghatti is a Bachelors candidate at University of Virginia majoring in Biomedical Engineering.

La’Zshane’ Hoskins

La’Zshane’ Hoskins is a Bachelors candidate at Hampton University majoring in Computer Science Cybersecurity.

Taiana James

Taiana James is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary majoring in Neuroscience.

Kieran Koch

Kieran Koch is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Aerospace Engineering.

Tahjere Lewis

Tahjere Lewis is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Computational Modeling and Data Analytics.

Gabriel Mallari

Gabriel Mallari is a Bachelors candidate at the University of Virginia majoring in Computer Engineering.

Ricardo Marin Jr.

Ricardo Marin Jr is a Bachelors candidate at the University of Virginia majoring in Computer Science.

Tijae McNeal

Tijae McNeal is a Bachelors candidate at Old Dominion University majoring in Civil Engineering.

Nala Miller

Nala Miller is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Computaional Modeling and Data Analytics.

Chinedu Okafo

Chinedu Okafo is a Bachelors candidate at Old Dominion University majoring in Mechanical/Aerospace Engineering.

Kayla Patterson

Kayla Patterson is a Bachelors candidate at Hampton University majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Mathematics.

Dominic Pinnisi

Dominic Pinnisi is a Bachelors candidate at the University of Virginia majoring in Aerospace Engineering and Physics.

Brenda Riley

Brenna Riley is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in General Engineering.

Anna Towler

Anna Towler is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary majoring in Chemistry and Environmental Science and Policy.

Amanda Wyche

Amanda Wyche is a Bachelors candidate at Virginia Tech majoring in Mining and Minerals Engineering.

Georgina Yeboah

Georgina Yeboah is a Bachelors candidate at The College of William and Mary majoring in Neuroscience.

Student Research Conference

The 2019 VSGC Student Research Conference was held at Hampton University and featured oral presentations from the 2018 Graduate Fellows and poster sessions from Undergraduate Research Scholars.

The 2020 conference will be held on April 17 and hosted by Virginia Tech in Hampton, Virginia.