{"id":46409,"date":"2025-04-18T10:57:44","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T14:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/?p=46409"},"modified":"2025-08-26T16:24:23","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T20:24:23","slug":"student-presenters-awarded-at-umss25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/2025\/04\/18\/student-presenters-awarded-at-umss25\/","title":{"rendered":"Student Presenters Awarded at UMSS25"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More than 1,500 student researchers, co-authors, faculty, staff, event sponsors, and community members attended the 2025 91르적 Student Symposium, held at the New Balance Field House on Friday, April 11, 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tenth annual symposium provided an opportunity for the public to interact with student researchers and scholars as they viewed posters and exhibits presented by 91르적 students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over 430 projects were submitted to the annual event, which was free and open to the public. The symposium was organized and co-hosted by the Center for Undergraduate Research (CUGR), Student Government, and the Graduate Student Government as part of Maine Impact Week. Supported and sponsored by the office of the vice president for research and dean of the graduate school, this event brings graduate and Undergraduate students together for a day of technical exchange. Additional sponsorships were received from Maine Technology Institute (MTI), Versant, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Northern Light Health, IEEE, Maine College of Engineering and Computing, President Joan Ferrini-Mundy and Rick Mundy, 4Imprint, Hannaford Supermarkets, New Life Scientific, MaineHealth Institute of Research, Rhode Island Restoration, Specialty Products and Insulation (SPI), Texas Instruments, Fyzical Therapy and Balance Centers Twin City Bangor, Maine Lobster Now, Inclinator Company of America, 454 – 465 Piermont Ave, LLC, and Sitelines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UMSS awards include an undergraduate and graduate winner for each of the ten UMSS academic categories, all of whom receive a medal and $500 cash prize. Congratulations to all the recipients for your excellent work!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Special Awards<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dean of Graduate School Undergraduate Mentoring Award \u2013 <\/strong> Liza White, Biomedical Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3-Minute Thesis, First Place<\/strong> – Allie Conner, Microbiology
3-Minute Thesis, Second Place<\/strong> – Mandana Askarizadeh, Biomedical Sciences
3-Minute Thesis, People\u2019s Choice<\/strong> – Ehasn Ullah Sardar, Chemical Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bruce and Joanne Fournier Award<\/strong> – Rakibul Hossain, \u201cDeveloping Mineral-added Wood Fiber-based Wallboard Panels with Enhanced Fire Resistance and Mechanical Strength,\u201d advised by Mehdi Tajvidi<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan J. Hunter Undergraduate Award:<\/strong> Brigid Mrenna, \u201cTesting How Plant Traits Predict Survival of Northeastern U.S. Tree Seedlings Under Compound Heat and Drought Stress,\u201d advised by Jay Wason III<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan J. Hunter Graduate Award:<\/strong> Liza White, \u201cEngineered Textured Surfaces: Scalable Solutions for Next Generation Technology,\u201d advised by Caitlin Howell<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UMSS25 Undergraduate Category Awards<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  • Allied Health<\/strong>: Hannah Maker, Olivia Pelkey, Katherine Darling, \u201cDowneast Population Health Initiative,\u201d advised by Jordan Porter<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Arts<\/strong>: Emily Voight, Shelby Philips, Cec\u00edlia Andrade, Grace Carlson, Nnenaya Lewis, Sean Schweizer, Grace Philips, \u201cDrowning in Air,\u201d advised by Alexis Foster<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Biomedical Sciences:<\/strong> Emily Ledue, Samuel Kovacs, Annika Savage, Noah Adelman, Esther Biro, Gabriella Giftos, Julia Coombs, Mia Corradi, Veronica Doyle, Ashley Geydoshek, Vejune Griciute, Riley Jerome, Meagan Libby, Franklin Libby, Isaac Mains, Andrew Melanson, Randi Phillips, Mary Kate Pons, Alexandra Ruff, Mason Soares, Justin Solomon, \u201cInhibiting \u03b1-Galactosidase from Saccharomyces pastorianus A Comprehensive Analysis,\u201d advised by Jennifer Newell-Caito<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Business:<\/strong> Lucas Ronco, Cooper Williams, Brianna Townsend, Nicholas Swim, Rusty Stough, \u201cCompetitive Balance? Examining Division I Women\u2019s Basketball and Soccer,\u201d advised by Nicholas Swim<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Education:<\/strong> Matthew Patterson, \u201cOur ClassXRoom: A New Dimension in Active Learning,\u201d advised by Justin Dimmel<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Engineering and Information Sciences:<\/strong> Ozwin Cordes, Octavian Anghel, Joseph Binette, Kobe Chasse, Aidan Bradley, \u201cBlockchain-based Secure Sensor Data Tracking for Industrial and IoT Applications,\u201d advised by Laura Gurney<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Interdisciplinary Research: <\/strong>Erica Cunningham, \u201cEffects of Naval Sonar on Common Bottlenose Dolphins,\u201d advised by William Ellis<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Natural Sciences:<\/strong> Faith Flynn, Allie Andersen, \u201cThe Gulf of Maine Pelagic Parasite Survey,\u201d advised by Ian Bricknell<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Physical and Mathematical Sciences:<\/strong> Ryan Allen, \u201cModeling the Mechanics of Avian Breeding and Migration,\u201d advised by Jane Wang<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Social Sciences and Humanities:<\/strong> Miles Jones, \u201cThe Lewiston Effect: A Social Media Analysis of Gun Control Sentiment in Maine,\u201d advised by Asif Nawaz<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    UMSS25 Graduate Category Awards<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    • Allied Health: <\/strong>Kristie Spaulding, \u201cEvaluating the Effectiveness of Workplace Violence Prevention Programs in Primary Care,\u201d advised by Colleen Marzilli<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Arts:<\/strong> Matthew Liderbach, \u201cLotus Operandi,\u201d advised by Susan Smith<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Biomedical Sciences:<\/strong> Carolina Cora, Breanna Page, Ryan Reno, James Reilly, Wadak Harbi, Vlada Chekirka, Christian Potts, Mary Weatherbee, Joanne T. deKay, Juan Aristizabal-Henao, Michael A. Kiebish, David Gagnon, Richard Riker, Teresa L. May, Sergey Ryzhov, Douglas B. Sawyer, David B. Seder I, \u201cBrown Adipose Tissue Activation and Inflammatory Modulation in Post-Cardiac Arrest Recovery,\u201d advised by Matthew Lynes<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Business:<\/strong> N\/A<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Education:<\/strong> Holly White, Alyssa Arscott, Katharine J. Ruskin, Debra M. Allen, Alison Jolley, \u201cBuilding Belonging in First Year Students Through Research Learning Experiences,\u201d advised by Katharine Ruskin<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Engineering and Information Sciences:<\/strong> Erfan Najaf, Eric Landis, \u201cReducing Cracks in Concrete Bridges Using Cellulose Nanofibrils (CNF),\u201d advised by Eric Landis<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Interdisciplinary Research: <\/strong>Melissa Godin, Caroline Noblet, \u201cGeospatial Integration of PFAS Survey Data,\u201d advised by Caroline Noblet<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Natural Sciences:<\/strong> Nichole Blackmer, Kyle Brennan, Erin Grey, \u201cA Transcriptomic Analysis of the Adult Atlantic Sea Scallop (Placopecten magellanicus ) in Response to Bacterial Challenges,\u201d advised by Timothy Bowden<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Physical and Mathematical Sciences:<\/strong> Tahi Wiggins, Kristin M. Schild, Martin Truffer, \u201cSurface Water Dynamics at Echo Glacier, Ling\u00edt Aan\u00ed,\u201d advised by Seth Campbell<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Social Sciences and Humanities:<\/strong> Muhammad Hamza Imran, Katherine Simmons, \u201cCo-Designing Microgrids for Energy Justice: A Literature Review Analysis of Best Practices, Barriers, and Pathways for Underserved Communities,\u201d advised by Sharon Klein<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      More than 1,500 student researchers, co-authors, faculty, staff, event sponsors, and community members attended the 2025 91르적 Student Symposium, held at the New Balance Field House on Friday, April 11, 2025.  The tenth annual symposium provided an opportunity for the public to interact with student researchers and scholars as they viewed posters and exhibits presented […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":206,"featured_media":46416,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","spc_primary_category":15},"categories":[14,47,15,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46409","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-announcement","category-awards","category-news","category-uncategorized"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":14,"label":"Announcement"},{"value":47,"label":"Awards"},{"value":15,"label":"News"},{"value":1,"label":"Uncategorized"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/458\/2025\/04\/041125_RL_DSC00211-1024x683.jpg",1024,683,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Deanna","author_link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/author\/djordan\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":14,"name":"Announcement","slug":"announcement","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":14,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":12,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":14,"category_count":12,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Announcement","category_nicename":"announcement","category_parent":0},{"term_id":47,"name":"Awards","slug":"awards","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":47,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":6,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":47,"category_count":6,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Awards","category_nicename":"awards","category_parent":0},{"term_id":15,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":15,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":16,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":15,"category_count":16,"category_description":"","cat_name":"News","category_nicename":"news","category_parent":0},{"term_id":1,"name":"Uncategorized","slug":"uncategorized","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":4,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1,"category_count":4,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Uncategorized","category_nicename":"uncategorized","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/206"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46409"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46409\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46533,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46409\/revisions\/46533"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/umss\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}