The University of Arkansas wrapped up another successful summer of undergraduate research in August, as 86 students from across the nation completed intensive 10-week research experiences through the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates program.

This opportunity, designed to immerse undergraduate students in cutting-edge STEM research alongside faculty mentors, concluded with a public poster fair where participants presented their findings to the campus and local community. Students worked directly with U of A faculty members conducting NSF-funded research across multiple disciplines, gaining hands-on experience in everything from interdisciplinary studies to education research.

The program's impact extends beyond the summer experience itself: three-quarters of participating students reported increased interest in pursuing graduate studies at the U of A.

"This program represents exactly what we hope to achieve in undergraduate research — providing students with meaningful opportunities to contribute to scientific discovery while building the next generation of researchers," said Margaret McCabe, vice chancellor of research and innovation, who welcomed the cohort at the program's opening ceremony.

BEYOND THE LABORATORY

The experience extended beyond traditional research activities. Students participated in a carefully curated series of professional development sessions and cultural experiences designed to provide a holistic view of academic life and the local community in Arkansas.

Several successful alumni who have leveraged their Arkansas education into diverse career paths shared insights about the advantages of graduate school and demonstrated the varied career trajectories available to Arkansas graduates, from academic research to industry innovation and entrepreneurship.

RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS BY PROGRAM

The following students completed research experiences across various disciplines:

Biomedical Engineering with Timothy Muldoon

• Ashley Daughety (Faculty mentor: Kartik Balachandran)
• Dylan Derewonko (Faculty mentor: Rebekah Samsonraj)
• Drew Hoeldtke (Faculty mentor: Megan Rexius)
• Kayley Hubbard (Faculty mentor: Leonard Harris)
• Chloe Krueger (Faculty mentor: Chris Nelson)
• Johnny Taylor (Faculty mentor: Jeff Wolchok)
• Bryleigh Wickham (Faculty mentor: Jian Zhang)

Chemical Engineering with Ranil Wickramasinghe

• Felipe Andrade (Faculty mentor: Karthik Nayani)
• Cooper Chiddister (Faculty mentor: Bob Beitle)
• Tyler Coulson (Faculty mentor: Megan Rexius)
• Angela Deneke (Faculty mentor: Karthik Nayani)
• Hai Lam Huynh (Faculty mentor: Wen Zhang)
• Finn Jones (Faculty mentors: Xianghong Qian and Ranil Wickramasinghe)
• Lachan Morlan (Faculty mentor: Chidambaram Thamaraiselvan)
• Joshua Reid (Faculty mentors: Xianghong Qian and Ranil Wickramasinghe)
• Barbara Serrano-Acosta (Faculty mentor: Christa Hestekin)
• Aroshe Wickramasinghe (Faculty mentor: Jacob Monroe)
• Ash Wood (Faculty mentor: Andy Wang)

Chemistry and Biochemistry with Jingyi Chen and Feng Wang

• Chase Aubin (Faculty mentor: Robert Coridan)
• Cristian Del Gobbo (Faculty mentor: Yong Wang)
• Andres Garza (Faculty mentor: Stefan Kilyanek)
• Connor Goodson (Faculty mentor: Suresh Thallapuranam Kumar)
• Kaamia Harris (Faculty mentor: Julie Stenken)
• Colin Julian (Faculty mentor: Bin Dong)
• Elise Knight (Faculty mentor: Feng Wang)
• Jonathan Lora (Faculty mentor: Michael McGraw)
• Samuel Paez (Faculty mentor: Narasimhan Rajaram)
• Megan Riffe (Faculty mentor: Jingyi Chen)
• Sally Santillan (Faculty mentor: Paul Adams)
• Tristen Warner (Faculty mentor: Susanne Striegler)
• Marina Wilson (Faculty mentor: Nan Zheng)

Ecology with Michelle Evans White and Sarah Durant

• Salvador Barazza Delbarco (Faculty mentor: Sarah DuRant)
• Ruben Jimenez (Faculty mentor: J.D. Willson)
• Austin Kaplan (Faculty mentor: Neel Joshi)
• Kirsten Kierum (Faculty mentor: Jennifer Ogle)
• Christian Machen (Faculty mentor: Mitchell Pruitt)
• Lindsey Maurer (Faculty mentor: Erica Westerman)
• Delilah Nguyen (Faculty mentor: Caleb Roberts)
• Courtney Norwood (Faculty mentor: Wen Zhang)
• Cale Prosen (Faculty mentor: Michelle Evans White)
• Lillian Ruesink (Faculty mentor: Erica Westerman)
• Vansh Singhal (Faculty mentor: Sarah DuRant)
• Kalen Strunk (Faculty mentor: Shannon Speir)
• Kohl Thomas (Faculty mentor: Sarah DuRant)
• Vien Tran (Faculty mentor: Natalie Clay)

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science with Karin Alvarado

• Youssef Ali Ahmed (Faculty mentor: Alan Mantooth)
• William Bowles (Faculty mentor: Alan Mantooth)
• Jared Galindo Hernandez (Faculty mentor: Alan Mantooth)
• Jacob McNutt (Faculty mentor: Alan Mantooth)

Entomology and Plant Pathology with Rupesh Kariyat and Joanna Kud

• Chrystalee Alvarez (Faculty mentor: Adnan Alrubaye)
• Katelyn Cavazos (Faculty mentor: Tomi Obe)
• Allen Garza (Faculty mentor: Mahfuz Rahman)
• Angel Jose (Faculty mentor: Rupesh Kariyat)
• Juan Valencia Magallon (Faculty mentor: Rupesh Kariyat)
• Daria Rochowska (Faculty mentor: Joanna Kud)
• Palina Smolskaya (Faculty mentor: Martin Egan)
• Rosaelba Soto Robles (Faculty mentor: Ioannis Tzanetakis)

Food Science with Kristen Gibson

• Deborah (Lainie) Crouch (Faculty mentor: Jamie Baum)
• Semaj Givens (Faculty mentor: Griffiths Atungulu)
• Diamond Jones (Faculty mentor: Ali Ubeyitogullari)
• Skye Taylor (Faculty mentor: Renee Threlfall)
• Lauryn Tellis (Faculty mentor: Tomi Obe)
• Morgan Walkenhorst (Faculty mentor: Sun-Ok Lee)

Physics with Reeta Vyas

• Allison Avery (Faculty mentor: Surendra Singh)
• Joseph Buckingham (Faculty mentor: Huaxiang Fu)
• Tyler Cornwell (Faculty mentor: Yong Wang)
• Jackson Eames (Faculty mentor: Jiali Li)
• David Gordon (Faculty mentor: Yong Wang)
• Matthew Hassell (Faculty mentor: Woodrow Shew)
• Anna Hinkle (Faculty mentor: Jin Hu)
• Desiree Lawrence (Faculty mentor: Hugh Churchill)
• Miri Leonard (Faculty mentor: Hugh Churchill)
• Cameron Morelli (Faculty mentor: Salvador Barraza-Lopez)
• Royal Northen (Faculty mentor: Hugh Churchill)
• Luna May Richter (Faculty mentor: Jin Hu)
• Logan Scheiderer (Faculty mentor: Hiro Nakamura)

Sociology with Jeffrey Gruenewald

• Connor Atkinson (Faculty mentor: Jeff Gruenewald)
• Sooha Choi (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Erin Fick (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Bradleigh Graham (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Tobias Hersh (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Monserrat Jaimes (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Breanna Mathes (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Jessica Morse (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Jenna Panter (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)
• Elaine Zhu (Faculty mentor: Jeffrey Gruenewald)

With research opportunities spanning multiple NSF-funded projects and disciplines, the program demonstrates the breadth and depth of scholarly activity at the U of A, reinforcing its position as a leading research institution in the region.

For more information about summer undergraduate research opportunities at the U of A, visit reu.uark.edu.