Kearns Center to Host 33rd Annual Summer Research Symposium
Please join the David T. Kearns Center for Leadership and Student Success as we celebrate the achievements of this year’s summer research scholars at the 33rd annual Kearns Summer Research Symposium.
The Symposium—which will take place over two days this year: Wednesday, July 30 and Thursday, July 31, 2025—will include an opening day with speakers and poster presentations, and a departmental day where scholars will have the chance to deliver oral presentations.
For over 30 years the David T. Kearns Center has hosted the research symposium to celebrate the achievements of hundreds of incredible research scholars who spend the summer engaged in groundbreaking research at the University of Rochester. This summer, the Kearns Center has welcomed nearly 40 students to campus who are participating in the Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement Program or Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Programs in nanophotonics, quantum photonics and vision/biomedical optics, and physics and astronomy. The scholars participating in these programs come from both the University of Rochester as well as other institutions across the country.
The symposium will resemble a conference style format, with poster sessions happening on Day 1 in Hirst Lounge, and oral presentations happening on Day 2 in breakout rooms inside Rush-Rhees Library, Bausch & Lomb Hall and Wegmans Hall.
Event Schedule
DAY 1: Wednesday, July 30
- 10:30-10:45 a.m.—Arrival and Sign-in (May Room and May Bridge)
- 10:45-11:15 a.m.—Welcome and Opening (May Room)
- 11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.—Panel Discussion (May Room)
- 12:15-1:30 p.m.—Break for Lunch (May Room)
- 1:45-3:15 p.m.—Poster presentations (Hirst Lounge)
- 3:15-3:30 p.m.—Day Close (May Room)
DAY 2: Thursday, July 31
- 8 a.m.—Day 2 begins at various campus locations (Hawkins-Carlson, Bausch & Lomb Hall and Wegmans Hall)
- 8 a.m.-2:45 p.m.—Parallel Oral Presentations – session 1 and 2 (start times will vary at Hawkins-Carlson, Bausch & Lomb Hall and Wegmans Hall)
- 2:45-3:45 p.m.—Closing Reception
The 33rd Annual Kearns Summer Research Symposium will also feature remarks from two keynote speakers on day one. Dr. Elaine Sia, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Excellence and Marissa Hendrickson, a 2023 graduate of the University of Rochester.
Dr. Sia has been in her role as Senior Vice Provost for Academic Excellence since January 2025, but is no stranger to the University of Rochester. Dr. Sia has been a member of the University for 25 years, serving as a professor in the Department of Biology and the associate dean of academic affairs for the School of Arts & Sciences and the Hajim School of Engineering & Applied Sciences. Marissa Hendrickson graduated from the University of Rochester in 2023 with a BA in psychology and minors in brain and cognitive science and biology. Most recently, Marissa has worked as a research assistant for a developmental psychology lab but will be leaving to pursue a PhD in Developmental Psychology at UC Davis.
The two-day Symposium will conclude with a reception in Welles-Brown Room, Rush Rhees Library. For more information or to request an accommodation please contact Samantha Branch or Melissa Raucci in the Kearns Center.
The event is listed on the University of Rochester calendar, so feel free to share it on social media or add it to your calendar!
2025 Research Project Titles and Program Participants
The full list of program participants and the names of their projects have been listed below. The students are listed in alphabetical order by first name.
Alicia Markovich
Title: Cross-Language Activation in DGS-German Bilinguals
Ashley Johnson
Title: Modeling Heat Conduction and Measuring Temperature at the Nanoscale with Upconverting Nanoparticles
Autumn Landwehr
Title: Measuring the Spatial Degree of Unpolarization
Benzir Raida
Title: Finding Optimal Interatomic Potential to Predict Debye Temperature
Carlos Alejandro Alvarado
Title: Modeling Spiral Interocular Lenses Using An Adaptive Optics System for Myopia Control
Carly Zubrzycki
Title: The Art of Protest
David Rios
Title: Measuring Dynamical Properties of Bipolar Outflows in the Low-Mass Protostellar System IC348MMS Using the NOEMA Interferometer
Denise Ivey
Title: Exploring Effects of Hyperinsulinemia on Insulin Signaling in PCOS Mice
Donovan Dyk
Title: Diagnosing Resonator Reflection Measurements with Electromagnetic Simulation
Edward Brown
Title: Configuration of QICK(Quantum Instrumentation Control Kit) for Control of Semiconductor Spin Qubits
Emilio Benitez Aguinaga
Title: Are Counter Rotations Tied to Environments and AGN?
Emma Schenker
Title: Osteoporosis Pre-Screening using Raman Spectroscopy
Eyüp Akın Togay
Title: Simulating Axion-Like Particle Detection from Core-Collapse Supernovae in the IceCube Neutrino Observatory
Faryal Shabir
Title: Fuzzy Matching: Linking Disparate Name Variants for Social Network Analysis in Kenya
Gadg Glover
Title: Fiber-to-Chip Fusion
Gioia Zincone
Title: Plan Quality Comparison for Online Adaptive Radiation Therapy of Prostate Cancer Patients
Guy Emrich
Title: Indians, Ghosts, and Maps: Making Borders and Performing Disappearance
Hifsa Qayyoom
Title: Qudit T1 Decay Dynamics
Jack Chen
Title: Exploring Harsh Parenting and Accuracy of Social Judgement Through the Hidden Talents Framework
Jessie Ledesma
Title: Designing an Optomechanical Device for Quantum Transduction
Jonathan Pulido
Title: Impact of Redox-Induced Coordination Number Change on the Redox Properties of Copper Complexes
Joseph Murphy
Title: Numerically Predicting and Tuning the Critical Temperature of Resistivity Saturation in Solid Metals
Kathalina Ramirez
Title: Development of an Ultrasound Imaging System to Estimate Mechanical Properties of Porcine Extensor Tendon Ex Vivo
Kayla Koo
Title: Do Prosecutors Respond to Fiscal Pressures from Local Governments?
Kellen Pollock
Title: Cross-Coupling in Suspended Silicon Nitride Waveguides
Kelsey Faranda
Title: Tracing Inequality: School Catchment Areas and Historical Redlining Maps in Rochester
Liany Fortunato Bran
Title: SKI: Skin Tone Identification
Matthew Goh
Title: Stabilizing Laser Cavity Length Against Unwanted Vibrations
Maya Benavidez
Title: In Vitro Localization of a Targeted Photosensitizer for Treating Head and Neck Cancer
Naima A. Petersen
Title: Pawprints on Love: The Bonds Connecting Couples and Their Pets
Nathan Hart
Title: Event-Based High Precision Eye-Tracking
Robert L. Scott
Title: A Multi-Readout Photonic Sensor for Rapid Diagnosis of Von Willebrand Deficiency
Sara Conti
Title: Modeling Sensitivity to Supernova Signals in an Upgrade of IceCube
Sejad Salah Al-Rubayie
Title: Overhead of Runtime checking for Indirect Array Out-of-Bounds Accesses
Taylor Porter
Title: Exploring Fluence in Laser Ablation
Taytum Nelson
Title: Low-Energy Cooling: Investigating the Efficiency of Indirect Evaporative Systems
Thomas Bouchard
Title: Structure of Two-Photon Entanglement at the Focus of a High Numerical-Aperture Lens
Ulizes Atlixqueno
Title: Introducing XRDReader for Automated Extraction and Library Generation of X‑Ray Diffraction Data from Scientific Literature
Yahel Grullon
Title: Peak Power Characterization of Ultrashort Pulse Optical Sources
