Please join us for the 32nd annual Kearns Summer Research Symposium which is scheduled for August 2, 2024 from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. in the Feldman Ballroom, Douglass Commons.

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 over 60 students to campus who are participating in the Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement Program or Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Programs in imaging in medicine and biology, nanophotonics, quantum photonics and vision/biomedical optics, chemistry research for medicine and energy, and physics and astronomy. CCI-REU and iScholars will also participate in the research symposium but will be presenting posters only. 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 oral presentations happening in breakout rooms inside Rush-Rhees Library and poster sessions happening in Feldman Ballroom. There will also be two panel discussions during the event, with each program nominating students to present on a panel with their colleagues, which will be followed by immediate feedback from a moderator and questions from the audience.

Event Schedule

• Panel discussions: 9:30-10:10 a.m. and 1:20-2:05 p.m., Feldman Ballroom
• Oral presentations: 10:25-11:25 a.m. and 2:20-3:15 p.m., breakout rooms, Rush-Rhees Library
• Poster sessions: 11:40 a.m.-12:40 p.m. and 3:25-4:25 p.m., Feldman Ballroom.
• Break for lunch: 12:40 p.m.

The 32nd Annual Kearns Summer Research Symposium will also feature remarks from a keynote speaker. Dr. Stephen Santa-Ramierez, an assistant professor in educational leadership and policy at the University at Buffalo, will open the program. Dr. Santa-Ramierez is a first-generation college graduate and a scholar-activist who has spent his professional career focusing on the ideological, historical, and structural inequalities that impact minoritized communities.

The program will conclude at 4:30 p.m. with closing remarks from Dr. Miguel Baique, director of the David T. Kearns Center. 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!

The full list of program participants and the names of their projects have been listed below. The research projects are grouped by program and are listed how they will appear in the event program.

This page will be updated regularly. Please check back for updates.

Research Project Titles and Program Participants

Laser Modification of Si Surface for Area-Selective Atomic Layer Deposition Applications

Andrew Saulsbury, Mentor: Alexander Shestopalov (Chemistry)

Self-Assembly and Hydrogelation of Sulfur-Containing Amino Acids

Della Evans, Mentor: Bradley Nilsson (Chemistry)

Impact of Composition and Surface Chemistry on the Ability of Ternary Cobalt Spinel Oxides to Photodegrade a Model Pollutant

Jimmy Heath, Mentor: Kathryn E. Knowles (Chemistry)

Analysis of Thermal Expansion in Crystal Structures Using Variable-Temperature Low-Frequency Vibrational Spectroscopy

Josephine Hastings, Mentor: Michael Ruggiero (Chemistry)

Facilitating Redox Reactivity with Hydrogen Peroxide at Zr(IV) Through a Lindqvist Polyoxovanadate Support

Kinsey Clark, Mentor: Ellen Matson (Chemistry)

Exploring the Vibrational Modes and Reorganization Energy of Organic Dyes in Solar Cells Using Raman Spectroscopy

Krishangee Bez, Mentor: David McCamant (Chemistry)

Measuring Adsorption Enthalpies of PFOS and Organics on Carbon Fiber Paper

Leah Coffey, Mentor: Astrid M. Müller (Chemistry)

Preparation and C-C Activation of Octaphenylcubane

Nathan Venegas, Mentor: Ignacio Camarero Temino-Bill Jones (Chemistry)

Synthesis and Characterization of Temperature-Sensitive Redox-Active Dinuclear Complexes

Samantha Andes, Mentor: Agnes Thorarinsdottir (Chemistry)

Inhibiting Crystallin Aggregation via Amphiphilic Dendrons

Tess Anthony, Mentor: Benjamin Partridge (Chemistry)

Pd-Catalyzed Heteroannulation of Linear Vinylogous Amine Ambiphiles

Wesley Gibson, Mentor: Shauna M. Paradine (Chemistry)

3D Blood Volume Reconstruction: Ultrasound Studies in Phantom Models and Mice

Alex Gandy, Mentor: Marvin Doyley (ECE)

3D Blood Volume Reconstruction: Ultrasound Studies in Phantom Models and Mice

Alexandro Balarezo, Mentor: Marvin Doyley (ECE)

Analysis of Vessel Pulsation Using FlowSAM-based Segmentation Tracking

Ann-Rita Nanyunja, Mentor: Jiebo Luo (ECE)

Analysis of Vessel Pulsation Using FlowSAM-based Segmentation Tracking

Christiana Murph, Mentor: Jiebo Luo (ECE)

Developing An Experimental Platform To Test Combined Ultrasound And Optical Imager For Breast Cancer

Devin Johnson, Mentor: Regine Choe (ECE)

Ultrasound-Tomography-Guided Nanodroplet Activation for Image-Guided Targeted Drug Delivery

Ismerai Gonzalez, Mentor: Mohammad Mehrmohammadi (ECE)

Assessing Mouse Model Behavior through Machine Learning Techniques

London Paige, Mentor: Julian Meeks (ECE)

Reconstruction Techniques to Improve Ultrasound Tomography Image Quality

Maria Camila Gonzalez Garcia, Mentor: Trevor Mitchman (ECE)

Exploration of Autoencoder-based Side-channel Attacks

Omar Khalil, Mentor: Selcuk Kose (ECE)

Hydrosilylation Reactivity of Anionic Nickel (0) Complexes Supported by Bidentate Pyridonate Ligands

Jessica Navarro Vega, Mentor: Rose C. Kennedy (iScholar)

Physics Informed Tensor Train Structures for the Efficient Simulation of Open Quantum Dynamics

Juan Camilo Rodriguez Betancourt, Mentor: Ignacio Franco (iScholar)

Spatial Coherence Delocalization in a Dual Cavity System

Rittik Mandal, Mentor: Pengfei (Frank) Huo (iScholar)

Synthesis and Characterization of Mixed Metal-Organic Frameworks

Sheeza Fatima, Mentor: Brandon R. Barnett (iScholar)

Terahertz Time Domain Spectroscopy

Zeus Chavez, Mentor: Michael Ruggiero (iScholar)

2nd Order Correlation Measurement of Single Photons Over ROQnet

Mariano Alcalde, Mentor: Nick Vamivakas (CCI REU)

Synthesis of Aryldithiocarbamate Ligands with Metal Catalysts Attached

Wesley Alabastro, Mentor: Bill Jones (CCI REU)

Testing HOPE Datacom Chips to Measure Loss, Interference, and Quantum Efficiency

Emily DeVeyra, Mentor: Jaime Cardenas (McNair)

Characterization of Glial Progenitor Cell Age on Engraftment, and Spike-in Tumorigenicity

Emma Gemberling, Mentor: Lisa Zou (McNair)

Identification of Golgi Autophagy Receptors Fission Yeast

Icesis L. Hinkson-Serrano, Mentor: Ning Wang (McNair)

Understanding Skin Tone Identification in Puerto Rican Children

Jaydee Ortez, Mentor: Isobel Heck (McNair)

Validation and Evaluation of XSensor Insoles to Study Biomechanics of Walking

Kai Hua Liu, Mentor: Amy L. Lerner; Cherice Hill (McNair)

Generalized L^p Bounds on the Solution to the Wave Equation in R^3

Kelvin Nguyen, Mentor: Alex Iosevich (McNair)

Post-Shot Analysis of Debris of Diamond Anvil Cells at the OMEGA EP Laser Facility

Marvin Calderon, Mentor: Terry-Ann Suer (McNair)

Preclinical Imbalance and Auditory Sensitivities with Two Migraine Triggers

Najla Silmi, Mentor: Anne Luebke (McNair)

Is AI Capable of Creativity? An Anchor in the Snowball Effect

Nichole Taylor, Mentor: Joel Burges (McNair)

Womanhood From War: Identity, Femininity, and the Salvadoran Civil War

Paola Almendarez, Mentor: Vialcary Crisóstomo Tejada (McNair)

Accumulation of Microplastics and Microfibers in Xenopus laevis Tadpoles

Rosebell Onuma, Mentor: Jacques Robert (McNair)

Epigenetic Control of Erythropoiesis

Tima Yabar-Herrera, Mentor: Laurie Steiner (McNair)

Using Scene-Level Priming to Facilitate Perception and Recall of Events in Complex Naturalistic Narratives

Xiomara Ortiz Lopez, Mentor: Cǎtǎlin Iordan (McNair)

Responsibility, Entitlement, and Leadership: Investigating Children's Leadership Expectations

Yuliahnna Mendiola, Mentor: Isobel Heck (McNair) 

Controlling the Degree of Coherence in Quantum Ghost Imaging Systems

Alex Mavian, Mentor: Robert Boyd (Photonics)

Automation of Alignment of an Eye-tracker and a Large Screen Display

Alyssa Almekinder, Mentor: Jannick Rolland (Photonics)

Peak Power Analysis of Ultrashort Pulse Sources

Cailey Varnell, Mentor: William Renninger (Photonics)

Experimental Evidence of Supergrowth in Speckle

Christopher J. Ryan, Mentor: Nick Vamivakas (Photonics)

Substrate Self Alignment

James Kong, Mentor: Jaime Cardenas (Photonics)

Polarization Monitoring in Silicon Waveguides Using Optical Test Points

Jayvyn Dennis, Mentor: Thomas Brown (Photonics)

Dual Capture of Enzymatic Activity and Concentration for Enterokinase and Collagenase Using Photonic Sensors.

Katie E. Mann, Mentor: Benjamin L. Miller (Photonics)

Multi-Wavelength Imaging to Improve Bruise Contrast Across Skin Pigmentations

Katie Lee, Mentor: Andrew Berger and James M. Zavislan (Photonics)

Laser Heating in Metal Coatings and Gold Nanoparticle Plasmonics

Molly Cohan, Mentor: Andrea Pickel (Photonics)

Multi-Wavelength Imaging to Improve Bruise Contrast Across Skin Pigmentations

Nathan Campos, Mentor: Andrew Berger and James M. Zavislan (Photonics)

Self-Consistent Pseudopotential Method for Band Structure Calculations

Tan Kang, Mentor: Thomas G. Brown (Photonics)

Manipulating Chromatic Aberrations of the Eye through Spatial Light Modulators in an Adaptive Optics Visual Simulator

Veronica Masztalerz, Mentor: Susana Marcos (Photonics)

Automated Characterization of Nano-Photonic Cavities

Zahidul Zahin, Mentor: Pablo Postigo (Photonics)

Quantum Computing on Long Time Scales: Nuclear Spin States as a Quantum Memory

Aiden Karpf, Mentor: John Nichol (Physics and astronomy)

Detector Uncertainties for Neutrino Oscillation Model at DUNE Near Detector

Amber Krape, Mentor: Chris Marshall (Physics and astronomy)

Profiling Wavelength Shifting Fibers and Cosmic Events in the T2K's Super Fine Grained Detector

Ben Furst, Mentor: Kevin McFarland (Physics and astronomy)

Measuring Quantum States with High-Dimensional Spin Rotations

Carrel Moralez, Mentor: Machiel Blok (Physics and astronomy)

Automation of a Shearing Interferometer to Improve Electron Density Measurement Accuracy: Hardware Design

D'Ross Prince, Mentor: Pierre Gourdain (Physics and astronomy)

Measuring Rotation Curves of Spiral Galaxies with DESI

JJ Pimentel, Mentor: Kelly Douglass (Physics and astronomy)

Laser Frequency Stabilization Using Frequency Modulation (FM) Spectroscopy

Krist Ha, Mentor: Nicholas P. Bigelow (Physics and astronomy)

Using CAD with FLASH

Lars Pedersen, Mentor: Petros Tzeferacos (Physics and astronomy)

Parametrization of Fusion Characteristics

Odin Schor, Mentor: Sheth Nyibule (Physics and astronomy)

FLASH Simulations of Shocked Foams

Reid Pfaltzgraff-Carlson, Mentor: Petros Tzeferacos (Physics and astronomy)

Enhanced Shock Capturing for Nodal Radial Basis Functions

Samantha Conrow, Mentor: Pierre Gourdain (Physics and astronomy)

Classical Stochastic Analysis of Double Quantum Dots Coupled to Reservoirs

Samuel Azzarello, Mentor: Gabriel Landi (Physics and astronomy)

Sensitivty to Neutrino Mass Hierarchy at the IceCube Neutrino Observatory

Sanya Arora, Mentor: Segev BenZvi (Physics and astronomy)

Simulating a Glitch During the 2029 Apophis Encounter using a Viscoelastic Model

Stephen Heritage, Mentor: Alice Quillen (Physics and astronomy)

Testing Detectors for the Near-Earth Object Surveyor

Talia Senall, Mentor: Craig McMurtry (Physics and astronomy)

Automation of a shearing interferometer to improve e⁻ density measurement accuracy and precision: Controller Design

Taylor Madison Mae Williams, Mentor: Pierre A. Gourdain (Physics and astronomy)