33 MCEC Undergraduate Students Awarded Research Fellowships

The University of Maine’s Center for Undergraduate Research (CUGR) has announced the 2024–25 academic year fellowship awardees, including several students from the Maine College of Engineering and Computing (MCEC). This year’s fellowships were made possible through support from CUGR, the Office of the Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School, Maine EPSCoR via a National Science Foundation award, the Experiential Programs Innovation Central (EPIC) program, and the UMaine Space Initiative with funding from a Maine Space Grant Consortium (MSGC) award. 

2024-25 Academic Year CUGR Research and Creative Activities Fellowship
To promote and expand undergraduate participation in faculty-supervised research. Each fellowship awards $3,000 per student to support project-related expenses.

• Emily Hammond, Biomedical Engineering, “Optimizing 3D Breast Cancer Heterospheroid Production To Enhance Diagnostics And Instrument Testing,” advised by Karissa Tilbury
• Paul Rudman, Biomedical Engineering, “Understanding CAUTI in a Maine VA Population,” advised by Caitlin Howell
• Zachary Scott, Computer Science, “Applying Mathematical Methods for Verifying Authorship to Texts Attributed to Virgil,” advised by Jane Wang

2024-25 Academic Year MSGC Research Experience
Supporting research opportunities in fields of aerospace technology, space science, human exploration and space development, Earth science, and other science or engineering disciplines. Proposed projects must align with NASA’s strategic priorities in Earth and space science. Each selected project will receive up to $3,000 in funding.

• Josiah Bloom, Mechanical Engineering, “Development and Testing of a Propulsion System for a Bladeless Drone,” advised by Ahmed Aboelezz
• Georgianna Borg, Electrical Engineering, “Determination Of A Satellite’s Orientation By Comparison Of Magnetometer Values, Solar Panel Voltages, and Transmitter Power,” advised by Ali Abedi
• William Cassidy, Biomedical Engineering, “Validation of Audible Time-Delay Spectroscopy for Assessment of Bone Health,” advised by Michael Mason
• Evan Chandler, Mechanical Engineering, “Testing of a Moving Bed Particle Heat Exchanger,” advised by Justin Lapp
• Declan Lally, Biomedical Engineering, “A Novel Classification Preprocessing for AI Segmentation Models in Digital Pathology,” advised by Andre Khalil
• Madison McCarthy, Chemical Engineering, “Interactions between nanobubbles, graphene, and pollutants for novel adsorption wastewater treatment methods,” advised by Onur Apul
• Michael Sabol, Electrical Engineering, “Memristor Creation and Characteristics,” advised by Rosemary Smith

2024-25 Academic Year EPIC Research and Creative Activities Fellowships
EPIC awardees will receive $3,000 to support project-related expenses. EPIC, an interdisciplinary program at UMaine, aims to provide immersive experiential learning through hands-on research, exposure to emerging technologies, and innovative problem-solving opportunities.

• Augustus Hoy, Mechanical Engineering, “Epitaxially Strained VO2 Thin Film Chemiresistive Sensor Technology,” advised by Nicholas Bingham
• Cadence Kluck, Biomedical Engineering, “Effect of Cross-Linking Agents On The Mechanical Properties Of Bioglass-Infused Cellulose Nanofiber Composites For Bone Tissue Regrowth,” advised by Michael Mason
• Hlib Kuzmenko, Mechanical Engineering, “Wake dynamics of porous discs due to their interactions with water droplets,” advised by Amrit Verma
• Shreyash Parajuli, Computer Science, “How Culture affects Privacy,” advised by Sepideh Ghanavati
• John Peters, Biomedical Engineering, “Unraveling The Secrets Of Viral Mutation In Patients To Predict Disease Outcomes,” advised by Michael Wilczek

2024-25 Academic Year NSF Research Fellowships
Recipients will be awarded $3,000 to cover expenses related to their proposed projects.

• Israk Ayasin, Computer Science, “Deploying the Uncertainty-Aware Safe Control Framework on a real robot,” advised by Vikas Dhiman
• Kylie Carrier, Civil Engineering, “The Effect of PFAS Contamination on the Brunswick Wastewater System,” advised by Jean MacRae
• Bradan Craig, Computer Science, “Machine Learning Model for Cellulose Nanofiber Coating Process,” advised by Caitlin Howell
• Lana Friess, Mechanical Engineering, “Evaluating En-Route Energy Saving for an Active Flow Control Enhanced Wind Propulsion Technology,” advised by Kewei Xu
• Conall Gouveia, Computer Science, “Three-Dimensional (3D) Printed Models Mimicking the X-ray Attenuation of Human Tissue and Anatomy,” advised by Terry Yoo
• Ryder Graham, Mechanical Engineering, “Analysis of High Temperature Heat Pump Integration in Pulp and Paper Mills,” advised by Justin Lapp
• Katherine Gross, Mechanical Engineering, “Assessing the Benefits of Radiative Cooling Paints for Saving Building Energy in Various U.S. Climate Zones,” advised by Sheila Edalatpour
• Zachary Hopp, Mechanical Engineering, “Fully bio-based, PFAS-free particle/binder as superhydrophobic materials on cellulose-based substrates,” advised by Xiaoxiao Zhao
• Claire Kelley, Computer Science, “Enhancing Food Palatability in Older Adults Through Multisensory Technology,” advised by Nimesha Ranasinghe
• Max Kruse, Mechanical Engineering, “Wave Tank Testing of Bottom Fixed Offshore Wind Turbines in Extreme Waves: Comparison of tower top motions of 15 MW system against 10 MW system,” advised by Amrit Verma
• Hiram Logston, Biomedical Engineering, “Evaluation Of MC3T3-Osteoblast Bioactivity On 3D Bioglass And Hydroxyapatite Nanocellulose Composite Scaffolds For Bone Tissue Regrowth,” advised by Michael Mason
• Jack Mason, Biomedical Engineering, “Development of a Physiological Analog for the Characterization of Diffusive Cellulose Based Hydrogels,” advised by Sarah Turner
• Noah Moring, Liam Hillery, Bryan Sturdivant, and Aiden McGlauflin; Computer Science, “VibeCheque: Enhancing Emotional Communication through AI-Powered Discord Bot,” advised by Gregory Nelson
• Skyler Morse, Biomedical Engineering, “Open Source Wavelet-based Segmentation Method in Python for Glioblastoma in MRI Scans,” advised by Andre Khalil
• Nicholas Partridge, Mechanical Engineering, “Aeroacoustics Experimental investigations Of Bioinspired Maple Seed Propellers,” advised by Ahmed Aboelezz
• Matthew Patterson, New Media, “Our ClassXRoom: A New Dimension in Active Learning,” advised by Justin Dimmel
• Evan Soucy, New Media, “Occupied Spaces,” advised by Aaron Boothroyd
• Johnny Sylvain, Computer Science, “Map it!: The Geolocation Of Published Franco-American Works,” advised by Susan Pinette

See a complete list of fellowship awardees.

Contact: Taylor Ward, taylor.ward@maine.edu