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More than a dozen student scholars will gain important research experience this summer as part of the University’s Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship program. The SURF fellows, who represent each of the University’s academic colleges and schools, will be conducting research projects with the support of their faculty mentors.

The SURF program enables student researchers to gain hands-on experience conducting a research project of their choice within their field of study. The experience has been invaluable to students as they have continued their education and started their careers.

Previous SURF fellows, such as Hang Su ’23 and Nicole Stanaback ’23, have presented their research at prestigious conferences. Recipients of the University’s prestigious Bucknall Family Undergraduate Research or Experiential Learning Award include SURF alumni, such as Su and Alice Yi ’22, the inaugural recipient of the Bucknall student research award.

Below, learn more about the 2023 SURF fellows’ research projects.

Justine Valentino ’24, genetics & biotechnology major

Faculty mentor: Eva Sapi, Ph.D.

Project title: Investigation of Borrelia burgdorferi in Gynecological Cancer Tissues
“I want to be a cancer biologist,” said Valentino. “The SURF program will allow me to conduct research on how bacterial infections affect cancer development.”

Cody Velikaneye ’24, chemical engineering major

Faculty mentor: Huan Gu, Ph.D.
Project title: Biodegradation of Plastic Using Bacterial Biofilm

Lily Walsh ’24, psychology major

Faculty mentor: Amory Carr, Ph.D.
Project title: Role of Family Violence in Childhood on Criminal Thinking Styles in Adulthood

Bryan Cadavos ’24 genetics & biotechnology major

Faculty mentors: Chong Qiu, Ph.D., and Shue Wang, Ph.D.
Project title: Investigation of the Toxicity of Methylamine salts on Mammalian Cells

“Last semester, I worked under the mentorship of Dr. Shue Wang and learned how to cell passage and cell culture using HeLa cells,” said Cadavos. “This has helped me gain a better understanding of the process and why it is necessary within the scientific field. Through this, I could learn new lab techniques and incorporate my experiences in my academic classes and apply them to my studies. By conducting this research under the mentorship of Dr. Qiu and Dr. Wang, I hope to gain many skills to further hone my knowledge for the future. I expect to better understand how amine particles affect mammalian cells and back up my findings through yielded results. From the project, I will also be able to work on my communication skills to present my findings to peers and my mentor to show my understanding."

Asher Duke ’24, English major

Faculty mentor: Diane Russo, Ph.D.
Project title: Comic Books and Transmedia: A Historic Relationship

"I hope to complete the SURF program with guidance from my mentor, Dr. Diane Russo, to further hone my academic research skills and champion new exploration into the field of comics studies,” said Duke

Beatrice Glaviano ’26, nutrition sciences major

Faculty mentors: Jean-Paul Simjouw, Ph.D., and Christian Conroy, Ph.D.
Project title: The Estimated Concentration of Microplastics in Humans Due to the Consumption of (Dicentrarchus labrax) & Black Sea Bass (Centropristis striata)

"I hope to use my knowledge in nutrition to find a correlation between microplastics found in seafoods and their correlation to human nutritional health,” said Glaviano. “I also hope to shed light on the ever-growing matter of marine pollution in the modern-day world."

Hayat Khan ’25, chemistry major

Faculty mentor: Hao Sun, Ph.D.
Project title: Developing Polydopamine-Coated Glycogen Nanoparticles for Cancer Therapy

Kaylee Salazar ’24, English major

Faculty mentor: Mary Isbell, Ph.D.
Project title: Literature in the Age of the Internet and Algorithms: An Autoethnographic Study of TikTok’s Online Book Community

Nox Garner ’26, forensic science major

Faculty mentor: Alvin Tran, Sc.D., MPH
Project title: Predictors of Eating Disorders in a Novel Sample of College Students in the Northeast: A Cross-Sectional Analysis

“During my time in SURF, I hope to gain more insight and experience in research methods and a deeper knowledge of how to help different populations struggling with specific mental illnesses,” said Garner. “As someone with direct ties to the subject, I'm passionate about it and want to look more into indicators and warning signs that could aid someone in getting treatment.”

Gianna Cologna ’24, forensic science major

Faculty mentor: Pier Cirillo
Project title: Synthesis of a Library of Dibenzo-Azocine-Diones for General High-Throughput Screening

“I hope to gain more skills and knowledge in medicinal and organic chemistry and to gain experience in lab research,” said Cologna

Justin Caron ’24, chemical engineering major

Faculty mentor: Shue Wang, Ph.D.
Project title: Effects of Mechanical Compression on Collective Cell migration

Joshua Christensen ’25, forensic science major

Faculty mentor: Brooke Kammrath, Ph.D., D-ABC
Project title: Application of Particle Correlated Raman Spectroscopy (PCRS) for the forensic Examination of Soils

Riley Eagleson ’24, forensic science major

Faculty mentor: Josep de Alcaraz Fossoul, Ph.D.
Project title: Differentiation of Biological Sex by Color Coding (ULW) Latent Fingerprint Images