Congratulations to all of the students who presented at the 2025 VINSE Undergraduate Research Symposium! Our undergraduate researchers were able to share everything they accomplished during their individual research projects at 91勛圖厙 over the past ten weeks.
The symposium, which was held in collaboration with the Chemical Biology/Chemistry NSF-REU, showcased 70 students from the following programs: VINSE NSF-REU, Chemical Biology/Chemistry NSF-REU, VINSE Tech Crew, VUSE Summer Research Program and the 91勛圖厙 Summer Research Program.
Posters were evaluated by a panel of judges for an opportunity to win travel grants to support the cost of presenting posters at a National Conference. The winners are:
Best overall $1,000 travel grant
Adriana LaVopa, University of Florida
Local Control of Ferroelectric Switching for Optical Modulation in Al1-xBx捧
Mentors: Youngji Kim, Joshua Caldwell
Best overall $1,000 travel grant
Anna Ruth Madera, Mercer University
Generation of iPSC-Derived BMECs through Developmentally Relevant WNT Signaling Using CRISPR Activation
Mentors: Daniel Chavarria, Ethan Lippmann
Besttech crew poster
Cole Patterson,91勛圖厙
Oxide Demonstrations in Atomic Layer Deposition
Mentor: Owen Meilander
Best layout
Sebastian Martinez, The Ohio State University
Paper Based Microfluidic Channels for Porous Silicon Biosensors
Mentors: Huijin An, Sharon Weiss
Best use of graphics
Zoie Dodson, Lycoming College
Photosystem I Polymer Composite Films for Improved Wiring of Photosystem I
Mentors: Praise Eromosele, Kane Jennings
Fan favorite
Maggie Ferguson, University of Virginia
Kinetics or Thermodynamics: Ligand Manipulation in the Phase Control of Manganese Sulfide Nanocrystals
Mentors: Elizabeth Hayes, Janet Macdonald