6 A-State undergraduate students earn competitive research scholarships

JONESBORO – 6 students from Arkansas State University (A-State) have received the prestigious Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) in the annual competition organized by the Arkansas Department of Higher Education (ADHE).

Dr. Travis Marsico, vice chancellor for research, innovation and discovery, said: "The SURF award is an important opportunity for A-State students to conduct funded research, and I am very proud of the 6 students who received awards this year."

"We have 5 engineering students and one biology student. I look forward to learning more about these students' projects and their research results."

Those who have been awarded SURF grants will carry out faculty-mentored undergraduate research projects across a variety of research fields.

"It's wonderful to see science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) students awarded SURF this year, and I'm delighted to see so many A-State students competing with their proposals. 10% of the total 150 STEM SURF submissions came from A-State students," Marsico continued.

Marsico, who is also executive director of the Arkansas Biosciences Institute, added that only 33 STEM proposals were awarded this year for SURF grants, and A-State students accounted for 18% of those proposals with 6 submissions.

He added, "In other words, our students are working extremely hard to earn these awards."

The 6 student projects are funded by ADHE's SURF program with matching grants coming from A-State's Office of Research and Technology Transfer program.

This year's award recipients, their majors, project titles, funding amounts, and A-State faculty mentors are:

• Cade Bennett of Cabot, a senior civil engineering major, "Roadway Safety Analysis of Jonesboro, AR," $2,750, Dr. Zahid Hossain, professor of civil engineering.

• Isabella Davis of McRae, a fundamental biology major with a focus on evolution, ecology and organismal biology, "Effects of Lead Exposure on the Immune System of Turtles," $4,000, Dr. Lori Neuman-Lee, associate professor of physiology.
• Morgan Diamond of Jonesboro, a senior mechanical engineering major, "Mechanical Properties of NiCr Coatings Using Nanoindentation," $2,750, Dr. Drew Fleming, assistant professor of mechanical engineering.

• Luke Keen of Salem, a senior civil engineering major, "Effectiveness of Super Air Meters in Assessing Air Quality in Concrete," $4,000, Dr. Zahid Hossain, professor of civil engineering.

• John Lindner of Cabot, a senior mechanical engineering major, "Design and Construction of a Motion Sickness Stabilization Platform," $4,000, Dr. Shivan Haran, associate professor of mechanical engineering.

• Jeannette Strano of Cherokee Village, a senior mechanical engineering major, "Development of a Vision-Based System for Pick-and-Place Robots for Automated Sorting," $2,750, Dr. Shivan Haran, associate professor of mechanical engineering.

Any student interested in research and creative endeavors may contact the Office of Research and Technology Transfer at Research@AState.edu.