Fifteen first- and second-year students are preparing to explore their research interests in a variety of engineering, science and mathematics topics as inaugural members of the new Rose Research Fellows program for the 2023-24 academic year.

These fellowships provide students with face-to-face classes, paid research experiences and opportunities to develop a valuable academic network with faculty and fellow students. The program is also helping to create an environment of excitement and recognition for undergraduate research on the Rose-Hulman campus. 

Interest was extremely high for this first Rose Research Fellows class, with 130 applicants for the program’s 15 positions. 

“I was delighted by the number of students interested and the quality of their applications for this program,” said Rose Research Fellows Director Irene Reizman, PhD, the Alfred R. Schmidt Endowed Chair for Excellence in Teaching and Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering. “It was a highly competitive selection process. This shows that there’s immense interest in undergraduate research on our campus. I am glad that the Rose Research Fellows program is going to help meet that need.” 

Areas of research interest for the 2023-24 Rose Research Fellows include topics within machine learning, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, renewable energy, robotics, data science, astronautics/astronomy, biomechanics, computer science in natural and wildlife biology, and mathematical modeling.

Reizman noted that all academic departments with undergraduate degree programs had at least one fellowship applicant this year.

Members of the 2023-24 Rose Research Fellows class, along with their academic majors, are:

• Catherine Arrandale, Second-Year Student, Biomedical Engineering
• Jeremy Bergman, First-Year Student, Mechanical Engineering
• Jacob Cross, First-Year Student, Computer Science/Software Engineering
• Helena Donaldson, Second-Year Student, Computer Science
• Taylor Donen, First-Year Student, Biomedical Engineering/Biomathematics
• Hank Helmers, First-Year Student, Biology
• Luis Antonio Hernandez Aguirre, First-Year Student, Computer Engineering
• Daniel Leverett, Second-Year Student, Mathematics
• Medhansh Khattar, Second-Year Student, Computer Science
• Benjamin Myers, First-Year Student, Chemical Engineering
• Cesar Osornio, Second-Year Student, Mechanical Engineering
• Alexa Renner, Second-Year Student, Mathematics
• Preksha Sarda, Second-Year Student, Computer Science
• Hayden Simmons, First-Year Student, Physics
• Chong-Yi (Charlie) Su, Second-Year Student, Computer Engineering

Participating students will be enrolled in a course this fall that introduces them to the fundamentals of research and they will identify a research topic that will be completed during the rest of the school year. A final formal presentation to the campus community will follow in 2024.

Learn more about the Rose Research Fellows at www.rose-hulman.edu/ResearchFellows.