- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock /news-archive/tag/george-w-donaghey-college-of-engineering-and-information-technology/ ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Wed, 22 May 2019 13:43:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 College of Engineering and Information Technology Announces Award Winners /news-archive/2019/05/22/eit-awards-2019/ Wed, 22 May 2019 13:43:49 +0000 /news/?p=74335 ...]]> ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology recently held its annual awards ceremony on May 3. This year’s award winners include: EIT College Awards Outstanding Associate Degree – Christa Hindman Outstanding Bachelor’s Degree – Patrick Elliot and Jason Simmons Outstanding Master’s Degree – Jeffrey Baggett Outstanding Ph.D. – Dan Li EIT Undergraduate Awards First Place – Samuel Willis Second Place – Jacob Jackson Third Place – Blake Johnson EIT Graduate Awards First Place – Abbas Al-Wahhamy Second Place – Xinming Li Third Place – Kiran Bandeli EIT Abstract Awards First Place – Coenrad de Jager Second Place – Xinming Li Third Place – Wei Dai Elevator Speech Awards Grand Prize – Coenrad de Jager Honorable Mention – Lamarcus Coleman, Kassandra Castrillo, Trigun Maroo, Elias Reyes, and Samuel Willis Mainstream Technologies Awards Applied Innovation Award – Chance Melby Professional Presentation Award – Zaire Husband Complete Solution Award – Lamarcus Coleman Arkansas Research Alliance Rewards First Place – Zachary Stine Second Place – Thomas Marcoux Third Place – Ahmed Alazzawi Austin Bridge and Road Awards Best Construction – Kassandra Castrillo Best Use of Technology in Construction – Donna Mantione Best of the Best in Construction and Civil Engineering – Benjamin Beggs Faculty Excellence Awards Research – Dr. Mary Yang Teaching – Dr. Jin Wook Lee Service – Dr. Beth McMillan Department of Computer Science Awards Top Freshman – Gaige Ehrenworth Top Sophomore – Zach Johnson Top Junior – Alexander Rutledge Top Senior – Colin Chu Top Master’s – Kyle Hooks Top Ph.D. – Suzan Anwar Best Teaching Assistant – Lamarcus Coleman Best Graduate Assistant – Matt Kennett Best Mentor – Connor Young Outstanding Service – Mark Barnes Outstanding Volunteer – Nicholas Stewart Awesome Attitude – Zaire Husband Most Dedicated Graduate Student – Alexander Jaeger Rookie of the Year – Cecily Mobely Most Thriving – Cindy Monterroza Department of Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering Excellence Award for Academic Scholarship – Benjamin Wells, Blake Johnston, Cody Davis, Mason Cato, Alex Graves, Jose Alvarez, Rachel Runnels, Stephen Enderlin, Joseph Hickey, Rajeev Lakanavarapu, and Benjamin Beggs ASCE Student Chapter Service Award – Kassandra Castrillo Department of Earth Sciences Presentation at a Professional Meeting – Matt Horn, David Hough, Tyler Kee, Patrick Paladino, Olivia Pate, Kalyca Spinler, and Jason Spencer 2019 Field Camp Award – Amelia Gould, Tristan Gregory, Izak Harville, Jacob Holland, Matt Horn, Patrick Paladino, and Cody Smith Outstanding Laboratory Assistant – Izak Harville, Shannon Bione, David Hough, and Aleigha Smith Laboratory Assistant of the Year – David Hough Outstanding Graduate Assistant – Kalyca Spinler Outstanding Senior – David Hough Central AR Gem, Mineral, and Geology Society Field Camp Scholarship – Matt Horn, Olivia Pate, and Cody Smith Sigma Gamma Epsilon Graduating Students – David Hough, Olivia Pate, and Kalyca Spinler W.A. Tarr Award – Olivia Pate Philip L. and Marietta T. Kehler Endowed Scholarship – Juliann Fiallos Department of Engineering Technology Electronics and Computer Engineering Technology Freshman Award – Tony Hester Sophomore Award – Alexandria Smith Junior Award – Gregory Riley Senior Award – Daniel Cox Outstanding Senior Project – Ali Alwan Mechanical Engineering Technology Freshman Award – Thomas Lewis Sophomore Award – Noah French Junior Award – Abdulrahman Alotaibi Senior Award – Pablo Centeno Outstanding Senior Project – Ethan Hutchins, James Joiner Departmental Awards Departmental Service Award – Jannice Bonilla Outstanding Graduating Mechanical Engineering Technology BS – Gordon B. Ward IV Outstanding Graduating Electronics and Computer Engineering Technology BS – Abdellatif Elmansouri Outstanding Graduating Mechanical Engineering Technology AET – Danial Habib Al-Farah Outstanding Graduating Electronic and Computer Engineering Technology AET – Samuel Zargari Outstanding Graduating BS – Gordon B. Ward IV Outstanding Graduating AET – Christa Hindman Department of Information Science BS Information Science Outstanding Graduate – Karen Watts Outstanding Senior – Michael DiCicco and Brock Butler Outstanding Junior – Brenda Nyangweso and Trenton Burroughs Student Entrepreneurial Award – Luke Tyhurst and Benjamin Harrison BA Web Design and Development/ITEC Minor Outstanding Senior – Sunny Singh and Leslie Haller Outstanding ITEC Senior – Ryan Hood Bioinformatics Graduate Program Outstanding Research Award – Dan Li Outstanding Service Award – Skylar Connor Information Science Graduate Program (COSMOS) Outstanding Research Award – Muhammad Nihal Hussain, Adewale Obadimu, and Zachary Stine Information Quality Graduate Program Graduate Certificate in Information Quality Outstanding Research Award – Kris Anderson MS in Information Quality Outstanding Graduate – Yumeng Ye Outstanding Research and Academic Achievement – Marinda Huisamen and Coenrad de Jager Outstanding Service and Academic Achievement – Yi Yin Ph.D. in Information Quality Outstanding Graduate – Yu Nie Outstanding Research and Academic Achievement – Zhan Wang, Awaad Al-Sarkhi, and Bingyi Zhong Outstanding Research and Service – Xinming Li IQ Academic and Service Recognition – Stephen Wallace, Brian Blake, Loy Rogers, James True, Anthony Davis, Awaad Al-Sarki , Kevin Casey, Bingyi Zhong, Wei Dai, Janaki Koppulu, Purviben Parmar, Huzaifa Fahad Syed, Wenxue Jiang, Lisa Novier, Divya Dugyala, Priyanka Bejugam, and Swetha Tamma Department of Systems Engineering Mechanical Systems Engineering (MSEG) Outstanding Sophomore – Caleb Head Outstanding Junior – Hayden Boyd Outstanding Senior – Andrew Cherry Outstanding Capstone Project – Andrew Cherry, Kendall Butzlaff, William Kerr, Nikki Mullen, Richard Nowroski, Estevan Padilla, and Spencer Sullivan Electrical and Computer Engineering (ESCE) Outstanding Sophomore – William Brockman Outstanding Junior – Ahmad Abu Hantash Outstanding Senior – Brock Mudie Outstanding Capstone Project – Brock Mudie, Josh Crowder, and Craig Jimmerson In the upper right photo, Dr. Jin Wook Lee (third from left) is shown with the Outstanding Capstone Project Award winners from the Department of Systems Engineering – Andrew Cherry, Kendall Butzlaff, William Kerr, Nikki Mullen, Richard Nowroski, Estevan Padilla, and Spencer Sullivan.]]> Expo showcases student research and creative works /news-archive/2019/04/25/research-expo-2/ Thu, 25 Apr 2019 19:41:30 +0000 /news/?p=74128 ...]]> University of Arkansas at Little Rock students showcased their academic work this semester at the recent Student Research and Creative Works Expo held April 18 in the Jack Stephens Center. More than 200 students representing every college within the university participated this year, with projects spanning research in computer science/information science, creative work, economics, education, engineering/engineering technology/construction management, health science, humanities, interdisciplinary, life science, physical science, service work/professional application, social science, and social work. More than 100 of the participating students received Signature Experience Awards of up to $1,000 to fund their research this semester. Kajal Shukla, a senior computer science major, used machine learning to predict coronary heart disease. Shukla, who was mentored by Dr. Mariofannia Milanova in the Department of Computer Science, chose to investigate heart disease because a data set was already available for heart disease that allowed her to experiment with three different machine learning models to determine which was the most useful. Shukla will graduate May 11 with a Bachelor of Science in computer science and plans to start a master’s degree program in June. More than a dozen entries in this year’s expo were creative works. Aaron Prosser earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in graphic art in December but returned to campus to exhibit his “Organo Guys,” a series of action figures that combine his love of toys and his graphic design talent. Inspired by Captain Planet, Swamp Thing, and the Ninja Turtles, Prosser’s action figures were sent by Mother Earth to enforce the preservation of the environment. Prosser was mentored by Kevin Cates. Kat Hall, who will graduate May 11 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre arts, explored the process and conventions used during the 16th century in England under strict sumptuary laws to transform male players into female characters on stage. Her project, “Cross Dressing: The Transformative Power of Costumes on Shakespeare’s Stage,” used contemporary flat pattern and draping methods to create costumes. “The Student Research and Creative Works Expo really captures the diversity, breadth, and calibre of our students, and is a testament to the expertise and engagement of their faculty mentors,” said Lawrence Smith, assistant professor in ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Theatre Arts and Dance Department and co-chair of the Student Research and Creative Works Committee. “It gives you a great insight to the creativity and intellectual rigor that is the heart of our work at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock.” In addition to the expo, individual colleges at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock showcased their programs, research, and resources as part of a larger Research and Creativity in the Rock event. The College of Social Sciences and Communication hosted a two-day mini-conference featuring interdisciplinary panels with faculty, staff, and students. The College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences gave tours of its science laboratories to visiting high school students who were also treated to music and dance and music performances in the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall, a majors fair, and tour of the Windgate Center of Art and Design. The Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology also gave tours of its engineering, engineering technology, and earth science laboratories to visiting high school students who also toured the Emerging Analytics Center. The College of Education and Health Professions hosted an open house in the Bailey Alumni Center to showcase faculty and student research and information about the STEM Education Center, and the George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology hosted an open house with student poster presentations and demonstrations. ��Vlog��ý Little Rock students discuss their research with visitors at the Student Research and Creative Works Expo held April 18 in the Jack Stephens Center. Photo by Benjamin Krain ]]> ��Vlog��ý Little Rock to showcase Student Research And Creative Works /news-archive/2019/04/15/research-expo/ Mon, 15 Apr 2019 19:59:42 +0000 /news/?p=74043 ...]]> The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will showcase the best of its students’ research and creative works on Thursday, April 18, at the 2019 Student Research and Creative Works Expo from noon – 3 p.m. in the Jack Stephens Center. The 2019 expo is part of the university’s Research and Creativity in the Rock event, which includes the expo as well as individual showcases and demonstrations within the university’s colleges. At the expo, more than 200 undergraduate and graduate students will display projects spanning research in computer science/information science, creative work, economics, education, engineering/engineering technology/construction management, health science, humanities, interdisciplinary, life science, physical science, service work/professional application, social science, and social work. Recipients of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Signature Experience Awards and Student Undergraduate Research Fellowships from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education are among the students showcasing their work. The event is free and open to the public. “The Student Research and Creative Works Expo really captures the diversity, breadth, and calibre of our students and is a testament to the expertise and engagement of their faculty mentors,” said Lawrence Smith, assistant professor in ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Theatre Arts and Dance Department and co-chair of the Student Research and Creative Works Committee. “It gives you a great insight to the creativity and intellectual rigor that is the heart of our work at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock.” Students from every college within the university are participating this year. “Each year, students’ research projects affirm the difference they and their mentors make on a wide range of relevant world issues, such as pollution, breast cancer, and social injustice,” said Elizabeth Ann Lee, assistant professor of nursing, who is also co-chair of the event committee. “Likewise, students’ amazing creative works enrich the arts, and their professional activities make our community a better place to live.” In addition to the expo, individual colleges within the university will showcases their programs, research, and resources as part of Research and Creativity in the Rock. The College of Social Sciences and Communication will host a two-day mini-conference beginning Wednesday, April 17, in the Donaghey Student Center that features interdisciplinary panels with faculty, staff, and students. An online schedule of events is available. The College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences will showcase its science laboratories to high school students who will see science experiments in the Departments of Chemistry, Biology, and Physics and Astronomy and tour campus. Dance and music performances begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall; an Explore the Majors fair begins at 11 a.m. in the Maners-Papas Gallery; and a tour of Windgate Center for Art and Design begins at 11:30 a.m. The College of Education and Health Professions will have an open house from 10 a.m. – noon in the Bailey Alumni Center to showcase faculty and student research as well as information and activities from the STEM Education Center. The George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology will host an open house for visiting high school students from 9-11:30 a.m. “This is a phenomenal showcasing of the work done by ��Vlog��ý Little Rock students, faculty, and staff,” said Dr. Abhijit Bhattacharyya, interim dean of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Graduate School. Community members, including high school students, have also been invited to visit the events. Transportation will be provided between the venues for the convenience of visitors. A map of trolley stops is available online. For more information about any of the events, contact Tiffany McFadden-Kidd, Graduate School recruitment and communications coordinator, at tlmcfadden@ualr.edu or 501-569-3088. ]]> ��Vlog��ý Little Rock awards $100,000 to students for research, creative works /news-archive/2018/11/14/signature-experience-awards-3/ Wed, 14 Nov 2018 16:19:24 +0000 /news/?p=72654 ...]]> More than 100 undergraduates at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock will receive $1,000 grants to conduct original research, creative works, and community service projects this year as part of the university’s Signature Experience Award Program. Award winners will complete their signature experiences by the end of the 2019 spring semester and present their work at the 2019 Undergraduate Research and Creative Works Showcase on April 18. Students can use their grants to pay expenses related to their projects, which are designed to contribute to their academic development. This year, 144 students applied for the grants, representing an 82 percent increase in applications over last year, said Dr. Jeremy Ecke, chair of the Department of English and director of the Signature Experience program. Of the 144 applicants, 112 student projects received funding, and an additional 20 unfunded applications were recognized as Honorary Signature Experience projects and applicants were invited to present at the April showcase. To receive an award, undergraduate students must have a minimum 2.5 grade point average and have a faculty member to mentor the project. “The growth of the Signature Experience over the past two years reflects the serious engagement of our students and faculty in the support and development of undergraduate research and creative endeavors,” Ecke said. “The Signature Experience is a direct embodiment of the university’s five strategic goals: it directs resources toward student success, research, and creative endeavors while fostering community engagement and promoting projects that support diversity and global citizenship.” This year’s applicants come from all of the university’s colleges and reflect a diverse range of topics. Students are researching topics ranging from breast cancer and traumatic brain injury to soil composition in the Little Rock Zoo, bank erosion in Coleman Creek, adaptation of Micronesian immigrants, and culturally based responses to homelessness in French and U.S. cities. Chancellor Andrew Rogerson announced the program in 2017 to inspire students to conduct original research and creative projects with guidance of faculty mentors. Last year, 79 students received awards. Congratulations to the following students: College of Arts, Letters and Sciences

Luke Johnson, biology, mentored by John M. Bush. “Phages in different types of water and their effects”
Kimberly Maurer, English, mentored by Paul Crutcher. “Breaking “Single Story” Silence: Celebrating Positive, Diverse Girlhood”
Bonnie R. Young, dance, mentored by Stephanie Thibeault. “Fortune Favors the Bold: Confidence in Dance”
Thuy Le, chemistry, mentored by Noureen Siraj. “A portable nanosensor for nitroaromatic detection”
Katherine Ashley Hall, theatre arts, mentored by Yslan Hicks. “Cross-dressing: The Transformative Power of Costumes on Shakespeare’s Stage”
Robert Hill, chemistry, mentored by Noureen Siraj. “Tunable Porphyrin Nanoparticles As Combination Drug For Cancer Therapy.”
Emily Anderson, biology, mentored by Shanzhi Wang. “Enzymatic Characterization of Bgp from B. burgdorferi, the Main Causative Agent in Lyme Disease in the U.S.”
Reem Al-Shukri, biology, mentored by Alexandru Biris. “Plasmonic Nanovectors for Selective Targeting and Killing of Cancer Cells”
Humam Shahare, biology, mentored by Noureen Siraj and Tito Viswanathan. “Use of Ionic Liquid Electrolyte to Enhance the Supercapacitance of Doped Carbon Materials”
KateLin Carsrud, English, mentored by Jeffrey Condran. “Braddock Avenue Books Spring Catalogue at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference, Portland, Ore., March 2019”
David Alan Cline, physics, mentored by John Nichols. “Development and Implementation of a Miniature Musical Tesla coil”
Chandrasimha Reddy Penthala, chemistry and biology, mentored by Wei Zhao. “Synthesis of NiFe-Based Metal-Organic Framework Nanosheets on Nickel Foams for Water-Splitting Electrocatalysis”
Sarah Harper, art education, mentored by Timothy Garth. “Curating Connections: Museum Skills and Pk-12 Learning Engagement”
Caleb Alexander-McKinzie, English/legal studies, mentored by Heather Hummel. “Blood Orange Review and Braddock Avenue Books Literary Reading at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference, Portland, Ore., March 2019
Grayson Treat, English, mentored by Heather K. Hummel. “The Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference Undergraduate Resource Guide”
Madeleine Logan, biology, mentored by Robert Sikes. “Minimizing Stress in Wild vs Domesticated Mammals: The Effects of Anesthesia and Handling Time”
Bonn Belingon, chemistry, mentored by Shanzhi Wang. “Potential Use of Enzyme Glucose Oxidase (GOx) as an Antimicrobial Agent”
Tyler Maxwell, biology and chemistry, mentored by Qingfang He. “De novo Biosynthesis of Resveratrol in Metabolically Engineered”
Madison Brown, English, mentored by Jeffrey Condran. “Presenting the 2019 Equinox Literary Magazine at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference, Portland, Ore., March 2019”
Kathryn Bates, English, mentored by Jeffrey Condran. “Funding Undergraduate Literary Magazines: An Investigation at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs Conference, Portland, Ore., March 2019”
Noemi Garcia, biology/Spanish, mentored by Stephen Grace. “Gene Discovery for Health Promoting Phytochemicals in the Medicinal Plant Echinacea”
Jessica Yvonne Ley, theatre arts, mentored by Lawrence D. Smith. “The Default: An Exploration of Heteronormativity through Stage Performance”
Serena Mykenzie Gordon, theatre arts, mentored by Lawrence D. Smith. “A Theatre of Cruelty Experience”
Caroline Kornelsen, chemistry, mentored by Noureen Siraj and Tito Vishwanathan. “Synthesis of a Betaine Ester Surfactant via a Novel “Green” Method of Esterification”
Grace Young, biology, mentored by Robert Sikes. “Minimizing Stress in Wild vs Domesticated Mammals: The Effects of Anesthesia and Handling Time”
Jessica L. Morris, biology, mentored by Scott Woolbright. “Evaluating Variation in Soil Composition among Habitats at the Little Rock Zoo”
Carol Ann Bowerman, biology and chemistry, mentored by Nawab Ali. “The Investigation of Silver-coated Gold Nanorods as an Effective Nano-drug Vessel”.”
Maxwell Rollins Campbell, biology/music, mentored by Carl R. Stapleton. “Effects of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds on Ostracod Densities in Fourche Creek”
Arooba Ilyas, biology/chemistry, mentored by Noureen Siraj. “Tea Waste as an Adsorbent for Water Purification”
Ryan Mann, biology, mentored by Shanzhi Wang. “The Affects of Caspase-1 Cleavage on Alpha-Synuclein”
Travis Jumper, chemistry, mentored by Anindya Ghosh. “A Novel Synthetic Chemical Pathway for the Formation of Amides”
Lauren Humphrey, graphic design, mentored by Kevin Cates. “Children’s Bible for residents in Mongu, Zambia”
Aaron Prosser, graphic design, mentored by Kevin Cates. “Organo Guys Action Figures”
Tracy V. Cook, English, mentored by Jana McAuliffe. “Brief Thoughts of the 21st Century”
Tina Hesabizadeh, interdisciplinary studies, mentored by Gregory Guisbiers. “Synthesis of Selenium-based Nanostructures”
Vardah Asad Sheikh, physics, mentored by Tansel Karabacak. “Nanorod Arrays for Flexible Photodetector Applications”
Lyle P. Arnett, Physics, mentored by Tansel Karabacak. “Growth of Metal Oxide Nanostructures (MONSTRs) by Hot Water Treatment/Deposition”
William James Avery King, molecular biotechnology, mentored by Alexandru Biris. “Evaluation of Gold Nanoparticles with Various Aspect Ratios for Use as Artificial Extracellular Matrices for Growing Neural Cells”
Thomas Jackson, theatre arts, mentored by William Marshall. “Scenic design for Fringe Festival”
Conor Van Lierop, theatre arts, mentored by William Marshall. “Lighting design for the Fringe Festival”
Brandy Rochelle Mimms, dance performance, mentored by Stephanie Thibeault. “Deaf can Dance.”
Taylor S. Green, theatre arts and dance, mentored by Lawrence D. Smith, “The Elaine Twelve: Aftermath of the Massacre of 1919”
Emily Nichole Fendley, French / anthropology and nonprofit leadership studies, mentored by Rosalie M. Cheatham. “Homelessness: Causes, Culturally-based Responses and NGO Engagement in Mid-sized French and US Cities”

College of Education and Health Professions

Emilia Zsuzsanna Rak, social work, mentored by David J. Namir. “Change Your Days”
Wesley C. Smith, nursing, mentored by Jeffrey K. Carmack. “An Assessment of Time Spent Teaching Hearing and Non-hearing Patients”
Tamara J. Martin, communication sciences and disorders, mentored by Dr. Donna J. Kelly. “Investigation of Interdisciplinary Assessment Measures of Acute and Persistent Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI) Sequela in Adults”
Darleene Rua and Michelle Henderson, nursing, mentored by Leigh Snead. “Students’ Perceptions and Skills Performance in Two Student-led Emergency Simulated Scenarios”
Jessica Swatzel, communication sciences and disorders, mentored by Dana Moser. “Effects of Applying Brain Stimulation during Language Intervention?”
Darrien Adams, health education and promotion, mentored by Janea Snyder. “Growing Healthy Communities Projects (Wellness Fair & Garden to Grill Cooking Class)”
Emily Junkans, communication sciences and disorders/ Spanish, mentored by Jeremy Ecke. “Language and Identity: Academic English and International Students”

Stuti Chatterjee, biology, mentored by Philip H. Williams. “Island project – Automated water quality sensors/wildlife webcam”

College of Business

Emelie Blennow, marketing, mentored by Dr. Casey Rockwell. “Analysis of Ethical and Legal Implications of Autopilot vehicles. Is Tesla the new Pinto?”
Maximillian Holzmueller, economics and Finance, mentored by Moiz Bhai. “A Case Study in Agrowponics”
Alexander Reid Palmer, Human Resource Management, mentored by John Hendon, “Medical Marijuana and Federalism”

College of Social Sciences and Communication

Nicholas J. Popowich, journalism, mentored by John A. Kirk. “Documenting the Black Power Movement in Arkansas”
Rhonda Thomas, professional and technical writing, mentored by Heidi Skurat Harris. “Alexander’s Stray Mare: Tracing an Ancestor from Georgia to Pre-territorial Arkansas”

Julie O’Hara, political science, mentored by Joseph Giammo. “The Effect of Elite Discourses on Secessionist Movements”
Dylan Wright, political science/Spanish, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “The Language of Truth: Exploring the Discourse of Latin American Truth Commission Recommendations”
Jordan Wallis, political science, mentored by Rebecca Glazier. “God and Country: Veteran Services in the Little Rock Religious Community”
Mary Katelyn McBrayer, applied communication, mentored by April Chatham-Carpenter. “Disrupting the Cycle of Mental Illness: Building up Intergenerational Family Resilience through Positive Communication”
Robin A. Freeman, applied communication, mentored by Avinash Thombre. “Understanding Communication Strategies for Women without Children”
Octavious Harris, criminal justice/law enforcement, mentored by Trisha N. Rhodes. “Exploring Predictors of Sentencing for Male and Female Prisoners in Arkansas”
Michael Meziere, criminal justice, mentored by Molly Smith. “Examining the Relationship between Religiosity, Rape Myth Acceptance, and Sexual Misconduct”
Asiah Bradley, criminal justice and psychology, mentored by Molly Smith. “Correlates of Sexual Misconduct Victims’ Use of Campus Resources”
Morgan Paige Topping, political science, mentored by Rebecca Glazier. “How Social Media can Increase Participation in Community-based Research: The Case of the Little Rock Congregation Study”
Rosalinda Roper, political science/international studies, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “Exploring Variation in International Response to Refugee Crises”
Madeline Burke, international studies, mentored by Casey Rockwell. “The Unregulated Regulators”

CSSC & CALS

Nicole Ursin, anthropology/history, mentored by Juliana Flinn. “Adaptation of Micronesian Immigrants”
Katherine Roberts, philosophy/interdisciplinary, mentored by Jana McAuliffe. “Diversifying the Discipline: An analysis of the 2019 Arkansas High School Ethics Bowl”
Emma Beth Williams, professional and technical writing/legal studies, mentored by Jana McAuliffe. “An Axiology of Public Philosophy: A Study in Public Intellectualism”
Solomon Ra’phael Davis, international studies/philosophy, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “Making Human Lives Better: How Material and Symbolic Reparations Improve Post Civil War Peace”

Engineering & Information Technology

Andrew Mark Cherry, mechanical systems engineering, mentored by Jin Wook Lee. “A Quadcopter with Improved Lift Capabilities”
Rebecca L. Bishop, geology, mentored by Rene A. Shroat-Lewis. “Monitoring Coral Patch Reefs of San Salvador Island, Bahamas for Diversity and Disease”
Christopher Flocken, computer science, mentored by Steven Minsker. “Functional Programming Design”
Lamarcus Coleman, computer science/mathematics, mentored by Mariofanna Milanova. “Applying Deep Reinforcement Learning to Economic Event Prediction”

Ahmed Alazzawi, systems engineering, mentored by Kamran Iqbal. “Altered Muscle Synergies While Walking Under Higher Postural Constraints”
Josh Carlat, computer science game option, mentored by Sean Orme. “A Look into the Feasibility of Teaching Game Engine Design at the Undergraduate Level”
Nikki Mullen, mechanical systems engineering, mentored by Andrew Wright and Alex Biris. “Characterization of Nanoparticle Scaffolding Polymer”
Luke Tyhurst, information science, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “Developing an Online Platform: From Market Research to a Minimum Viable Product”
Zezhang Lin, computer science, mentored by Chia-Chu Chiang. “Automatic Customization of Web Pages to Enhance User Experience”
David M. Hough, environmental geology, mentored by Thomas Colby. “Investigating the Age and Significance of a Rare Occurrence of Metagabbro in the Ouachita Mountains, Central Arkansas, USA”
Jason Spencer, geology, mentored by Michael DeAngelis. “Mineralogical, Petrological and Geochronological Investigation of the Blue Ball Lamproite Dike near Waldron, Arkansas, USA”
Cody Smith, geology, mentored by Michael DeAngelis. “Reproducing and Improving the Sol-Gel Synthesis of Nanoscale Enstatite (Mg2Si2O6) and Diopside (CaMgSi2O6)”
Li Zhou Morrow, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma. “Design and Development of a Unique Transparent Fishing Tackle Box”

Michael Tyler Kee, geology, mentored by Laura Ruhl. “Evolution of Contaminants in Weathered Coal Combustion Residuals: an Environmental Case Study”
Julian Reid Ervin, environmental geology, mentored by Laura Ruhl. “Microplastics in Fourche Creek Wetlands”
Derrick Fuell, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Srikanth B. Pidugu. “A Novel Macro-mixer for Medical Applications”
Jacob H. Jackson, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma. “Water Recycling System for a Hydraulic Ram Pump”
Denver Ellis, computer science, mentored by Jan P. Springer. “Improving Versatility of Smart Mirrors Through Facial Recognition and Rotational Measurements”
Joshua Ray, environmental engineering, mentored by Lashun Massey.“A Novel Collaborative Approach to Addressing Environmental Engineering”
Kajal Shukla, computer science, mentored by Mariofanna Milanova. “Boosting Deep Learning Risk Prediction for Electronic Health Records”
Zaire Idalis Husband, computer science/information assurance, mentored by Jan P. Springer. “Multi-Factor Authentication”
Taima Zidan Suid, computer science with mathematics minor, mentored by Jan P. Springer. “Multi-Factor Authentication”
Malik Shakur El-Amin, computer science, mentored by Jan P. Springer. “MockSOC – A prototype Special Operations Center”
Sam Willis, computer science, mentored by Mariofanna Milanova. “Computer Vision System to Identify and Quantify Waste”
Chance Melby, computer science, mentored by Jan P. Springer. “Analysis of Red Team Coordination: Finding the Correct Attack Methodology”
Adam Ness, systems engineering/mathematics, mentored by Marc D. Glidden. “Ramifications of Bank Deserts on Financial Literacy”
Christopher F. Bohner, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma. “Design-for-manufacturing, construction, and testing of a thermochemical system to generate power from municipal solid waste”
Pablo J. Centeno, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma and Srikanth B. Pidugu. “Pick and place robot”
Bryan S. Wilson, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma. “Design, construction, and testing of a re-designed gasifier”
Jonathon M. Horn, geology, mentored by Margaret E. McMillan. “Analysis of short-term changes in bank erosion and sediment transport in Coleman Creek, Little Rock, AR, using ��Vlog��ýV aerial surveys”
Patrick W. Paladino, geology, mentored by Margaret E. McMillan. “Analysis of Short-term Changes in Bank Erosion and Sediment Transport in Coleman Creek, Little Rock, AR, Using Field Surveys”
Mandolin Harris, geology, mentored by Laura Ruhl. “Evolution of Karst Spring Water in the Ozark Mountains: Impacts on Water Quality”
Elias Perez Reyes, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Srikanth B. Pidugu. “Effective Thermal Conductivity of Open Celled Copper Foam metals”
Alexandria L. Smith, electronic and computer engineering technology, mentored by Hirak Patangia. “An Evaporative Energy Harvester”
Sherif A. Selim, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Kailash C. Jajam. “Additive Manufacturing of Multiphase Syntactic Foams Modified with Glass Microballoons and Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs)”
Alex Alvarez, mechanical engineering technology/Spanish, mentored by Sandra Leiterman. “BB-8 in STEM Ed”
Nigel Kelly, mechanical systems engineering/mathematics, mentored by Alexandru Biris. “Fabrication of Hafnium Thin Films for Optical Applications”
Ashley Strohmeyer, electrical and computer engineering technology, mentored by Alexandru Biris. “Fabrication of Titanium Disilicide Films Using Pulsed Laser Deposition”
Eric Nelson Sutherland Jr., mechanical systems engineering, mentored by Soheil Saedi. “An Investigation on the Effects of Heat Treatment Process on Phase Transformation of NiTi Shape Memory Alloys”
Evan Angle, computer science/physics, mentored by Albert Baker. “Can Enhanced VR Display Resolution Impact Application Effectiveness?”

Honorary Signature Experience Award winners

Gary Morries, biology, mentored by Scott Woolbright. “Survey of Climate Relict Populations of Varied Groundsnakes (Sonora semiannulatum) from Rare Arkansas Glade Ecosystems.”
Madison Victoria Rodgers, political science, mentored by Rebecca Glazier. “Engagement and Religion among Little Rock Congregations: The Reciprocal Relationship between Community Involvement and Political Involvement”
Christopher Tate, post-bac nursing, mentored by Leigh Snead. “Students’ Perceptions and Skills Performance in Two Student-led Emergency Simulated Scenarios”
Elizabeth Jarrott, nursing, mentored by Leigh Snead. “Students’ Perceptions and Skills Performance in Two Student-led Emergency Simulated Scenarios.”
Laura Ruiz Astorga, international studies and psychology, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “Women’s Empowerment in Conflict-Affected Societies”
Victoria Yvonne McHargue, biology/chemistry/ American sign language, mentored by John Bush. “Using Bacteriophages for Potential Bio-remediation for a Water Source”
Allie Woodville, political science and anthropology, mentored by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm. “The Syrian Refugee Crisis and Information Technology: From a Public Involvement Perspective”
Katie Matthews, biology, mentored by Scott Woolbright. “Soil Microbial Communities Associated with a Prairie Restoration in Northwest Arkansas.”
Taylor Hudson, mechanical engineering technology, mentored by Ashokkumar M. Sharma. “Design Modification, Construction and Testing of Ram Pump – A Performance Improvement Study”

��Vlog��ý Little Rock student Sylvia Szwedo talks about her chemistry project during the 2018 Student Research and Creative Works Showcase. Photo by Benjamin Krain ]]> EIT to host Open House, April 27 /news-archive/2018/04/24/eit-host-open-house-april-27/ Tue, 24 Apr 2018 17:00:23 +0000 /news/?p=70293 ...]]> The George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology will host its third annual Open House on Friday, April 27. Guests may browse through the second and third floors of the EIT building from 1 to 3 p.m. to view student displays of capstone projects, theses, dissertations, and other research. Each department in the college will have an assigned area designated for its students’ work. Students who demonstrate the best projects will be awarded cash prizes as announced by Dean Lawrence Whitman during the closing ceremony. Last year, more than $1,500 was awarded to various students. To wrap up the afternoon, the college will host a reception from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the EIT auditorium, immediately followed by the awards ceremony. The event is open to the public. For more information, contact event organizer Ashley Henry-Saorrono at alhenry@ualr.edu.]]> Undergraduate Research Signature Experience recipients announced /news-archive/2017/11/13/signature-experience-awards/ Mon, 13 Nov 2017 22:01:26 +0000 /news/?p=68560 ...]]> Chancellor Andrew Rogerson introduced the awards in fall 2017 to inspire ��Vlog��ý Little Rock undergraduate students to conduct research and creative projects. Each of the recipients will receive up to $1,000 to cover the cost of materials for this one-semester signature experience in research or creative works. “It is our goal for all students to have the opportunity to have a Signature Experience during their time at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock – one in which they actively engage in creative work with faculty,” Dr. Rogerson said. “Not only will their academic experience be enriched by these connections, but they in turn will enrich the lives of others who benefit from the research. It is also my hope that it will help students engage with their major and consider graduate school.” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock is one of only two Arkansas higher education institutions with Carnegie designation for doctoral research. “With the Chancellor’s recognition, and strong support for undergraduate research, the university will enable valuable research experiences between our faculty mentors and our students,” said Dr. Velmer Burton, executive vice chancellor and provost. “This is further evidence at work of the value that our teacher-scholar model has for both students and faculty.” Daryl Rice, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, noted that undergraduate research is tied to increased student persistence and graduation. “This is not surprising,” Rice said. “Undergraduate research gives students a special connection to a living scholar and provides an exhilarating taste of actually doing science, of doing sociological, historical or psychological research themselves, which has a big motivational effect.” The students’ projects range across disciplines and include topics such as a study of coral reef disease on San Salvador Island, a law review of tenant-landlord laws in Arkansas, an analysis of student perceptions of open education resources, the construction of a thermochemical system for conversion of municipal solid waste into fuel, and a reproduction of Egyptian faience ceramic techniques. “There were outstanding projects across the colleges,” said Dr. Jeremy Ecke, chair of the Student Research and Creative Works Committee. “The committee was particularly heartened to see proposals from the fine arts, theater and dance, music, math, and other disciplines that have been underrepresented in the annual research and creative works expo. This year’s launch of an expanded Student Research and Creative Works Showcase is off to a great start. I hope the awards will inspire other students to showcase their work in the spring.” Recipients of the Signature Experience Awards will exhibit their work at the Student Research and Creative Works Showcase on April 12 in the Jack Stephens Center. The showcase is open to all students across disciplines. Applications will be accepted beginning Jan. 1, 2018. Students interested in presenting work at the showcase or who want to learn more are asked to respond to a The Signature Experience Award winners by their respective colleges are as follows: College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences Reem Al-Shukri, Nanotechnology Emily Anderson, Chemistry Marina Avram, Chemistry Erin Beeman, Philosophy & Interdisciplinary Studies Lilly Bessette, Biology Becky Blackburn, Fine Art Andrew Blackwell, Art & Design Marvin Bonney, Physics and Astronomy Kenneth Burnett, Biology Brock Butler, Chemistry Michael Caysido, Music-Piano Performance Amairani Paredes-Cheguen, Biology Nathaniel Darbonne, English Jenish Desai, Chemistry Corrie Green, Theatre, Arts and Dance Jake Green, English Kristen Gregory, Biology Robert Hill, Chemistry Davonte Hokes, Chemistry Thomas Jackson, Theatre Arts and Dance Travis Lewison Jumper, Chemistry Emily E. Junkans, English/ World Languages Grishma Kc, Biology Amy King, History/Secondary Education William King, Biology (working with CINS) Cameryn Kirkham, English Samantha Macchi, Chemistry Katie Matthews, Biology Tyler Maxwell, Biology Rebecca Parker-Moreira, Chemistry Joy Madeline Reinbold, English Grace Rutter, Biology Paloma Salazar, Chemistry James Sellers, Chemistry Alaa Mohammed Shahare, Biology Kimber Stout, Physics Daniel Stuckey, Chemistry Zaria Sumler, Biology Sylvia Szewdo, Chemistry Thuy Thanh Le, Chemistry Conor VanLierop, Theatre Justice Williams, Biology LeShonta Williams, Chemistry Tori Williams, English Scott Wolf, Math and Statistics Dylan Wright, World Languages College of Education and Health Professions Cynthia Wyman, School of Social Work College of Social Sciences and Communication Charlana Benefiel, Political Science Desiree Doyle, Applied Communication Jesse Horton, Criminal Justice Saiyeeda Hossain, Sociology and Anthropology Cassandra Lester, Criminal Justice Chloe Moses, Rhetoric and Writing Trye Price, Criminal Justice Christina Redmann, Political Science Courtney Reed, Sociology and Anthropology Nigel Spears, Applied Communication Emily Summers, Anthropology Kimberly Thornton, Rhetoric and Writing Nicole Ursin, Anthropology George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology Bergras Asgeirsdottir, Engineering Anderson Banihirwe, Computer Science Rebecca Bishop, Earth Science Kayla Bolin, Earth Science Pablo Centeno, Engineering Technology John Graham, System Engineering J’von Jackson, Engineering Technology Nicholas Lester, Information Science Joshua Miller, Engineering Technology Tarang Parikh, Engineering Technology Olivia Pate, Earth Science Jason Simmons, Earth Science Zachary Smith, Earth Science College of Business Madeline Burke, Marketing & Advertising Deepali Lal, International Business and Human Resource Management Abigail Resebdiz, Business Logan Vickery, Economics Ian Wren, Marketing Ottenheimer Library Amanda Pennington, Collections and Archives In the upper right photo, students work on a physics project in Ottenheimer Library. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III / ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.]]> Indian students complete summer research program at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock /news-archive/2017/10/10/indian-students-summer-research/ Tue, 10 Oct 2017 13:15:39 +0000 /news/?p=68079 ...]]> A group of nine students from India completed internships in cutting-edge research areas at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock this summer. Dr. Seshandri Mohan, professor of systems engineering, initiated the international exchange program between ��Vlog��ý Little Rock and Vishwaniketan, an institution affiliated with the in India. Participants included Rahul Sharma, Yash Dutt Sharma, Shubham Gupta, Tanya Gupta, Yanshshree Anil Patil, Mohan Patle, Varad Anil Deshpande, Vatsal Paresh Gala, and Rajeev Kishore Sugandhi. The partnership brought Vishwaniketan students who are pursuing undergraduate degrees in engineering, computer science, information technology, and mechanical engineering to Little Rock for a six-week research internship from June 19 to July 29. Upon completion of the internships, the students returned to their home universities to complete their degrees. Their completion of the international research internship will give them an advantage on their resumes. ��Vlog��ý Little Rock has previously conducted similar exchange programs with Pondicherry University, SRM University, and Don Boscoe University, all in India. Mohan said many of the students who participated in these internships returned to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock to pursue a graduate degree. “The students say they are enriched by this experience beyond what they expected out of it,” Mohan said. “They understand how to take responsibility and pursue research internships. Hopefully, some of them will return to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock.” The students conducted research and experiments in four areas: robotics mentored by Dr. Andrew Wright, associate professor of systems engineering, and graduate assistant Trigun Maroo; entity resolution mentored by Dr. John Talburt, professor of information science and Acxiom Chair of Information Quality, and graduate assistant Yumeng Ye; machine learning mentored by Dr. Mariofanna Milanova, professor of computer science; and Internet of Things mentored by Mohan and graduate assistant Hadi Salman. In the Internet of Things project, interns Mohan Patle, Yashshree Anil Patil, and Shubam Gupta built devices that can be used in smart homes. According to Mohan, Internet of Things refers to devices that are connected to the Internet. Currently, the world contains more than 12 billion internet-connected devices, a number which could increase to 50 billion by 2020. Students programmed smart sensors to perform a variety of smart home functions. They programmed pressure sensors that could be used to build a smart refrigerator, range sensors that can detect motion to know when to activate lights, and a rain sensor that could be used to control shutters. As part of the machine learning project, interns Vatsal Gala and Varad Deshpande helped build a system that can predict the sentiments for commercial products by analyzing images and reviews posted on an ecommerce website. “Thousands of websites are selling millions of products online showing their images and stating the description of the product,” Milanova said. “The opinion mining is done by extracting various features from text and images that depict various sentiments. The most important part of the project was to train the machine on this set of extracted features and calculated data so that the machine can predict the values of sentiment for a new product (entity).” In the entity and identity resolution project, interns Tanya Gupta and Rahul Sharma used an open source software package called OYSTER that was developed at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock to determine when records in an information system are about the same entity or different entity. Entities can be students, patients, customers, products, and locations. Entity and identity resolution is especially important in health care so patients can receive the proper treatment. “If you don’t bring together all of a patient’s records of diagnoses, tests, and previous treatments, it could easily lead the patient’s healthcare providers to make the wrong treatment decisions,” said Talburt, who mentored the interns. “Conversely, mixing the information together from two different patients could have many adverse consequences as well.” Gupta and Sharma took to OYSTER so well that they are considering using OYSTER to start a small business in India to help companies with entity resolution and data integration problems. In the upper right photo, nine college students from India completed six-week internships in cutting-edge research areas at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock this summer. The students also visited Gov. Asa Hutchinson at the Arkansas Governor’s Manson in Little Rock. Pictured, from left to right, are Yash Dutt Sharma, Yashshree Anil Patil, Tanya Gupta, Rajeev Sugandhi, Shubham Gupta, Sachin Sharma, Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Seshadri Mohan, Rahul More, Rahul Sharma, Vatsal Gala, Mohan Patle, and Varad Anil Deshpande.]]> EIT annual career fair set for Oct. 10 /news-archive/2017/10/04/eit-annual-career-fair-set-oct-10/ Wed, 04 Oct 2017 19:07:29 +0000 /news/?p=68154 ...]]> University of Arkansas at Little Rock students interested in technology-related fields are encouraged to participate in the George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology’s annual career fair Tuesday, Oct. 10. Employers from well-known corporations, such as Dillard’s IT, Baldwin & Shell Construction Company, and Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield, will have booths in the upper concourse of the Jack Stephens Center from noon to 4 p.m. Students will have the opportunity to present a resume and potentially schedule an interview with organizations in attendance. The dress code for the career fair is business formal. To help students better prepare for the career fair, an informal mixer featuring potential employers will be hosted Monday, Oct. 9, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the College of Business Atrium. Throughout the meet and greet, students will have a chance to interact with employers, inquire about their companies, and discuss future job opportunities. Light refreshments will be served. The dress code for the meet and greet is business casual. For more information, contact Eureka Ice, assistant to the dean, at elice@ualr.edu, or visit the College of Engineering and Information Technology to register for the career fair.]]> Agarwal receives $230,000 to assist U.S. Department of Defense in social bot detection /news-archive/2017/10/02/agarwal-receives-230000-assist-u-s-department-defense-social-bot-detection/ Mon, 02 Oct 2017 13:31:12 +0000 /news/?p=68097 ...]]> Dr. Nitin Agarwal, Jerry L. Maulden-Entergy Endowed Chair of Information Science, received the grant to develop a socio-computational model for the (DARPA) to detect the online presence of social bots. These bots automatically generate messages that persuade social media users on particular issues, ideas, and campaigns. Agarwal is working with, a company based in Rockville, Maryland, that specializes in research and development for federal agencies and corporations in the United States. Agarwal will work on multiple tasks to better understand how social bots have affected public discourse at a social and computational level. These tasks include identifying specific cases in which these bots have affected information and data collection, examining the computational framework of bots, discovering what a bot can and cannot do in a social media space, and developing behavior models to identify strategies in which bots are used. “It is vital to study these rapidly evolving cyber warfare tactics to understand influence operations conducted on social media that distort public discourse, weaponize narratives, and fabricate perceptions,” Agarwal said. “In this project, we will develop and perfect methodologies informed by social science and computational social network analysis to study the information dissemination and coordination behaviors of social bots and to aid the development of detection tools ready for deployment in cyber operations.” In the next phase of the project, Agarwal will explore the content that social bots create, map their behavior, and explore their effectiveness in information campaigns.]]> ��Vlog��ý Little Rock offers new graduate certificate on estimating management /news-archive/2017/09/29/graduate-certificate-estimating-management/ Fri, 29 Sep 2017 13:48:25 +0000 /news/?p=68083 ...]]> The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has launched a new graduate certificate program in a growing field in the construction industry. Beginning this fall, students can earn the 15-credit-hour graduate certificate in estimating management through the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Department of Construction Management and Civil and Construction Engineering program. Estimating is an important part of planning for construction projects, which involves calculating project costs, resources, and duration of project. The new graduate certificate will provide training for a fast-growing field. According to the, the demand for cost estimators, who had an average annual salary of $61,790 in 2016, is projected to increase by 9 percent from 2014 to 2024. At the end of the one-year program, students will be prepared to take the Associate Estimating Professional Exam administered by the For more information, contact Program Coordinator Dr. Jim Carr at jkcarr1@ualr.edu or 501.569.8065. In the upper right photo, an iron worker handles an iron beam during the construction of the Windgate Center of Art + Design building at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.]]>