Student Research

What are you researching?

I am using ArcGIS Pro to identify sub-basins within the Stoney Run Watershed, this area is part of the Lower Two Lick Creek watershed. Storm Line data was obtained from Whites Township to create storm catchment areas. These study areas were used to analyze the length of roads that have storm water running off into the streams. The results from the analysis will be used to determine if storm runoff and roadways are a source of microplastic contamination. It is hypothesized that the storm runoff interacts with plastic pollution on the sides of roads, creating microplastics. Or plastic debris is ending up in storm water grates by storm runoff, which flows into the stream.

Why is it important?

Microplastics pose a threat to public health and ecosystems. Identifying potential sites where microplastics are entering streams will help continue future research. Testing for microplastics at pre-determined sites and confirming their presence in the streams means that action can be taken in the future to find ways to prevent microplastics from entering the streams.

What are you researching?

The analysis on the fungal isolates of the pathogenic fungus, Rhizoctonia solani, has been procured using culturing techniques to preserve the fungal isolate integrity. These cultures are extracted for their double stranded RNA and total RNA. To assess the plant pathogenic qualities these fungal isolates have on plants, a time-interval potato and fungal tissue culture is used to assess when infectious gene interactions are being expressed from the fungus to potato. The presence of these genes are assessed via CDNA synthesis and qPCR techniques using specifically designed primers.

Why is it important?

This project allows for specific chemical inhibitors to be crafted in means of protecting crop growth from the pathogenic fungus. Furthermore, this project provides insight on the genetic and proteomic interactions between the culturing of fungus and plants.

What are you researching?

The boolean semifield, denoted as B, is an algebraic structure with two operations: logical OR analogous to addition, and logical AND analogous to multiplication. Our research explores the factorization of polynomials over the boolean semifield, denoted as B[x].A key challenge in B[x] is that factorization is not unique. Specifically, we investigate the factorization of a particular class of polynomials, namely f(x)= x^n + x^(n-1)+ ... + x + 1. Understanding the non-unique factorization of these polynomials is a central focus of our study.

Why is it important?

This research contributes to a deeper understanding of algebraic structures beyond traditional fields and rings. It also relates to several other analogous problems in similar mathematical structures.

What are you researching?

On the synthesis side of the research, our project consists of making the actual metal complex, as well as adsorbing and desorbing the metal complex from the zeolite. On the characterization side, we are utilizing UV/Vis spectroscopy to identify successful syntheses, as well as the rate at which it occurs. X-Ray Diffraction, SEM-EDS, and IR spectroscopy are being used to demonstrate successful synthesis of the metal complex adsorbed zeolite, as well as successfully desorbed zeolite.

Why is it important?

Current chemotherapies function by targeting rapidly dividing cells, which kills cancer cells but also harms healthy cells such as hair follicles and immune system cells. This can lead to serious, potentially deadly side effects. The photoreactivity of the compound would limit its effect strictly to the area exposed to light, making it possible to target cancer cells more accurately in certain forms of cancer. This form of treatment would be not only more effective, but also safer for patients, offering the ability to reduce or potentially eliminate side effects from chemotherapy.

What are you researching?

I will be conducting research in collaboration with Stuart Group Consulting, Indiana Borough, Downtown Indiana, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) to support a joint initiative aimed at enhancing connectivity between the IUP campus and downtown Indiana. The objective of this project is to assess student interest and to gather emic perspectives from the IUP campus community in order to inform the development of both infrastructural and symbolic connections between campus and town.

Over the course of the summer and fall of 2025, this research will engage IUP students to collect qualitative and quantitative data. The goal is to identify key physical and social features that will inform the planning and implementation of the “8th Street Initiative”—a proposed linkage between IUP and downtown Indiana.

Why is it important?

This research is important because it focuses on IUP Students and what physical and symbolic characteristics students would like to see in the project. IUP students would be one of the main communities using the revitalized 8th Street. In order for the project's success it is important to tap into the populations that would be highly active within the study site to ensure our project appropriately reflects the communities wants.

The prioritization of the 8th Street Corridor is due to the potential positive impact for downtown retailers and restaurants due to the increased campus foot traffic in the proposed Community/University link along 8th Street. In addition to this positive impact, we see this connection as a valuable opportunity for student/faculty/engagement, either along the corridor itself or as a result of the increased university population in the downtown area. The positive impact for the university in recruiting students, faculty, and administration as the connection becomes a link not only to the amenities downtown but also to a large community beyond the campus boundaries.

What are you researching?

Seeing how urban decay indicators such as property conditions and market value have changed over time in McKeesport, PA. This municipality has been hit hard from the loss of domestic manufacturing.

Why is it important?

Data analysis results can be used to inform decision makers on impactful policies to implement for the betterment of the community.

What are you researching?

I’m researching how music studetns experience mental health challenges during college and how these issues can continue or change as they become professional musicians or music educators. Many students start their education feeling passionate and prepared, but over time, the intense workload, perfectionism, and lack of emotional support take a toll on their mental well-being. Some students already have mental health struggles before entering college, while others develop them because of the stressful culture of music school. My project also explores what happens after college—how music teachers and performers deal with burnout, anxiety, and instability, and what changes can be made to better support them.

Why is it important?

This research is important because mental health affects how people learn, perform, and stay healthy in their careers. Musicians often love what they do but face unique pressures like long hours of practice, high expectations, and emotional strain. If we don’t talk about these challenges, students can suffer in silence, and professionals may leave the field altogether. By understanding these mental health issues, schools and organizations can create better support systems, reduce burnout, and help musicians stay healthy and creative throughout their careers. Music education isn’t just about playing well, it should also be about living well.

What are you researching?

The National Breast Cancer Foundation (2025) approximates that breast cancer will affect 1 in 8 women over the course of her lifetime. However, the National Breast Cancer Foundation (2025) similarly estimates that if detected early, the 5-year relative survival rate stands around 99%. This research proposes utilizing artificial intelligence in aiding early breast cancer diagnosis. The objective is to use computer vision, semantic segmentation, and neural networks to develop an artificial intelligence model that can provide an in-depth, accurate analysis of mammography scans to identify masses, calcifications, or structural abnormalities indicative of cancer. This research aims to develop a fast, accurate tool to assist radiologists in analyzing mammography scans while similarly reducing the number of late-stage diagnoses and breast cancer fatalities.

Why is it important?

Artificial intelligence can significantly impact early breast cancer detection, allowing for quicker treatment and, hopefully, increased likelihood of survival. Artificial intelligence can provide a detailed, meticulous analysis of mammography scans pixel by pixel, recognizing subtle abnormalities or patterns not always visible to radiologists. While this research is important in displaying the advanced capabilities of AI, it ultimately is patient-centered and could have beneficial impacts in the field of biomedical imaging and cancer diagnosis.

What are you researching?

A computer vision system that allows users to navigate around their computer using only their hands. It takes a live video from the computer's camera and attempts to locate specific points on the user's hands. The system then uses these points to perform various actions such as mouse movements and mouse clicks.

Why is it important?

It is important that we explore the different ways we can interact with the world around us. Being more familiar and comfortable with these more novel forms of interaction can allow for innovation in communication and entertainment. I've always been interested in exploring how we can interact with games, so I see this project, and research like it, as ways to deepen our understanding in these topics through a gaming lens.

What are you researching?

My project focuses on designing and producing a collection of play-based learning toys and classroom activities for early childhood education. I will use 3D printing and laser cutting technologies to create interactive and exploratory experiences for the classroom. Each tool will promote skills such as creativity, problem-solving, and fine motor development. The project will incorporate topics from across the early childhood curriculum including math, reading, and writing.

This project will combine principles from early childhood education, design, and technology to create hands-on learning activities for early childhood. Each tool in this collection will use digital fabrication to enhance the early childhood classroom and create activities that are rooted in educational theories with an emphasis on creative play and active engagement.

Why is it important?

This project is important because it combines digital fabrication with education and shows that these tools can enhance the early childhood classroom. These play-based activities will encourage children to actively engage in their learning in an exciting way. Early childhood is a key time when kids develop their brains, motor skills, and social abilities. When learning is fun and interactive, kids stay curious, build confidence, and understand things better.

What are you researching?

I’m conducting ethnographic research on the redevelopment of the Homer City Generating Station site in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. The coal-fired power plant was decommissioned in 2023 and is now being transformed into the Homer City Energy Campus, which will include the largest natural gas power plant in the country and an AI data center. Through qualitative methods like ethnographic interviews and participant observation, my goal is to document the emerging hopes and concerns that community members have. My research asks how people in Indiana County are experiencing and responding to the redevelopment and how Indiana County’s long history with energy and extraction shapes resident’s expectations of the future.

Why is it important?

This research amplifies community voices at a critical moment of rapid change in Homer City and contributes to broader conversations about energy and the tech industry in rural America. As projects like this continue to unfold across the commonwealth and beyond, qualitative research is crucial in understanding how new forms of energy and data infrastructure impact the everyday lives of those living in the surrounding communities.

What are you researching?

This project aims to find a small molecule inhibitor for Receptor A, at two sites, Site A and B. Computational docking studies are used to identify ligands, which are derivatized to increase blinding affinity and selectivity. A virtual screening process utilizes commercially available compounds found in the Zinc Data Base, yielding lead compounds. Promising ligands will be purchased and used on HRMS and cell culture studies to assess their binding attributes.

Why is it important?

Inhibitors are commonly used to manipulate the function of a receptor, and often used for finding potential drug candidates. The findings of this study can provide insight on novel drug design.

What are you researching?

The goal of this U-SOAR research project was to build an AI-powered personal stylist to help the user generate new creative outfits with the clothes already in their closets. To achieve this, I’ve used Ollama’s open-source large language and vision models, which are freely accessible to the public. Ollama’s models, such as gemma3:27b and llama3.1:latest, can recognize visuals in images, understand text, and generate outputs, in this case outfits, based on those inputs. With the help of my faulty advisor, Dr. Samuel Grieggs, I have created an AI stylist that takes uploaded images of a person's clothing items, processes them, and then makes outfits based on their closet, event, weather, location, and formality.

Why is it important?

This project addresses the everyday challenge of getting dressed by helping users make better use of the clothing they already own. It combines fashion and technology to reduce decision fatigue and encourage more mindful consumption. Beyond its practical use, this project highlights the creative potential of AI tools. This project utilizes AI to simplify and enhance the outfit planning experience, while also demonstrating how machine learning can be applied in creative, real-life scenarios to support self-expression and personal style.