Office of Undergraduate Research Announces Fall 2022 URCA Award Winners

East Carolina University’s Office of Undergraduate Research announced that 53 student primary investigators received Fall 2022 Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) awards.

The award provides support for faculty-mentored research and creative projects led by undergraduates in four disciplines:

  • Biomedical Science – Any science that applies principles of the natural sciences (life or physical) to medicine or health
  • STEM – science*, technology, engineering, and mathematics
    *Any science that does not apply principles of the natural sciences (life or physical) to medicine or health
  • Social Science
  • Arts and Humanities

Students apply for the award with a defined project narrative and budget justification summary that they’ve developed in collaboration with a mentor.

Awards range from $1,500-$2,000 for each project. The awards may go toward project materials and cost, a stipend for the student, or used for participant incentives.

Award recipients are required to present their findings at venues such as Undergraduate Day during ECU’s Research and Creative Achievement Week (RCAW), the State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium (SNCURS) held in December, or other scholarly venues deemed appropriate by their mentors.

The Fall 2022 URCA award recipients are:

Award Recipient(s)Department, School or CollegeMentor(s)
Ehime AbhulimenBiochemistry and Molecular BiologyMorgan Milton
Joseph AbuarabGeologyEric Horsman
Simona AdhikariHealth Education and PromotionAlice Richman
Elizabeth BaileySchool of Theatre and DanceJohn Dixon
Madison BarnhillHealth Education and PromotionLeslie Cofie
Isabella BenitezPsychologyChristyn Dolbier
Hannah BlackburnEngineeringTeresa Ryan
Reagan BlackburnSchool of Theatre and DanceJen-Scott Mobley
Jessica BradyCollege of NursingElizabeth Mizelle
Zoe BrownSchool of Theatre and DanceLisanne Shaffer
Michael CavalleroBiologyElizabeth Ables
Meredith CoxBiologyErin Field
Cole DickersonCenter for Sustainable Energy and Environmental EngineeringTarek Abdel-Salam
Shannon DuganAnthropologyLaura Mazow
Sarah ElliotNutrition ScienceLauren Sastre, Bhibha Das
Carleigh FlynnSchool of Art and DesignHeather Muise
Abigail FrugeMicrobiology and ImmunologyIsabelle Lemasson
Surinder GillBiologyAriane Peralta
Evelyn GonzalezAccountingZhan Furner
Sydney GrosePhysicsJuan Beltran-Huarac
Savannah Harris and Sydney CookKinesiologyBhibha Das, Lauren Sastre
Tory Rose HarrisSchool of Theatre and DanceJeni Parker
Madison HollomanKinesiologyNicholas Murray
Luke JacksonMultidisciplinary StudiesTuan Tran
Rachael JohnsonChemistryWilliam Allen
Ashley JonesOccupational TherapyDenise Donica
Neha Joseph and Joanna MathewPublic HealthSinan Sousan
Bridget Kenny Physical TherapyStacey Meardon
Alexa KerkanChemistrySambuddha Banerjee
George KirkmanPhysical TherapySwati Surkar
Caroline KnoxPsychologyChristy Walcott
Kristy LauAnatomy and Cell BiologyAlessandro Didonna
Savannah LipskiInternal MedicineMyon Hee Lee
Kendall NelsonKinesiologyNicholas P Murray
Bradley Peacock and Jenna KiefriterSchool of Theatre and DanceJen-Scott Mobley, Bryan Conger
Emily PendrySchool of Dental MedicineVanessa Pardi
Mary (Lizzie) PhippsPhysical TherapyErzsebet Szatmari
Kyra PorterBiologyElizabeth Ables
Elisabeth ReedHealth Education and PromotionLeslie Cofie
Madison Rose and Jarred DesrosiersComputer ScienceNic Herndon
Anna SchulzChemistryRobert Hughes
Hannah SowersEngineeringAli Vahdati, Nathan Hudson
Ethan StollPhysicsNathan Hudson
Lindsay SwainBiologyElizabeth Ables
Emily ThomasCollege of NursingAlison Swift
Myna TirupatturPhysiologyLaxmansa Katwa, Srinivas Sriramula
Abigail UlffersKinesiologyBhibha Das
Victoria VangSchool of Dental MedicineSaulo Geraldeli
Mason VerhaeghePhysicsNathan Hudson
Shalanda VickAnthropologyRyan Schacht
Summer WestCollege of NursingAmy Campbell
Tyler WestHealth Education and PromotionJoseph Lee

For more information on individual projects, view the Fall 2022 URCA spreadsheet.