Each year, the College of Arts and Sciences community comes together for Research Day to celebrate our faculty and student researchers who explore a wide range of topics spanning the humanities, natural sciences and social sciences. 

This annual event recognizes the breadth and depth of the exceptional scholarly activity that takes place across our college. This year’s Research Day, held on May 29, featured 23 oral presentations and 79 posters from tenured, tenure-track, teaching and research faculty; postdoctoral fellows; graduate and undergraduate students and research trainees.  

Dean David Brown, PhD, presented the Arts and Sciences Research Day 2025 Awards, judged by a panel of faculty members representing nearly all the college's 13 departments, to recognize some of the standout posters and talks.  

The award for Best Talk by an Undergraduate Student was presented to English major Sophia Mattia (faculty advisors: Daniel Driscoll, MA; Scott Warnock, PhD and Elizabeth Kimball, PhD). Physics major Ava Scholl (faculty advisor: Christina Love, PhD) received an honorable mention.  

The award for Best Talk by a Graduate Student was presented to biological sciences PhD student Abbie Williams (faculty advisor: Jacob Russell, PhD). Clinical psychology doctoral candidate Jasmine Sun (faculty advisor: Brian Daly, PhD) received an honorable mention. 

Three students received the award for Best Poster by an Undergraduate Student: biological sciences major Navya Kundula (mentored by Alexej Dick, PhD); neuroscience and public health major Sevinch Rakhmonova (mentored by Necla Ece Yilmaz, MS and Evangelia G. Chrysikou, PhD) and physics major Lourdes Akirtha Stephen Raj (mentored by Christina Love, PhD).  

Two students received the award for Best Poster by a Graduate Student: applied cognitive and brain sciences PhD student Brian Kim (mentored by John D. Medaglia, PhD) and biological sciences doctoral candidate Bre R. Hewitt (mentored by Ryan Petrie, PhD).  

The college welcomed alumni judges Michael Liebman, BS chemistry '70; Herb Lau, BA international area studies '98 and Bindal Mehmel, BS psychology '16 to judge the Best Alumni Poster Awards. 

The award for Best Alumni Poster by an Undergraduate Student was presented to communication and economics major Gouri Bhargava (mentored by PhD student Essien Oku Essien).  

The award for Best Alumni Poster by a Graduate Student was presented to applied cognitive and brain sciences doctoral candidate Harrison Stoll (mentored by John D. Medaglia, PhD). 

Congratulations to the presenters and awardees! Thank you to our alumni judges, faculty judges and student volunteers.