2025 Honors College Thesis Fair

Join us for the 2025 Honors College Spring Undergraduate Research Showcase and Thesis Fair, held Wednesday, May 14 and Friday, May 16. This annual event highlights the diversity of student research in the Honors College through both virtual and in-person opportunities.

Lightning Talks

Wednesday, May 14 and Friday, May 16

A small group of Honors College students will present lightning talks — short, engaging overviews of their thesis research.

• May 14: 5–6:30 p.m. PDT
  Virtual only via Zoom
• May 16: 11–11:50 a.m. PDT, 1:30–2 p.m. PDT, and 2:15–2:45 p.m. PDT
  In person at the Learning Innovation Center (LINC 343) and via Zoom

Zoom Info
Meeting ID: 913 8904 2769
Password: 153374

Thesis Poster Display

Friday, May 16 | 1–3 p.m.

Visit the third-floor hallways of the Learning Innovation Center (LINC) to view thesis posters and talk with student researchers about their work.

To view previously recorded thesis research presentations create an account on Symposium

See below for the full schedule of presenters.

Lightning Talk: Wednesday, May 14 at 5 p.m. PDT

Virtual only via Zoom

Carley Beeman

• Thesis: Imidazopyridine Compounds Induce Death in MDA-MB-468 Human Breast Cancer Cells
• Major: Chemistry
• Mentor: Siva Kolluri

Rachel Spencer

• Thesis: ELISA Procedure and Research Application
• Major: Nutrition
• Mentor: David Dallas

Carolyn Sellers

• Thesis: Behavioral Responses of Guatemalan Black Howler Monkeys (Alouatta Pigra) to the Presence of Other Species in Northern Guatemala

• Major: Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation Sciences

• Mentor: Ellen Dymit

Derek Greene

• Thesis: Mapping the Attack Surface of Domain Control Validation in TLS Server Certificate Issuance

• Major: Computer Science

• Mentor: Zane Ma

Aura Thomas-Sargent

• Thesis: Intersectionality, Identity, and our Common Future: Sustainability Engagement and the Politics of Participation in Oregon

• Majors: Political Science, French

• Mentor: Christopher Stout

Stefan Ene

• Thesis: Investigating Ensemble Neural Networks for Side-Channel Analysis

• Major: Computer Science

• Mentor: Vincent Immler

Summer Wong

• Thesis: An Analysis of Water Management and Stakeholder Engagement in Maui, Hawai’i

• Major: Political Science and Sustainability

• Mentor: Erika Wolters

Paige Wylie

• Thesis: How AI is Reshaping Entry-Level Finance Hiring
• Major: Finance, Business Admin
• Mentor: Bret Carpenter

Lidya Acar

• Thesis: One of the guys: Gendered Expectations and Leadership Dynamics of Coxswains on Men's Collegiate Rowing Teams

• Major: Public Policy & Political Science

• Mentor: Catherine Bolzendahl

Lightning Talk: Friday, May 16 at 11 a.m. PDT

In person at the Learning Innovation Center (LINC 343) and via Zoom

Jordan Lopez

• Thesis: Post-Pandemic Recovery in Public Libraries: An Oral History
• Major: History
• Mentor: Kelly McElroy

Marina Elliott

• Thesis: Developing Recombinant Viral Vectored Vaccines to Combat Malaria

• Major: Microbiology

• Mentor: Brandon Wilder

Nicholas Cramer

• Thesis: From Paper Maps to Artificial Intelligence: A Historical Analysis of Cartography and Geospatial Science

• Majors: Geography & Geospatial Science, Spanish Language & Culture

• Mentor: Kelsey Emard

Baird Quinn

• Thesis: Improved Downscaling of Modeled Snow Depth Using Machine Learning, Remote Sensing, and Physiography
• Majors: Civil Engineering, Sustainability
• Mentor: Mark S. Raleigh

Kennedy Sparks

• Thesis: Mathematical Model of Orgam Cryoprotectant Perfusion

• Major: Bioengineering

• Mentor: Adam Higgins

Kendall Evanchak

• Thesis: A Model of Immunity: Dissecting Innate Responses in Drosophila Melanogaster

• Majors: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Chemistry

• Mentor: Nathan Mortimer

Cassie Badger

• Thesis: The Role and Importance of Deubiquitinase Usp14 in MHC Class I Antigen Presentation

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Brian Dolan

Allison Musgrave

• Thesis: Detecting Gambierdiscus spp. Utilizing DNA Sequencing and Analyzing Its Prevalence Around the Island of Mo’orea
• Major: Microbiology
• Mentor: Rebecca Vega Thurber

Ellie Ocel

• Thesis: Evaluation of Sulfate Solubility of Three Sulfur-Based Fertilizers in a Willamette Valley Soil
• Major: Environmental Science
• Mentor: Amber Moore

Marshall Saltz

• Thesis: Optimizing Hand Design for Workspace Coverage Using an Evolutionary Algorithm
• Major: Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Mentor: Cindy Grimm

Lightning Talk: Friday, May 16 at 1:30 p.m. PDT

In person at the Learning Innovation Center (LINC 343) and via Zoom

Chloe Lewis

• Thesis: An Assessment of the Quality of Galactosemia Websites 
• Major: English Literature
• Mentor: Diana Park 

Aven Sadighi

• Thesis: Progress & the Christian View of History

• Major: Computer Science

• Mentor: Gary Ferngren

Kendra Anderson

• Thesis: Understanding the Function of the PRC2 Suz12 Subunit by Site-Directed Mutagenesis 

• Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

• Mentor: Michael Freitag

Cassidy Ochoa

• Thesis: Weathermakers: A Journey Through Climate Science and Science Fiction

• Major: Climate Science

• Mentors: Andrea Jenney and Karen Holmberg

Johanna Peeters Weem

• Thesis: Mossing Around: Analysis of Surface Water and Moss around Coffin Butte for Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances

• Majors: Environmental Engineering, Environmental Science

• Mentror: Jennifer Field

Lightning Talk: Friday, May 16 at 2:15 p.m. PDT

In person at the Learning Innovation Center (LINC 343) and via Zoom

Roan Luikart

• Thesis: Faster Numerical Methods Using Ideas From Physics

• Major: Math and Physics

• Mentor: Nicholas Marshall

Alexis Merker

• Thesis: Community, Conflict, and Enabling Conditions: A Qualitative Analysis of Oregon’s Marine Reserve System To Inform Adaptive Management

• Major: Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences

• Mentor: Jenna Sullivan-Stack

Paige Douglas

• Thesis: Computer Science is Like a Man: The Analogical Domain as an Inclusive Pedagogical Tool In Computer Science Education

• Major: Computer Science

• Mentor: Kryn Freehling-Burton

Caroline Brennan

• Thesis: Social Influences on Panhellenic Primary Recruitment
• Major: Psychology
• Mentor: Jacqueline Goldman

Kyra Hopper

• Thesis: Effects of Point Mutations on DNA Methylation and Centromere Behavior in Neurospora crassa

• Major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

• Mentor: Michael Freitag

Thesis Poster Display: Friday, May 16 from 1-3 p.m.

Visit the third-floor hallways of the Learning Innovation Center (LINC) to view thesis posters and talk with student researchers about their work.

Kyra Patterson

• Major: Political Science

• Mentor: Jillian St. Jacques

Kassy Bonanno

• Majors: Public Health, Public Policy

• Mentor: Allison Myers

Will Kirsch

• Major: Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Science

• Mentor: W. Douglas Robinson

Otis Eads

• Major: Psychology

• Mentor: Jessica Dietch

Sophiana Hsiang-Min Kung

• Majors: Design & Innovation Management, Music 
• Mentor: Brigitte Gaal Cluver

Madalyn Gragg

• Majors: Mechanical Engineerings, Physics

• Mentor: Oksana Ostroverkhova

Mayahuel Garcia-Harper

• Major: Psychology

• Mentor: Sabine Huemer 

Kevin Chang

• Major: Computer Science

• Mentor: Geoffrey Hollinger

Farren Adler

• Major: Zoology

• Mentor: Andy Myers

Lauren Ulwelling

• Major: Mechanical Engineering

• Mentor: Andy Dong

Haeli Rowland

• Major: Tourism, Recreation, and Adventure Leadership

• Mentor: Lorien Reynolds

Madeline Bowder

• Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

• Mentor: Lia Danelishvilli

Karalyn Holt

• Major: Human Development and Family Sciences
• Mentor: Molly Kile

Elijah Waibel

• Major: Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering

• Mentor: Dong Lin

Alaina Houser

• Major: Environmental Science

• Mentor: George Waldbusser

Ruby Wojcik

• Major: Human Development and Family Sciences

• Mentor: Melissa Cheyney

Carmen Brown

• Major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

• Mentor: Alysia Vrailas-Mortimer

Elan Romero

• Major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

• Mentor: Addison Desnoyer

Erin Keeney

• Major: Psychology

• Mentor: Jessee Dietch

Jordan Liddy

• Major: Biology
• Mentor: Sunil Khanna

Mitchell Kenny

• Major Chemistry

• Mentor: Kyriakos Stylianou

Nicklaus Leong

• Major: Chemical Engineering

• Mentor: Goran Jovanovic

Brianna Yu

• Major: Civil Engineering
• Mentor: Jeffrey Knowles

Emily Southwell

• Major: Botany

• Mentor: Kristin Trippe

Brian Zhou

• Major: Bioenginnering

• Mentor: Tyler Radniecki 

Anya Grobey

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Jessica Gorman

Betty Stine

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Brianna Beechler

Oona Clark

• Major: Climate Science

• Mentor: Philip Mote

Brigitte Chenevert

• Major: Marketing

• Mentor: Brandon McAlexander

Joshua Reese

• Major: Zoology

• Mentor: Kathryn Everson

Dalton Burk

• Major: Business Administration

• Mentor: Bret Carpenter

Kaya Hoffman

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Jessie Uehling

Andrew Monkarsh

• Major: BioHealth Sciences

• Mentor: Dee Denver

Sashank Suravaram

• Major: Political Science

• Mentor: David Bernell

Connor Chen

• Majors: Public Health, Political Science

• Mentor: Sarah Henderson

Shelby Galipeau

• Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
• Mentor: Alysia Vrailas-Mortimer

Morgan Miller

• Major: Environmental Science

• Mentor: Jared LeBoldus

Will Gilmour

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Jamie Cornelius

Josiah Chan

• Major: Physics

• Mentor: Oksana Ostroverkhova

Kathryn Stahmann

• Major: Psychology

• Mentor: Kenneth Maes

Zachary Thomas

• Major: Mechanical Engineering
• Mentor: Ross Hatton

Sydney van der Zee

• Major: Microbiology

• Mentor: Claudia Häse

Yaya Kiss

• Major: Biochemistry and Biophysics
• Mentor: Luiz Bermudez

Nathan Pethick

• Major: Biology

• Mentor: Bruce Menge

Sofia Dixon

• Major: BioHealth Sciences

• Mentor: David Kerr

Terence Loke

• Major: Ecological Engineering

• Mentor: Tom Osborn Popp

Tori Schummer

• Major: Microbiology

• Mentor: Maude David

Neera Butani

• Major: Biology pre-med

• Mentor: Aaron Liston

Andreas Palmateer

• Major: Chemical Engineering

• Mentor: Lucas Ellis

Lauren Ellett

• Major: Radiation Health Physics

• Mentor: Courtney Campbell

Adalgisa De Caro

• Major: Environmental Engineering

• Mentor: Gerrad Jones

Ragheeb Hoque

• Major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• Mentor: Brian Dolan

Brenna Popham

• Majors: Mechanical, Manufacturing Engineering

• Mentor: Ravi Balasubramanian

Hailey Harris

• Major: Psychology

• Mentor: Alysia Vrailas-Mortimer

Takoda Wheeler

• Major: BioHealth Sciences

• Mentor: Matthew Robinson

Liam Warner

• Majors: Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering

• Mentor: Chet Udell

Sam Groetsch

• Majors: Philosophy, Biochemistry and Biophysics

• Mentor: Robert Figueroa 

Abigael Craig

• Major: Digital Communication Arts

• Mentor: Jillian St. Jacques 

Donovan McAfee

• Major: Biochemistry and Biophysics, Bioengineering

• Mentor: Ryan Mehl