In early June, seven undergraduate students participating in our REU program arrived at the University of Delaware for a 10-week hands-on, research-intensive experience. In addition to laboratory experience, students will elevate their professional skills in weekly professional development workshops led by faculty and students from both CPI and the Center for Hybrid, Active, and Responsive Materials (CHARM). Other events include site visits to companies (Dow, Under Armour, and ExxonMobil), an in-person poster presentation at the CPI Summer Retreat, and a virtual poster presentation at the UD Summer Research Symposium.

Here is a list of our talented summer students and their host labs and mentors:

Lorenz Cushman (University of Utah) – Thomas H. Epps, III; Grad Mentor – Robert O’Dea

Harrison Goehrig (Bucknell University) – Laure Kayser; Grad Mentor – Tulaja Shrestha

Daniel Nakamura (University of Rochester) – Wilfred Chen; Grad Mentor – Madan Gopal

Lauren Smith (Delaware State University) – Eleftherios (Terry) Papoutsakis; Postdoc Mentor – Gwen Gregory

Michael Axiotes (University of Delaware) – Mary Watson; Grad Mentor – Mike Talley

Jack Granite (University of Delaware) – Dion Vlachos; Grad Mentor – Brandon Vance

Joseph Castaneda (CUNY – The City College of New York) – Mark Blenner; Postdoc Mentor – Lummy Monteiro