Spring ’22 Doctorate Graduates Honored At Special Reception

Thirteen doctorate graduates were given a warm congratulations and sendoff Friday in a continuation of a longstanding College of Sciences’ tradition. The final toast was led by College of Sciences Dean Maggy Tomova, Ph.D.  Click here to see the full gallery of photos. Below is the full list of Ph.D. graduates for Spring 2022.

Big Data Analytics

Patrick Pho, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Alexander Mantzaris, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Graph Neural Networks for Improved Interpretability and Efficiency

Chemistry

Ryan Connelly, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Yulia Gerasimova, Ph.D.
Dissertation: G-Quadruplex Reporters: Structural Studies and Application for Visual and Fluorescent Detection of Point Mutations in Nucleic Acid Sequences

Michelle Corbally, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Michael Sigman, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Development of a Computational Application to Aid with Chemometric and Forensic Analysis of Fire Debris Samples

Ali Haghighat Mesbahi, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Karin Chumbimuni Torres, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Tunning the fluid wetting dynamic on gold microstructures and conductivity of polyaniline using photoactive compounds

Kaitlin Huffman, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: John Ballantyne, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Complex DNA Mixture Deconvolution by Single Cell Genomics: Direct Physical Cell Subsampling and High Sensitivity DNA Typing

Emily Lennert, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Candice Bridge, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Analysis and Characterization of Smokeless Powders and Smokeless Powder Residues

Zeyang Zhang, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Lei Zhai
Dissertation: Polymer Derived Ceramic for Lithium-Ion Storage, and Electrospun Polyelectrolyte Fiber for Heavy Metal Ions Removal

Conservation Biology

Jennifer Loch, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Geoffrey Cook, Ph.D.
Dissertation: “Reeling In” Juvenile Sportfish Through Coastal Habitat Restoration: Population, Community, and Trophic Responses in the Indian River Lagoon, FL

Human Factors & Cognitive Psychology

Ecum Olcum, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Valerie Sims, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Investigation of Realism in Facial Characteristics and Anthropomorphic Language in the Design of Multimedia Instruction

Xiaoqing Wan, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Nichole Lighthall, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Predictors of Technology Use Among Older Adults: Evidence Ranging from Non-Users to Elite Users

Industrial & Organizational Psychology

Nicole Carusone, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Mindy Shoss, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Resources and Racism: An Examination of a Dual-Pathway Model of Economic Stress and Workplace Prejudice and Discrimination

Integrative Anthropological Sciences

Jane Holmstrom, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Tosha Dupras, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Reimagining Rural Religion: Examining Diet, Mobility, and Social Dynamics in Southern Medieval France Using A Multi-Isotopic and GIS Approach

Integrative & Conservation Biology

Biplabendu Das, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Adriana (Charissa) de Bekker, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Role of Biological Clocks in Ant Behavioral Plasticity and Parasitic Manipulation of Ant Behavior

Mathematics

Chang Li, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Jiongmin Yong, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Optimal Stochastic Impulse Control with Decision Lag

Physics

Gyanendra Dhakal, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Madhab Neupane, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Study of Anisotropy in Topological Materials

Stephanie Eckert, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Joshua Colwell, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Characterizing the particle size distribution in Saturn’s rings using Cassini UVIS stellar occultation data

Sushrut Modak, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Leonid Chernyak, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Impact of Electron Injection and Radiation Damage on Minority Carrier Transport Properties in Gallium Oxide and Gallium Nitride

Sajad Saghaye Polkoo, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Christopher Renshaw, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Imaging Based Beam Steering for Optical Communication and Lidar Applications

Jesse Thompson, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Masahiro Ishigami, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Electronic and Optoelectronic Properties of Two-Dimensional Heterostructures for Next-Generation Device Technologies

Security Studies

Davide Dell’Isola, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Barbara Kinsey, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Discrimination, Terrorist Violence and Secularist Policies: Challenges for the Integration of Muslims in Western Europe

Sociology

Willie Barnes, Ph.D.
Faculty Advisor: Scott Carter, Ph.D.
Dissertation: Multiracial but not Post-racial: The Reproduction of Racial Ideology and Processes in a Multiracial Church