CUGR announces a record number of student award winners for 2021–22 academic year

The University of Maine’s Center for Undergraduate Research (CUGR) has announced the winners of the 2021–22 Academic Year Undergraduate Fellowships and Research Experiences, as well as the Maine Space Grant Consortium (MSGC) graduate research fellowships. 

CUGR has reported a record number of student projects this year. Despite the challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year continues to be an outstanding one for research and scholarly achievements at Maine’s land, sea and space grant university. 

Supported by the Office of Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School, CUGR provides several fellowship programs in collaboration with the UMaine Institute of Medicine, UMaine Artificial Intelligence and MSGC. 

This year’s CUGR undergraduate award winners are listed on the CUGR website. Seventy-five projects spanning across several disciplines, including history, art, new media, climate science, biochemistry and various fields in engineering, received funding. Each undergraduate proposal was awarded $1,500. 

Winners of MSGC graduate research fellowships include:

• Oisin Biswas, biomedical engineering, for “Continuous Monitoring of Surface Microorganisms Aboard Spacecraft Via Structural Color Analysis,” advised by Caitlin Howell.
• Francis Sternberg, geology, for “Geochemical Weathering of Serpentinite in a Tropical Environment: Implications for Silicate Weathering on Mars,” advised by Amanda Olsen.
• Morgan Stosic, psychological sciences, for “Efficacy of Various Trainings to Increase the Accurate Perception of Fatigue,” advised by Mollie Ruben.
• Anna Soule, intermedia and accounting, for “The Journey of Perseverance — A Rover’s Perspective: Phase 2 — Enroute to Landing,” advised by Shawn Laatsch.

The purpose of the MSGC fellowship and scholarship programs is to provide research opportunities to undergraduate and graduate students in aerospace technology, space science, human exploration/space development, Earth science and other science- or engineering-related fields. The focus of proposed projects must be aligned with the research priorities of NASA’s Earth and space science strategic enterprises. Each MSGC project was awarded $6,000.

For more information about fellowships offered through CUGR and MSGC programs, visit the CUGR website or email cugr@maine.edu.

Contact: Dan Demeritt, 207.441.6962; dan.demeritt@maine.edu