Major: Professional Chemistry

Mentors: Drs. Kevin Crawford & Brant Kedrowski

Under the mentorship of Dr. Kedrowski, Austin Bunkelman (Fond du Lac) was part of an on-going project to find ways to biodegrade PET plastics. He focused on finding efficient ways to synthesize PET oligomers so that they can be broken down by a bacterium. Bunkelman, who is interested in pursuing a career in research, is exploring opportunities to gain more research experience, perhaps in the form of an external summer research program. 

Major: Biomolecular Chemistry      Minor: Mathematics & Spanish

Mentors: Drs. Kevin Crawford & Brant Kedrowski

Vianna Dao (Oshkosh), a professional chemistry major, was also part of an on-going project to find ways to biodegrade PET plastics. Under Dr. Kedrowski’s mentorship, she focused on the synthesis of short chain PET oligomers so that they can be used for biodegradation experiments. Dao is pursuing a pharmacy technician certificate and looking for opportunities to broaden her research experience. Ultimately, she dreams of earning a PharmD. 

Major: Geology         Minor: Environmental Engineering

Mentors: Drs. Jennifer Wenner &  Benjamin Hallet

Together with her mentor Dr. Jennifer Wenner, Layla Graser (Wautoma) researched the basalt modification process using samples from the Poison Lack Chain in California. Graser would like to leverage her geology major and minor in environmental engineering technology to pursue a career centered around protecting our water resources. She hopes to pursue a master’s degree focused on topics like PFAS pollution or groundwater contamination. She will be spending next summer conducting geological field work out West. 

Major: Physics      Minor: Astronomy & German

Mentor: Dr. Nenad Stojilovic

Tanya Schmoll (Winneconne) is a non-traditional student who came to college to pursue her passion for physics and astronomy. Together with her mentor Dr. Nenad Stojilovic, she used an x-ray diffractometer to collect crystallographic data on intact crystals. Previous methods required grinding the crystal into a fine powder. Schmoll was recently hired by the Barlow Planetarium to operate Wisconsin’s largest portable planetarium. She conducts outreach to area children by bringing the planetarium experience to them in their schools. Schmoll plans to pursue a graduate degree in astronomy. 

Major: Education

Certificate: Outdoor Leadership

Mentor: Dr. Li-Hsuan Hsu

Under the mentorship of Dr. Li-Hsuan Hsu, Sophia Schneider (Oshkosh) sought to gain a better understanding of literature related to art integration and its implementation in K-12 classrooms. While working on her project, she worked as a student assistant for ArtsCore, a grant-funded project that seeks to support students and in-service teachers interested in integrating the arts into their core curricular classes. Schneider hopes to leverage her McNair research and experience to participate in a second summer research internship collecting data in spaces where arts integration is being applied.

Mentor: Dr. Eric Hiatt, Ph.D. Geology

With a background in auto mechanics, Griffin Scholl-Delzer discovered here at UWO his passion for the stories rocks and minerals can tell us. Together with his mentor Dr. Haitt, Scholl-Delzer took a examined Neoproterozoic dolomite from Brazil to better understand and protect aquifers.  He is eager to pursue a master’s and is looking at programs in Europe. He will be spending next summer conducting geological field work out West. 

Major: Biomolecular Chemistry

Mentor: Dr. Jennifer Mihalick

Dylan Schommer (Oshkosh), a non-traditional student, who came to college because of his insatiable curiosity and desire to understand the why behind natural phenomena, found a home in the field of molecular biochemistry. Together with his mentor Dr. Jennifer Mihalick, Schommer examined various reaction conditions on nanocellulose-silica in an effort find viable biodegradable and non-toxic alternatives to petroleum-based plastics. Dylan hopes to purse a PhD and become a research scientist. 

Major: Biomedical Science

Mentor: Dr. Sabrina Mueller-Spitz

Abigail Thomas (Hortonville) was part Dr. Sabrina Mueller-Spitz’ research lab which included two Beckman Scholars, and while she worked on her own independent project researching the ability of Deinococcus aquaticus to biodegrade plastic, she thoroughly enjoyed the camaraderie and benefited from their support. Thomas aspires to pursue a PharmD degree. 

Major: Atheletic Training with pre-med coursework

Mentor: Dr. Brian Wallace

Dakota Treleven (Omro) is a non-traditional student with extensive experience as an emergency responder. His work as a volunteer fire fighter and concern for the high incidents of cardiac events in the profession motivated him to seek potential solutions. Together with his mentor biomechanics professor Dr. Brian Wallace, Treleven designed and conducted a study at the Omro Fire Department, in which he used readily available and affordable smart glass with built in heart rate monitors to increase the fire fighter’s awareness. Preliminary findings suggest this knowledge helps fire fighters self-regulate their level of exertion. Treleven works in am ER here in Oshkosh while completing his bachelor’s degree and pre-med course work. He dreams of becoming a medical doctor.

Major: Accounting & Information Systems

Mentor: Dr. Kazeem Akinyele

With a passion for technology, especially as it pertains to AI and information systems, Jacques Tulowitzky (Rheinlander) examined, with the support of his accounting professor Dr. Kazeem Akinyele, the impact AI is having on the accounting profession. Tulowitzky has been offered a position at a top accounting firm in the Twin Cities where he plans to gain valuable experience in the profession prior to applying for PhD programs. Ultimately, Tulowitzky, who has a passion for the teaching profession, would like to become a professor.

Major: Biomedical Science

Mentor: Dr. Benjamin Sajdak

Tyra Tye (Menasha) had the distinct honor of being the first to have been mentored by one of UWO’s very own McNair alumni. Dr. Benjamin Sajdak, a 2012 McNair scholar, who went on to complete a PhD in Visual Neuroscience at the Medical College of Wisconsin. He mentored Tye on a neuroscience project focused on torpor (hibernation) and stressors to the blood-brain barrier. The two plan to continue their research in the spring of 2026, using immunohistochemistry—the same technique used to detect traumatic brain injuries during autopsies—to understand what if any damage can be seen in the brain tissue of ground squirrels. Tye, who had come to college as a pre-med student, is now considering pursuing a PhD with the goal of becoming a neuroscientist.