CrittendenJoshua Crittenden
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Undergraduate: University of Connecticut
Faculty Advisor: Claudia Gunsch
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Claudia Gunsch, Fred Boadu

Joshua Crittenden is a Ph.D. student in civil and environmental engineering with a concentration in environmental health engineering at Duke University. His research focuses on developing a bioremediation approach that enables the development of a cooperative indigenous fungal-bacterial bio-film with increased PAH degradation potential. He is a GEM Associate Fellow. Joshua received a bachelor of science in environmental engineering from the University of Connecticut. Joshua also is also active in the National Society of Black Engineers and serves as the 2018-2020 National Engineering Diversity Chair.

HarriganHadiya Harrigan
Mechanical Engineering
Undergraduate: Tuskegee University
Faculty Advisor: Wilkins Aquino
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Wilkins Aquino

Hadiya Harrigan is a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering at Duke University. Her research focuses on physics-based modeling and machine learning. She is also a 2018 GEM Associate Fellow and one of ten 2015 Girl Scout National Young Women of Distinction. Hadiya received a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, summa cum laude, from Tuskegee University where she was a Presidential Scholar, Eminent Scholar, and College of Engineering University Scholar. She enjoys volunteering with various organizations including National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) Pre-Collegiate Initiative (PCI) Tuskegee Public School tutoring.

johnsonTyler Johnson
Physics
Undergraduate: University of Chicago
Faculty Advisor: Phil Barbeau
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Phil Barbeau

Tyler Johnson is a Ph.D. student in physics, specifically neutrino physics at Duke University in collaboration with Triangle Universities Nuclear Lab and Oak Ridge National Lab. His research focuses on developing particle detectors capable of tracking nuclear events, like nuclear reactors and weapons, by detecting the unerasable fingerprint of the nuclear reaction called a neutrino. He is also a National Nuclear Security Administration Graduate Fellow in Applied Anti-Neutrino Physics, a Richardson Fellow, a Goshaw Family Fellow, a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship alumni and has received honorable mention for the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Tyler received a Bachelor of Arts in Physics from the University of Chicago. He is active on campus through the President’s Council on Black Affairs, the President’s Advisory Committee on Investment Responsibility, UCEM Advisory Committee, Physics Department Conduct & Accountability Committee, Graduate & Professional Student Council, and Physics Department Graduate Student Executive Board. His collaboration has two papers in preparation that he is an author on titled “Sensitivity of the COHERENT Experiment to Accelerator-Produced Dark Matter” and “First Constraint on Coherent Elastic Neutrino-Nucleus Scattering in Argon.” Tyler strives to help create a welcoming and inclusive environment in STEM fields.

PujolDavid Pujol
Computer Science
Graduated with Ph.D. in 2022
Undergraduate: University of Massachusetts at Amherst
Faculty Advisor: Ashwin Machanavajjhala
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Ashwin Machanavajjhala

David Pujol is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Computer Science with a concentration in Algorithmic Fairness and Privacy preserving computation at Duke University. His research focuses on understanding the interactions between privacy protected data and fair algorithms. David received a bachelor of computer science and mathematics from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He has taught at Coral Gables Senior High for two years where he has been mentor for students from underrepresented minorities. He hopes to continue to encourage and guide students of all backgrounds towards STEM fields.

RobinsonCeline Robinson
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Undergraduate: University of Delaware
Faculty Advisor: Mark Borsuk
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Mark Borsuk

Celine Robinson is a Ph.D. student in civil engineering with a concentration in systems, risk, and decision at Duke University. Her research focuses on developing quantitative methods to analyze natech events or natural hazard initiated technological emergencies. Celine received a bachelor of environmental engineering with distinction and minors in civil engineering and sustainable infrastructure from the University of Delaware. She is also a McNair Scholar and a Bill Anderson Fund Fellow. She has served as a mentor to students at various learning levels and from a variety of backgrounds. Celine serves as an executive board member for the Duke University Bouchet Society and the chairperson for the Bill Anderson Fund Student Council. In addition to her primary research, she has served as a project manager on the UNHITCH Bass Connections project and contributed to the development of EPA Star and DoD grants. Her research to date has resulted in a publication and technical report (PDF).

RozmanNatalie Rozman
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Undergraduate: George Washington University
Faculty Advisor: Willie Padilla
Faculty Mentor for Early Start: Willie Padilla

Natalie Rozman is a Ph.D. student in electrical and computer engineering at Duke University and an Alfred P. Sloan 2017-18 Scholar. Her research focuses on developing terahertz metamaterial devices for biosensing applications. Natalie received a bachelor of science in electrical engineering, cum laude, from the George Washington University.

skerrettErica Skerrett
Biomedical Engineering
Undergraduate: Rice University
Faculty Advisor: Nimmi Ramanujam

Erica Skerrett is a Ph.D. student in biomedical engineering at Duke University. Her research focuses on developing tools for speculum-free cervical imaging and constructing feature selection and deep learning algorithms for image-based, automated diagnoses of cervical pre-cancer. She is also a 2019 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. In 2015, Erica received a bachelor of science in bioengineering with minors in global health technologies from Rice University. From 2015-2018, she worked with Rice 360: Institute for Global Health on medical device development and conducted clinical studies in maternity wards in Malawi. Erica is passionate about elevating the voices of underrepresented minorities and women in STEM, as well as constructing medical device design pathways that work to democratize and decolonize healthcare in the U.S. and abroad.

WrightNiara Wright
University Program in Materials Science and Engineering
Undergraduate: Duke University
Faculty Advisor: Adrienne Stiff-Roberts

Niara Wright is a Ph.D. student in the Materials Science and Engineering program with a concentration in semiconductor thin film formation at Duke University. Her research focuses on understanding how hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites—commonly used in solar cells and LEDs—crystallize and form films during the resonant infrared, matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (RIR-MAPLE) process. She is also a Duke Graduate Research Fellow and an Alfred P. Sloan 2018-19 Scholar Affiliate. Niara received a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering and materials science with a certificate in energy and the environment from Duke University. Niara hopes to serve as a guide and mentor for underrepresented students pursuing work in STEM disciplines.