Peer Research Ambassadors

Meet the PRAs: Wawa Gatheru

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Meet Wanjiku (Wawa) Gatheru ’20 (CAHNR), an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Environmental Studies.

Meet the Peer Research Ambassadors: Wawa

What is the focus of your research/creative activity?

During the summer after my freshman year, I was lucky enough to join the Community Nutrition lab of Dr. Amy Mobley – an experience that lasted for a year and a half. It was through that experience that my passion for food access issues emerged and my eventual IDEA grant project was born: the UConn Access to Food Effort – an initiative to quantify food insecurity at UConn and to create a locally sourced food pantry on campus.

Why did you get involved in research/creative activity?

I initially got involved in research through the Bridging the Gap program the summer of 2017. It was this experience that allowed me to work as a research assistant in Community Nutrition lab of Dr. Amy Mobley.

What advice would you give to incoming freshmen?

UConn is a hub of opportunity – take advantage of it! As a freshman, you have a fresh slate and more time to explore than any other year. Take this time to discover your passions and dislikes. Take risks, be open, and put yourself out there! And most of all – do not get caught up in following a pre-determined plan. Unplanned opportunities will be some of the most important ones you will get involved with. Take a chance with the unexpected – you might be pleasantly surprised.

What is your greatest accomplishment so far?

My greatest accomplishment has been making a conscious decision to dedicate myself to public service. As a future public servant, my involvement in undergraduate research and creative endeavors has allowed me to focus my time at UConn on advocacy and awareness.

What are your plans after graduation? How has involvement in research/creative activity influenced your plans and/or prepared you for the future?

After graduation, I plan to join the Peace Corps as a Coastal Resource Management Community Outreach Facilitator or pursue another service-oriented international experience. My service-learning IDEA grant has made it more evident to me that public service is the path for me.

Meet the PRAs: Divya Ganugapati

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Meet Divya Ganugapati ’19 (CLAS), an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Cognitive Science.

Meet the Peer Research Ambassadors: Divya

What is the focus of your research/creative activity?

My current research project investigates what aspects of language and phonetic properties of speech contribute to voice identification.

Why did you get involved in research/creative activity?

I got involved in research because I had a curiosity to learn more about the brain. My courses offered me a strong foundation in understanding neural mechanisms, but I had many questions that were unanswered, thus pointing to research as the mechanism to discover answers.

What advice would you give to incoming freshmen?

As a freshman, you face a wide array of opportunities – socially and academically – don’t be afraid to take the time to explore and discover your passions. Being adaptable is the best way to find the major, research, internship, etc. that is best for you.

What do you enjoy the most about participating in research/creative activity?

My favorite part of research is that I create the questions. Unlike in classes, where the curriculum is predetermined in a syllabus, in research I design an entire experiment to follow my own interests. The feeling of intellectual freedom and creativity is something I had not experienced until conducting research.

What are your plans after graduation? How has involvement in research/creative activity influenced your plans and/or prepared you for the future?

Doing research in the Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Department actually altered my career interests by swaying me towards medicine. Analyzing fMRI scans, interacting with aphasia patients, and reading literature connecting speech to neurological disorders sparked an interest in neurology and cognitive/communicative disorders.

Meet the PRAs: Veronica Pleasant

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Meet Veronica Pleasant ’19 (CAHNR), an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Animal Science and Pathobiology.

Meet the Peer Research Ambassadors: Veronica

What is the focus of your research/creative activity?

I’ve been involved with Dr. Kristen Govoni’s laboratory for the last three years, and our focuses have varied from sheep to neonatal calves, all under the umbrella of maternal programming, or the idea that alterations to the intrauterine environment can impact offspring growth and development. Currently, we are working on the impact of maternal nutrition on the offspring in conjunction with North Dakota State University.

Why did you get involved in research/creative activity?

As a member of Women in Math, Science and Engineering (WiMSE) Learning Community, we were introduced to the idea of getting involved in undergraduate research as part of the FYE class. Although incredibly intimidating, I got the idea that I would really like to try it out, to see if I liked it. Luckily, Dr. Govoni is the faculty director of WiMSE, and I asked her if she had space in her lab, and she did! Here we are three years later, still going strong!

What advice would you give to incoming freshmen?

Faculty are people too. I think a lot of first year students become intimidated by their professors because they are so knowledgeable, and more experienced. However, having that in-person connection makes all the difference. Faculty members often love to talk about their research, so please don’t hesitate to ask them about it!

What is your greatest accomplishment so far?

Presenting in Vancouver, Canada, was definitely my greatest research accomplishment. It was absolutely terrifying to be representing UConn on an international stage, and in such a scientific capacity with people who have had careers in the animal science field longer than I’ve been alive. However, it went swimmingly, and I am better for the experience!

What are your plans after graduation? How has involvement in research/creative activity influenced your plans and/or prepared you for the future?

My plans after graduation including going to veterinary school for my DVM, and then, or concurrently, my PhD in some facet of infectious disease research. I never, ever, in my wildest dreams imagined that I would be interested in putting myself through school for an additional 7-8 years, but research led me here. Working in the lab has built my confidence, my laboratory skills, and my time management skills in a way no other experience could have. It piqued my interest in doing research for any part of my career, and now I’m actively pursuing my new goals.

Meet the PRAs: Ariane Garrett

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Meet Ariane Garrett ’20 (ENG, CLAS), an OUR Peer Research Ambassador (PRA) majoring in Biomedical Engineering and Spanish.

Peer Research Ambassador Ariane Garrett

What is the focus of your research/creative activity?

I work in the Hoshino Laboratories developing a novel cerebral spinal fluid shunt capable of detecting flow. Cerebral spinal fluid shunts are the primary form of treatment for hydrocephalus, a disease that causes a buildup of cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) in the brain. Shunts are intended to be lifelong implants but are very prone to failure. In addition, the symptoms of shunt failure are often ambiguous, making it difficult to diagnose. Our device aims to solve this problem by creating a simple, cost effective, and non-invasive way of determining CSF flow through the shunt.

Why did you get involved in research/creative activity?

I initially got involved in research because I was curious about the research process and I wanted to learn more about biomedical engineering. I stayed involved with research because I really enjoy the design process, and it is extremely rewarding to see your ideas come to life. At this point, I’ve been working on my project for over a year now. Throughout this time, I’ve grown as a researcher and learned many useful skills that I wouldn’t have in the classroom.

What advice would you give to incoming freshmen?

When you first join a lab, it may seem very boring or overwhelming. Try to stick with it for a little while and be patient. Most likely, it will take time for you to be given real responsibility and interesting tasks. In the meantime, learn as much as you can by observing those around you and reading relevant literature.

What do you enjoy the most about participating in research/creative activity?

As an engineer, my favorite part of research is the design process. You start with a conceptual goal and a few parameters that must be met, and it’s your job as the researcher to turn that concept into reality. I always start by brainstorming and sketching in my lab notebook. Then, after I’ve fleshed out my idea a bit more, I design it in Solidworks. At this point I seek feedback from other people in the lab, who often point out some problems I missed the first time. Then, I make a procedure for turning the design into reality. Sometimes, that just involves sending the design to Shapeways, other times it requires designing and milling molds. Finally, the design is made. It’s pretty cool to hold a part you designed in your hands, knowing every little detail that went into its creation.

What is your greatest accomplishment so far?

My greatest research accomplishment so far was presenting at the Holster Scholar symposium early in my sophomore year. After spending the whole summer working on my project and struggling to find my place in the lab, it was rewarding to stand up in front of my peers and talk about my accomplishments. Even though that time didn’t mark the height of my research achievements, it signified the end of my first summer doing research full time, living in an apartment, and working independently. I proved to myself that I was capable of seeing my project through to the end, and it felt great!