Meet the LSAMP Research Scholars

Acamaro Cutcher's academic interests are in physics and mathematics. He hope to receive his degree this Spring as a honors student in the mathematics department. Acamaro is thankful to PSU and LSAMP for providing these resources to support and encourage him to follow his academic dreams and endeavors. Acamaro currently conducts research under the guidance of Dr. Liubomir Chiriac in the PSU Department of Mathematics and Statistics. Dr. Chiriac's general interests are in number theory, with a focus on automorphic forms and Galois representations.

Aurora Villa Juan transferred to PSU from PCC where she was initially working towards an architecture degree. As as time passed, Aurora started to love numbers and problem-solving and decided to switch career paths. Currently, Aurora is a senior undergraduate student double majoring in Data Science and Mathematics with a concentration in actuarial sciences. Although her long-term career goals are still in the works, Aurora is considering becoming an actuary sometime after passing the ASA exams. Aurora is currently conducting research in the Agile and Adaptive Robotics lab, which is lead by Dr. Alex Hunt, and focuses on uncovering mechanisms of how animals achieve agile and adaptive control and applying these discoveries across a variety of fields.

Brittney Gallant graduated high school in Las Vegas, took a gap year, and is currently a first-generation undergraduate college student at PSU. Brittney is majoring in chemistry with a minor in political science. Brittney's general professional goals are to to apply the knowledge and skills learned through academic course work and the LSAMP research program to conduct more clinical research in the future. Brittney is currently conducting research within the Biology Education Research Group at PSU, led by Dr. Erin Shortlidge, which is focused on implementing best practices in teaching and learning in biology and other STEM fields.

Dana Paresa is a post-baccalaureate student and holds a BA in Studio Art from the University of Hawai'i. Driven by a commitment to sustainability and to addressing environmental challenges, Dana's goal is to continue her education and pursue a master's degree in electrical and computer engineering with a focus in Power Engineering. Dana has an interest in working in a field related to the integration of renewable energy resources into the electrical grid. Dana is a second year LSAMP Research Scholar and continues her work in the Power Engineering Group at PSU, led by Dr. Robert Bass, which is focused on on engineering solutions that enable large-scale integration of renewable energy and electrified loads.

Jaina Canlas graduated from BASE in 2022 and now as a PSU student, she’s on the pre-medicine track majoring in science and minoring in chemistry. Once in medical school, Jaina plans to pursue a career as a diagnostic radiologist. When not studying, she enjoys playing badminton and birdwatching. Jaina is currently a conducting research in PSU's Biology Department in Dr. Jason Podrabsky laboratory, which is broadly intersted in understanding how environmental exposures during embryonic development can lead to different developmental outcomes.

Johnathan Dutra is currently a senior biochemistry undergraduate student at Portland State University. Johnathan is a second year LSAMP Research Scholar and continues his work in Dr. Mark Woods' lab in PSU's chemistry department. The goal of Johnathan's exploratory research is to find new ways to investigate eukaryotic metabolism with specialized MRI techniques (analogous to NMR in chemistry research). Johnathan finds the research and lab work very interesting and motivating, and he would love an opportunity to work as a biochemical researcher, both as a graduate student and for a career.

Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, Jose Moreno-Perez is working towards a BS as a Data Science major with a Computer Science minor. Jose's goal is to pursue a career in either Data Engineering, Data Science, or some type of Software/Web Development. In his free time, Jose enjoys trying new foods around the city and going to local drag shows! Jose currently conducts research in Dr. Jay Nadeau's lab in the physics department, which works on building custom, multi-modal microscopes to detect microorganisms in extreme environments.

Laura Costal Lagarde is an undergraduate student at PSU majoring in Biology with a minor in Chemistry. Laura's academic goal is to attend dental school after graduation and she is thrilled to be part of the LSAMP Research Scholars Program this year. Laura is currently conducting research in PSU's Extreme Virus Lab, led by Dr. Ken Stedman, which is focused on investigating viruses found in the extreme environment of volcanic acid hot springs.

Marilyn Beletzuy-Melgar is currently a Junior undergraduate student at PSU majoring in Data Science. Marilyn's post graduation goals are to pursue a Masters degree in order to conduct research in the fields of Behavioral Sciences and Public Policy. Outside of school Marilyn enjoys running, cooking, reading and discovering new music. Marilyn is currently conducting research in the Agile and Adaptive Robotics lab, which is lead by Dr. Alex Hunt, and focuses on uncovering mechanisms of how animals achieve agile and adaptive control and applying these discoveries across a variety of fields.

Natalie Kashoro transferred to Portland State University from Portland Community College to pursue a degree in electrical engineering. Natalie is a second year LSAMP Research Scholar and she is currently participating in undergrad research at PSU’s Wireless Environmental Sensor Technologies (WEST) lab, testing and programming embedded systems. It is her goal to work in a lab, professionally, before eventually teaching as an engineering professor. But for now she is working towards writing a paper, presenting a research poster and graduating with a Bachelors, Spring 2025.

Roxana Sotelo Laureano is currently an undergraduate student at PSU pursuing a bachelors of science as a geology major. Learning about the earths internal and surface processes has always been interesting to Roxana. She plans to apply her knowledge in ways where she can help unrepresented communities obtain a

Sergio Contreras is a first generation undergraduate student studying Chemistry and Biochemistry at PSU. Sergio is hoping to graduate in the spring of 2025. Sergio's first fell in love with science, specifically chemistry, during his junior year of high school, after taking Honors Chemistry. After graduation, Sergio's planning on attending either graduate school or pharmacy school. At the moment, Sergio is conducting research in Dr. Mark Woods' laboratory in PSU's Chemistry Department, which focuses on the development of new, more effective, MRI contrast media.

Shanaya Spang is from the Northern Cheyenne and Crow Tribes in southeastern Montana. Shanaya is currently in her last year at PSU, pursuing a BS as a Science major. Shanaya's ultimate goal is to build sustainable housing in her home communities. Growing up on the reservation as a young indigenous woman, Shanaya always felt a responsibility to pursue higher education in STEM in hopes of returning home to help better her communities and inspire our youth to do the same. Shanaya is currently conducting research in the ecohydrology lab within the civil and environmental engineering department, led by Dr. Samantha Hartzell. The ecohydrology lab is focused on better understanding the interactions between vegetation, water, and carbon dioxide in order to shed light on how ecosystems will respond to climate change.

Sonia Nath is currently planning on majoring in Computer Science, however she is still exploring potential career paths to specialize in. In order to learn more, Sonia has taken tremendous initiative and is getting involved in programs such as LSAMP and theCAT to help her on this academic and professional journey. Currently Sonia is taking her first year of CS classes and super excited for the opportunity to learn more about the tech field through research. Sonia is currently conducting research in the Wireless Environmental Sensor Technology (WEST) Lab, led by Dr. David Burnett. The WEST lab is focused on research to design, develop, and deploy wireless sensor devices that can learn about the natural world and communicate those findings back to us.

Zakeriya Muhumed is currently a PSU undergraduate student and Computer Scientist. Zakeriya is currently working in Dr. Jay Nadeau's lab, within the PSU Physics Department. Zakeriya's work involves developing software solutions to enhance the tracking of microorganisms.