Awardees
This page highlights the recipients of the SL-RSCA Program awards by year. Detailed information for each awardee — including student names, degree programs, project titles, and faculty mentors — is available in the corresponding PDF documents linked below. We invite you to explore these projects and learn more about the impactful research, scholarship, and creative work being conducted by Montclair students in collaboration with faculty mentors.
FY 2026 Awards List
| Student Awardee | Degree & Program | Project Title | Faculty Mentor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ahmed, Arif | PhD, Environmental Science & Management | Independent and combined effects of herbicide and road salt on freshwater phytoplankton | Matthew Schuler |
| Berger, Sidney | BA, German | Beyond the 90/10 Rule: How German Instructors Negotiate the Use of German, English, Anglicisms, and Cognates in Classroom Speech | Pascal LaFountain |
| Birnbaum, Aliya | PhD, Clinical Psychology | Rapid Capacity Screening Tool: Prototype Development and Testing | Tina Zottoli |
| Daniel, Amy | PhD, Mathematics Education | Investigating the Learning Math Anxiety Experiences of Mathematically Underprepared First-Year STEM Majors | Mika Munakata |
| Dyson, Eshariah | PhD, Environmental Science & Management | Metal complexation and soil particle size in an urban brownfield soil | Nina Goodey |
| Echevarria, Nicolina | BA, Psychology | Social Influence on the Discounting of Environmental Outcomes: Insights into Sustainable Decision Making | Michael Bixter |
| Fatima, Sadaf | MS, Pharmaceutical Biochemistry | “Development of Rapid Field-Testing Kit for Detection of Ranavirus and Other Viral Aquatic Pathogens” | Nina Goodey |
| Gallagher, Alexis | MA, Speech-Language Pathology | Self-Perception of Articulatory Accuracy in a Child with Residual Speech Sound Disorder: Does the Accuracy of What You Hear Affect How You Speak? | Elaine Hitchcock |
| Infante, Oriannys | BS, Molecular Biology | Importance of a Conserved Acidic Residue and Substrate Specificity in Cytochrome P450 | Jaclyn Catalano |
| Ishiguro, Yuki | MFA, Dance | Echoes of Tranquility | Maxine Steinman |
| Lahiere, Elise | PhD, Mathematics Education | Perseverance as an Individual and Collective Enterprise | Joseph DiNapoli |
| Lourenco Da Silva, Fernanda | MA, Applied Linguistics | The Acquisition of English Vowel Contrasts by Brazilian Portuguese Speakers: A Study of Brazilian Au Pairs in the U.S. | Jonathan Howell |
| Marcy, Jenna | BA, Communication and Media Studies | Unpacking Gendered Political Performance: Kristi Noem’s Self-Presentation and Its Effects on Online Extremism Among Young Voters | Martina Santia |
| Marino, Allison | MA, Psychological Sciences | Prioritization Effects on Sensory and Motor Processing | Akina Umemoto |
| Napoli, Danielle | PhD, Family Science and Human Development | Sexuality and Mobility Disability: The Road to Sexual Pleasure | Brad van Eeden-Moorefield |
| Nin, Jessica | AuD, Audiology | The Relationship Between Speech-in-Noise Perception and Anxiety in Adults with Single-Sided Deafness | Ilse Wambacq |
| Ofori-Koranteng, Ben-Ryan | BS, Biochemistry | Structural Characterization of M. tuberculosis IGP Synthase (IGPS) Variants Using Circular Dichroism (CD) Spectroscopy | Nina Goodey |
| Okafor, Kamsy | MS, Molecular Biology | Synthetic Lipid Membrane Systems Elucidate Protein Interactions in HIV Envelope-Mediated Coreceptor Fusion Informing Subtype Infectivity | Eli Lee |
| Peters, Arabella | PhD, Clinical Psychology | A Transdiagnostic, Neurobiological Approach to Psychopathology in Autism Spectrum Disorder | Erin Kang |
| Provost, Amanda | PhD, Mathematics Education | Studying Students’ Systems Thinking in Mathematical Modeling Activities of Science Phenomena | Nicole Panorkou |
| Ray, Madison | BS, Sustainability Science | Wildfire Impacts on Soil and Vegetation Chemistry in a Northern NJ Watershed | Greg Pope |
| Steedman, Lily | PhD, Clinical Psychology | Examining Experiences of Child Sexual Abuse | Nicole Lytle |
| Thevaraja, Anglin | PhD, Family Science and Human Development | Character, Connection, and Collaboration: Faculty-Student Dynamics in Higher Education | Miriam Linver |
| Zumba, Ruby | BS, Business Administration | Benefit-Based Retail Displays for Brand Extensions | Gabriel Gonzales |
FY 2025 Awards List
| Student Awardee | Student Degree & Program | Project Title | Faculty Mentor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amadeo, Yanira | PhD, Family Science and Human Development | Catalysts of Change: The Impact of Alumni Philanthropists of Color on Diverse Families and Student Achievement at a Hispanic-Serving Institution | Pauline Garcia-Reid |
| Arif, Shibbir Ahmed | MS, Data Science | Accelerating Patient Screening for Clinical Trials using Large Language Model Prompting | Hao Liu |
| Balasuriya, Divomi | PhD, Environmental Science & Management | Human and Natural Influences on Sediment Composition, Mineralogy, Geochemistry and Morphology of Cape May and Wildwood Beaches: Implications for coastal management and habitat restoration | Greg Pope |
| Barbosa, Jennifer | PhD, Clinical Psychology | Perinatal Complications and Child Development: Associations between in-utero Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Language Development | Laura Lakusta |
| Bayron, Jizette | BA, Psychology | Investigating the Development of Spatial Language in Children: The Role of Mechanistic Language and Event Consistency | Laura Lakusta |
| Cifuentes Macias, Natalia | BA, Psychology | Social Reward Positivity Event-Related Potential in Youth: Differences by Gender and Sexual Orientation | Erin Kang |
| Guzman, Avelisse | BA, German | Studying Student Outcomes of SPARK for German World Language Enrichment Program | Pascal Lafountain |
| Judd, Emily | PhD, Clinical Psychology | Engaging College Students with Eating Disorder Symptoms in Digital Mental Health Interventions | Jazmin Reyes-Portillo |
| Lentine, Nicolina | PhD, Environmental Science & Management | Comparing coastal soil functions across natural and artificial salinity gradients | Nina Goodey |
| Perry, Yasmine | PhD, Family Science and Human Development | Undergraduate Student’s Perceptions and Experiences using AI in Higher Education | Miriam Linver |
| Pride, Evangelina | PhD, Teacher Education & Teacher Development | Investigating the Teacher-Perceived Benefits and Barriers to Engaging in Relational Teaching with Students of Color | Emily Hodge & Monica Taylor |
| Spigelman, Melissa | MS, Molecular Biology | Inducible Gene Expression in Zebrafish: A Novel Approach to Precision Fertility Research | Carlos Molina |
| St. Pierre, Delaney | MS, Marine Biology & Coastal Sciences | Benthic Habitat and Invertebrate Community Assessment of Seagrass beds in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey | Paul Bologna |
| Walsh, Samantha | MA, Psychological Sciences | The Role of Endogenous Estrogen in Effects of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation on Cognitive Performance | Alexandra Gaynor |
| Wowk, Janyce | BS, Chemistry | Comparison of artificial root exudates (AREs), soil builder product, and ammonium nitrate chemical fertilizer | Nina Goodey |
| Zaheer, Naima | PhD, Environmental Science & Management | Investigating the effectiveness of different artificial root exudate combinations on soil function and plant productivity in metal-contaminated soil | Nina Goodey |