UTC Students to Present at NCUR

The Office for URaCE is excited to announce that a record eight UTC undergraduates have had abstracts accepted to present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR). The students will present at NCUR 2026 in Richmond, VA from April 13-15, 2026.

Student	Project	Department	Faculty Mentor
Keyle Bryant	Evaluating the Effects of Urbanization on Meiofauna Biodiversity in Chattanooga’s Lentic Ecosystems Through GIS Applications	BGE	Dr. Francesca Leasi
Colin Keeter	Measuring and comparing signal feature variations under degrading temperature versus radiation conditions	Electrical Engineering	Dr. Donald Reising
Ellie Minneci	Narratives of Calling: Catholic Sisters on Culture, Community, and Continuity	Psychology	Dr. Ruth Walker
Doga Ocal	What Students Find Helpful About ‘Psychology as a Profession’: A Thematic Analysis of Career Development Reflections	Psychology	Dr. Ruth Walker
Isabella Riggs	Direct Simulation Monte Carlo Analysis of Rarefaction Effects during Chemical Vapor Infiltration	Mechanical Engineering	Dr. Murat Barisik
Luke Riggs	Numerical Investigation of Silicon Carbide Deposition Kinetics under Varying Process Conditions in a Plug Flow Reactor	Mechanical Engineering	Dr. Murat Barisik Dr. Reetesh Ranjan
Matthew Riggs	Molecular Dynamics Study of Electrothermal Response of Classical Water Models Under an Electric Field	Mechanical Engineering	Dr. Murat Barisik
Samuel Smith	Unveiling ADCY3 as a Central Olfactory-Related Biomarker Gene and Potential Therapeutic Target in Kidney and Colorectal Cancers	BGE	Dr. Jannatul Ferdoush