Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ

Fall Conference Detailed Agenda

This fall conference agenda will be updated regularly as additional details are finalized.

November 14th, 2025

Registration / Greetings

(7:30 am)

Poster Session I

Ballroom A&B
(8:00 - 9:00 am)

Welcoming Remarks

Dr. Samuel Jator, Senior Associate Provost for Academic Affairs, Dean of Undergraduate Studies at Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ

(9:00 am)

Introduction of Dr. Humberto Hernandez

by Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor, Professor of Biology
(9:05 am)

Plenary Talk I - Guest Speaker

Dr. Humberto Hernandez, Associate Professor of Biology, Director of Biology and Chemistry,
Texas A&M University–Victoria
(9:15 - 10:00 pm)
Summer Student Research - Ballroom A & B
Chairs: Dr. Robert Kelley Bradley and Dr. Cristian Bahrim
10:00 AM Priya Rathore and Arif Ayna, Lamar U. Mentor: Thinesh Selvaratnam 
"Bioremediation of Industrial Mine Wastewaters Using Galdieria sulphuraria."
10:15 AM Layali Abusaleh, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Sylvestre Twagirayezu
"Investigation of Thermally Energized Petroleum Mixtures Using Molecular Rotational Resonance (MRR)."
10:30 AM Andy Qi, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Robert Kelley Bradley
"Systematic Study of Silicone Elastomers: Formulation, Testing, and Open-Source Data Sharing."
10:45 AM Mackenzie Howell and Ashley Junot, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Yan Yan
"Elementary Children’s Screen Time Effects on Sociometric Status."
11:00 AM James Addison III, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Binod Nainabasti
"Role of Group Test on STEM students’ success in Physics class."
11:15 AM Evan Wolford, Lamar U. Mentor: Mr. Andre Favors
"How the Breaking Bad Universe Subverts “The Hero’s Journey."
11:30 AM Mohamed Irhabi, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor
"The Eye as a Window to the Brain: Advancing Neurovascular Disease Detection through Retinal and Corneal Imaging."
11:45 AM Rangana Ratnayake, Western Kentucky U. Mentor: Dr. Ajay Srivastava
"Molecular Profiling of Cathepsin L–Dependent Transcriptional Networks in Drosophila Wing Development."
12:00 PM Nicholas Cox, East Texas A&M U. Mentor: Dr. Heungman Park
"Degradation and Protection of Semiconducting Polymer Thin Films in Martian Atmosphere."

Group Photo

(12:15 pm in front of Setzer Center)

Lunch and Poster Session II

(12:15 - 1:00 pm at Ballroom A&B)

Short Plenary Talks - Ballroom A&B

12:50 - 1:00pm - Mr. Karson Lamar from East Texas A&M - Commerce will give a talk about Mirabeau Lamar's legacy.
1 - 1:10pm - Ms. Memory Basile, the Student Outreach Chair for the Texas Environmental Health Association (TEHA) will give a short talk about her company and the opportunities offered to our students for working with TEHA.  TEHA will offer a booth during the conference.

Introduction of Judge Gordon Friesz

by Dr. Bianca Easterly, Associate Professor of Political Science
(1:10 pm)

Plenary Talk II - Guest Speaker

The Honorable Gordon Friesz, Family Court Judge, Jefferson County
(1:15 - 2:00 pm)

Recognition of The Honorable Gordon Friesz

Presented by Dr. Brett Welch, Provost of Âé¶¹ÊÓÆµ
(2:00 pm)
Breakout session A.1 - Ballroom A&B
Chair: Dr. Zhaozhong Shi
2:00 PM Xavier Grundler, East Texas A&M U. Mentor: Dr. Bao-An Li
"Bayesian Quantification of the Observability and Equation of State of Twin Stars."
2:15 PM Melodee Seifi, UT Dallas Mentor: Dr. Jason Slinker
"Analysis of DNA Electrochemistry with Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy."
2:30 PM Carlos Davila, East Texas A&M U. Mentor: Dr. william Newton
"Neural Network method used to improve the Bayesian analysis of neutron star models."
2:45 PM Sadia Rahman Jhilik, UT Arlington Mentor: Dr. Muhammad N Huda
"First-principles study of point defects in SiC."
Breakout session A.2 - Sabine 1
Chair: Dr. Xuejun Fan
2:00 PM Muhammad Luqman Haider, UT Dallas Mentor: Dr. Jeong-Bong (JB) Lee
"Wireless Micropump and Pressure Monitoring System for Inducing Bone Formation Through Intramedullary Pressure Modulation."
2:15 PM Md Ashraful Hoque, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Chun-Wei Yao
"Nanomaterial-Enhanced Superhydrophobic Coatings for Superior Corrosion Resistance, Mechanical and Tribological Durability: A Comprehensive Nanoscale Characterization."
2:30 PM S M Yeasin Habib, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Xuejun Fan
"Thermal Modeling of Die-DRAM Stacked Multichip Packages Using 1D Thermal Resistance Network and Finite Element Analysis."
2:45 PM Akbar Ali, UT Dallas Mentor: Dr. Jason Slinker
"Color-Turnable Perovskite Light-Emitting Electrochemical Cells."
Breakout session A.3 - Sabine 2
Chair: Dr. MD Masud Rana
2:00 PM Meet Arvindbhai Monpara, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Tauhidul Alam
"Aerial Detection of Individuals in Flooded Regions."
2:15 PM Naga Mani Gajula, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Masud Rana
"Graphene Quantum Dots: Types, Properties, Biomedical and Cancer Applications, Machine Learning Integration."
2:30 PM Umar Saleem, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Masud Rana
"Graphene Quantum Dots and Cyber Twins: AI-Driven Optimization for Sustainable Energy Systems."
2:45 PM Sahithi Kopuri, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Masud Rana
"Anomaly detection in Graphene Quantum Dot Synthesis in Bio medical and Energy Applications using Isolation Forests and One Class SVM."
Breakout session A.4 - Cypress 125 & 127
Chair: Prof. Andre Favors
2:00 PM Evan Wolford, Lamar U. Mentor: Andre Favors
"Censorship?: An Analysis of Discourses of Kendrick Lamar’s Broadcast Performances."
2:15 PM Joshua Patterson, Lamar U. Mentor: Andre Favors
"Mental Health Representation and Messaging in Summer 2025 Superhero Films."
2:30 PM Regina Ruiz, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Sheila Springer
"Stars, style, and controversy: How ad campaigns influence hard hitting conversations."
2:45 PM Justin Ford, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Adrienne H. Blackwell-Starnes
"The Misunderstanding of Batman: Arkham Origins."
Breakout session B.1 - Ballroom A&B
Chair: Dr. Shannon Jordan
3:00 PM James Clemson Mentor: Dr. Charles Durfee
"UV Triggered Two Color Interferometric Measurement of Electrostatic Discharge."
3:15 PM Victoria Rash, UT Dallas Mentor: Dr. Jason Slinker
"Determining AfXPB's Dissociation Constant using DNA Electrochemistry."
3:30 PM Kayode Adeoye, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Paul Bernazzani
"Investigating the Potential of an Amylose/Pectin Composite for Organic Contaminants Remediation."
3:45 PM Mohammad Abdullah Al Zubair Naim, Tennessee U. Mentor: Dr. Csaba Kovesdy
"Triglyceride-lowering Lipid-lowering-therapies in elevating HDL-cholesterol in patients with chronic kidney disease."
Breakout session B.2 - Sabine 1
Chair: Dr. Raymond Doe
3:00 PM Sergio Mendez, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Ashwini Kuchnoor
"Arbovirus detection in mosquitoes of Jefferson County, Texas."
3:15 PM Jason Withers, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Cristian Bahrim
"Can Changes in the Environmental Temperature Modify the Optical Characteristic of a Medium?"
3:30 PM Kamaile Hernandez-Linkee, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Raymond Doe
"The Psychological Benefits of Playing Chess."
Breakout session B.3 - Sabine 2
Chair: Dr. Don Warren
3:00 PM Naman Subedi, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Bo Sun
"Object Store for ML Storage Needs."
3:15 PM Ronish Shrestha, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Masud Rana
"Integrated AI System for Data Forecasting, Disease Prediction, and Image-Based Analysis using Machine Learning and Deep Learning."
3:30 PM Evy Benson, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. J. Donald Warren, Jr.
"From Expert Systems to GenAI: The Evolution of Internal Auditing."
3:45 PM Michael Vu, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Damie Kurash
"Can We Exploit Abnormal Stock Returns from Effective Date Delays?"
Breakout session B.4 - Neches 120
Chair: Dr. Elizabeth Casey
3:15 PM Carolina Hernandez, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Zanthia Smith
"¡OYE! Abre tus ojos: To Hispanic/Latino Sign Language Interpreter Hardships."
3:30 PM Kenidy Bennett and Maryah Javed, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Mamta Singh
"Body Image and Eating Habits: Exploring How Body Image Perceptions Affect Nutrition Among Middle School Students."
3:45 PM Thendral Nageshwaram, Lamar U. Mentor: Dr. Mamta Singh
"Exploring Digital Resilience in Elementary Preservice Teachers."

Poster Session III

Ballroom A&B
(4:00 - 5:00 pm)

Coffee Break

(5:00 - 5:15 pm)

Banquet

(5:15 - 6:00 pm)

Plenary Talk III - Guest Speaker

Mr. Talon Weaver, Design Engineer III, Dashiell Corporation, Beaumont–Port Arthur Area
(6:00 - 6:20 pm)

URG Awards Ceremony

Hosted by Dr. Gene Theodori, Associate Provost for Academic and Research Administration
(6:20 - 7:10 pm)

Conference Awards

Hosted by Elizabeth Sanders, Director of Learning & Research of the Mary and John Gray Library
(7:10 - 7:30 pm)