Two ME Students Receive NSF Fellowships

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master's and doctoral degrees. The fellowship is the oldest of its kind, and its fellows have gone on to contribute significantly to both scientific innovation and teaching. Among the nationwide fellows selected were two ME students: Nyssa Capman and Judith Dominguez.

Nyssa Capman holds a B.S. in physics and math from Augsburg University, and is currently in her second year of the ME PhD program. Capman is co-advised by Professor Chris Hogan and Professor Steven Koester (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering). She is working on a multidisciplinary project developing graphene-based chemical sensors for use in a wide variety of applications such as point-of-care diagnosis and environmental testing. "I'm so humbled to have received this fellowship and grateful for the opportunities it gives me," said Capman. "I am excited by the possibilities for greater freedom in my research choices that this independent funding allows."

Judith Dominguez is an undergraduate ME student who works in the Biosensing and Biorobotics Laboratory. Dominguez is a first-generation college student who has contributed to multiple journal articles and is involved in a number of extracurricular activities, including membership in the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers Minneapolis Chapter. "This fellowship means I will be able to continue fulfilling my dream of conducting research that will hopefully impact and change the world for the better," said Dominguez. "I am humbled and grateful for this opportunity to continue my education into graduate school with the support of the NSF GRFP. I intend to make the most out of these resources as I pursue my PhD."