St. Joseph’s University, New York’s Student Research Symposiums were held on the Long Island and Brooklyn campuses this spring, putting the spotlight on undergraduate students who are taking deeper dives into diverse topics, working collaboratively with professors and peers and exploring new mediums of self-expression.
Held April 26 on the Long Island campus and May 6 on the Brooklyn campus, the symposiums were led by Tetyana Delaney, Ph.D., and Michael W. Magee, Ph.D., who serve as directors of undergraduate research on their respective campuses.
“It was a truly memorable day filled with innovation, creativity and celebration. Students and their families had a fantastic time, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of every member of the SJNY community,” said Dr. Delaney, who is a professor for the department of biology and chair of the health professions committee.
Both events highlighted the scholarly achievements of SJNY students who presented research across all academic disciplines.
“Undergraduate research is essential because it prepares students for graduate school and signals to employers that they possess key traits like intelligence, motivation, creativity and independence. It also builds critical thinking skills that are useful in nearly every area of life, helping students become active, engaged problem-solvers—not just passive learners,” said Dr. Magee, who is an associate professor of psychology.
Keynotes by Faculty and Alumni
The symposiums included talks by SJNY students as well as a professor and alumnus. Student research posters and art were also part of each event.
On the Patchogue campus, Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Tom Mainiero, Ph.D., presented a keynote entitled “Mathematical Musings and Discovery through Wrongness.”
In his brand of self-referential humor that has led him to be adored by students, Dr. Mainiero took the audience through some of his undergraduate research and shared why it’s okay to be wrong in regards to mathematics and the importance of breaking expectations in the world of physics.
“It’s not the two things that matter. It’s the relationship between the things that matter,” Dr. Mainiero said while discussing category theory, an application that assists mathematicians in their research.
“Logic is the foundation of mathematics,” he added.
SJNY alumnus Captain Matt Berkhout ’09 presenting his keynote on “Fishing for Answers: Hooked on Shark Genetics.”
SJNY alumnus Captain Matt Berkhout ’09 took to the podium for his keynote address on “Fishing for Answers: Hooked on Shark Genetics.”
Berkhout talked about how his love for diving, fishing and surfing turned into a career researching sharks and their ecological roles. As a member of the SOFO Shark Research and Education Program, Berkhout and his team humanely track and collect data on different shark species along the south shore of Long Island.
Through a tagging process, they are able to track the migration patterns of sharks, while working alongside other organizations to gather information.
“Science is nothing without collaboration,” Berkhout assured his audience.
Berkhout, in partnership with the University, plans to use the data collected for tracking and conservation purposes and for genetic research to better understand shark genealogy. Through the department of biology, this initiative will create undergraduate lab opportunities for SJNY students.
Student Presentations
In addition to numerous posters, select students on both campuses provided details about their research in podium presentations.
The speakers included several 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship recipients. Better known at SJNY as SURF, this 100% donor-funded program provides students with a stipend to pursue 10 weeks of original research over the summer break.
“The foundational idea behind SURF is simple but powerful,” Dr. Magee said during his opening remarks inside the Tuohy Hall auditorium on May 6. “If we give students the opportunity to hold a well-paid summer job that immerses them in research, we just might kindle a lifelong passion, and perhaps, even launch a career in scholarship.”
On the Long Island campus, 2024 SURF recipient and speech pathologist major Deanna La Gala ’25 presented “The Intersection of Dialogue and Culture in Preschool Teacher Child Interactions.”
SURF recipient and student keynote speaker on the Long Island campus Deanna La Gala.
Over the course of her 10 weeks of research, La Gala explored the components of dialogic teaching and the global citizenship, and their effects on the student-teacher experience. The two groups used in the experience were pre-service teachers (students from SJNY’s infant toddler graduate program) and in-service teachers with Long Island Heart, a child and family development services non-profit organization.
Kleopatra Garo ’26, a 2024 SURF recipient and biology major, presented “Effects of Ocean Acidification and Harmful Algal Bloom on Early Life Stages of Fish.” She investigated the effects of synergistic exposure to acidified seawater and a toxic single-cell organism in marine plankton on the early development and swimming behaviors of Sheepshead minnows.
Kaela Collazo ’25, a biology major, delved into behavioral outcomes of prenatal stress, such as circadian and malnutrition stress, during her 2024 SURF project. Collazo’s research was entitled “Examining the Biological Basis of Prenatal Stress-Induced Hyperactivity Behavior in Drosophila Melanogaster.”
SURF recipient Sulabh Katila ’26 presented “Modeling and Evaluation of Property Price Trends in NYC: From Linear Regression to Neural Networks.” A math/computer science major, Katila’s research dug into the complex mix of factors impacting property valuation in large metropolitan areas like New York City. Using more 74,000 property sale records, the research evaluated traditional statistical models and a neural network approach for predicting sale prices.
(L-R) Kleopatra Garo, Sulabh Katila and Jawad Zaman were among students who presented at the podium on the Brooklyn campus.
“A Quantitative Framework for Assessing Risk and Performance in Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Projects: Analysis of Top 45 Platforms” was presented by Rabin Singh ’25, a fellow math/computer science major and 2024 SURF awardee. His research centered on the development of a standardized framework and model to evaluate DeFi projects incorporating key risk and reward metrics.
Additional speakers on the Brooklyn campus included Yukishinko Andrianirina, a marketing major who analyzed strategies used by Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and Jawad Zaman, a math and science major in his sophomore year who presented, “Benchmarking Neural Machine Translation Using Open-Source Transformer Models: A Comparative Study with a Focus on Medical and Legal Domains.”
Zaman’s research was also presented at the North Regional Honors Council (NRHC) Conference, which was held in Harrisburg, PA in March.
Poster sessions from 2024 SURF awardees on display during the symposiums included:
- Angel Herrera —“Effects of Indirect Exposure to Harmful Algal Blooms Through Artemia salina Prey on Forage Fish Species Cyprinodon Variegatus;”
- Isa-Marie Kreuzinger —“The Toll of Stigma: How Autoimmune Disorder Symptomatology and Depression are Impacted in Transgender and Gender Diverse Individuals;” and
- LeQwan Wilson —”Synthesis and Characterization of the Derivatives of Anthocyanidin dyes Containing Nitrogen and Sulfur for Ligan-Metal Interactions.”
The Arts on Display
Student art was on display at the Brooklyn campus.
SJNY’s symposiums also presented a stage for student art. On the Long Island campus, Gisela Cotrone displayed her exhibition, “Untamed Horizons Series,” a series of paintings that depicted a local park across the four seasons. On the Brooklyn vampus, student art included various illustrations and paintings from Sophia Longo ‘25 as well as a short film from Barbare Sturua ’25, among other pieces on display in the Alumni Room of Tuohy Hall.
Future Research at SJNY: 2025 SURF Awardees
According to Dr. Magee, SJNY fosters an environment where undergraduates can engage in research in ways that are often harder to find at larger institutions.
“Our small class sizes mean that faculty have the time and bandwidth to mentor students individually—something that’s critical for meaningful research experiences,” Dr. Magee said.
The next round of summer research will get underway soon as SJNY recently announced its 2025 SURF recipients. They are:
- Aarohi Poudel, Economics
- Olivia Lieto, Biology
- Kaylee Finch, Psychology
- Milana Haripersaud, Biology & Chemistry
- Drishya Shrestha, Computer Science & Mathematics
- Brandon Ronquillo, History Adolescence Education & Economics
- Prasun Rimal, Mathematics & Computer Science
- Timothy Sweeney, Political Science & History
- Jasmine Tamang, Biology
- Alison Monaco, Biology
Photos From this Year’s Student Research Symposiums:
Tetyana Delaney, Ph.D., director of undergraduate research, hosted the symposium on the Long Island Campus.
Michael W. Magee, Ph.D., director of undergraduate research in Brooklyn, opens the symposium.
Gisela Cotrone displayed her exhibition, "Untamed Horizons Series."
LeQwan Wilson with his poster," Synthesis and Characterization of the Derivatives of Anthocyanidin dyes containing Nitrogen and Sulfur for Ligand-Metal Interactions."
This year's symposiums included poster presentations across many academic disciplines.
Four SJNY students with their research, "Experimenting on the behavioral effects of knocking down the α7 and β3 nAChRs subunits in Drosophila melanogaster using RNAi."
A poster presentation from SJNY's Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program in 2024.
SJNY faculty and students inside Tuohy Hall's auditorium.
Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science Tom Mainiero, Ph.D., presented a keynote entitled “Mathematical Musings and Discovery through Wrongness.”
Brooklyn campus student Isa-Marie Kreuzinger participated in the poster session.
Douglas Paider's research looked at the effects of salinity change on U. pugilator.
Jing Lee and fellow students with their poster "The effects of nAChR subunits α-2 and α-5 knockdown via RNAi on climbing ability and egg laying in D. melanogaster."
Kaylee Finch's research looked at humor as a coping mechanism.
Binita Pokharel and her research poster.
