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UT Tyler Student Places First at System-Wide Student Research Conference

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October 10, 2016

Media Contact:  Hannah Buchanan
Editor/Writer–Strategic Communications & Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
903.539.7196 (cell)

Kyle Cartwright of Houston, an electrical engineering major at The University of Texas at Tyler Houston Engineering Center, placed first in the engineering poster competition at the 2016 UT System Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Undergraduate Research Conference held at UT El Paso.

He and other UT Tyler students presented posters of their undergraduate research projects conducted under the supervision of UT Tyler Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics faculty mentors as part of their fellowship in the LSAMP Summer Research Academy on campus.

Cartwright's winning research poster was titled, "MRI Image Reconstruction using Compressive Sensing." Dr. Melvin Robinson, assistant professor of electrical engineering, served as his faculty mentor.

"We are very proud of the accomplishments of our summer research fellows, especially Kyle Cartwright for his prize-winning poster," said UT Tyler LSAMP program campus director and associate professor of computer science Dr. Stephen Rainwater, who accompanied the student delegation. "Special commendations go out to our outstanding STEM faculty mentors who give so much of their time and energy to advance the undergraduate research culture here at the university."

Both Rainwater and program advisory committee member Dr. Neil Gray, professor and chair of chemistry and biochemistry, served as judges for this year's poster competition.

The UT LSAMP program is supported by the National Science Foundation and provides summer undergraduate research experiences in an effort to increase the number of students from underrepresented populations pursuing graduate level studies in STEM programs.

Other UT Tyler participants are listed by hometown with their research fields, poster titles and faculty mentors.

HOUSTON – Madison Wilson, mechanical engineering, "Modeling a Small Scale Organic Rankine Cycle," Dr. Nelson Fumo.

LEANDER – Robert Martinez, civil engineering, "Wastewater Pretreatment using Advanced Oxidation," Dr. Harmonie Hawley.

LINDALE – Ashley Broadbent, biology, "Stream Biomonitoring of Fort Polk, Louisiana," Dr. Lance Williams. Also, Megan Seawright, biology, "A Genetic Analysis of a Potentially New Population of the Federally Threatened Wildflower Hibiscus dasycalyx (the Neches River Rose Mallow)," Dr. Josh Banta.

TYLER – Joey Luiso, biology, "Phylogeography of Symbiotic Fungi Grown by Sympatric Fungus-gardening Ant Species," Drs. Jon Seal and Katrin Kellner. Also, Leighanna Mindt, biology, "Phylogeographical Analysis of Trachymyrmex septenrionalis along the Southeastern Coastal Plains of Northern America," Kellner and Seal.

CALIFORNIA – Michael Linhorst, mechanical engineering, "Design of Heat Exchangers for Miniature Organic Rankine Cycles," Dr. Nelson Fumo.

For more information about the UT Tyler LSAMP Summer Research Academy, contact Rainwater, 903.566.7235 or srainwater@uttyler.edu.

One of the 14 campuses of the UT System, UT Tyler features excellence in teaching, research, artistic performance and community service. More than 80 undergraduate and graduate degrees are available at UT Tyler, which has an enrollment of almost 10,000 high-ability students. UT Tyler offers courses at its campuses in Tyler, Longview and Palestine as well as a location in Houston.