"Lysine Acetylation is a Crucial Regulatory Mechanism of Helicobacter pylori’s Acid Response System Regulator (ArsR) Protein" 

Advisor: Dr. Mark Forsyth

 
For the human-pathogenic bacterium Helicobacter pylori, low-pH environments activate the two-component Acid Response System (Ars), often resulting in the production of virulence factors, proteins that are toxic to H. pylori’s human hosts. Literature reveals that acetylation of lysine residues of a similar two-component system in Salmonella mediates its virulence. This strongly implies that lysine acetylation of ArsR may similarly mediate H. pylori’s virulence, a phenomenon which our lab’s early findings currently support. The present study will more concretely determine whether site-specific ArsR acetylation differentially influences H. pylori’s expression of UreA and SabA, two virulence factors vital for H. pylori colonization of the human stomach to initiate infection. This work establishes a crucial foundation for better determining a molecular cause of—and thus a possible target for intervention in—H. pylori infection, the most common chronic bacterial infection and a Class I Carcinogen responsible for over 80% of global stomach cancer cases.

Iqra Ahmad (she/her) is a biology major and history minor at William & Mary. Her research primarily focuses on microbial genetics and pathogenicity and has recently expanded to include political sociology. Her thesis investigates the regulatory effects of lysine acetylation, a common post-translational modification, on the Acid Response System to mediate virulence in the bacterium Helicobacter pylori. 

"Color Commentary: Racially Biased Language in NFL Quarterback Discourse from 2003 to 2023" 

Advisor: Dr. Rachel Varra

Throughout the National Football League (NFL)’s history, Black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC) have been overlooked as quarterbacks (QBs), a position traditionally seen as only for white players (Marquez-Velarde et al., 2023). This discrimination aligns with current stereotypes that white athletes are smart while BIPOC athletes are physically talented, a bias which broadcaster language implicitly perpetuates (Rada, 1996; Rada & Wulfemeyer 2005). This thesis examines broadcaster speak, specifically about QBs, and how language has changed with expansion in quarterback diversity. Using a sample of NFL games from the 2003 and 2023 seasons, broadcaster commentary was coded for theme and emotional valence (Rada & Wulfemeyer, 2005; Billings & Eastman, 2003; Sadri, Bell, and Billings, 2021). The 2003 data indicate that, with respect to BIPOC QBs, broadcasters disproportionately commented on strength/speed based athletic skill, physicality, and confidence. In 2023, broadcasters commented on strength/speed based athletic skill and reliability of BIPOC QBs, while white QBs, commentary about commitment and emotions was elevated. Quarterback statistics–e.g., rushing yards per game–were compared to ensure results were not due solely to individual differences. Results suggest that stereotypes about BIPOC athleticism–more than white intelligence–are pervasive in broadcasting. This research can assist broadcasters who wish to reduce unintentional stereotyping in their language, as well as encourage viewers to think critically about language they hear when watching sports.

Camila Anderson is a senior majoring in Linguistics and Psychology at William & Mary. She is part of the research group Discourse Analysis at William & Mary. Her research areas include both quantitative and qualitative methods in sociolinguistics, with a focus on linguistics justice as it relates to race, gender, and sexuality. Her thesis addresses racial bias in language through sports broadcasting in the National Football League. 

"Optimizing Living Shorelines: Assessing Alternative Shell Materials for Supporting Bivalve Recruitment"

Advisor: Dr. Randolph Chambers

Rising sea levels and coastal erosion have increased the need for nature-based shoreline protection. Living shorelines rely on oysters and mussels to help stabilize sediments and reduce wave energy, but these projects often depend on oyster shells, which are now in short supply. This study tested whether other types of shells (clam, mussel, and oyster) support different levels of young bivalve settlement. Shell bags were placed in the field, and the number of new individuals on each shell type was counted and compared. Clam shells supported significantly more young bivalves than mussel shells, and they performed similarly to oyster shells. More than half of the differences we observed were due to the shell type itself. These results suggest that clam shells could serve as a practical alternative to oyster shells in living shoreline projects, helping reduce pressure on limited oyster shell supplies and supporting more sustainable coastal restoration.

Jesslynn Ayotte, a senior majoring in Biology with a minor in Coastal and Marine Sciences, researches alternative shell substrates for bivalve settlement in living shorelines. Her work focuses on sustainable coastal restoration, and she has additional experience in larval ecology and sediment analysis at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

"Feeling Filled, the Fell Man Failed to Know When the Fool Was Full: Vowel Mergers Before Liquids in Southern American English"

Advisor: Dr. Anya Hogoboom

This research examines speakers' difficulty with distinguishing vowels in front of different consonants. In all dialects of General American English, speakers merge tense and lax vowels ("ee" and "ih", "oo" and "uh") before [r] (Kurath 1961). In Southern American English, speakers merge tense and lax vowels before [l]. Szalay et al. (2021) hypothesize that pre-[l] mergers happen because of coarticulation: that is, vowels change in anticipation of the following consonant, and this change causes difficulty for listeners to distinguish between tense and lax pairs of vowels. This study looks at whether General American speakers who do not have the pre-[l] merger still have difficulty distinguishing between tense and lax vowels before [l].

This study uses a listening task wherein participants listen to 120 pairs of syllables within a carrier phrase: "I said ___, ____ again." Each pair of syllables has a different initial consonant ([f, h, s, sh]), and the same final consonant ([r, l, z]). The syllables were constructed by splicing together recordings of the initial consonant + vowel with recordings of the coda consonant. In this way, the vowels did not have any coarticulation, because they were not recorded with the coda consonant. Thus any significant difference between [l] and [r] or [z] will be because the participants' memories of coarticulation are impacting their perception of vowels before [l] -- they are bringing "phantom coarticulation".

We anticipate that participants will have the most difficulty with [r], the least difficulty with [z], and will have a middling difficulty with [l]. This would provide evidence that speakers find vowel tenseness relatively hard to distinguish before [l], implying that coarticulation is a plausible cause for vowel tenseness mergers.  

Abigail Cagle is majoring in Linguistics, minoring in English, and obtaining a NIAHD history certificate at the College of William & Mary. Her research areas include historical linguistics, phonology, and dialectology. Her thesis uses experimental phonology to explore a historical phonological phenomenon in a dialectal context. She has published her poetry in the Inkwell Journal. 

"Relative Basicity of Pipecolic Acid-Containing Dipeptides"

Advisor: Dr. J.C. Poutsma

With the popular genome sequencing projects of the early 2000s, unmasking the structure and function of the major molecules of life has become a key issue. Proteomics, or figuring out the structure and function of proteins through technological methods, is one such study that has emerged. While many structures and functions have been solved, methods to uncover trends in the order of the subunits that make up proteins, amino acids, are sparse. To close this gap, the research conducted in this project evaluates one trend that may help understand the reason for amino acid order: the proline effect, which is a bulky and rigid amino acid. In mass spectrometry, molecules enter the machine and are fragmented, then evaluated for their identity or specific properties based on their mass. With proteins, specific patterns exist when fragmentation occurs, and proline tends to be an exception to these rules. Using mass spectrometry and computational methods, a close cousin of proline, pipecolic acid, was used in combination with the rest of the twenty amino acids. Each combination was evaluated for how favorably it would accept a positive hydrogen atom relative to a compound known to do so, which is a common occurrence after fragmentation. In the mass spectrometer, experimental values for this were found, while the computational method provided a theoretical value to compare against. Not only have these results provided tabular values that have never been discovered before, but it will also help further the study of proteomics in its quest to make a seemingly random process find order.

Matthew Cammarata is majoring in Chemistry at William and Mary. His research areas are mainly focused on physical chemistry, using mass spectrometry and computational techniques. With this focus in mind, his thesis focuses on a comparison of theoretical and experimental thermodynamic values for pipecolic acid-containing dipeptides through the values obtained with mass spectrometry and computational data.

"Integrative Computational Analysis of Multi-Modal Data to Identify Genetic Markers of Alzheimer’s Disease"

Advisor: Dr. Margaret Saha

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disorder and is characterized by dementia and two neuropathologies, amyloid plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles. However, the severity and age of onset of AD vary widely between individuals, which may be due to differences in genetic background. Research on genetically diverse AD mouse models is important for our understanding of AD in humans, and this study aims to identify genetic targets related to susceptibility of AD through analysis of AD-BXD mice, a genetically diverse mouse model. In this study, we analyzed phenotype and gene expression data using quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping to identify regions of the genome that are associated with differences in phenotype or gene expression. We used data that was produced from an AD-BXD mouse study, considering factors such as sex (male or female), diet (normal or high fat), presence of mutation (non-transgenic or 5XFAD), and age (six or 14 months). Memory phenotypes, contextual fear acquisition and contextual fear memory, between ages were studied using QTL mapping to identify genes which may be correlated with these phenotypes. Additionally, gene expression data collected by single nuclear RNA sequencing in three brain tissues, hypothalamus, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex was analyzed with expression QTL mapping to identify genetic loci that influence expression of genes. The genes identified may be useful therapeutic targets for AD, and overall, the results show how genetic diversity shapes AD outcomes to guide treatment strategies in the future. 

Justine Chu is a senior majoring in Data Science and Biology at William & Mary. Her research focuses on computational genomics, including quantitative trait locus mapping, gene expression analysis, and multi-omics approaches to study complex diseases. Her thesis investigates genetic markers of Alzheimer’s Disease, in collaboration with The Jackson Laboratory. 

"Downward Nominal Wage Rigidity: An Application Analysis"

Advisor: Dr. Nathaniel Throckmorton

In Real Business Cycle models, there are sometimes different approaches to imposing constraints. Downward Nominal Wage Rigidity (DNWR) is a popular constraint used to amplify business cycle downturns, which has been introduced in an ad-hoc manner instead of being explicitly included the household’s wage-setting problem. In the ad-hoc model, the household solves its wage-setting problem, and then DNWR is ex-post imposed on the resulting equilibrium wage in a simple labor market. In this paper, we modify a simple New Keynesian model such that the household has wage-setting power and refuse to accept a wage below a certain threshold. We include the DNWR constraint in the formulation of the household’s optimization problem, and they choose their current wage to be weakly greater than or equal to their previous wage. This naturally introduces the constraint into the model as the household's first-order equilibrium conditions account for the DNWR constraint. Using MATLAB, we obtain a global nonlinear solution nonlinear to both models. Then we will compare our model to the ad-hoc model by looking at business cycle moments, impulse response functions, and zero-lower bound episodes to determine if the ad-hoc model is consistent with the dynamics of our model. Our hypothesis is that our model may have meaningful differences from the ad-hoc model due to the underlying difference in how the DNWR constraint is imposed.

David deVyver is a senior majoring in Economics and Mathematics at William & Mary. His research focuses on how macroeconomic modeling decisions impact the information derived from it. He will be presenting his undergraduate honors thesis at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research in Richmond.

"Reducing Explicit and Implicit Racial Biases with Loving-Kindness Meditation and Cultural Competence" 

Advisor: Dr. Cheryl Dickter

Effective strategies and interventions are essential for reducing implicit and explicit racial attitudes, biases, and prejudice toward marginalized groups. The present study compares the effectiveness between the induction of Loving-Kindness meditation (LKM), a mindfulness practice rooted in Buddhist traditions that aims to improve compassion towards self and others, and cultural competence online training as interventions for improving racial attitudes in White college students. Participants were randomly assigned to either the LKM condition or cultural competence online training that involved gaining conceptual understanding of bias, prejudice, and multiculturalism and awareness of others’ experiences. The interventions were given in two parts of a two to seven day period. We anticipate results to show that both interventions will result in improvements in racial attitudes between the pre-test and the posttest. In the LKM condition, we expect other-regarding positive emotions to mediate reduction in implicit bias. Implications of the findings reveal the need to develop interventions and strategies that will contribute to improvements in intergroup relations.

Andrea Elliott is a Psychology major with a minor in Kinesiology at William & Mary. She serves as a Griffin Ambassador for the Admissions Office and has memberships in InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and the Ebony Expressions Gospel Choir. As a student researcher in the W&M Social Cognition Lab, her research focuses on racial biases, stereotypes, prejudice, and perception. Her thesis explores effective bias reduction strategies that will improve racial attitudes toward marginalized groups.  

"The Effects of Salinity and Phytoplankton Food on the Timing and Frequency of Larval Cloning in Sea Stars" 

Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Allen

 
Larvae of the sea star Asterias forbesi, a keystone species of the North American Atlantic coast, are able to clone by fissioning perpendicular to the anterior-posterior axis. Both anterior and posterior pieces have the capacity to regenerate, forming two genetically identical larvae. The frequency of this phenomenon varies in response to environmental conditions, such as the availability of phytoplankton food. In this study we examined the effects that salinity, food quantity, and food type have on cloning frequency. We monitored cloning for 8 weeks, until many larvae began metamorphosing. After 4 weeks, there were distinct differences among treatment groups. On average, low salinity treatments cloned more than 3 times as frequently as high salinity treatments. Larvae fed more phytoplankton cells cloned more than those fed less. Additionally, larvae fed Rhodomonas lens in combination with other phytoplankton species cloned almost twice as frequently as larvae fed the same quantity of cells, but without R. lens. However, after 8 weeks, none of these conditions had a statistically significant effect on cloning frequency. Therefore, while previous studies suggest that echinoderms clone at a higher rate under high food and low salinity conditions, it is possible that in A. forbesi these conditions instead cause cloning to occur earlier in development without affecting the total number clones produced by a population of larvae. 

Elisabeth Fink is majoring in biology at William & Mary. She has been in the Allen Lab since her freshman year studying natural cloning and regeneration in the planktonic larvae of sea stars. Her thesis topic is the environmental factors, such as salinity, food availability, and temperature that affect the frequency of cloning and success of regeneration in larvae of the Forbes' Sea Star, a keystone predator. 

"The Chemical Revolution in Eighteenth-Century France"

Advisor: Dr. Giulia Pacini

This research examines the development of chemistry as both a scientific and social practice in eighteenth-century France, with particular attention to the impact of new chemical language and the French Revolution. It investigates how early chemists combined laboratory work with public demonstrations, disseminating chemistry into the public sphere where it could be observed and challenged by a wider audience beyond the confines of elite scientific circles. Drawing on historical sources such as journals, chemical treatises, and opinion pieces, the research highlights the work of chemists Guillaume-François Rouelle, Antoine Lavoisier, and Balthazar-Georges Sage and philosophers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, analyzing how new chemical nomenclature intertwined with public engagement. The insights underscore how these developments contributed to the emergence of standardized chemical methods, revealing that the growth of chemistry was also a linguistic and cultural phenomenon, deeply linked to the broader social and political transformations of late eighteenth-century France. 

Chloe Gang is majoring in Chemistry and French at William & Mary. Her research interests include analytical chemistry and the history of chemistry, with a particular focus on the intersections between scientific developments, the representation of oxygen, and the French Revolution. She is the 2025-2026 recipient of the McCormack-Reboussin scholarship. 

"Examining the role of Chigno in epithelial expansion within the adult Drosophila testis stem cell niche"

Advisor: Dr. Matthew Wawersik

Stem cells play a critical role in organ and tissue maintenance. Drosophila testes are a paradigmatic system for elucidating mechanisms controlling stem cell behavior. This system harbors two stem cell types: sperm-producing germline stem cells (GSCs) and cyst stem cells (CySCs) that regulate GSC self-renewal while producing cyst cells that promote differentiation of GSC daughters into sperm. These stem cell types are docked to a cluster of quiescent hub epithelial cells that reside at the apex of each testis coil. The hub cells and CySCs are both derived from somatic gonadal precursor (SGP) cells that arise from the embryonic mesoderm. Prior work has also shown that adult CySCs must continuously maintain male stem cell identity to prevent conversion into follicle stem cells (FSCs) that produce ovarian follicular epithelia. We are studying the role of the uncharacterized gene, CG11180/Childless Gambino (Chigno), in regulating CySC behavior. We previously showed that inhibition of Chigno in the CySC lineage leads to expansion of undifferentiated germ cells at the testis apex. Here we describe data showing that Chigno RNAi knockdown in the CySC lineage also causes epithelial expansion at the testis apex in a subset of testes. We hypothesize that this occurs for the following reasons: (i) Chigno normally functions to repress conversion of CySCs into hub epithelial cells, (ii) Chigno represses conversion of CySCs into female follicle stem cells (FSCs), or (iii) Chigno acts to represses hub cell division. We will present data indicating that Chigno is not involved in controlling hub cell division and assessing whether epithelial expansion occurs via loss of male identity or conversion of CySCs to a hub cell fate. By studying mechanisms controlling fate conversion between mesenchymal and epithelial stem cell types, this work has implications for understanding formation of secondary tumors from metastatic cancer cells. As Chigno is homologous to the human tumor suppressor.  

Gian Goboy is majoring in CAMS Biology and minoring in Physics. His research in undergrad includes molecular biology research at W&M and neuroscience studies at EVMS. His thesis addresses the role of the Chigno gene in regulating abnormal hub cell proliferation in Drosophila testis. He has received best power awards at regional conferences with the society of developmental Biology.

"The Relationship Between Emotion-Based Cognitive Inhibition and the Broader Autism Phenotype"

Advisor: Dr. Cheryl Dickter & Dr. Joshua Burk

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has become an increasingly discussed topic because of the increase in number of diagnoses in recent years. The CDC reported an increase from one in 36 children to one in 31 children meeting the criteria for Autism from 2024 to 2025 (CDC, 2024; CDC, 2025b). With the increasing number of diagnoses, the definition of the Broader Autism Phenotype (BAP) has expanded. Generally, individuals on the BAP are considered to have less severe autistic traits (Sucksmith et al. 2011). Autistic individuals have been found to display impaired executive functioning on tasks such as attention inhibition, cognitive flexibility, and decision-making (St. John et al., 2022). The present study aims to examine if this difference in performance on an emotion-based cognitive inhibition task is seen for individuals on the Broader Autism Phenotype. The researcher hypothesizes that participants who display greater autistic traits will perform worse on the emotion-based cognitive inhibition task.

For this study, participants first completed surveys that included demographic information, the Broader Autism Phenotype Questionnaire (Hurley et al., 2007), and the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (Roberson-Nay et al., 2007). After completing these surveys, participants were administered a modified emotional Stroop task, where participants were either instructed to identify the emotion a face was displaying, or the semantic meaning of the word presented under the face. There were two types of faces that were displayed during the task, line drawings of faces and photos of faces. The two emotions that were displayed by the faces and included as the words presented under the faces were “angry” and “happy.” Data collection for this study was completed in the fall of 2025 and data analysis will take place in the spring of 2026. This study will lead to a deeper understanding of the Broader Autism Phenotype that will allow for the opportunity for new interventions.

Chloe Gorla is a senior at William & Mary majoring in Psychology. Chloe has been a part of Drs. Dickter and Burk’s Autism Lab on campus since her sophomore year. In The Autism Lab, Chloe is a research assistant for an eye-tracking study where she collects and cleans data. She was a Charles Center Honors Fellow during the summer of 2025. Chloe’s thesis addresses the relationship between the Broader Autism Phenotype and cognitive inhibition on an emotion identification task. 

"Spatial Model for Oyster Reef Growth with Sediment Interactions"

Advisor: Dr. Leah Shaw

Oyster reefs in the Chesapeake Bay are currently at less than one percent of historic levels, motivating ongoing restoration efforts. This project models a subtidal reef of Crassotrea virginica in one dimension through a system of bistable reaction-diffusion partial differential equations. The model expands on previous work modeling a 1m2 patch of reef with ordinary differential equations, allowing both outward growth and inward degradation of the reef to be studied in addition to vertical height. Resulting extinction thresholds for size and height from the model can provide insight into the minimum size and height necessary for reef persistence. The model consists of a system of four equations describing juvenile oyster density, adult oyster volume, reef volume, and sediment volume and explores the relationship among these. The system is bistable, with one equilibrium of a healthy reef, and one equilibrium where the reef is fully degraded. A semi-implicit numerical method is used to solve the system under a range of initial conditions and parameter values to determine long term behavior and extinction thresholds. Key factors explored include initial reef heights, available larval supply, diffusion rates, and sediment deposition and erosion rates.

Merryn Grindstaff is majoring in Applied Mathematics and Data Science at William & Mary.

"Jordanian Film: Hashemite Legitimacy Caught in 4K"

Advisor: Dr. Mona Zaki

From their installment, the legitimacy of the Hashemites in the Levant has continuously been in flux, primarily in Jordan, where they continue to act as sovereign. This project is dedicated to understanding the role of Jordanian film and cinematography in preserving and dispersing the the narrative of Hashemite legitimacy. This project mainly takes the role contextualizing the films in which they were made, such as "Struggle in Jerash" being filmed in 1958, a year filled with questioned legitimacy. This research is inspired by George Potter's work, "(De)constructing Nationalist Imagery: Jordanian Cinema in Times of Crisis." His work compares two notable films, whereas this project expands beyond his work to look at more Jordanian films with a primary focus on the evolution of legitimacy of the monarchy and Hashemite Pan-Arabism.

Maria Haddad is majoring in Middle Eastern Studies and Government at William & Mary. Her research areas include human rights and advocacy networks in the Middle East and the Arab diaspora with a concentration on the Bilad-al-Sham. Her thesis takes a deep dive into the context in which Jordanian films were made and their reflection of Hashemite legitimacy and Pan-Arabism.

"Blatter Radicals: Toward a New Class of Stable Triazinyl Radicals"

Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Scheerer

The purpose of this project is to synthesize a novel type of triazinyl radicals, commonly known as Blatter radicals. Although organic radicals, molecules with unpaired electrons, are typically highly reactive and exist only transiently, the structure of Blatter radicals makes them remarkably stable, extending their lifetimes to months or years. This stability positions Blatter radicals as promising candidates for applications in sensors, organic magnets, liquid crystals, and energy storage. The focus of this project is to develop a synthesis of a new class of Blatter radicals from novel triazinyl precursors. These precursors are readily prepared from readily available starting materials and reagents, making the proposed synthesis more accessible than previous methods. Furthermore, this type of Blatter radicals is easy to modify, offering the ability to tune their properties and behaviors. By creating a more accessible, easily modifiable class of Blatter radicals, this project will enable further investigation of their unique properties and applications across various fields.

Alex Holland is majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Chemistry at William & Mary. His research areas include organic chemistry and natural product total synthesis. His thesis explores the synthesis and characterization of a novel class of Blatter-type triazinyl radicals, stable organic radicals with remarkable physicochemical properties and applications in material science and cancer treatment. He presented his research at the National Organic Chemistry Symposium this past June.

"Beyond Ruthenium: Investigating Alternative Transition Metals for Photocages Used in Light-Controlled Therapeutics"

Advisor: Dr. Robert Pike

A unique method of drug delivery in anticancer treatment utilizes photoactive complexes. These complexes have two components: a bioactive compound that disrupts cellular function – such as nitrous oxide or protein inhibitors - and a metal complex that keeps said compound in an inactive state. When the tumor is irradiated with specific light frequencies, the metal experiences a chemical reaction and releases the bioactive compound only to the target cells. This method provides excellent temporal and spatial control over the release of therapeutic agents, greatly increasing drug efficiency. Recent research primarily revolves around using ruthenium-based metal cages in anticancer treatment. However, ruthenium is a high-rarity platinum-group element. Shifting to more common metals like chromium or manganese would make photoactive complexes more accessible and affordable to create. This research project explored the difficult process of using alternative metal centers in photoactive complexes and their ability to selectively release bioactive compounds.

Amalia Johnson is a senior pursuing a self-designed major in Medicinal Biochemistry at William & Mary. Her research focuses on the intersection of organometallic chemistry and drug delivery systems. After graduation, she plans to pursue graduate study in pharmaceutical sciences.

"Optimizing Regeneration Success of Larval Clones in the Brittlestar Ophiopholis aculeata"

Advisor: Dr. Jon Allen

Brittlestars are among the most abundant animals in the ocean, occurring in benthic habitats at densities up to 3000m-2, but their reproductive potential remains poorly understood. The daisy brittlestar Ophiopholis aculeata exhibits multiple modes of larval cloning via 1) autotomy of the distal tip of larval arms and 2) release of posterolateral arms at settlement. Larval cloning modifies an already complex life cycle and potentially increases the reproductive capacity of echinoderms. Our first goal was to assess the frequency of regeneration success for both cloning modes at three different temperatures (12ºC, 15ºC and ambient temperatures of ~18ºC) for a population in Casco Bay, ME. Our second goal was to compare these regeneration frequencies with prior studies of a population from Friday Harbor, WA. We found that arm pairs are more likely to regenerate than autotomized arm pieces and that lower temperatures increase the frequency of regeneration success in arm pairs. Arm pieces of WA larvae were much more likely to regenerate than ME larvae but ME larvae were more likely to drop their posterolateral arms. Lastly, we treated both clone types with 20mM LiCl to upregulate Wnt signaling during regeneration, but found no evidence that this treatment increased the likelihood of successful outcomes. We hope to further develop O. aculeata larval cloning as a model system for studying regeneration and life history tradeoffs in echinoderms.

Maclaren Johnson is majoring in Biology at William & Mary. Her research interests include the ecology, development, and evolution of marine invertebrates and their early life stages. Her thesis is focused on developing methods to maximize the regenerative capacity of brittlestar larvae and expanding brittlestars as a model system for studying regeneration and life history tradeoffs.

"Evaluating AI-Driven Models for Gene Expression Shifts in Synthetic Biological Chassis via Meta-Analysis Transcriptomics"

Advisor: Dr. Margaret Saha

To understand how living systems adapt to new environments, researchers analyze the transcriptome, the collection of mRNA gene expression of a cell. This project addresses whether synthetic biological chassis, or engineered organisms designed for specific tasks, undergo broad changes in their transcriptome when moved from a controlled laboratory environment to a simulated real-world aquatic environment. The research design focused on evaluating the reliability of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in identifying these biological patterns. To do this, we developed a traditional bioinformatics pipeline to serve as a benchmark for comparison. This pipeline was used to perform a meta-analysis, a method that integrates and compares data from multiple existing to identify consistent trends. By using this traditional framework to cross-verify the AI model’s findings, the project aims to determine the ability of AI-driven approaches in monitoring the behavior of engineered systems in complex, natural environments. Overall, the results demonstrated general agreement between the AI-driven analysis and the traditional pipeline, suggesting consistent detection of key transcriptomic patterns. In conclusion, these findings indicate that AI-based approaches show promising potential for monitoring engineered biological systems in dynamic environmental contexts, particularly for the selection of synthetic biological chassis.

Vandana Kalithkar is a senior majoring in Neuroscience and Data Science at William & Mary. Her current research is an extension of her work with the iGEM team, where she developed a computational meta-analysis pipeline to evaluate AI-driven transcriptomics. She aims to do research in neuroscience, combining her computational background with hands-on systems neuroscience to investigate the structural and circuit dynamics of neural injury and disorders. 

"Building Trust between Russia and the West: Institutions and Informal Diplomacy"

Advisor: Dr. Marcus Holmes

This thesis explores how we can re-invigorate trust between Russia and the West through a return to informal institutions and backchannels of diplomacy. I argue that face-to-face cooperation between everyday practitioners of informal diplomacy in settings of technical exchange, scientific research, and international partnerships creates a "muscle memory" of trust and sense of reliability in the continuity of trust. Theoretically, I am drawing on Vincent Pouliot's practice theory, Holmes' face-to-face diplomacy logic, and the theory of epistemic communities and applying them to a new set of actors in a specific setting. I am using case studies involving nuclear inspections, chemical-fertilizer exchanges, the Pugwash conferences, and the Arctic council to support my argument. Based on these cases, I theorize that the "muscle memory" developed in these informal institutions is repeated, habitual, and continuous, leading to predictability, comfort, and improvement in the practice of informal diplomacy. While a strong basis of this muscle memory alone won't solve conflicts like Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it can provide an option for reinvigorating trust.

Nadia Khan is a senior with a double major in International Relations and Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian Studies. Her research areas include diplomacy, international institutions, and peace pedagogy. Her thesis explores how informal diplomacy by practitioners in international institutions of technical and scientific exchange can promote trust-building between Russia and the West. 

"A House Divided: Navigating Political Divisions Within Families"

Advisor: Dr. Thomas J. Linneman

In an increasingly divided political environment, fraying relationships are becoming more commonplace, particularly among younger generations. Affective polarization - the tendency to view members of the same party positively and members of opposing parties negatively - places strain on cross-party relationships. Sociologists, social psychologists, and political scientists alike have established the importance of cross-party interactions for maintaining a healthy democracy. Through interviews with college students who have disagreeing family members, this study explores how young adults navigate conversations. This includes what motivates them to have these conversations, the choices they make during these conversations, and how these conversations influence their political behavior outside of the family. The interviews reveal that students are motivated to have political conversations when they expect them to be productive on the basis of mutual understanding rather than persuasion. This enhanced understanding of opposing views can translate to a more balanced view of political issues and members of the opposing party, reducing the effects of affective polarization.

Josie Koster is a senior majoring in Sociology and minoring in Mathematics at William & Mary. Her thesis addresses how young people navigate political differences in families.

"Voice-Based vs. Text-Based Generative AI in a Developing Context: Lessons from Tanzania"

Advisor: Dr. Philip Roessler

This research examines the impact of the encouraged adoption of generative AI platforms amongst young, technologically savvy Tanzanians in Dar es Salaam. Examined via a pilot study, randomized control trial (RCT), researchers screened and recruited 120 youth in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania to adopt either a text-based generative AI platform in the form of ChatGPT or a voice-based generative AI platform in the form of Viamo’s Ask Viamo Anything (AVA) or a combination of the two through an in-person training held at the University of Dar es Salaam. This in-person training covered the basics of generative AI and ethical AI usage, how to download the platform and platform specific information, and a guided demonstration of the platform including prior-researched economic use cases to give participants options for adopting the platform. Following approximately three months of uninterrupted use, researchers followed up on adoption and use via endline survey. Data analysis pending. 

Madeleine Ludwig is a senior majoring in Government and Economics at the College of William and Mary. Her research interests lie with comparative economic and political development. Here Honors Thesis examines the impact of generative AI adoption amongst young, technologically savvy Tanzanians in order to study the transformative nature of the technology and explain the remaining barriers causing the digital divide. She is also a passionate member of the rowing team! 

"Cultural Influence on School Choice Policies in Western Europe"

Advisor: Dr. Paul Manna

In recent years, there has been a surge in an educational freedom movement with parental rights being at the forefront of decision making in public education across the United States. With educational freedom comes an increasing push for school choice. School choice refers to policies that allow families to send their children to schools outside of their assigned public school. The initiative for broader school choice has manifested itself in many different forms of policies in a variety of states and countries over time. One of the most interesting parts about school choice is that the support for these policies does not fall on one side of the political spectrum but rather transcends traditional categorizations of social issues. Individuals and parties from all backgrounds have varying motives for supporting school choice, whether it is a true belief in free markets, hopes for improving equity and access to education, or a desire to find a school that aligns with ones’ personal values and beliefs. The aim of my project is to answer the question: How do key social and political values shape the design of school choice programs? In order to answer this question I am conducting a comparative analysis of school choice programs across Western Europe.  I used the World Values Survey (WVS) to look at longitudinal data on different countries values and ideals, and cross-indexed this information with OIEDL’s Educational Freedom Index Scores (EDI). Within the WVS I used the Inglehart-Welzel cultural map which sets countries across two axes, traditional and secular-rational, and survival and self-expression. I anticipate that countries that are secular-rational and self-expressive will have choice policies primarily driven by equity. This thesis will be helpful in contextualizing school choice policies and better understanding the motives behind the implementation of such policies. 

Kayce Madancy is a senior majoring in Government with a minor in Education Studies on the Policy & Equity track. Her research interests include education policy, equity in education, comparative education, and the intersection of politics and education. Her thesis is examining the structure of school choice policies in Western Europe. 

"Between Profession and Community: Professionalization Theory, Community Health Workers, and the Case of Nepal"

Advisor: Dr. Elyas Bakthiari

Community health workers (CHWs) play an increasingly central role in health service delivery across Nepal, particularly in rural and underserved communities where access to formal medical infrastructure remains uneven. Positioned at the intersection of the state, local communities, and global health development actors, CHWs occupy a complex social and institutional space: they are simultaneously trusted community members and semi-formal extensions of the health system. This thesis examines the ongoing professionalization of community health workers in Nepal, focusing on how processes of training, credentialing, and institutional incorporation reshape their authority, labor, and social legitimacy.

Drawing on qualitative research methods, including semi-structured interviews and participant observation, this project explores how professionalization is not only a administrative process but also a deeply sociological one, bringing up questions like trust, expertise, and power in this context. 

Aditi Mishra is a senior majoring in Sociology and Biochemistry at William & Mary. Her academic interests include community health worker professionalization, global health governance, and the politics of care labor. Her research focuses on Nepal’s health system and how community-based health work shapes relationships between citizens and the state.

"Resilience and College Readiness in Shaping Rural and Low-Income Students’ Postsecondary Pathways"

Advisor: Dr. Danielle Dallaire

Nationally, 29 percent of young adults (18 to 24 years old) in rural areas are enrolled in higher education—19 percentage points lower than their urban counterparts and 13 percentage points lower than those in suburban areas, according to U.S. Department of Education data (United States Department of Education, 2023). Socioeconomic factors also influence college attendance rates. Although 89% of youth from high-income homes attend college, only about half of youth from low-income homes go to post-secondary education, and very few attend 4-year colleges and universities (United States Department of Education, 2023). Research highlights a unique association between socioeconomic factors and rurality by identifying disparities in access to higher education and impacts on college readiness influencing postsecondary education pathways (Koricich et al., 2018). Unfortunately, there is a lack of research addressing the intersectionality between rurality and lower socioeconomic status predicting lower college enrollment rates, institutional choice patterns, and overall enrollment gaps (Wells et al., 2023). The proposed study aims to understand how socioeconomic status and rurality influence college readiness, future institutional choice patterns, and college attendance. The study plans to highlight the experiences of high school students from rural areas with low socioeconomic status backgrounds participating in youth groups at Family Resource Centers across Virginia, providing insight to researchers on the social, economic, and academic experience of these underrepresented students. Results will contribute to possible support systems and institutional buffers that can improve college readiness and college attendance of rural students who are of a lower socioeconomic status.

Daniella Morales is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Public Health at William & Mary. Her research interests include promoting positive child development among underrepresented and underserved populations and examining prevention and intervention programs designed to support at-risk youth. She has been awarded the Charles Center Honors Fellowship Grant to fund her current research project.

"Re-Assessing Pulses of Algal Food as Triggers for Echinoderm Larval Cloning"

Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Allen

Larval echinoderms (sea stars, sand dollars, sea urchins) have the unique capacity to clone themselves by splitting into two and then regenerating into multiple individuals. Prior research has demonstrated that increased algal food availability induces higher frequencies of cloning in sea star larvae. Seasonal algal blooms may rapidly increase algal food available to echinoderm larvae, providing a potentially acute trigger for larval cloning and therefore population size potential. While there is strong evidence that consistently abundant algal food induces cloning, we sought to re-evaluate the related hypothesis that sudden pulses of algae also induce cloning. The pulse hypothesis is best supported in one species of sand dollars, which we investigated along with 6 additional species of echinoderms. For the seven species tested (four sea stars, two sand dollars and one sea urchin), larvae were exposed to one of three food treatments: low food, high food, or an initial low food treatment followed by a pulse of high food. Larval abundance was assessed every other day to monitor cloning frequencies. Sand dollar and sea urchin larvae entirely failed to clone under the conditions of these experiments. Sea star larvae cloned at low frequencies, but there were no significant differences among treatments. Unlike prior pulse experiments that exhibited high levels of larval mortality, we observed high survival in all species tested. We suggest that the algal pulse hypothesis should be reconsidered, especially in sand dollar and sea urchin species where no cloning was observed.

Coral Rankin is a senior majoring in Biology at William & Mary. She conducts research in Dr. Jon Allen's lab on the developmental ecology of marine invertebrates. Her thesis examines the effect of a sharp increase in food on the cloning behavior of sea star, brittle star, and sand dollar larvae. 

"Born Again: The 21st Century Conversion Tactics of Latter-Day Saints and Jehovah’s Witnesses" 

Advisor: Dr. Alexander Angelov

This study examines the roots and creation of the Church of Latter-day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses and their place in the world today. Specifically, this study aims to investigate their adaptation to the 21st century and attempts to recruit new, younger members. It uses descriptive research design to analyze how both religious organizations engage in outreach, adjust to cultural shifts, and employ modern communication methods to reach potential converts. The research also considers the internal strategies developed to retain youth involvement, such as community activities, digital media presence, and educational programs. By exploring these factors, the study seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of how these groups maintain relevance and continue to grow in a rapidly changing societal landscape.

Karena Richmond is majoring in Public Policy and Religious Studies at William & Mary. Her research areas include religious conversion, gun rights, and marketing. Her thesis addresses how modern-day American religions have adapted to the 21st century. She has published her research on Rwanda in journals. 

"Effects of RG1 Supplementation on Vascular Control" 

Advisor: Dr. Brennan Harris

During exercise, the body relies on healthy blood vessels to deliver oxygen to working muscles and the brain. Rg1, a natural compound found in ginseng, has been suggested to support blood vessel function, but its effects during physical stress are not well understood. This study examines if Rg1 supplementation improves blood flow regulation and exercise performance in healthy adults.

Using a randomized, double-blind, crossover design, participants complete three laboratory visits over two weeks. On separate occasions, participants take either Rg1 or a placebo before performing a handgrip exercise and a high-intensity cycling test. Heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen delivery to the brain and muscles are measured using non-invasive monitoring techniques. Blood samples are also collected to examine how the supplement may influence blood vessel signaling.

We expect that Rg1 supplementation will improve vascular responses during exercise, reflected by enhanced oxygen delivery and more stable cardiovascular control compared to placebo. Findings from this study may help clarify whether ginseng-derived supplements could play a role in supporting cardiovascular function and exercise performance in healthy populations.

Natasha Shrestha is a senior majoring in Kinesiology and minoring in Biochemistry at William & Mary. Her research interests focus on cardiovascular physiology, exercise performance, and the effects of nutritional supplements on vascular functions. Her thesis examines how a ginseng-derived compound influence blood flow, oxygen delivery, and exercise performance in healthy adults.

"Mathematical Modeling of Nonequilibrium Kinetics of G Protein-Coupled Receptor Homodimers" 

Advisor: Dr. Greg Conradi Smith

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) make up a large class of receptors that are prevalent in the

central and peripheral nervous system. As part of their functionality, the receptors cycle through

various states of being bound or unbound to molecular signals called ligands and G proteins,

which themselves have an active and inactive state. Theory has been developed on how to model the behavior of complexes of such receptors when their state transitions are at equilibrium and the activity of their subunits is independent of one another, taking into account the

thermodynamic favorability of the various states and the transitions between them. However, in

reality many of these state transitions are not equilibrium processes, and it's possible that

receptors forming complexes do not act independently of one another. This project aims to model

GPCR complexes assuming that their state transitions are not at equilibrium and that the subunits

affect one another’s activity. Building on the existing theory using relevant concepts in graph

theory and computer simulations, this project will produce a model of GPCR complexes that is

more realistic to their behavior in the body.

Hannah Willett, class of 2026, is majoring in Mathematics and Neuroscience at William and Mary. Her research interests are in the applications of mathematics to topics in neuroscience, and her thesis uses mathematical modeling techniques to better understand neuronal membrane receptors.

"Joint Optimization of Fleet Scheduling and Charging Deployment for Port Electrification" 

Advisor: Dr. Yanhai Xiong

The electrification of heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) in maritime ports represents a critical pathway toward achieving low-emission and sustainable logistics. However, conventional plug-in charging infrastructures often cause prolonged vehicle downtime and reduce scheduling efficiency. This thesis develops a bi-level optimization framework to jointly determine fleet configuration, job scheduling, and dynamic wireless charging (DWC) deployment for the Port of Virginia. The upper level minimizes long-term system cost in terms of Net Present Value (NPV), while the lower level optimizes daily operations through adaptive scheduling and energy management. A heuristic solver integrating greedy construction and Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search (ALNS) is implemented to address the mixed-integer and nonlinear nature of the problem. Numerical experiments using prediction-based realistic port demand data demonstrate that the proposed framework achieves full task feasibility with 100\% service rate and yields an annual NPV \textbf{20.58 million USD}. Results further indicate that, under current cost and efficiency assumptions, DWC deployment offers limited economic benefit compared to conventional charging strategies. When the total coil length is limited to under 1\,km, the system cost drops by 68.61\%, making DWC installation a potentially attractive choice. Overall, the proposed framework effectively links infrastructure investment and operational decisions, providing a scalable tool for port electrification planning and adaptable extensions toward resilient, sustainable smart ports.

Peiyan Xiao is a senior at William & Mary majoring in Data Science with a minor in Economics. Her research project focuses on developing intelligent optimization and decision-making models for electric vehicle (EV) charging systems. Specifically, she studies hierarchical decision structures, stochastic dynamic optimization, and equilibrium modeling to better understand the interactions among infrastructure planning, operator strategies, and user behavior. Through this work, she aims to contribute to the design of smarter, more efficient, and scalable energy and transportation systems.

"Costs of delayed hatching in the sand dollar Echinarachnius parma" 

Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Allen  

Hatching plasticity, a behavior found across many phyla, occurs when environmental change alters the hatching time of an animal. In echinoderms, hatching plasticity is best known in the sand dollar, Echinarachnius parma. Sand dollar embryos typically hatch as either blastulae or gastrulae. However, when exposed to lowered salinities, E. parma embryos delay hatching and develop into pluteus larvae while remaining within the fertilization envelope, which physically inhibits postoral larval arm growth and access to food. We conducted experiments to test the costs of delayed hatching in the larval and juvenile stages of E. parma by culturing and comparing embryos that hatched at regular times with those that delayed hatching. First, we assessed competency rates in E. parma larvae by artificially inducing metamorphosis using potassium chloride (KCl) on two occasions. Additionally, to determine whether delayed hatching negatively impacts traits associated with predator avoidance and defense, we recorded juvenile size, spine number, and spine length for competent larvae that completed metamorphosis. Across two biological replicates, larvae became competent at approximately the same rate regardless of the treatment. Interestingly, we found mixed results regarding the impact of delayed hatching on juvenile quality. In the first trial, juvenile metrics did not differ between treatments. In the second trial, however, embryos that delayed hatching settled as smaller juveniles, with shorter and fewer spines than those that hatched at normal times.

Lydia Yeats is majoring in Biology at William & Mary. Her research areas include marine invertebrate zoology and ecology. Her thesis addresses the fitness costs of hatching plasticity in the phylum Echinodermata.

"The Potential of Engineering Mycobacteriophage to Treat Biofilms in Household Pipes" 

Advisor: Dr. Margaret Saha

My project focuses on the use of mycobacteriophage to target mycobacteria in household pipes. Daily exposure to nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) is an increasing global concern, as these bacteria contribute to pulmonary and extrapulmonary diseases and are implicated in lung and breast cancer-associated microbiomes. A primary source of human exposure to NTM is household water systems, where mycobacteria form resilient biofilms. Mycobacteria, in particular, form robust, disinfectant-resistant biofilms that contribute to increasing risks of pulmonary infections. Phage have shown promise as an alternative solution to target bacterial biofilms. 

Via microcosm construction, I am able to assess the feasibility of phage to treat NTM biofilms. Then, test the feasibility of an engineered phage to target biofilm-forming mycobacteria and assess the difference in biofilm-disruption efficiency. 

However, there are several difficulties with phage treatment–namely host resistance to phage infection because of prophage immunity. My project also aims to address this issue by characterizing a novel phage with the ability to bypass prophage immunity in mycobacteria. Because satellite phage also bypass prophage immunity, I will also be expanding on the software SaPhARI, that is able to identify novel satellite phage in mycobacteria. 

Rebecca Zheleznyak is majoring in applied math and biology at William and Mary. Her research is in synthetic biology. Specifically, she specializes in bacteriophage and using their genetic machinery to solve real world problems. She was involved in iGEM at William and Mary and was team lead in 2025. 

"The New Ampicillin? Using Aromatic Diynols to Solve Antibiotic Resistance" 

Advisor: Dr. Robert Hinkle

Antibiotic resistance is a problem of rising concern in both the health sector and in the general public. Previous research out of the collaboration between the Hinkle and Young labs has found that asymmetric di-ynes (two sequential alkynes) containing alcohol groups at the end of the chain, adjacent to the di-yne (propargylic), and one carbon away from the di-yne (homopropargylic) all exhibit antibiotic properties when tested against Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas fluorescens. 

Aromatic rings are common moieties in biologically active compounds, including ampicillin, a common antibiotic. The purpose of this research is to continue building the library of antibiotic compounds by adding a terminal aromatic ring of various substitutions to propargylic and homopropargylic di-ynes and testing for bioactivity.  Our study will be based off previously reported  anti-cancer di-ynes containing two different alcohols (diols) that also contained aromatic groups. This will be accomplished by first building a homopropargylic alkynol with a terminal aromatic ring distal to the triple bond and reacting it with a straight-chain alkyne. 

Katie Agamaite is majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Psychology at William & Mary. Her research focuses on the relationship between small molecules with a polyacetylene core and antimicrobial activity. Her thesis focuses on diynes containing a homoproparglic alcohol and an aryl group of various substitution.  

"Investigating the Role of Chigno in the Testis Stem Cell Niche in Drosophila Melanogaster"

Advisor: Dr. Matthew Wawersik

Stem cells play a critical role in the sustained function of most organs and tissues in our bodies. Stem cell regulation is key to proper development and function of the body, and mis-regulation often leads to disease. Understanding how stem cells are regulated is, therefore, of great importance. The Wawersik lab focuses on the testis stem cell niche in D. Melanogaster, specifically considering the relevance of the Chigno gene. Within this niche are two key stem cell lineages, Germline Stem Cells (GSCs) and Cyst Stem Cells (CySCs), Chigno is hypothesized to be a key regulator for CySCs but there is not a clear understanding of all the processes and pathways it impacts. To better characterize Chigno's role in CySC regulation, we performed bulk RNA-seq analysis. Initial results show significant changes in the expression of genes associated with Chigno function, confirming the validity of the experiment. Further exploration of the data uncovered a variety of potential pathways that may shed further light on Chigno’s role in controlling CySC behavior.

Daniel Allred is majoring in Biology and minoring in Data Science at William & Mary. His research uses Drosophila melanogaster (fruit flies) to investigate the regulation of male reproductive stem cells. His thesis investigates the role of a specific gene (Chigno/CG11180) in the regulation of these stem cell populations.

"The Moral Lens of Politics: How Political Affiliation Influences Perceptions of Personality and Morality "

Advisor: Dr. Xiaowen Xu

Increasing research has examined how political identities are shaped by individual and collective perceptions, showing the nuanced relationship between political affiliation and personality traits. One influential framework, the Moral Foundations Theory (MFT), suggests that liberals prioritize harm and fairness concerns, while conservatives prioritize loyalty, authority, and purity concerns (Haidt et al., 2009). Recent work has expanded upon the MFT to show how conservatives may emphasize in-group moral concerns more than liberals (Stewart and Morris, 2021).  However, much of this research has focused on how personality influences political ideology rather than perceptions in various contexts.

This study examines how individuals perceive the personality and morality of conservatives, liberals, and moderates, and whether these perceptions differ in online versus in-person settings. Using an individual differences approach, participants are randomly assigned to evaluate one political group as encountered either online or face-to-face. The study aims to close the gap between online versus in-person settings to understand how they affect the way people perceive political identities.

It is anticipated that political identity will significantly shape perceptions, with stronger and more polarized evaluations occurring in online contexts. In contrast, moderate targets and in-person interactions are expected to produce less extreme evaluations. These findings may help explain how digital environments contribute to political polarization and social division.

Amanda Azia (2026) is majoring in Government and minoring in History on the pre-law track at William & Mary. Her research areas include political psychology, with a focus on political identity and moral decision-making. Her thesis examines the perceptions of political groups in online versus in-person contexts. She also conducts research with the Dispositions, Goals, & Ideology Lab at William & Mary.

"Marsh Migration Into Residential Yards in the Chesapeake Bay"

Advisor: Dr. Matthew Kirwan

Marshes are migrating rapidly into coastal forests and agricultural fields in response to sea level rise. It is unclear whether marshes have the same capacity to migrate into residential areas, where impervious surfaces, mowing, and other disturbances may be unfavorable for migration. Marsh migration into all landcover types is primarily dictated by local elevation gradients, but as marsh species migrate, they change the composition of the plant community and underlying soil conditions. We used remote sensing to determine the extent of marsh migration into residential yards across multiple watersheds in the Chesapeake Bay, and measured characteristics of vegetation and soil at 12 field sites where marsh migration was occurring. At each site, we measured the plant community composition, soil organic content, elevation, and salinity across a transect ranging from recently transitioning upland to well established marsh. Observations suggest that there is extensive marsh migration into residential yards in the Chesapeake Bay. Plant community composition changes across the transects, with upland species in the transition zone, Distichlis spicata dominated mowed marsh in the intermediate zone, and unmown Spartina patens in the well established marsh. Soil conditions also vary across the transect, from thin, mineral-dominated soils in the transition zone to thick, organic-rich soils towards the well established marsh. The ability of marshes to migrate into residential landscapes will be crucial to marsh survival, as coastal populations and sea level both continue to rise. 

Struan Baker is majoring in Geology and Environmental Science at William & Mary. His research areas include geomorphology, ecology, and marine science. His thesis addresses the impact of sea level rise on local communities. He presented his research at the 28th Biennial Coastal & Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) Conference. 

"Pushing the Boundaries of Metal-Organic Framework Chemistry: Through MicroED, Simulation, and Mercury"

Advisor: Dr. Isaiah Speight

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a useful class of material due to their modular and often porous properties. Traditional production of metal-organic frameworks requires high volumes of solvent, energy to heat the solution, and can be potentially limited by solvent effects and solubility challenges. Ball milling is a green alternative where the starting materials are milled in a jar as powders with one or more ball bearings. Mechanochemical MOF synthesis requires little to no solvent and allows for templating and fine control of the MOF’s environment that solution chemistry cannot always provide. This study investigates a mercury(II) 2-methylimidazolate framework synthesized via ball milling. Initial conditions yielded samples that revealed only starting material when characterized with powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD). After minor optimization, powder diffraction reflections for a framework were observed using liquid-assisted grinding (LAG). A crystal of the framework was found, and its structure was resolved from microED data. These structures were then fed to a computational modeling and prediction system which discovered many potential structures. The findings from these studies and the connection between computational, experimental, and crystallographic efforts will be discussed in this presentation.

Theo Bremner is a senior chemistry major at William & Mary from Austin, MN. His research is in mechanochemically generated metal-organic frameworks, and intends to continue pursuing research in graduate school.

"Developing an Affordable, 3-D Printed Liquid Chromatography Apparatus for Separating UV-Active Compounds"

Advisor: Dr. Christopher J. Abelt

Flash column chromatography is a method of seperating and purifying chemicals in organic synthesis research. In order to seperate the chemicals, they are forced through silica gel with pressurized solvent. The thesis project centers around the research and development of a flash-column chromatography column that allows the user to visualize seperation of compounds in real-time using an ultraviolet lamp and fluorescent silica. The column and apparatus is built around 3D-printed components, and commercial off-the-shelf components to minimize cost. The project seeks to answer if such a device can be manufactured at a low cost, and if the resulting column is comparable to or exceeds the performance of traditional flash columns. Design of the 3D-printed components was done using Autodesk Fusion and 3D-printed in a solvent-resistant plastic. Anticipated results are seperations that are on par with or more efficient than traditional flash columns, and with an ease of use somewhere in between commercial column chromatography machines such as the Biotage and a traditional flash column. The low per-unit cost and open-source designs means the column would be both affordable and maintainable, lending well to use in teaching laboratories and in laboratories on a tight budget. The project is intended to be open-source, with digital files published under a permissible license allowing for others to reproduce the results and improve upon the column. This ensures continued support for the project so that the apparatus will be easily repairable and parts commonly available.

Kathryn Day is majoring in Chemistry at the College of William and Mary, and expects to graduate in 2026. Her research areas include organic synthesis, analytical chemistry, and instrumental chemistry. Her thesis addresses a low-cost means of separating chemicals using flash column chromatography with an emphasis on ease of use and manufacturing of the apparatus.

"The aze Operon and Quorum Sensing: Characterizing the Functions of aze Biosynthetic Products"

Advisor: Dr. Isabelle Taylor

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic human pathogen that is known to cause deadly infections in immunocompromised people. These infections are becoming increasingly difficult to treat due to the bacterium’s wide variety of antibiotic resistance mechanisms. P. aeruginosa utilizes a cell-to-cell communication process called quorum sensing to coordinate group behaviors, such as the production of toxins. The aze operon is a set of genes under quorum sensing control that is responsible for the synthesis of several small molecules whose functions are currently not well understood. By deleting certain genes in this operon and testing their supernatants–the liquid media that remains after the cells are pelleted and discarded–we can elucidate the function of these molecules and whether they affect quorum sensing. Furthermore, we are using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to identify the molecules and quantify their production in different strains. Understanding the function of the aze pathway may provide insight into its potential role in long-term host colonization and reveal new targets for drug development.

Anna Detweiler is a senior majoring in Biochemistry at William and Mary. Their research areas include biochemistry, microbiology, and small molecule biosynthesis. Their thesis focuses on characterizing the functions of small molecules synthesized by the pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

"Ramsey Interferometry Based Imaging with Ultracold Atoms"

Advisor: Dr. Seth Aubin

This project aims to develop a Ramsey interferometry-based imaging technique for laser beam imaging using ultracold Rb87 atoms as an initial step toward advancing non-invasive electron-beam imaging and, eventually, the imaging of individual electron tracks. Observing electrons without perturbing their state is a challenge in experimental physics, so such a capability would be particularly beneficial for monitoring the high-power electron beams used at facilities like Jefferson Lab. This thesis will mainly discuss the development of Ramsey Interferometry in the atom chip region, and in the MOT chamber to image a laser beam. 

Yiyang Ding is majoring in Physics and Computer Science at William and Mary. His research focuses on ultracold atom quantum sensing. His thesis discusses the implementation of Ramsey interferometry for non-invasive laser or electron beam imaging.

"Just Below the Surface: Indigenous Slavery in Colonial Discourse"

Advisor: Dr. Nicole Dressler

“Just Below the Surface: Indigenous Slavery in Colonial Discourse” explores Native enslavement and evolving racial language in colonial Virginia and South Carolina. The Indian slave trade provided a key source of early labor. During the seventeenth- and eighteenth centuries, frequent debate occurred between lawmakers, colonists, and Indigenous neighbors toward the status of unfree Native Americans. With colonial laws, court records, and runaway advertisements, I argue that Native Americans complicated colonial racial associations between skin color, labor, and legal status. I ask — what language did British colonists, legally and colloquially, use to describe enslaved Indigenous peoples? How did it differ from the terms applied to free, allied Native Americans? When and how did racial language create, as Gregory Ablavsky termed, an “undifferentiated underclass” that indiscriminately grouped Native Americans, African Americans, and biracial individuals together? Within plantation systems that emphasized black/white, unfree/free distinctions, enslaved Native Americans subverted racial language and undermined colonial strategies to erase an Indigenous presence. 

Libby Eick, class of 2026, is a history and linguistics major at William & Mary. She is an interdisciplinary scholar who combines digital humanities and historical research to examine slavery, freedom-making, and legal culture in the Southeast British colonies. Her thesis examines the changing nature of racial language toward enslaved Indigenous peoples in Virginia and South Carolina. She is a student researcher with the history department and an editor with the James Blair Historical Review.

"An Ornament to Society": Gender, Education, and Citizenship in the Early Republic United States"

Advisor: Dr. Leisa Meyer

From 1770-1830, female education exploded across the United States. This allowed white women initial access to secondary education and established women’s education as a status symbol. Simultaneously, America’s founders debated how to ensure an educated public informed enough to vote intelligently and thus ensure the survival of the young nation. This project asks why, despite white women’s increasing education, citizenship is defined as a male (largely landowning) right. It complicates canonical notions of Republican Motherhood; women’s education was important to be teachers of America’s sons. How can we understand this gap between the "educated American woman" and the "educated American citizen"? Additionally, how has this historical precedent influenced cultural definitions of women and citizenship today? In answering these questions this project uses an intersectional analysis that engages the ways in which gender, race, and class were critical identity categories through which U.S. citizenship was defined. Assessing newspapers, institutional records, and material culture like samplers, I find that education provided the tools and credentials performance of white womanhood required, and was an important step in performing it correctly. Thus, women in the early republic enacted a form of citizenship that transcends traditional, male-oriented definitions of citizen: instead, white women’s citizenship rests on their unique relationship to the state as repositories of national identity and their own work taking ownership over the values the state wants them to proclaim. 

Ava Estes is a majoring in History and minoring in Education Studies, with a certificate in Public History. Her research areas include Early Republic United States, Material Culture studies, American studies, and Gender and Sexuality studies. Her thesis addresses the intersections of gender, education, and citizenship in the United States between 1770-1830. 

"Synthesis and Characterization of Novel Copper(I) Iodide Complexes with Nicotinamide, Isonicotinamide, and N-Methyl-Nicotinamide"

Advisor: Dr. Robert Pike

Ten novel crystalline metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) comprised of networks formed between copper(I) iodide and nicotinamide, isonicotinamide, and N-methyl-nicotinamide have been identified. This project aims to explores the unique structural, emissive and thermodynamic properties exhibited by these materials; this paper also intends to examine the structural chemistry of the hydrogen bonding networks which comprise these MOFs. Additionally, in this paper we explore the use of mechanochemical (solid-state) syntheses to obtain pure products which are often difficult to obtain via solution-state syntheses. This new technique allows for easier synthesis of thermodynamic MOFs that often produce a mixed product in solution. These products hold potential for use as sensing materials, in LED displays, and as dilute fluorescent materials.

Ian Falise is a Class of 2026 Chemistry major at the College of William & Mary. His research focuses on mechanochemical and solution-state synthesis of metal–organic materials, with emphasis on phase control and emissive behavior. He applies X-ray crystallography, spectroscopy, and thermal analysis to investigate structure–property relationships in functional materials.

"Republican Language and Literary Self-Alignment With the State in Julius Caesar's "Bellum Civile" I"

Advisor: Dr. Jessica Stephens

Julius Caesar’s transition from renegade proconsul to "dictator for life" marks one of the most  politically momentous shifts of power in Western history. This research examines how Caesar used his own account of the Civil War of 49-45 BC ("Bellum Civile"), and in particular its first book, as a potent literary tool ultimately serving to justify this transformation by inextricably linking his personal standing to the security and survival of the Roman Republic. In his propaganda, Caesar naturally shirks a simple record of events; he employs, rather, specific patterns of recurring (and politically resonant) language to make the perseverance of his "dignitas" (personal standing/worthiness of honor) appear identical to the survival of the "res publica." I analyze three sometimes distinct, oft-intertwined formulaic registers in "Bellum Civile" I. I first consider Caesar's use of political and administrative language, the superficially objective, passionless style of officialdom by which Caesar portrays his own constitutionality and the Roman Senate as a body "hijacked" by a small faction of his personal enemies. I then turn to Caesar's register of military prose, which both utilizes such grammatical constructions as the ablative absolute to create a sense of inevitable, orderly momentum on Caesar's part and moreover links his actions in the Civil War to his earlier state-sanctioned victories in Gaul, where he had, in his own words, "served the state fortuitously" ("meritus bene de re publica"). Finally, I explore Caesar's weaponization of Republican values (e.g., "dignitas," "lenitas," "amicitia," "misericordia") as a reinforcement of his wartime self-alignment with the very notion of the Republic. Caesar’s compulsive reliance on these linguistic registers suggests a literary program aimed at colonizing the very notion of the Republic such that Caesar could avoid the war-guilt question and instead make indistinguishable his person and the state.

Andrew Francois is a Classics major concentrating in the study of the Latin language. His research interests encompass the political and social history of the late Roman Republic, Greek and Latin philology, Roman historiography, Latin oratory, Attic tragedy, and early Greek epic poetry. His honors thesis examines Julius Caesar's use of Republican formulae in his "Commentaries on the Civil War" as a means of conflating his personal standing ("dignitas") and the Roman state itself ("res publica").

"Juvenile Recruitment of Spot to a Restored Seagrass Meadow in South Bay, VA"

Advisor: Dr. Chris Patrick

Seagrass meadows are foundational, structurally complex benthic habitats that provide refugia for juvenile fish. Comparison of juvenile recruitment between seagrass and bare sediment habitats inform fisheries management and ecosystem services assessment. Loss of eelgrass (Zostera marina) meadows across the Atlantic, including the Virginia Eastern Shore, in the 1930s was heavily attributed to disease. Restoration initiatives in South Bay, a coastal lagoon on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, began in 1999 and became the world’s most successful restoration project with 2,808 ha. of eelgrass in 2024. Trawl surveys were initiated in 2013, when the meadow was half of its current extent (1,427 ha.). Ongoing trawl surveys (2013-2025) throughout the growing season (May-September) commonly catch juvenile Spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), an offshore spawner with commercial and recreational relevance in the region. We hypothesize that the abundance of Spot increased from 2013-2025 in accordance with the expanding meadow. Additionally, trawls over bare sediment in an adjacent coastal lagoon—Burtons Bay—allow for comparison between habitats. We expect the young-of-the-year cohort to be more abundant in South Bay than Burtons Bay. Our findings will assess the role of seagrass habitats in juvenile recruitment and inform fisheries management. 

Nora Keely will graduate in May 2026 with a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Conservation and a minor in Geospatial Analysis from William & Mary. She has been interning at the Coastal and Estuarine Ecology Lab at the Virginia Institute for Marine Science for the past two years, where her project originated. She will present on juvenile recruitment of a common Virginia fish species, Spot, as it relates to seagrass restoration, what her lab is known for.

"Active Aerodynamic Control of a High-Speed, Unmanned, Electric Surface Vehicle"

Advisor: Dr. Jonathan Frey

High speed electric boats often experience instability during acceleration, particularly when transitioning from rest to planing speeds, the point at which the hull lifts partially out of the water to reduce drag. During early testing of an electric racing boat at William and Mary, excessive bow rise limited efficiency, control, and top speed. This project investigates whether actively controlled aerodynamic surfaces mounted above the water can improve stability and performance during this critical transition.

The research combines computational simulations and hardware development to evaluate forward mounted wing like surfaces called canards. Computer simulations were used to study airflow around different foil shapes and angles, first in air and later in combined air water environments to better represent real operating conditions. These simulations guided the selection of a canard design and operating range. In parallel, a control system was developed using onboard sensors, a microcontroller, and servo motors to adjust the canards in response to changes in the boat’s pitch.

Simulation results indicate that the addition of canards can reduce bow rise and slightly decrease overall drag while maintaining sufficient lift, suggesting improved stability during acceleration. While full dynamic testing is ongoing, these findings demonstrate the potential of active aerodynamic control as a tool for improving the efficiency, stability, and performance of electric and autonomous surface vessels, with broader implications for future high speed marine vehicle design.

Michael Kelly Galdamez is majoring in Engineering Physics and Applied Design at William and Mary. His research focuses on active aerodynamic control systems for high speed electric marine vehicles, combining computational fluid dynamics, hardware prototyping, and control systems. His honors project investigates how actively controlled aerodynamic surfaces can improve planing performance, stability, and efficiency in autonomous surface vehicles.

"Effect of the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period on Molluscan Worm Parasites in the Fossil Record"

Advisor: Drs. Rowan Lockwood & Randolph Chambers

Climate change is a pervasive issue facing marine organisms, however its impact on ecological interactions has not been widely studied. This is true of the relationship between bivalves and spionid polychaetes (a marine worm), which can range from neutral to parasitic. The Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period (MPWP), a period of global warming three million years ago, can be used to study how climate change affected this relationship as ocean conditions were similar to estimates for the end of the century. This study seeks to understand how the presence and intensity of spionid polychaete infestation change over the course of the MPWP using the traces they leave on bivalve shells in the form of blisters and borings. Museum samples of fossilized material, two from before the MPWP and two from after the MPWP were analyzed. Four bivalves were studied, two epifaunal taxa (Ostrea and Chesapecten), and two infaunal taxa (Astarte and Glycymeris). Body size was measured and the presence or absence of spionid polychaete traces along with the number of traces if applicable was recorded for each shell. Overall, the preliminary results from T-tests and logistic regression analyses suggest that the presence of spionid polychaetes did not significantly differ across the MPWP for any of the taxa, while intensity significantly increased during the MPWP for Chesapecten and Glycymeris. These results indicate that spionid polychaete infection intensity could increase in some bivalves as rising temperatures and acidification contribute to the parasite’s ability to infiltrate and utilize bivalve shells.

Evelyn Kresse is a senior, majoring in biology at William & Mary. Her research combines paleontology and modern ecology to understand the impact of climate change on organisms and their ecosystems. Her thesis uses a period of global warming (3 ma) as an analogue for modern climate change to study how increasing temperatures and acidification affect molluscan parasite prevalence and intensity. She is the lead author of a published abstract and has presented research at two conferences.

"Beyond the Nation-State Order: Chinese Christian Communities in the United States" 

Advisor: Dr. Kathleen Jenkins

We now live in a society shaped by multiple, often competing values, moral visions, standards, traditions, and ideals. Amid competing frames and worldviews, how is religious faith developed and sustained in contemporary American society? Perhaps this question is especially salient for Chinese immigrants, many of whom were raised in a country often seen as one of the most atheistic in the world. How do Chinese immigrants form and sustain Christian faith communities while navigating competing forces and secular influences in their lives?

To answer this question, I drew on qualitative research that combined a three-month ethnography in one Chinese Christian congregation, including participant observation of worship, Bible study, and everyday communal life, with in-depth interviews with 11 Chinese Christian immigrants recruited from multiple congregations. I analyzed fieldnotes and interview transcripts using thematic coding to trace how people narrate faith formation and community life.

My central finding is that participants often experience modern social life—especially the nation-state order, neoliberal market, and immigration systems—as sorting people into categories of legitimacy and worth. Against this backdrop, the faith community becomes more than a religious institution. It offers an alternative basis for dignity and security, enabling members to reorient identity and purpose beyond the dominant political and social expectations in public life.

These findings suggest that immigrant faith communities are not reducible to emotional consolation or pathways of integration into dominant political and social orders. Rather, they are sites where alternative moral orientations and forms of belonging are cultivated and made tangible through everyday practices. It helps to explain why religious communities remain durable even in social contexts where secular influences are pervasive.

Chuyin Lam is majoring in Sociology, with a minor in Philosophy, at William & Mary. Her research focuses on religion and migration, with particular attention to Chinese immigrant Christian communities in the United States, and to how faith communities are formed, sustained, and contested in contemporary society. 

"Jacques-Louis David’s Italian Drawings" 

Advisor: Dr. Catherine Levesque  

David is renowned for his contributions to the Neoclassical movement and his involvement in the politics of the French Revolution. Less attention, however, has been given to his formative years, particularly his time in Italy. David’s five years there were instrumental to the development of his later and more famous history paintings. My research on his Italian drawings highlights the diversity of material that the young artist studied. He drew after works by early Baroque and Italian High Renaissance artists such as Caravaggio and the Carracci, as well as classical sculptures and monuments. Moreover, his interaction with contemporary artists and scholars directly involved him in the renewal of the antique aesthetic. David’s time in Italy motivated him to alter his style and his approach to history paintings; his drawings record that experience. David produced twelve sketchbooks that he would utilize for the rest of his artistic career. Close examination of the Italian drawings at the Metropolitan Museum and Morgan Library will allow me to document the extent of David’s work in Italy and to chart the development of his Neoclassical style and subject matter. My research on David’s time in Italy is significant because it highlights a crucial transition in the artist’s development and provides an experience that would act as a catalyst for the kinds of work that made David’s subsequent involvement in the cultural development of Revolutionary France.

Sierra Manja is a senior with a double major in History and Art History, with a concentration in Critical Curatorial Studies. Her research areas focus on Renaissance and Early Modern European art history. Her thesis investigates Italian and French artistic interactions through the Neoclassical movement. Sierra works at the Muscarelle Museum of Art and Swem Special Collections, and her research has been published with the William & Mary Lemon Project. 

"Resolving Hydroxyl-Based Age Overestimation in Ancient Pottery Using Infrared Spectroscopy" 

Advisor: Dr. Tyler Meldrum

Tracking the rate of hydroxyl (OH) absorption into pottery using infrared spectroscopy is a recent development in archaeometry.  Our research focuses on resolving an age overestimation error in the experiment due to unaccounted hydroxyls in the ancient pottery after firing. To do so, first the firing temperature of the pottery must be identified. We use a refiring method on the ancient samples and use infrared spectroscopy to observe the clays structural changes as temperature increases. The refired temperature at which structural change is distinct is the original firing temperature. 

Standard pottery samples were then made using raw clay near the archeological site that the ancient samples were found. The standards were fired at increasing temperatures and analyzed by infrared spectroscopy to determine hydroxyl concentration in relation to firing temperature. Using both sets of data the hydroxyl concentration of the ancient samples after firing was found. 

In addition, porosity was observed in relation to the clay’s structure and firing temperature. Using optical microscopy’s 3D imaging capabilities porosity was observed as a function of firing temperature on the specific clay type. We also observed how hydroxyls interacted with different molecular structures in the fired clay samples using single-sided NMR as the probe because it can observe hydrogen molecules as they behave differently in response to specific environments. Both methods are advantageous because they are non-destructive, giving hope to more conservational methods of studying pottery.

Kylie McCoy is a senior majoring in Biochemistry at William and Mary. She is currently writing a chemistry honors thesis on ancient pottery analysis using a multi-analytical approach. She conducts her research using techniques such as single-sided nuclear magnetic resonance and infrared spectroscopy. 

"Stealing: A Redefinition of the Ambitious Artist through a Compositionally Referential Large-Scale Oil Painting" 

Advisor: John Lee

I am deeply inspired by reworking the traditionally male painting cannon through the perspective of an ambitious young female artist today. This project synthesizes research and the making process to produce a large-scale oil painting informed by the work of old masters, specifically Velazquez’s Las Meninas. I was inspired by the process of Zoey Frank, a contemporary female artist, and used her methods of analysis and compositional creation to build up the beginning stages of the painting. My process uses palette knives to create thick, pure marks of color. This color-mark process helps me feel connected to modernist painters that inspire me and helps me to rigorously investigate abstract reality. The preparation and painting was all done from life in a studio space, but I am more interested in creating “confused space” than by accurately depicting said space. These “confused spaces” leverage the strangeness of color and paint layering to depict spaces that are not easily nameable. This project, consisting of an exhibition of the final painting as well as preparatory works, has allowed me to develop a method of examination and creation that I will be able to move forward into future artistic projects. 

Hannah Nieman is a senior majoring in Studio Art and Accounting at the College of William & Mary. Her research focuses on large-scale figurative oil painting that recontextualizes compositions from art history. She is currently preparing for a solo show at the Purple Fern Gallery this summer.  

"Intentional Acceptance: Evaluating Acceptance Within the Emotion Regulation Choice Task" 

Advisor: Dr. Meghan Quinn

Acceptance as an emotion regulation (ER) strategy shows mixed effectiveness in reducing negative emotion in assigned laboratory tasks, despite being central to empirically supported therapies. One explanation may be the intentional nature of acceptance. Instructing someone to accept their emotions does not guarantee genuine openness. Previous ER tasks have only examined assigned acceptance. To address this gap, we evaluated acceptance within the ER Choice Task to investigate when people prefer acceptance and its effectiveness in reducing negative affect. 138 participants completed an assigned block, where they were randomly assigned an ER strategy (acceptance, distraction, reappraisal, or a control "look" condition) to implement for each low-intensity (LI) and high-intensity (HI) negative image they viewed. In the choice block, participants viewed a brief LI or HI image flash, chose their preferred strategy, and implemented it while viewing the full image. Affect ratings were collected after each image. Results revealed participants preferred acceptance and reappraisal over distraction for LI images, and acceptance and distraction over reappraisal for HI images. Critically, acceptance reduced negative affect significantly more in the choice block than assigned block for both intensities. These findings suggest that the effectiveness of acceptance depends on intentional implementation. More broadly, the high prevalence of acceptance throughout the choice block may reflect growing public emphasis on mindfulness practices.

Tristan Nyte is a senior at William & Mary, majoring in psychology with a minor in mathematics. His research interests include interpersonal and cultural influences on emotion regulation, and how mindfulness interventions influence emotion regulation flexibility. His thesis examines the effectiveness of acceptance as an emotion regulation strategy when individuals are assigned acceptance versus when they choose it willingly. 

"The History of Autumnal Tourism in New England" 

Advisor: Dr. Charles McGovern

This thesis explores the origins of autumn-season tourism in New England, exploring what drove people to visit New England in the fall/autumn season and how the tourism industry evolved over time to cater to autumn visitors. This topic is significant because it unpacks the tourism industry, which is one of the pillars of the New England economy. For example, when someone drives through the Vermont countryside, they will come across numerous farmstand businesses selling maple syrup and apple cider. The income from tourists feeds the owner’s family, pays for their mortgage, and keeps the lights on. It would be challenging, if not impossible, to find someone living in New England today who has not been impacted by the tourism industry.

New England autumnal tourism is an extension of scenic tourism, as it relies on picturesque landscapes and glorifies the “simple” life. People travel to New England for its scenery, originally for sights such as mountains, oceans, and lakes. This drew artists, writers, and city folk looking to get away. Fall foliage was a natural extension of scenic tourism; people flocked to New England to view the autumn colors for the same reasons they wanted to see the rivers and mountains: it is a beautiful sight. 

This thesis dives into this topic through exploration of primary sources like newspapers and travel guides to examine the relationship between tourism, transportation, farms, ideas of simplicity and nostalgia, commercialization, and commodification. 

Rachael Rademacher is senior double majoring in History and Government at William & Mary. Her thesis explores the roots of autumnal tourism in New England. Using primary sources, Rachael dives into why "leaf peeping" is popular and how "New England fall" became a widespread phenomenon. 

"Antennal Lobe Dynamics and the Generation of Diverse Response Types to Mechanosensory Stimulation" 

Advisor: Dr. Mainak Patel

The discrimination and tracking of environmental odorants is crucial to insect survival. Odor discrimination relies on pure chemosensory input to the antennal lobe (AL)--the first processing center of olfactory information in the insect brain--whereas odor tracking depends on the insect's ability to encode both the chemical and spatiotemporal information contained in an odor plume. Recent studies have demonstrated that the AL is bimodal, that is, it processes both chemical and mechanosensory signals. However, the biological causes and implications of bimodality are still not known for certain. Empirical data has shown that projection neurons (PNs) in the honey bee AL display distinct temporal patterning in response to mechanosensory stimulation (i.e. a nonscented air puff), and that these responses can vary across input strengths. In this work, we modify a realistic computational model of the insect AL to investigate the network mechanisms behind the diversity of PN response patterns in honey bees; we then explore model responses under varying mechanosensory input strengths and with the inclusion of odor stimuli. Our findings show that response patterns are a consequence of variations in synaptic and intrinsic inhibition across PNs. Finally, we hypothesize about the role of the PN response patterns in odor tracking in the context of honey bee ecology.

Joseph Reed is majoring in Mathematics at William & Mary. His research area is in computational neuroscience. His thesis addresses the dynamics of honey bee antennal lobe neurons. After graduation, Joseph plans on attending graduate school to earn a PhD in applied mathematics. 

"The Public Contemporary Memory of the Declaration of Independence" 

Advisor: Dr. Robyn Schroeder

This thesis compares the contemporary public memory of the Declaration of Independence upon its immediate publication and during the ratification debates of the U.S. Constitution. This research investigates Northern colonial and early American newspapers, primarily from major "revolutionary" cities. In 1776, patriot propagandists presented the Declaration as an inevitable step in the war against Britain and the loose foundation of the future American government. Eleven years later, during the nationwide debate about the newly proposed federal government, advocates and opponents of the Constitution both manipulated the legacy of the Declaration to forward their political agenda. Supporters of the Constitution glorified the Declaration as a boldly patriotic treatise, uniquely applicable to the Revolutionary War. Contrastingly, critics of the Constitution memorialized the Declaration as a criterion for American governmental structures and political rhetoric. By unearthing the reputation of an “immortal” document at a time when its authors were still alive, this thesis highlights the significance of written political documents in shaping American history.

Riley Rodriguez is a senior history major at William & Mary. Her primary research interests are the legacy of foundational American documents, eighteenth-century political thought, and the abolition of slavery. Her thesis analyzes the public contemporary memory of the Declaration of Independence. After graduation, she plans to continue historical study at the graduate level. 

"Developing Novel Polyyne Antimicrobial Compounds" 

Advisor: Dr. Douglas Young  

Every year 35,000 deaths are attributed to antibiotic resistance, per the CDC. This massive problem is only getting larger, and estimates suggest that antibiotic resistance-related deaths will rival cancer deaths by 2050. In addition to this threat specific bacteria can create biofilms, a defensive matrix resistant to almost all traditional antibiotics and bacterial biofilms are responsible for many chronic infections. This project seeks to answer these problems by generating new novel antimicrobial compounds that can serve as antibiotics and contain biofilm disrupting capabilities. Previous research our lab conducted has identified antimicrobial compounds that contain an asymmetrical polyyne (consecutive triple bonded carbons) and a primary alcohol. These display antibacterial and biofilm-disrupting properties between Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas fluorescens. This project seeks to create derivative compounds based on structure to identify potentially even more potent antimicrobial compounds. One example of a derivative compound would be to synthesize polyynes with secondary alcohols instead of primary alcohols. Tests like these give insight into what is actually required for these polyyne compounds to be antimicrobial. 

Tyler Skeen is majoring in Chemistry and Environmental Science at William & Mary. His research revolves around chemical biology. His thesis addresses the synthesis and screening of antimicrobial compounds and novel protein bioconjugation techniques. 

"Transition Metal MOFs for Ammonia Storage" 

Advisor: Dr. Robert D. Pike 

Ammonia is an immensely useful chemical useful as a major component of fertilizer, as a precursor to many chemicals, and as a potential clean-burning fuel. However, its gaseous nature, toxicity, and reactivity make it cumbersome to store in large quantities. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) can effectively store gases like ammonia in a solid state while being able to release and reabsorb ammonia gas in a controllable way. This research developed an easy and inexpensive synthesis method for a MOF with nickel (II) acetate and the orange organic dye, quinizarin. Using simple and accessible methods to estimate the ammonia content of saturated network samples, samples were produced with more than 10% ammonia content. The structure of the nickel-based and other transition metal-based MOFs were roughly characterized utilizing Thermo-Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Powder X-ray Diffraction (PXRD), IR Spectroscopy and Elemental Analysis (CHN). Quantification of the ammonia absorption rate of nickel quinizarate (Ni(quin)) revealed efficient uptake rates and a selectivity to ammonia over water.  

Patrick Tingley (Class of 2026) majors in chemistry at William and Mary. His research focuses on inorganic chemistry, synthetic chemistry, and instrumental analysis. He has worked on several projects ranging from characterizing rare-earth complexes to designing cost-efficient luminescent materials. His honors thesis focuses on developing a proof-of-concept of using MOFs as a way to store ammonia for use in green fuel systems. 

"Modelling the Effect of Sediment Ammonium and Sulfide Concentrations on Cultured Hard Clam Growth and Mortality" 

Advisors: Drs. Mark J. Brush & Randy M. Chambers

Virginia is the leading state in cultured hard clam production, with the industry valued at $52 million. Recently, large scale mortality events, referred to as Sudden Unusual Mortality Syndrome (SUMS), have caused losses of up to 80% of market-sized clams on some farms. Ongoing research has provided a deeper understanding of SUMS events in the Chesapeake Bay, including the application of an ecosystem-hard clam bioenergetics model. However, this model does not include the effects of sediment ammonium and sulfides, environmental toxins that may be associated with clam mortality. This research focuses on collecting sediment ammonium and sulfide concentration data for integration into the model to refine its predictive capability. Porewater ammonium and sulfide concentrations were measured at three clam farms in Cherrystone Inlet, the epicenter of Virginia hard clam aquaculture. The highest concentrations of ammonium (157 µM) and sulfide (1372 µM) were found at a farm site afflicted with a SUMS event in early July. Concentrations were used alongside the literature to develop filtration and respiration limitation formulations as a function of ammonium and sulfides, which have been incorporated into the model. The model is currently being used to quantify the effect of porewater concentrations on clam growth, energy budgets, and mortality. These modelled simulations will then help determine under what environmental conditions SUMS events are likely to occur. 

Allison Thorne is a senior majoring in Biology and minoring in Coastal and Marine Science. Her research interests include marine ecology and the ecological impacts of mortality. Her honors thesis focuses on sediment biogeochemistry and how it impacts Sudden Unusual Mortality Syndrome events in cultured hard clams; she utilizes porewater data she collected during Summer 2025 and an ecosystem-hard clam bioenergetics model to understand what is causing these mass mortality events in Chesapeake Bay.

"Utilizing Non-canonical Amino Acids Towards Developing Site-Specific Multivalent Bioconjugates" 

Advisors: Dr. Douglas Young

Protein bioconjugates are proteins that have been covalently modified with a small molecule. Protein bioconjugates have a wide variety of applications; however, most known bioconjugate reactions that have been shown in literature only allow for the conjugation of a single small molecule. By increasing the valency, even more functions and flexibility can be conferred to an already potent technology. In order to accomplish this, non-canonical amino acids were incorporated, allowing us to leverage the high degree of specificity and reactivity. Using non-canonical amino acids with alkyne functionalities, we were able to develop multiple pathways to synthesize multivalent bioconjugates in a site-specific manner, allowing for a large degree of flexibility and control over the multivalent conjugate, opening the door for a diverse set of applications.

Aaron Wang is a Chemistry Major at William and Mary. His research includes bioorganic chemistry and chemical biology. His thesis explores novel non-canonical Amino Acids and the discovery and optimization of new bioorthogonal reactions. He has coauthored 2 peer reviewed papers.

"Uncovering the Habitat Use and Abundance of Stream-Breeding Salamanders in Virginia's Coastal Plain" 

Advisors: Dr. Matthias Leu

Salamanders play a vital role in riparian forests surrounding freshwater streams and creeks. Because salamanders have an aquatic larval stage and a terrestrial adult stage, they serve as indicators of overall ecosystem health. However, there is a lack of research regarding the population drivers of both larval and adult stream-breeding salamanders.

Previous surveys by the Applied Conservation and Ecological Research lab at William and Mary have found larval southern two-lined salamanders (Eurycea cirrigera), three-lined salamanders (Eurycea guttolineata), and northern dusky salamanders (Desmognathus fuscus) in nine streams in Williamsburg, Virginia. However, the adult populations of these species have yet to be studied. This project will explore the environmental and seasonal variables that influence the distribution and habitat use of adult stream-breeding salamanders in Williamsburg. We will create statistical models to examine what factors influence the abundance and habitat use of stream-breeding salamanders, and if these variables impact the three species in different ways. In the future, these models can be combined with previous research on larval populations to understand overall trends in stream-breeding salamander populations. These insights can inform the conservation of these important species, and provide a broader understanding of the health of local streams and forests.

Leah Weinraub is a senior majoring in Biology and Integrative Conservation at William and Mary. She has conducted research in the Applied Conservation and Ecological Research Lab and the Conservation GIS lab. Her research interests include spatial ecology, invasive species management, and wildlife conservation, with a particular focus on studying local and uncharismatic species. For her thesis, she studied the distribution and abundance of stream-breeding salamanders in Williamsburg, VA. 

"A Comparison of Ego-Centric Social Networks of College Students in Ghana, Japan, and the United States" 

Advisors: Dr. Joanna Schug

We examined the properties of ego-centric social networks reported by college students in Ghana (n = 239), Japan (n = 185), and the United States (n = 138). Participants were asked to draw a sociogram representing themselves and the ties between themselves and their friends. We then calculated several network metrics, including size, density, and betweenness. Overall, networks reported by participants in Ghana and Japan tended to be similar in terms of size and composition, characterized by smaller size, higher dansity and lower betweenness. In contrast, networks reported by American students tended to be larger, more sparse, and exhibit greater betweenness (reflecting networks composed of distinct clusters). We interpret these findings within the framework of interdependence and relational mobility in each society.

Yuhan Yue, an international student from China, is double majoring in Psychology and Data Science at William & Mary. She is a senior student graduating in May 2026. Her research interests include cross-cultural psychology, mental health related studies, and human development. Her thesis focuses on socio-cultural networks of participants from three distinct backgrounds.

"Synthesis of Mansouramycin D and Related Derivatives from 1,4-Oxazinone Precursors" 

Advisors: Dr. Jonathan Scheerer

Mansouramycins are a family of organic molecules known as isoquinoline quinones (IQQs). IQQs possess a molecular framework that contains two fused six-membered rings with one of the rings having an integrated nitrogen nucleus. IQQ compounds show significant biological activity especially against human cancer cell lines, and are lead compounds in the development of therapeutics to treat several diseases. Methods for the synthesis of these molecules are few and limited in scope. The purpose of this project is to explore a novel way to synthesize these molecules from 1,4-oxazinones. Preliminary results from the past year show success at preparing a wide variety of mansourmycin and related IQQ molecules with high yields. Access to these compounds may enable further anticancer screening and improve our understanding of this family of bioactive molecules.

David Zhao is majoring in Chemistry and Classical Studies at William & Mary. His research areas include organic chemistry, Latin literature, and Roman culture. His thesis addresses the novel total synthesis of a natural product with potential therapeutic applications towards various diseases, including cancer.