RISE 2024: Converging Paths to Shape Our Future

More than 100 students actively participated in the 2024 Research, Innovation, Symposium and Exhibition (RISE) Undergraduate and Graduate Student Conference on Thursday, April 18, 2024. The conference began with an opening plenary on Artificial Intelligence and HBCUs by Dr. Nicol Turner Lee, Senior Fellow, Governance Studies and Director, Center for Technology Innovation of the Brookings Institution and continued with presentations in a variety of formats, including posters across multiple disciplines, PowerPoint presentations (oral presentations), business presentations (innovation) and exhibitions including an art presentation.

We are pleased to announce the 2024 RISE winners and those whose scores deem them worthy of honorable mention! 

The RISE 2024 committee thanks the many faculty, staff and administrators who volunteered their time to serve as judges, sponsor student work and mentor. We look forward to an even more robust student conference next April 2025! 

Poster undergraduate group

# 308 Andrea Trotter, Shaunice Johnson, Ibrahim Kamara and Zion Luster, first-place
“NSU Student Sentiments on COVID-19, Campus Safety, and the Hookup Culture”
Dr. Sheila A. Ward, faculty advisor  

#311 Ja’Vonya Trotter and Imani Joseph, honorable mention
“Physiological Response of the Invasive Kalanchoe houghtonii in Soils Contaminated with Coal-Tar Creosote”
Dr. Stephen Via, faculty advisor

Poster undergraduate individual –Three-Way TIE, first place

#418 Emmanuel Dragule
“Enhancing Refugee Integration into American Society: Strategies for Alleviating Struggles and Poverty”
Dr. Phillip Riddick, faculty advisor

#422 Jayla Jenkins
“The Effects of Different Concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide on the survival and regeneration of the Flatworm Planaria Dugesia dorotocephala”
Dr. Aylin Marz, faculty advisor

#432 Montaja McMullen-Crockett
“Can Mycobacteriophages be isolated from the Elizabeth River sediment?”
Dr. Nazir Barekzi, faculty advisor

Oral Presentation Undergraduate

#222 Lafayette Robinson III, first place
“Exploring the Effectiveness of Using Generative AI Tools to Create Equity-informed Math Lesson Plans”
Dr. Ronald White, faculty advisor

#309 Gabrielle D. Parker & Jordan D. Moody, honorable mention
“There's Life in Literature: Embracing Diversity for Educational Empowerment”
Dr. Andrea Neal, sponsor

Graduate Poster

#601 Olivia Penrose, first place
“Synthesis and Characterization of Polymeric Materials for Space Applications”
Dr. Carl Bonner, faculty sponsor

#604 Sean Nesbit, honorable mention
“Photo Induced Electric Effects and Magnetic Fields”
Dr. Noginova, faculty advisor

Oral Presentation Graduate 
#502 Helen Merriwether, first place
The Lived Experiences of Previously Incarcerated Individuals Living in Portsmouth, Virginia
Dr. Isiah Marshall, faculty sponsor

#521, Mark Swift, honorable mention
“Construction and Modeling of a Z-Scan System for Ultrashort Pulse Laser Spectroscopy”
Dr. Doyle Temple, faculty sponsor

Innovation (includes  Business Plans/Pitches)

#221, Jaylin Seymour-Valery, first place
“Is Wealth Maximization Better Than Profit Maximization in Businesses”
Dr. Mojtaba Sirjani, faculty sponsor

#101 Nina Collymore, honorable mention
“Reimagining Black Wall Street: The Role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities in Reconstruction”
Ms. Tanya Perry, sponsor

Exhibition Honorable Mention

#446 Takyra Powell
“Afro-Fashion: The Legacy of Black Culture, Creativity, and Clothing”
Mrs. Christy Frederick, faculty sponsor

Topic: Artificial Intelligence, Research and HBCU's

Dr. Nicol Turner Lee is a senior fellow in Governance Studies, the director of the Center for Technology Innovation and serves as Co-Editor-In-Chief of the TechTank blog and podcast at the Brookings Institution, which is a global think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. Dr. Turner's research encompasses equitable access to technology across the U.S. and abroad. Her portfolio also includes leading Brookings institutional research and public policy work focused on the identification and mitigation of online biases in artificial intelligence systems. She has a forthcoming book on the U.S. digital divide titled Digitally Invisible: How the Internet is Creating the New Underclass (forthcoming 2024, Brookings Press). She has appeared throughout various news media, testified before Congress and international global governance bodies, and written extensively on tech and telecom issues. In 2022, she was recognized for distinguished career contributions by the American Sociological Association at the annual conference. She has her B.A. from Colgate University, and her Ph.D. from Northwestern University.

April 18, 2024
9:00 AM-10:00 AM
Student Center 149

Poster Presentation Upload & Printing

• Due Friday, April 5, 2024 before 11:59 PM, EST 

Oral Presentation Slides Upload

• Due Friday, April 5, 2024 before 11:59 PM, EST 

Thursday, April 18, 2024

8:00 AM-8:45 AM Participant registration and set-up, G.W.C. Brown Memorial Hall

9:00 AM-10:00 AM Keynote, Student Center 149

10:30 AM RISE Conference Showcase, G.W.C. Brown Memorial Hall 

RISE Planning Committee