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Contact: Sasha Steinberg

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Thirty-five master’s and doctorate-level researchers at Mississippi State earned top awards for their work during the university’s recent Graduate Student Research Symposium.

Co-sponsored by the Ï㽶ֱ²¥Graduate School and Graduate Student Association, the competition received project submissions in four categories—arts and humanities; life and biomedical sciences and engineering; physical and computational sciences; and social and behavioral sciences.

This year’s winners include (by project type and category):

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MASTER’S STUDENT ORAL PRESENTATIONS

ARTS AND HUMANITIES

FIRST—Christina E. Gusella, a history master’s student from Alexandria, Virginia.

SECOND—Nesma O.A. Osman, an agricultural and Extension education master’s student from Egypt.

LIFE AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING

FIRST—Giancarlo Coppola, a wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture master’s student from Hyde Park, New York.

SECOND—Swati Shrestha, a plant and soil sciences/weed science master’s student from Nepal.

THIRD—Eleanor M. Moen, an agricultural life sciences/entomology master’s student from Paxton, Illinois.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Chloé D. Henson, an agriculture/agricultural economics master’s student from Rienzi. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥summa cum laude agribusiness/policy and law bachelor’s graduate.

SECOND—Kelly R. Lower, an applied anthropology master’s student from Casper, Wyoming.

DOCTORAL STUDENT ORAL PRESENTATIONS

ARTS AND HUMANITIES

FIRST—Aynaz Lotfata, an earth and atmospheric sciences doctoral student from Iran.

LIFE AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING

FIRST—Bradley M. Richardson, a forest resources/wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture doctoral student from Illinois.

SECOND (tie)—Eric D. Billman, a plant and soil sciences/agronomy doctoral student from Burbank, Ohio.

SECOND—Navatha Alugubelly, an environmental toxicology doctoral student from India.

PHYSICAL AND COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Sheida Riahi, a mathematical sciences doctoral student from Starkville. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥statistics master’s graduate.

SECOND—Demarcus M. Thomas, a computer science doctoral student from Columbia.

THIRD—Mojtaba Khanzadehdaghalian of Iran, an industrial and systems engineering doctoral student also pursuing a master’s in statistics.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Caleb Houston, a business administration/finance doctoral student from Laurel.

SECOND—Kimberly E. Ball, an instructional systems and workforce development doctoral student from Starkville. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥educational psychology master’s graduate.

THIRD—Xufang Zhang, a forest resources/forestry doctoral student from China.

MASTER’S STUDENT VISUAL DISPLAYS

ARTS AND HUMANITIES

FIRST—Applied anthropology master’s students Andrea M. Lopez of Starkville and Julianne M. Paige of Gleneden Beach, Oregon.

LIFE AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING

FIRST—Amanda B. Harper, an agricultural life sciences/biochemistry master’s student from Carriere. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥summa cum laude biochemistry bachelor’s graduate.

SECOND—Sachini Kodithuwakku Arachchige, a kinesiology/exercise physiology master’s student from Sri Lanka.

THIRD—Arun Regmi, a forestry master’s student from Nepal.

PHYSICAL AND COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Pubuduni Arunodika Kumarihami Ekanayaka Mudiyanselage Egoda Walawwe of Sri Lanka, an engineering/applied physics doctoral student also pursuing a master’s in physics.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Courtney L. Heath Windhorn, a sociology master’s student from Starkville. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥magna cum laude sociology bachelor’s graduate.

SECOND—Kaylee K. Wells, an agriculture/agricultural economics master’s student from Bradenton, Florida. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥summa cum laude environmental economics and management bachelor’s graduate.

DOCTORAL STUDENT VISUAL DISPLAYS

LIFE AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING

FIRST—Salah H. Jumaa, a plant and soil sciences/agronomy doctoral student from Iraq.

SECOND—Brittany N. Szafran, an environmental toxicology doctoral student from Moundsville, West Virginia. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥Doctor of Veterinary Medicine graduate.

THIRD (tie)—Riyadh Mohsin, a plant and soil sciences/horticulture doctoral student from Iraq.

THIRD—Victoria A. Jefferson of Tupelo, a molecular biology doctoral student also pursuing a master’s in agricultural life sciences/biochemistry. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥summa cum laude biochemistry/pre-medicine bachelor’s and agricultural life sciences/biochemistry master’s graduate.

PHYSICAL AND COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Laxmi Dhungel, a biological sciences doctoral student from Nepal.

SECOND—Ranganath Wahalathantrige Don, a chemistry doctoral student from Sri Lanka.

THIRD—Chathuri Gamlath Mohottige, a chemistry doctoral student from Sri Lanka.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

FIRST—Cecilia Brooks, a human development and family science doctoral student from El Paso, Texas. She also is an Ï㽶ֱ²¥business administration master’s graduate.

SECOND—Chathuri Illapperuma of Sri Lanka, an educational psychology/school psychology doctoral student who holds a master’s in educational psychology/psychometry from MSU.

THIRD—Tae Woo Kim, a business administration/management doctoral student from South Korea.

For more information about MSU’s Graduate School and Graduate Student Association, visit .

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