2020 Tagliatela College of Engineering Student Awards

Each year, the Tagliatela College of Engineering recognizes the achievements of its students at an award ceremony. This year's awards were presented to student at a virtual award ceremony on Wednesday, May 6.

Congratulations to all of this year's award recipients!

Outstanding Undergraduate Student Awards

Presented to an outstanding senior in each program in recognition of high academic achievement and active participation in department, college or university activities.

  • Maggie is a self-described forensic science and chemistry nut who came to the University of New Haven from Bangor, Maine in the fall of 2016. During her time at the University, she developed a passion for the forensic application of analytical chemistry that she hopes will someday turn into a career as a trace evidence examiner. To help reach that goal, she will be pursuing a Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of Rhode Island after she graduates from the University of New Haven in May. When she’s not in the classroom or laboratory, she enjoys indulging her geeky side by reading manga, watching anime, and playing video games.

  • Dan Masi is from Wantagh, NY and will graduate from the University of New Haven in May 2020 with degrees in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, and Forensic Science. While at the University, he had the pleasure of conducting research under the mentorship of Dr. Dequan Xiao concerning computational and experimental catalysis. They have published one paper and are working on submitting two more. During his senior year, he also had the opportunity to work at Watson Inc. as a process innovation technologist as a temporary scientist. After the University of New Haven, he will be attending Vanderbilt University to pursue his Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.

  • Evan Duarte is a Civil Engineering student from Wading River, Long Island, NY. He has worked construction management from an early time in his life, which brought him to value civil engineering. His professional career began with Gilbane Building Company as a project engineer intern during the summer of 2019. Evan currently interns with STV Incorporated in Hartford, CT in the division of Transportation & Infrastructure. With his degree, Evan hopes to pursue a career in structural engineering and eventually become a licensed PE in Structural Engineering.

  • Josette Rivera ’20 is a senior at the University of New Haven majoring in Computer Engineering. She is presently the Head Peer Assistant in Tagliatela College of Engineering and the President of the Robotics Club. She is also a part of Theta Tau (Engineering Fraternity), Engineers without Boarders, and Eta Kappa Nu (Electrical and Computer Engineering Honor Society). She has worked as an Assistant Teacher to High School students at Bronx Community College and held an internship at Honeywell Inc. Josette is currently working on teams to develop both a prototype blood leak detection sensor and an aerosol research device safety system for her Senior Design Projects at the University. After graduation, Josette plans to use her degree to work with embedded systems.

  • Tyler is a senior majoring in Computer Science with a concentration in Cybersecurity & Networks. Last summer, he completed a 13-week software engineering internship at ASML Lithography Systems where he created a tool that saved the company 50 man-weeks of manual work. In Fall 2019, Tyler shifted his focus from software engineering to cybersecurity. He is first author on a memory forensics paper that was accepted into The Digital Forensic Research Conference (DFRWS). He was accepted into a cybersecurity internship program at a highly competitive federal agency this summer, but due to complications caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, he will do research with UNHCFREG remotely. Upon graduation from the master's program, he plans to seek employment with a federal agency supporting cyber operations.

  • Ilya Shavrov is a Cybersecurity and Networks Senior at the University of New Haven. He is an active member of the hacking team and has competed in several hacking competitions. Additionally, he has worked with Tyler Thomas, Mathew Piscitelli, and Professor Ibrahim Baggili to publish a research paper that was accepted into DFRWS. Ilya will be pursuing a career in the federal government after graduation.

  • Jonathan is a transfer student from Naugatuck Valley Community College where he graduated with his Associates in Electrical Engineering Technology. He is a three-time recipient of the CT NASA Space Grant Consortium Scholarship and a recipient of the UNH Presidential Transfer Scholarship. He has a special interest in electrical distribution infrastructure. He obtained his EIT license in December 2019 and will be pursuing his PE license shortly after graduation. In his free time, he enjoys playing tennis, target shooting, running, and hiking. His future career goal is to work in the power industry to make the power grid more diversified and resilient.

  • Zhou Shen is part of the 2+2 program between University of New Haven and Shanghai Maritime University, China. Zhou interned at Signify, a venture group in the lighting industry where he was able to use his technical skills as product development assistant. He and his capstone project team members are working on building a small wind turbine prototype. As the Systems Engineer on the project, he assumes the project management role and organizes the tasks of each student. He also assists in the physical turbine design. Zhou Shen also has interests in art and completed a minor in Interior Design.

  • During his time in the mechanical engineering department, Justin participated in various research projects including the development of a Digital Early Warning Radar system and new experimental methods for combustion research. He also served as a course TA for upper level mechanical engineering courses and was the liaison between the Dean of the Tagliatela College of Engineering and student government. He looks forward to continuing his education with the University of Maryland's aerospace engineering department as he begins a masters and doctoral program developing hypersonic fluid flow simulations for Mars applications. He is very thankful for the department and his peers for helping him succeed at the university and beyond!

Outstanding Graduate Student Awards

Presented to an outstanding master’s student in each program in recognition of high academic achievement and performance in research/scholarship, teaching or service.

  • Janaki grew up in a small town outside of Kathmandu, Nepal. After studying for 3 years as a Health Assistant at a local college, she left Nepal to pursue a degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences at Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland. In 2018, she decided to pursue a Graduate degree in Biomedical Engineering, which is how she ended up at the University of New Haven. She completed a thesis project under Dr. Shue Wang in the field of stem cells titled "Multi-dimensional Induction and Differentiation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells." She also had the opportunity to work as an intern at a bio-tech startup founded by University of New Haven faculty, whose ongoing work involves building a novel and promising new test for the Coronavirus. Janaki looks forward to starting a career as a full time Biologist at a Biotechnology company based in Woodbridge, CT. She is thankful for the supportive BME faculty, whose helped her gain invaluable skills and experiences prepared her for real-world challenges. Thank you BME!

  • Thanin Chanmalai joined the MSCE program in Spring 2018 and he also began to work as a research assistant in structural engineering. His thesis focuses on the numerical modeling of contact stress between a roller and a steel I-girder. Thanin also interned with Centek Engineering, Inc and performed various telecommunication projects. He will be serving in the air force when he returns to his home country, Thailand, after completing his M.S. degree.

  • William Lin is a graduate student studying computer science. He has a passion for application development, particularly in web and mobile applications. When he’s not working, he enjoys building and flying racing drones. Last summer, William was a software engineer intern for Capital One down in McLean, VA where he worked on the cloud infrastructure team. This summer, he will be returning to intern at Capital One. With a graduation date in the Winter of 2020, William plans to take on a new graduate software engineer role at a major tech company after graduation.

  • Sathvika was born and brought up in India. At an early age, she witnessed struggles that her family went through and this instilled in her a strong sense of duty and responsibility towards her family. She completed her bachelor’s degree in 2016 in Electronics and Communication. Following college, she obtained a job as a Network Engineer at Ericsson. But Sathvika’s hope was to earn a masters degree. When she learned about the University of New Haven's Cybersecurity and Networking program, she applied and was accepted. She initially struggled with the new environment and with internship and job rejections but overcame these challenges to be the person she is today. She is appreciative of the support she received from the faculty, family, and friends and dedicates her graduation to her family.

  • Nancirose was born in 1998 and adopted at a young age. She was raised by her mother and grandmother along with her adopted sister in Shelton, CT. She started attending college at the age 13 and was valedictorian of the first graduating class of her high school. Nancirose graduated Sacred Heart University with her Bachelor's of Science in Mathematics in 2017. Her first aspiration was to get a Doctorate in Mathematics, but it changed which led her here to pursue a master's in data science. She has many interests which include art, research, exercise, model exploration, technology-related subjects, and increasing her skill set. She values reflection and strives to be more mindful. Her goal is to create opportunities that will put her in a position where she can support her loved ones.

  • Ayah Abdallah is from Jordan. She completed her high school education in 2012 in the United Arab Emirates and was ranked first in the Emirate of Ajman. She was awarded a full scholarship to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering in Al Ghurair university (AGU), Dubai. Ayah decided to further her education and pursue a Ph.D., so she returned to her home country and enrolled in the MS Electrical Engineering program at Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). Ayah always aimed to study in the United States, so she applied and was admitted in the University of New Haven with a Provost Scholarship in 2019. Her studies are mainly focused in the field of communications. She has always been passionate and interested in learning more about Engineering as it's a very interesting and continuous evolving field. As we all look for ways to relief stress, Ayah has found hers in baking and reading novels. One of her favorite authors is Dan Brown.

  • Prashanth Reddy is a graduate student from India majoring in Engineering and Operations Management. He aspires to pursue a career in IT project management. His interest in entrepreneurship earned him recognition at the Entrepreneur Leadership Academy in summer of 2019, led by mentors and successful entrepreneurs. He is currently working for the University's Office of Information Technology as a graduate assistant.

  • Julia Kapit is enrolled in the University of New Haven’s Environmental Engineering M.S. program. Her interest in water resources began during the summer of 2014 when she was awarded a fellowship to build a water treatment system for a rural village in Northern Ghana. In 2016 Julia graduated from SUNY Purchase College with a degree in environmental science and has since worked as an environmental analyst at a civil engineering and land surveying company in Greenwich, CT. She is currently finishing her graduate research project entitled "Aquifer Health and Groundwater Recharge Rates in California."

  • Rohan Digambar More is completing his degree in Industrial Engineering and has been working as a research assistant. His research interest is in the application of control charts in the healthcare industry. He presented a paper at the ASEM 2019 conference and plans to present at the IISE 2020 conference. Rohan aspires to work in the field of quality control and process improvement after completion of his degree.

  • Raj Tailor grew up in Gujarat, India, where he pursued a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. He worked at a manufacturing firm where he provided technical and organizational assistance to the management. Following his passion, he chose to start the M.S. in Industrial Engineering program at the University of New Haven starting in fall 2018. He has been a very active student beyond the M.S. degree requirements, working on various research projects with graduate student teams and faculty. His most recent project work is related to improving operation quality with simulation modeling and survey analysis.

  • Born and raised in the historical land of West Haven, CT, Prathamesh Patil, often nicknamed "Prat," is an engineer with a passion to learn the closely guarded secrets kept by our universe. Prat’s occupation is a Research Student at the University working with Dr. Gorthala on an HVAC project funded by the Department of Energy. Before his enrollment in the University of New Haven, Prat’s only life-long aspiration was to manufacture and develop the cutting edge in Fluidic-Micro-electromechanical devices. Through the guidance of faculty and mentors, Prat has cultivated interests in topics of energy, intelligent programming, server architecture, and manufacturing.

Honors Program Recipients

Presented by the University of New Haven Honors College to graduates with University Honors (Honors Program students who have completed four Honors courses, participated in Honors Program activities, maintained at least a 3.3 GPA, and completed an Honors Thesis in their major during their senior year).

    • Mechanical Engineering: Christopher Conner
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Alexandria Drewes
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Kendra Keenan
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Maggie Mahaney
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Courtney Newberry
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Amanda Pepler
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Noah Scarpelli
    • Chemistry/Forensic Science: Ryan Zdenek
Other Undergraduate Student Awards

  • Established through the generosity of Professor Clarence W. Dunham and presented to a worthy student in civil engineering.

    Alejandra Grisales Arboleda is a junior in civil engineering with interest in structural analysis and design. With the goal of continuing her education, Alejandra transferred from Norwalk Community College to the University of New Haven to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering in 2017. She has been named to the Dean’s list several times since and keeps her GPA high all the time. She is pursuing a LEED certification in structural engineering.

  • Established by friends and family of the late Daniel C. O’Keefe, Professor of Electrical Engineering, this award is presented to an outstanding non-traditional student in electrical engineering for perseverance and hard work while balancing the challenges of academic and professional life.

    Zahraa Sahi is a junior majoring in Electrical Engineering. She currently works at the University's Center for Learning Resources as a tutor. She helps other students with many different courses like mathematics, physics, chemistry, engineering courses, and Arabic. Her plans are to complete the Electrical Engineering program at the University of New Haven which offers one of the finest programs in the country. Her lifetime goal is never stop learning and always strive to create something from that gained knowledge to serve humanity, and her goal in the future as an engineer is to find ways to keep people safe and to solve their problems efficiently and effectively.

  • Established in 2003 in honor of Professor Emeritus Peter J. Desio, this award is presented to a chemistry major for outstanding academic performance in the area of organic chemistry.

    Courtney is a Chemistry and Forensic Science double major. She has been a chemistry lab assistant for three semesters and was on the lab prep team for two. She is dependable and hardworking, and she always helped deep-clean the labs at the beginning and end of each semester. Courtney has also worked as a tutor at the Universtiy's Center for Learning Resources for the last three years, where her organic chemistry tutees often admire her benzene rings. She will be graduating this semester and will miss catching up with the lab manager, Michele, when she leaves. She is going to continue her studies in chemistry and will begin working towards a Ph.D. at Purdue in the fall.

  • Samantha is a naturally curious person, so science has always been of interest to her. This has been the case ever since she was 4 years old and told her mom "I’m a scientist, let’s go observe something." Since then, her love of science has only grown, much to the annoyance of her family when she talks about it too often. But science isn’t the only thing she obsesses over. She also enjoys baking, reading, and binge-watching Netflix. In fact, her excitement for those things often annoys her family too, but she doesn’t let that stop her, much like with her love of science. In short, she is passionate about her interests, whether that’s science or her hobbies.

Entrepreneurial Engineering Certificates

The Tagliatela College of Engineering has provided students with opportunities both in the classroom and through extracurricular activities to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. The following students have embraced these opportunities and we are recognizing them for their efforts with the Entrepreneurial Engineering Certificate. The EE Certificate recognizes those students who have exemplified the characteristics of an engineer with an entrepreneurial mindset; namely, curiosity, connections, and creating value.

  • Awarded to the following students for efforts toward acquiring an entrepreneurial mindset.

    • Blake Cairrio - Mechanical Engineering
    • Frank Cioffi - Mechanical Engineering
    • Jyles Rosa - Mechanical Engineering

  • Awarded to the following students for sustained engagement in entrepreneurially minded learning activities.

    • Jacob Chartrain - Mechanical Engineering
    • Ben Klemme - Electrical Engineering
    • Trenton Perrington - Computer Engineering
    • Cal Reinert - Civil Engineering
    • Ilya Shavrov - Cyber Systems
    • Jenna Uba - Computer Science
    • Aubrey Winiarski - Chemical Engineering
TCoE Outstanding Service Awards - Graduate Recipients

The Tagliatela College of Engineering Service Awards recognize the contributions of undergraduate and graduate students as tutors, peer assistants, lab assistants and volunteers. Recipients of these awards were selected by their academic program.

  • Biren Garachh was born and raised in India. He earned a dual degree integrated program with Mechanical Engineering as his engineering major and Operations & Project Management as his management major. He is keen and passionate about the manufacturing industry, which led him to pursue his masters degree in Industrial Engineering at the University of New Haven. He believes learning is a two-way process, so working as a TA and helping other students also honed his knowledge.

  • Austin received his BSME from the University of New Haven in 2019. As an undergrad he was involved with several student organizations, most notably serving as president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers student section. More recently he has been helping the club to coordinate activities and reach out to the mechanical engineering student population. Since 2016 he has worked in the Makerspace and has assisted students from across the University with 3D printing and prototyping.

  • Kiruthiga believes that the design and development of biomedical devices that improve life quality is her calling. She joined the University community in Fall 2018 to pursue a master’s degree and while she a student she worked as a teaching assistant in the Biomedical Engineering program. This was a stepping-stone to her career. Currently, Kiruthiga works as a biomedical engineer at 12-15 Molecular Diagnostics, where she is working on a research paper on the work she is doing with her employer. Outside of her profession, Kiruthiga is interested in software programming, sports, writing and editing. In the future, she wants to become a research mentor and build a solid career in device development.

TCoE Outstanding Service Awards - Undergraduate Recipients

  • Ryan Faustini is a junior Forensic Science major with a concentration in Chemistry. He is from Ringwood, a small town in northern New Jersey. Since joining the University in Fall 2017, Ryan has been involved in many activities. Ryan works as both a Laboratory Assistant and a member of the Laboratory Prep Team. Since 2019, he has been helping with various lab classes such as Organic Chemistry, General Chemistry, Quantitative Analysis, and Instrumental Methods of Analysis. Outside of his classes, Ryan is a member of the Marching Band, Concert Band, and Jazz Band where he plays Baritone Horn, Oboe, and Alto Saxophone, respectively. He is also the Vice President of Projects for the Nu Omicron Chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national service fraternity for college bandmembers. Ryan is also an Eagle Scout. After his Senior Year, Ryan plans to stay at the University of New Haven to pursue an M.S. in Chemistry.

  • Hailing from Southwick, a small farming community in Massachusetts, Aubrey grew up with a close-knit family and knew she wanted her college experience to feel the same. Aubrey felt the family-like atmosphere in Westside Hall her first year. She has been proud to be a part of the chemical engineering program. During her first year she had the chance to do undergraduate research with Dr. Arthur S. Gow and she presented their research at the AIChE National Spring Meeting in San Antonio. This led the way to three summer internships. The first was a metals analyst at Eurofins, the second was at Allnex, and the final was at Pratt and Whitney, where she will join the Quality Engineering Development Program after graduation. She was Treasurer and VP of the Society of Women Engineers Club as well as VP of Theta Tau, a professional engineering fraternity. Also, she was an engineering TA for first year engineering courses. Aubrey will miss having her friends at arm’s reach and all their adventures sampling New Haven apizza.

  • During his time in the mechanical engineering department, Justin participated in various research projects including the development of a Digital Early Warning Radar system and new experimental methods for combustion research. He also served as a course TA for upper level mechanical engineering courses and was the liaison between the Dean of TCOE and student government. He looks forward to continuing his education with the University of Maryland's aerospace engineering department as he begins a masters and doctoral program developing hypersonic fluid flow simulations for Mars applications. He is very thankful for the department and his peers for helping him succeed at the University of New Haven and beyond!

Capstone Design Pitch Competition Winners

  • Sponsored by Department of Energy

    Wind Turbine Design and Site Development(Turbine Design): Byron Alvarado, Jonathan Stanford, & Hangtao Xu (Electrical Engineering); Luke Amiot & Matthew Torri (Civil Engineering); Justin Beardsley, Wayne Catucci, & Christopher J. Conner (Mechanical Engineering); Zhou Shen & Ximin Yue (Industrial & Systems Engineering)

    View this project - and all of the other 2020 capstone projects - by clicking here.

  • Sponsorded by Edgewell

    Lubrication Monitoring System: Joe Briggs, Ney Carrillo, Tyler Drake, & Michael Zecchin

    View this project - and all of the other 2020 capstone projects - by clicking here.

  • Design for Widening Skiff Street Bridge over Route 15: Renzo Bermudez, Evan Duarte, Nash Ericson, & Nicholas Kapp

    View this project - and all of the other 2020 capstone projects - by clicking here.