Bunker Hill Community College
Seifeldin Kudi
Bunker Hill Community College is pleased to select Seifeldin Kudi as their Student of the Year. Seifeldin was one of the students from the summer STEM Academy, and participated in the extracurricular trip to UMass last summer. He stood out to his professor as a real team player in an accelerated math cluster course, meant to help students reach gateway courses like precalculus. A quick note from the instructor: “He’s very diligent and asks great questions. He brings a team together. He helps us rise together. What’s really special about him is he spends the time asking the questions that lots of students have but won’t ask. He kept up with coursework, but honored the people who didn’t spend time with them. He cared about the how, and getting the grade was an outcome, but understanding the factoring and the process was his main goal.”
University of Connecticut
Devin Rhoads
The University of Connecticut is pleased to select Devin Rhoads as their Student of the Year. Devin is pursuing a combined MS and PHD in Civil Engineering, with an research interest in applying information deign principles to optimize the structure and dissemination of public transit system information. A quick note from the advisor: “As an engineer interested in interdisciplinary research, his work will be focused on understanding the societal and environmental impacts of sustainable transportation systems. Devin exemplifies the qualities of an outstanding graduate student. His academic interest, teaching innovations, and community involvement make him a great candidate for this award.”
University of Maine
Ashok Poudel
The University of Maine is pleased to select Ashok Poudel as their Student of the Year. Ashok is a graduate research assistant in the Transport Lab at UMaine, with a research focus in transportation safety, operational research, transportation modeling, and data analytics. A quick note from the advisor: “Ashok deserves this recognition for his consistent hard work, positive attitude, and strong academic performance. He is a reliable and responsible student who consistently demonstrates dedication and excellent teamwork. His NEUTC research on pedestrian safety aligns perfectly with NEUTC’s mission of advancing safer solutions for vulnerable transportation users.”
University of New Hampshire
Shuva Paul
The University of New Hampshire is pleased to select Shuva Paul as their Student of the Year. Shuva is a doctoral research in the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department at UNH, with a focus in wireless communication, CV2X, sensor networks, localization & tracking, vehicular technology, and data fusion. A quick note from the advisor: “Mr. Paul has taken on the task of developing a simulation tool and experimental testbed to evaluate algorithms to detect and localize vulnerable road users. These efforts advanced the state of the UNH NEUTC research goals and will ultimately be useful for informing practical systems.”
Norwich University
Majd Khalaf
Norwich University is pleased to select Majd Khalaf as their Student of the Year. Majd is an undergraduate research assistant in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department. Majd worked closely over the past year analyzing BEV testing data, and in addition to data analysis, has worked on multiple presentation of their work, including presenting the project at the MassDOT Innovation Conference in the Spring of 2024. Majd’s academic performance at NU has been outstanding, receiving multiple awards, and serving as both the vice president of the engineering honor society Tau Beta Pi and president of the EE honor society Eta Kappa Nu. Outside of the classroom, Majd demonstrated excellent leadership skills, and has served as a peer tutor to engineering students at Norwich.
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Yu-Min (Thomas) Yang
The University of Massachusetts is pleased to select Yu-Min (Thomas) Yang as their Student of the Year. Thomas is a PhD student in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at UMass Amherst, with a research focus on micromobility and transportation safety. A quick note from the advisor: “ In addition to his exceptional work ethic and passion for active transportation and transportation safety, Thomas has been a valuable member of our program and the student community. He is also very altruistic often, helping other students by assisting them with data analysis or supporting them during times of personal hardship. I am confident that his dissertation research will make significant contributions to multimodal transportation safety and sustainable transportation systems.”