Honors and Awards

Spring 2024 Rising Researchers Announced

Javier Reyes poses with the Rising Researchers — Chancellor Javier Reyes poses with 11 of the 12 fall and spring Rising Researchers at an April reception for the group. Top row (l-r): Owen Hurlbut Lesk, Adam Charest and Adam Forbes. Middle row (l-r): Charlotte Gilson, Taras Nagornyy, Claudia Maurino and TJ LaLonde. Bottom row (l-r): Sophia Millan, Anupama Sitaraman, Chancellor Reyes, Ramita "Mimi" Dhamrongsirivadh and Xiaoke Xiang. Not pictured: Dante Lamenza Naylor.

Six UMass Amherst undergraduates have been named Spring 2024 Rising Researchers in recognition of their outstanding research, scholarship and creative activity in a variety of fields. From the research lab to the theater stage, the Spring 2024 Rising Researchers are pushing boundaries and exercising their creative muscles. The research conducted by these undergraduates may one day lead to more effective treatments for devastating diseases, new drugs to combat the rise of antibiotic resistance, or new plant-based foods to shift consumer preferences to more sustainable choices.

The Spring 2024 Rising Researchers are:

Adam Charest '24, microbiology and German; Commonwealth Honors College
Ramita (Mimi) Dhamrongsirivadh '24, computer science
Owen Hurlbut Lesk '25, biochemistry and molecular biology; Commonwealth Honors College
Claudia Maurino '24, theater and women, gender, sexuality studies; Commonwealth Honors College
Sophia Millan '24, biomedical engineering; Commonwealth Honors College
Xiaoke Xiang '25, food science

To read more about the Spring 2024 Rising Researchers and for more information on the nomination process, eligibility and recognition, visit the Rising Researchers page.

Previously: Fall 2023 Rising Researchers Announced

Six UMass Amherst undergraduates were named Fall 2023 Rising Researchers in December in recognition of their outstanding research, scholarship and creative activity in a variety of fields.