CIRP REU ALUMNI STORIES
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Kennedey Boyette - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Olivia Podolak, MD
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"My summer internship experience was nothing short of enlightening and fulfilling. Over the past few months, I had the privilege to contribute to a crucial research endeavor aimed at improving Philadelphia sports coaches’ and school nurses’ understanding of concussions in youth. More specifically, I contributed by deidentifying audio t…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Madeleine McCreary - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Valentina Graci, PhD
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"My experience at CIRP this summer opened my eyes to the world of clinical research. I was mentored by Dr. Valentina Graci on a project investigating differences in balance after ACL reconstruction surgery in adolescents. Being involved in data collection, analysis, and abstract writing, I experienced research from a variety of perspec…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Marissa Teitelbaum - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Jalaj Maheshwari, MSE
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"Over the course of the summer, I worked alongside Jalaj Maheshwari, MSE on a project using finite element analysis simulations to study naturalistically seated pediatric occupants in side impacts.
Through my work on this project, I became accustomed to using different finite element analysis software including LS-DYNA, LS Pre-Post an…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Melissa Rosahl - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Elizabeth Walshe, PhD
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"In my summer at the Center for Injury Research and Prevention (CIRP), I worked on data collection and data operations with the Neuroscience of Driving team. At the start of the summer, we were finishing up collecting data for a Clinical Driving Intervention Pilot Study at one of CHOP’s primary care sites. I got to see firsthand how im…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Riley Nicholson - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Valentina Graci, PhD; Madeline Griffith, MS
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"Throughout the course of the REU program, I worked with Dr. Valentina Graci and Madeline Griffith, MS on the redesign of an occupant compartment in a centrifuge sled designed to recreate AEB (Automatic Emergency Brake) pulses to determine occupant kinematics. The redesign of the occupant compartment started with an overview on prior w…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Shecota Rae Nalwood Nez - Summer 2023
CHOP Mentor(s): Thomas Seacrist, MBE
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2023)
"My time at CIRP allowed me to grow my data analytics skills and expand my professional network. I spent the summer video coding teen drivers' virtual driving assessment videos and then processing the data using MATLAB. During my final presentation, I demonstrated my skills in data visualization. My biggest takeaway from this internshi…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Natalie Maston - Summer 2022
CHOP Mentor(s): Akiva S. Cohen, PhD; Rebecca Somach, PhD Candidate
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2022)
Throughout my REU internship this summer, I gained knowledge and skills I never knew I could. I was fully immersed for 10 weeks in a Neuroscience laboratory studying the various impacts of mild traumatic brain injury in rodent models. Working under the mentorship of Dr. Akiva S. Cohen and Rebecca Somach, I learned various new technique…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Paula Kramer - Summer 2022
CHOP Mentor(s): Valentina Graci, PhD; Laura Prosser, PhD
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2022)
During the REU program, I worked on two different projects with Dr. Laura Prosser and Dr. Valentina Graci. These projects make the best use of the phrase “working in a multidisciplinary team.” One project identified the most reliable metrics to quantify coordination in children with cerebral palsy and to measure the degree of impairmen…
CHOP REU Training Testimonial - Zoe Lapaglia - Summer 2022
CHOP Mentor(s): Rachel Myers, PhD; Hillary Kapa, MPH
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2022)
Throughout the summer I worked alongside Rachel K. Myers, PhD, and Hillary M. Kapa, MPH, on various projects. I was able to gain valuable hands-on experience with both qualitative and quantitative data. Although I worked on multiple projects this summer, one of the main ones was the “Formative Evaluation of the CHOP Violence Interventi…
CIRP REU Training Testimonial - Adia Glen - Summer 2022
CHOP Mentor(s): Nancy Kassam-Adams, PhD
Research Experiences for Undergraduates Student (Summer 2022)
My 2022 REU experience at CHOP was incredibly insightful. This summer was the first in-person experience since the beginning of the pandemic. This permitted for a stronger connection between my mentors and the other REU students.
During my time at CIRP I had the opportunity to meet with other researchers and/or doctors at CHOP. These…