2025 News Archive
Sofia Wang (AME) selected as a Wells Prize recipient.
Each year, the Hajim School of Engineering & Applied Sciences awards the Robert L. Wells Prize to high-achieving seniors who also excel in a humanities field. Sophia is completing an AME major and a Studio Arts minor.
New Chapter of IEEE Eta Kappa Nu Honor Society Launches
This fall, the University launched a chapter of the IEEE Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) honor society to offer electrical engineering students new opportunities to volunteer and get engaged. The chapter was founded by Newt Perlman ’26 and is advised by Professor Ming-Lun Lee. Check out our Instagram account for a video interview with Newt where he describes what the future holds for the student organization.
Grace Stensland '23 Nominated for Emmy Award
Congratulations to Grace Stensland ’23, who received her second nomination for a Children’s & Family Emmy Award! Grace and her team at Sound Rebels, LLC were nominated for Outstanding Sound Mixing and Sound Editing for an Animated Program for their work on the Jurassic World: Chaos Theory episode “Fire in the Piazza.” Grace served as sound effects editor on the series.
Neil Zhang earns best student paper award at IEEE WASPAA 2025
Congratulations to You (Neil) Zhang, an electrical and computer engineering PhD student who won a Best Student Paper Award at IEEE WASPAA 2025! His research focused on head-related transfer functions, which describe how sound is changed by the ear, head, and torso of a listener as it travels from the sound source to ear canals.
Neilly Author Series and Fairbank Alumni Lecture Presents Edward Ashton ’96 PhD
Hajim School alumnus Edward Ashton ’96 PhD (electrical and computer engineering) will speak at the Neilly Author Series and Fairbank Alumni Series at 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 30 at the Hawkins-Carlson Room in Rush Rhees Library. Ashton is the author of six sci-fi novels, including Mickey7, which was adapted into a major motion picture by Academy Award-winning director Bong Joon Ho, starring Robert Pattinson and Mark Ruffalo.
Hajim Students Named Garnish Scholars
Every year, the University of Rochester Department of Athletics and Recreation honors some of the University’s top student-athletes with Lysle ‘Spike’ Garnish Scholar Athlete awards. This year, three outstanding Hajim School students were selected by the Garnish Committee and were honored on campus at halftime of the Rochester-Ithaca football game on October 4. Hajim students among the honorees included Max McClung ’26 (electrical and computer engineering) from the swimming and diving team, and soccer players Ashton Junnosuke Prescott ’26 (computer science) and Cece Vassallo ’26 (mechanical engineering).
Newly Funded Research
Congratulations to Professor Ajay Anand from the Goergen Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence and Professor Zhiyao Duan from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering for receiving $447,517 from the National Science Foundation to fund a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) site titled “Computational Methods for Understanding Music, Media and Minds.”
Lunabotic’s Team Shows Growth at National Challenge
At the end of the academic year, one of our newer student teams had a strong showing at a national competition at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The UR Lunabotics Team sent a contingent of 14 students to the Lunabotics Challenge, up from the seven who went last year for their first time competing in the national event.
SoundSpace
Last year, the University put out a call for proposals for new transdisciplinary centers and institutes and 42 teams of Rochester researchers submitted proposals. Ten were selected to receive planning awards and are now refining their plans for final proposals for full-scale funding.
Technology Women of the Year Awards
Congratulations to the 2025 finalists and winners of the Technology Woman of the Year Awards presented by TechRochester. The awards, which celebrate the achievements of women in high technology fields, were presented last week. Juniyali Nauriyal ’22 PhD (electrical and computer engineering), the CEO and co-founder of Photonect Interconnect Solutions, received the Emerging Technology Woman of the Year award.
NYASHA GWAZA ’26 RECEIVES PROJECTS FOR PEACE GRANT
Congratulations to electrical and computer engineering student Nyasha Gwaza ’26 for receiving a Projects for Peace grant. Projects for Peace is a global program that encourages young adults around the world to develop innovative, community-centered responses to the world’s most pressing issues.
OMAR ZAKARIA ’25 WINS AT PRO-AM SQUASH TOURNAMENT
Omar Zakaria ’25 (electrical and computer engineering), a standout member of the men’s squash team, joined several top players, including several ranked in the world top 200, for an exceptional display of squash in the PSA Challenger tournament at the University’s Lyman Squash Courts.
Professor Benjamín Castañeda ’09
Throughout his career, Professor Benjamín Castañeda ’09 (PhD EE - Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering) has focused on bringing medical technology to people who would otherwise not have access.
Open Scholarship Awards
The Open Scholarship Community Rochester recently presented its annual awards to several Hajim School students. The Open Scholarship Awards celebrate early career scholars who have demonstrated exemplary efforts in making their research open and accessible to the wider community. Congratulations to the following Hajim School PhD students who received awards in the engineering category:
Emmy Winning Alumna
Grace Stensland ’23 helped earn an Emmy for her work as sound editor on “Orion and the Dark,” a Dreamworks feature streaming on Netflix. Grace was a Film and Media Studies Major, with an AME Minor.
ECE Students Awarded Scholarship by the Rochester Engineering Society
Congratulations to our ECE students who were recently awarded scholarships by the Rochester Engineering Society:
Newly Funded Research
Congratulations to ECE faculty members who recently secured funding for new sponsored research projects: