Congratulations are in order for three undergraduate Engineering Vols who earned top awards at the 18th Annual TLSAMP Conference.

UT’s three students placed in two different categories. Coming in first and second in the engineering category were biomedical engineering students Jessica Pierce and Elexis Allen.

Pierce, at far left above, presented her research in the “Effect of Movement Speed on Muscle-Generated Join Moment with a Wearable Passive Shoulder Exoskeleton: A Computer Simulation Study.”

Allen, at right above, presented her research in “Machine Learning in Genomics: Nanopore Sequencing of Plant DNA.”

Bridgie Cawthon Jr., center above, is a chemical and biomolecular engineering student. He achieved first place in the chemistry category with his “Investigation into the Effect of Hydrophobicity on Protein Extraction Capabilities of SMA Copolymers.”

TLSAMP, the Tennessee Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation program, is a collaborative effort sustained by a coalition of six colleges and universities in Tennessee. The program’s goal is to increase the enrollment and graduation rate of underrepresented students (Hispanic, African-American, American-Indian, Alaskan Native, and Pacific Islander) in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

The hope is to also improve the quality of the learning environment for underrepresented science and engineering students at all schools, and ensure that a larger number of undergraduate students are prepared to enter graduate programs.