Presenting research in front of a panel of judges is not something most students do every day. For 10 Cal State Fullerton students, it became a defining part of their academic journey at the California State University’s 40th annual Student Research Competition.
Held this year at San José State University, the annual competition brings together top undergraduate and graduate researchers from across the CSU system. Cal State Fullerton students earned three awards, highlighting both the strength of their research and their ability to communicate complex ideas on a competitive stage.
“You spend so much time with your project on your own campus, and then suddenly you’re in a room with students from across California who are just as passionate about their work,” said Maddie Marowitz, a graduate student in environmental studies. “It pushes you to think about your research in a bigger way.”
The 10-student delegation represented a wide range of disciplines, from computer science and engineering to public health and the humanities. Their projects addressed real-world challenges, including wildfire recovery, chronic pain treatment, breast cancer diagnosis pathways and cultural identity.
Among the highlights, undergraduate computer science student Kshitij Pingle earned first place in the interdisciplinary category, competing against both undergraduate and graduate researchers, along with an AI-enabled research award. His project focused on developing a low-cost, AI-driven system to monitor pollen collection in honeybees as a way to track ecosystem health, with data gathered at the Arboretum and Botanical Garden at Cal State Fullerton, a living laboratory on campus.
“This project wouldn’t have been possible without the support of my faculty mentors across different departments,” Pingle said. “They really helped me connect ideas from different fields and shape them into something real.”
Pingle worked with three faculty mentors — Kanika Sood, associate professor of computer science; Jinwoo Lee, associate professor of mechanical engineering; and Sara Johnson, professor of anthropology — whose guidance supported the project’s interdisciplinary approach.
“Kshitij’s project is a strong example of how students can move beyond traditional disciplinary boundaries,” Sood said. “He was able to integrate ideas from computer science, ecology and environmental monitoring in a way that shows real innovation.”
Graduate student Amanda Tsang earned second place in the biological and agricultural sciences category for research focused on developing non-opioid treatments for chronic pain.
Working in the lab of Stevan Pecic, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry, Tsang explored alternatives to traditional pain medications with the goal of reducing harmful side effects.
“In this NIH-funded research, Amanda is using a modern medicinal chemistry approach, called polypharmacology by design, to develop new non-addictive therapeutics that could eventually make a difference for patients dealing with chronic pain,” Pecic said.
For students, the experience extended beyond competition.
“It’s meaningful to be able to share research that reflects people’s lived experiences,” said Jennifer Moya, whose work examines language and identity among Latinx youth. “Being in that space with other researchers made me realize how important those perspectives are.”
Faculty mentors say the competition highlights not only the rigor of student research and the growth that happens through the process, but also the way it encourages students to move beyond traditional academic boundaries and engage in interdisciplinary work.
“While students represent a wide range of disciplines, some of the most compelling projects emerge at the intersections between them. The competition highlights a powerful idea: a student’s major is a home base, not a boundary, and innovation often happens when those boundaries are crossed,” said Nicole Bonuso, director of the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Center, which is a unit within the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.
Students prepare for weeks leading up to the competition, working closely with faculty to refine both their research and presentation skills.
“We help students think about how to explain their work clearly and why it matters,” said Andrew Petit, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry and UROC faculty fellow. “By the time they present, they are ready to engage with a wide range of audiences.”
“Our students are tackling complex issues and contributing meaningful insights across disciplines,” added Binod Tiwari, associate vice president for research and sponsored programs. “Their success reflects the strength of both their work and the mentorship they receive.”
Cal State Fullerton students who competed include:
Julia Butz, kinesiology
Title: Exploring the Relationship Between Force Development and Mechanical Properties in Healthy and Injured Hamstrings
Faculty adviser: Shawn Hanlon, assistant professor of kinesiology
Cindy (Thien-Y) Do, psychology
Title: Navigating Young Women’s Pathways to a Breast Cancer Diagnosis in California
Faculty adviser: Alice Lee, associate professor of public health
Keerthanaa Ellur, information systems
Title: Claim Fraud Detection With Imbalanced Data Using Machine Learning Methods
Faculty adviser: Daoji Li, associate professor of information systems and decision sciences
Ashley Escamilla, biological science
Title: CBD Pre-Treatment as a Potential Strategy for Reducing Inflammation Caused by Chemotherapy
Faculty adviser: Nilay Patel, associate professor of biological science
Maddie Marowitz, environmental science
Title: Monitoring Post-Fire Vegetation Recovery With Landsat Satellite Imagery
Faculty adviser: Jindong Wu, professor of geography and the environment
Jennifer Moya, communication sciences and disorders
Title: Navigating Identity Through Language: Latinx Youth Perspectives on Language Loss and Identity
Faculty adviser: Guadalupe Diaz Lara, associate professor of child and adolescent studies
Ibrahim Emin Cem Patir, mechanical engineering
Title: Exploring Dislocation Formation and Dynamics in Novel Functional Alloys
Faculty adviser: Xinyi Wang, assistant professor of mechanical engineering
Kshitij Pingle, computer science
Title: Low-Cost Pollen Monitoring and Estimation: A Deep Dive With Machine Learning
Faculty adviser: Kanika Sood, associate professor of computer science
Gabriel Rodriguez, computer science
Title: Central Retinal Vessel Segmentation for Spontaneous Venous Pulsations (SVP) Analysis
Faculty adviser: Lidia Morrison, lecturer in computer science
Amanda Tsang, chemistry
Title: Rethinking Pain Treatment: Design and Evaluation of Non-opioid Therapeutics
Faculty adviser: Stevan Pecic, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry