Biological science student and Presidential Scholar William Dhana researches several cellular biological processes related to the mitigation and understanding of cancerous compounds.

His research on these compounds in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) inspired him to take his work and elevate it as a research fellow for the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology and the National Cancer Institute.

Dhana wants to explore the interdisciplinary cross-section between medicine and cellular research to provide new insights on cancer prevention in the community.

At FSU, he combines his academics with service as a crew lead on the FSU Medical Response Unit (MRU). His unit provides a safety net on the FSU campus in case of medical emergencies, broadening his knowledge of medicine.

Why did you choose FSU?

When I interviewed for the Presidential Scholars Program, I immediately connected with the group of students I met, even before I knew whether I had received the scholarship. With hundreds of student organizations, FSU creates an environment where anyone can find a niche and continue growing. 

Even in my final semester, I have continued to explore new communities. Becoming a Presidential Scholar only deepened that sense of belonging, and I have been incredibly grateful to be part of so many meaningful groups during my time at FSU. 

What academic achievements are you most proud of?

During my time at FSU, I have had the opportunity to grow both as a researcher and as an advocate for undergraduate research. My journey began at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Tang Lab through the UROP. There, I worked on a project using specialized bacteria that mitigate cancerous chemical compounds in groundwater, which introduced me to experimental design and wet lab research. 

Building on that foundation, I was accepted into the U.S. National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates program at the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology. This program led to a publication titled “PanIN or IPMN?,” which explored the use of artificial intelligence to classify early-stage pancreatic cancer. 

The following summer, I continued my research at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, where I studied a cell transporter that affects how well cancer drugs can reach the brain. 

None of these opportunities would have been possible without my introduction to research at FSU, and they have shaped my long-term goal of integrating scientific research with medicine. 

How do you serve the FSU community?

Outside of the classroom, I focused heavily on leadership and service through both emergency response and student advocacy. 

As a crew lead in the MRU, I ensure that team members are well prepared to respond to medical situations on campus while also mentoring newer trainees as they develop their clinical skills. 

As an Honors Colloquium Leader, I foster a supportive academic environment for those transitioning into the university. 

My involvement in Student Government, particularly through the Student Council for Undergraduate Research and Creativity (SCURC) and now the Student Department of Academic Affairs, has allowed me to advocate for students on a broader scale. I worked on initiatives aimed at expanding access to research funding, improving educational affordability and strengthening academic resources. 

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For as long as he can remember, Florida State University sophomore and Presidential Scholar James “LJ” Dunphy has had a fascination with weather and a knack for data-driven science. Now, those interests have led him to be named a recipient of one of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) most competitive awards.

Dunphy, a meteorology and applied mathematics major in the College of Arts and Sciences from Tampa, Florida, has been selected as a recipient of the NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship. His research strives to make machine learning-based weather forecasts more accurate and less computationally demanding.

“What we’re looking at is trying to reduce those input parameters so we can save time and compute, while actually increasing forecast accuracy,” Dunphy said. “If we can just get a little bit more accurate forecast, we can have more accurate evacuation orders and better prepare the public for scenarios like hurricanes and tornadoes.”

The Hollings Scholarship Program provides awards up to $9,500 a year in financial assistance for two years of full-time study and a 10-week, full-time paid internship at a NOAA facility during the award’s second-year summer.

“LJ has been developing next-generation algorithms for AI-based weather models. I have never encountered a sophomore with such a high level of self-motivation and research talent,” said Zhaohua Wu, professor of meteorology and Dunphy’s research mentor. “Some of his results even surpass those reported in recent papers. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with him.”

Dunphy’s interest in meteorology was shaped by experiences with severe weather in Florida and beyond.

“Weather, being from Tampa, has always impacted me,” he said. “Hurricanes are kind of the first thing that come to mind and they impact us up here in Tallahassee, too. This is something I’ve always been surrounded by, and something I’ve always been interested in.”

His double major allows him to combine physical science with advanced computation, as machine learning becomes increasingly important in weather forecasting.

“[NOAA’s]  mission of protecting life and property has been a very important part of protecting my community. To be able to have the opportunity to give back is just something I’m really, really grateful for.”

– LJ Dunphy, FSU student and Hollings Scholarship recipient

“What I specifically want to go into in meteorology is the modeling part and forecasting,” Dunphy said. “My applied math major really, really helps with that, with understanding all the algorithms that go into it. So, it gives you the physical understanding from meteorology and the technical computational side from applied math.”

Dunphy applied for the Hollings Scholarship after encouragement from D. Craig Filar, associate dean of Honors, Scholars, and Fellows and director of FSU’s Presidential Scholars Program.

“When we invited LJ to be a part of the Presidential Scholars program, we knew he would do incredibly high caliber work in meteorology,” Filar said. “His recognition as a Hollings Scholar demonstrates his capacity for impactful and innovative work in the field of meteorology, and it speaks to his strong character to want to connect predictive modeling with improved notifications to protect communities. LJ will utilize this opportunity to expand his learning and experience in a manner that will serve his field well; I am incredibly proud of LJ for his recognition with the Hollings Scholarship program.”

As part of the scholarship, Dunphy will complete a 10-week NOAA paid internship next summer after his junior year and provide him with the opportunity to work at nearly any NOAA office nationwide.

“NOAA has always been a big part of my life,” Dunphy said. “Their mission of protecting life and property has been a very important part of protecting my community. To be able to have the opportunity to give back is just something I’m really, really grateful for.”

Dunphy recognized the role FSU’s academic environment and research opportunities played in helping him reach this milestone.

“All the resources that FSU has given me have been really, really immensely helpful,” he said, crediting the Presidential Scholars Program, the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) and mentorship from faculty in the Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science.

Looking forward, Dunphy urges fellow students to aim high and take chances, even if those opportunities seem out of reach.

“The only reason I got to where I am now is just because I put myself out there,” he said. “You’d be really surprised where your abilities take you, especially when you’re really passionate about something. The worst they can say is no.”

For more information about scholarships and fellowships, visit FSU’s Office of National Fellowships.

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Florida State University recognized graduate student achievement and leadership at the Celebration of Graduate Student Excellence, sponsored by The Graduate School and the Congress of Graduate Students, on April 6 at the FSU Alumni Center.

The celebration honored graduate students who have earned external fellowships and grants and those who have excelled in teaching, mentorship, leadership, participation in public discourse, and research and creative activity. Faculty mentors were also recognized for their work with graduate students.

“Florida State has attracted some of the top graduate students from Florida, from around the United States and from around the world,” said Steve McDowell, interim dean of The Graduate School. “Graduate students are central to undertaking FSU’s important missions of education, research and creative inquiry, and service.”

So far during the 2025-2026 academic year, FSU graduate students have won 135 national fellowships and grants, higher than last year’s near record of 131. That number is expected to grow and includes recognition and funding from the National Science Foundation, the American Heart Association, the National Institutes of Health, the Fulbright Program, the Florida Legislative and Gubernatorial Fellows programs and the McCain Global Leaders Program.

“Graduate funding opportunities are competitive by nature, and so it is a testament to the strength of FSU’s graduate programs and, most importantly, our graduate students, to have this number of externally funded students in a year,” said Keith McCall, assistant director of the Office of Graduate Fellowships and Awards.

The event kicked off Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week, a national observance FSU celebrates with a series of events focused on recognition, professional development, wellness and community connection.

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Eddie Fordham is a public policy student at Florida State University who symbolizes what it means to make a comeback. Fordham, a formerly incarcerated student, continues to push the boundaries of academic success and research to fuel himself and his passions through academic excellence and community leadership.

Fordham is enrolled in the Honors in the Major program to pursue his undergraduate thesis “Degrees of Opportunity: Understanding Degree Completion Among Justice-Impacted College Students.” His research was awarded an IDEA Grant. He completes his research while being mentored by public policy associate teaching professor Alexandra Cockerham.

Fordham was also selected as an FSU PURPOSE Fellow, conducting research pathways oriented to social justice in education under the mentorship of assistant professor Annie Wofford, in the Higher Education program.

Fordham will be continuing his education with FSU’s Combined Pathways Program for his master’s degree in public administration. One day, he hopes to become a professor and apply his research to support returning citizens and other justice-impacted students’ success.

Outside of academics, Fordham is a founding member of the Justice-Impacted Student Organization (JISO), on the board of directors for Big Bend AFTER Reentry Coalition (A Fight to End Recidivism), a member of the Florida Foundation for Correctional Excellence Lived-Experience Council, and a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies.

In 2025 through Phi Kappa Phi, Fordham became one of three Pioneer Award winners at FSU.

Why did you choose Florida State University?

Criminal conviction should not be a barrier to higher education. As a formerly incarcerated student, I arrived at Florida State University with lived experience and a deep desire to turn hardship into purpose. In many ways, through its commitment to service, research and social impact, I believe it was actually FSU that chose me.

FSU not only welcomed my background, it empowered me and gave me the tools and support to transform my personal journey into leadership and academic inquiry. Here, I found not just a campus, but a community that shares my mission to expand educational access for justice-impacted individuals. FSU became the place where my story could grow into something larger than myself.

What academic achievements have you accomplished at FSU?

One of my proudest academic accomplishments was being awarded the Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. As a Cooke Scholar at FSU, I am committed to leadership and contribution, and FSU has furthered my love for research, selecting me as an Honors in the Major student to complete my undergraduate thesis and research project.

This work explores the barriers and real-life challenges that students like me face when returning to college after justice system involvement and offers evidence-based pathways to support their success. I will be gathering stories, surveying peers and studying the systems that either help or hinder our success — the data matters, but so do the people behind it and the IDEA grant and PURPOSE Fellowship I was awarded from FSU will help me build further on this project.

I also served in the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) as a research assistant to Professor Alexandra Cockerham and her study on North Carolina’s Teen Court system. I was recently accepted into FSU’s Combined Pathways Program to begin earning credit toward my master’s degree in public administration while finishing my undergraduate degree.

Every step of this unconquered journey reflects my commitment to scholarship that serves people and drives system-level change.

How do you serve the FSU community?

As a founding member of the Justice-Impacted Student Organization (JISO) — the first of its kind at FSU — I am passionate about creating a space of belonging, empowerment and advocacy for students impacted by the justice system. Through JISO, we are planning to build peer support networks, host campus events, and connect with national reform leaders to help shape student-led solutions for educational success.

Beyond campus, I serve on the board of directors for Big Bend AFTER Reentry Coalition (A Fight to End Recidivism), where we support justice-impacted individuals across the Tallahassee region through education, advocacy and reentry support. I am also a passionate advocate before the Florida Legislature on reforms that unlock higher education in prison for others. Being named an FSU PURPOSE Fellow and inducted to Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies reflects the broader impact of my work both in and out of the classroom.

How do you impact the community?

My work has helped ensure that justice-impacted students are seen, supported and valued at FSU. Through JISO, we have created a space where students who have experienced incarceration, directly or through family, can find belonging and community. That visibility alone can be life-changing, which is why the recognition from FSU’s Student Government is so meaningful. Last fall, the 77th Student Senate passed “The Eddie Fordham Act,” which removed a longstanding felony-conviction barrier and gives justice-impacted students a represented voice in SGA.

In the broader community, my work with the Big Bend AFTER Reentry Coalition and the Florida Foundation for Correctional Excellence has helped build reentry pathways grounded in education, dignity and long-term success. I have advocated before the Legislature, connected community partners, and shared my story to help shift public perception.

Everything I do, whether it is mentoring, research or serving others, aims to turn personal resilience into public impact. I want people in Tallahassee and beyond to see FSU as a place where transformation is not only possible, but powerfully real.

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Three Florida State University students who met through an undergraduate research project traveled to Seoul, South Korea, this summer to attend a conference focused on how new technologies are shaping education.

Ella Owens, a business management student from Orlando; Olivia Leichter, a violin performance and risk management and insurance student from Sarasota; and Michael Cedeno, a graduate student studying product development from Ocala, attended the Digital Education for Digital Transformation: Shaping the Future of Learning and Innovation conference, hosted by the World Learning and Digital Communication Network Program, from June 15-17.

The opportunity came after the students collaborated on a research project through FSU’s Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) about entrepreneurship in Ukraine. They worked with their research mentor, Eric Liguori, Jim Moran professor and associate dean of the Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship, and presented their work at FSU’s annual Undergraduate Research Symposium in April.

“Ella, Olivia, and Michael spent all of the last academic year interviewing entrepreneurs in Ukraine as part of a research project in my lab, so when the opportunity for students to participate in this program came up, I knew instantly they would be perfect ambassadors to head to South Korea to represent FSU and the United States in this global forum,” Liguori said. “The Jim Moran College remains committed to curating opportunities for all FSU students, regardless of majors, who have interests in entrepreneurship.” 

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Serving time in prison for a crime he committed at 18, 52-year-old Florida State University student Eddie Fordham may not have imagined he’d one day walk free, enroll in college and present his scholarship on recidivism at an undergraduate research symposium.

Fordham was one of more than 700 student researchers to present at FSU’s 25th annual Undergraduate Research Symposium — the largest one yet — hosted by the Center for Undergraduate Research and Academic Engagement (CRE) at the Student Union Ballrooms on April 1. About 100 of those students transferred to FSU from other institutions.

“Our mission is to make research opportunities accessible to all undergraduate students who wish to be involved,” said Latika Young, director of the CRE. “We believe that every student, regardless of their background or major, should have the chance to engage in meaningful research that enhances their academic experience and prepares them for future success.”

Fordham’s research project, “Evaluating Teen Court Success,” examines the diversionary Teen Court program in North Carolina and its influence on juvenile defendant rehabilitation.

His interest in that topic was borne out of his personal life journey, a story that underscores the transformative power of education.

“For me, education meant more than textbooks and long hours of study,” said Fordham, now majoring in public policy. “Education meant redemption.”

Inspired by books such as “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Viktor Frankl and “Long Walk to Freedom” by Nelson Mandela, Fordham earned a high school diploma and vocational certificates during his 31-year incarceration. He became a tutor and eventually ran entire education departments within the prison.

Through the “Inside Out Program” at Miami-Dade College, he attended classes with those inside and outside of the prison. Fordham graduated with an associate degree from Miami-Dade College, landing on the dean’s list with a 4.0 GPA.

He worked as the peer mentorship program coordinator for the Alabama Prison Arts and Education Project at Auburn University and is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree at FSU, supported by the prestigious Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, a selective national award for high achieving transfer students seeking degrees at four-year colleges or universities.

“Education instills a different set of values in a person,” Fordham said. “When people come out of prison, do we want them to come home in the same condition as when they went in, or do we want them to come out better?”

Since enrolling at FSU, Fordham has made the President’s List and joined the Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies.

When students transfer to FSU from other institutions and backgrounds, they bring with them the unique experiences they’ve gained along the way, making the university and its research ecosystem richer and more complex.

Jakyah Hayes came to FSU after graduating with honors from Tallahassee State College, where she participated in the Dr. Lei Wang STEM Program.

“I really excelled through the STEM program at TSC, which is where I found my love for research,” Hayes said.

After graduation, she participated in award-winning summer research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation at the University of South Florida’s St. Petersburg campus about how transportation is disproportionately affected by natural disasters in different communities of Tampa Bay.

She jumped into the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP) upon arriving at FSU, presenting at the symposium on her work to help create a website for FSU’s Anthropology Department and digitizing its collection of historic ceramics and other artifacts.

Diego Palacios, who transferred to FSU’s Tallahassee campus after receiving an associate degree from FSU’s Republic of Panama campus, presented the research he conducted through UROP that investigated the behavior of high-temperature superconducting tape, which is used in power grids, MRI machines, magnetic levitation trains and many other applications. The research project solidified for him his choice to pursue a degree in electrical engineering.

“I really like the hands-on experience, where I have to think to solve an actual problem,” said Palacios, an international student from Santiago, Panama. “I wanted to do something related to technology and engineering that would help make the world better.”

About one in every four students at FSU transfers from another place, including state and community colleges or other four-year institutions. Students can also transfer through the Seminole Pathways program, including the option to study abroad before coming to the Tallahassee campus, or enrolling in FSU Next, where students attend Tallahassee State College for one semester while attending an introductory course at FSU and then enrolling full time at FSU in the spring.

Pre-med exercise physiology student Brittany Mears enrolled at FSU after receiving an associate degree from Chipola College, near her hometown of Blountstown, Florida.

For her UROP project, she assisted in performing echocardiograms on a mouse model to better understand the role of genetic mutations in a heart disorder called dilated cardiomyopathy.

“I love where I’m from, and one day I hope to be able to give back to my community as a physician,” Mears said. “I came to FSU with the goal of going to medical school here and then going back home to take care of my community like they’ve taken care of me.”

The Undergraduate Research Symposium is one of the largest university-based symposia in the country and FSU’s only interdisciplinary, all-campus undergraduate research showcase. The symposium includes undergraduate students from all majors, representing various initiatives such as Honors in the Major and the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program.

“We want transfer students to engage in every opportunity available to them at FSU, including undergraduate research,” said Heather Bishop, assistant dean in Undergraduate Studies. “Our goal is to provide transfer students with the resources and support they need to make the most of their time at FSU, so they graduate ready for future success.”

For more information about the Undergraduate Research Symposium and Center for Undergraduate Research and Academic Engagement, visit cre.fsu.edu.

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Florida State University’s Center for Undergraduate Research and Academic Engagement (CRE) hosted a record-breaking spring symposium for undergraduate researchers Tuesday, April 1, in the Student Union Ballrooms.

More than 700 undergraduate students showcased their research projects at the largest Undergraduate Research Symposium (URS) in the event’s 25-year history. Student projects at the interdisciplinary showcase included more than 500 posters and creative presentations, attracting nearly 2,000 attendees.

“We are overwhelmingly grateful for the hard work of all the students, mentors, administrators and staff who made this year’s symposium the largest event yet,” said Latika Young, CRE director. “This growth is a testament to the ways in which FSU supports undergraduate research and helps students explore their creative and academic interests as soon as they arrive at the university and throughout their undergraduate careers.”

One of the largest university-based symposia in the country and FSU’s only all-campus undergraduate research showcase, the URS includes undergraduate students from all majors, representing various initiatives such as Honors in the Major theses and the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP).

Students presented on varied topics including parents’ roles in child reading achievement, risk factors in vascular dementia, the development of polymer-based materials that can withstand space exploration and a historical look at how Florida represented itself at two World’s Fairs.

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