McNair Scholars Alumni

Rey graduates with a B.S. in Biology; Ecology, Evolution and Behavior. Her McNair research, titled “Soil Carbon on the Boise Foothills” explores how the carbon soil sequestration in the foothills is affected by vegetation type; shrub, perennial grass, or annual grasses. Rey has presented her research at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Rey has been waitlisted for Oregon State University but in the meantime plans on continuing her education with a data analysis certification.

Ally graduates with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering and a minor in Biomedical Engineering. Her McNair research titled, “On-Demand Manufacturing of Biosensors,” investigates the performance of aerosol jet printing 2D-nanomaterials for the on-demand manufacturing of electronics in space. Ally has presented her work at multiple undergraduate and professional research conferences. She will enter the Materials Science & Engineering Ph.D. program at Boise State University beginning in the Summer of 2024. This consists of a full tuition waiver and a $30,000-a-year assistantship. She has been recognized as a graduating student leader, is one of five people featured as a “brand hero” in Boise State’s national marketing campaign for her research endeavors and impact at the university, and is the commencement speaker at graduation this year.

Julián graduates with a B.S. in Political Science with an emphasis in American Government and Public Policy. His McNair research, titled “The Lingering Effects of NAFTA: An Ethnographic Dialectical Analysis of Neoliberalism, Resistance, and Hegemony in Michoacán and Idaho” explores the evolving realities of Michoacán and Idaho and their relationship to neoliberal economic policy. Julián has presented his work at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Julián will enter the Global Studies PhD program at UC Irvine beginning September 2024. This consists of a full tuition waiver and the UC Irvine Diversity Recruitment Fellowship.

Sam graduates with a B.S. in Biology with an emphasis in Cellular, Molecular, and Biomedical. Her McNair research, titled “Eat the Raw Cookie Dough: Salmonella Vaccine Development By Exploring Salmonella Toxins” investigates new novel Salmonella toxins that could be used in a vaccine for bovines. She has presented her work at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Sam has accepted a research assistant position in the engineering department at Boise State University and will reapply for the next cycle of graduate school.

Tionna graduates with a B.S in Psychology and a minor in Family Studies. Her McNair research titled “Childhood
Trauma and Resilience: A Look at the Impact of Protective Factors” explores whether having a positive relationship with a supportive adult and a perceived sense of belonging to one’s community contributes to resilience in adulthood. Her research also examined if these protective factors can buffer negative outcomes associated with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as depressive symptoms, anxiety, and poor health. Tionna has presented her work at multiple undergraduate conferences. She has accepted a PsyD position in clinical psychology at George Fox University. Long term, Tionna intends to be a licensed children psychologist.

Kyle graduates with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering. His McNair Research, titled “Effect of Print Parameters on Performance of Additively Manufactured SS-316L to Inform Data Analytics” examines 3D printed SS-316L for nuclear applications. Kyle has presented his work at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Kyle will enter the Nuclear Engineering PhD program at North Carolina State University beginning August 2024. This consists of a full tuition waiver and the Provost’s Doctoral Fellowship of $33,000 for the academic year. Kyle is also a recipient of the GEM Fellowship of $16,000 for the first academic year with a 2024 Summer Idaho National Laboratory Internship. He will be studying the effects of Additively Manufactured alloys for nuclear molten salt applications. He is also a University Nuclear Leadership Program Scholar and a member of the American Nuclear Society.

Monica graduated in December of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and two minors in Art and ASL with distinguished honors from the Honors College as well as Psi Chi, International Honors Society for Psychology majors. Her McNair research titled “The Relationship Between the Internalized Mental Health Stigma in Young Men and Their Fathers’ Views on Seeking Mental Health Care” explores a possible influence on the common aversion to seeking care and the high suicide rate among the young male population. She has presented her work at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Monica starts her Masters of Social Work at the University of Washington this fall and has been awarded the Excellence in Social Impact Scholarship from the department as well as the Child Welfare Training and Advancement Traineeship that will cover the cost of tuition entirely. Long term, Monica plans to become a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker to practice therapy, incorporate art in her methods, and utilize her fluency in ASL to offer services to deaf, hard of hearing, and non verbal clients.

Gabe graduates with a B.S. in Political Science with an emphasis in American Government and Public Policy. His McNair research titled, “Measuring and Comparing Elite Political Polarization in the Idaho State House of Representatives and Senate Over the Last 30 Years,” explored the intricacies of modern day political polarization at the state level. Additionally, for his senior capstone project, Gabe conducted research entitled, “Puerto Rican Statehood Through the Lens of Alaskan and Hawaiian Incorporation,” analyzing the political status of Puerto Rico. Gabe has presented his research at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Gabe will be taking the time to recenter himself after graduation and plans on applying for graduate school by the end of the year.

Sevio graduates with a B.S. in Physics with double emphasis in Astrophysics and Biophysics, Chemistry with emphasis in Biochemistry, Biology with emphasis in Cellular, Molecular, and Biomedical Sciences, and a minor in Applied Mathematics, with distinguished honors from the Honors College. His McNair research titled, “Changes
in Lipid Order Induced by Hypoosmotic Stress and Channels Insertion,” examines the physical changes to lipid membranes caused by the introduction of the pore-forming toxin lysenin. Sevio has presented his work at multiple undergraduate research conferences. Sevio will enter the Physics PhD program at University of Colorado Boulder beginning August 2024. Sevio is the recipient of both the 2024 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Fellowship award totaling $159,000 over 3-years and the Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship award totaling $244,000 over 4-years. He is also a Boise State Top Ten Scholar.

Gwen graduates with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering. Her McNair research titled “Development of Reproducible Workflows for Quantum Chemical Parameterization and Aalidation of Model Organic Photovoltaics” investigates using quantum mechanics to calculate forcefield parameters for organic solar cell material. She has presented her work at multiple undergraduate research conferences and was awarded third place for her work at a national research conference. In addition to research, she has also portrayed leadership skills in her role as a College of Engineering Ambassador. Gwen has accepted a PhD position in Nuclear Engineering at North Carolina State University. This consists of a full tuition waiver and the Provost’s Doctoral Fellowship of $33,000 for the academic year, and a Graduate Merit Award consisting of $4,000 for the academic year.