Organizers

Her work is largely driven by her commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. In addition to her work with the Climate Committee, she is a member of the University Senate EDI Committee and she is the Department lead and co-founder of the UMD-NIST Conference for Underrepresented Undergraduate Minorities in Physics (CU2MiP) previously held in 2016 and 2017. The conference will be held again on January 8-10, 2021. She also co-organized the UMD Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) in 2014 and 2020.

While in the Department of Physics, Josiland has worked with the Women in Physics student group and advised the Graduate Student Committee. In 2018, she was awarded the Outstanding Coordinator of Graduate Studies from the UMD Graduate School. This award recognizes exceptional contributions made to the graduate student experience. She enjoys working with students and assisting them as they progress through the graduate program.

Thomas received his Ph.D. in Applied Physics in the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department at Rice University in 2011. His thesis work primarily focused on the magneto-optical properties of carbon nanotubes. Upon his appointment at Howard in the Fall of 2015,  Thomas has established a new research program in applied and materials physics.  During his career, Thomas has performed experiments at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Naval Research Laboratory, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Brookhaven National Laboratory, UCSB Free Electron Laser Facility, National Institute of Materials Science (Tsukuba, JP) and Tohoku University (Sendai, JP). Furthermore, Thomas has completed Visiting Faculty Fellow appointments at Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Air Force Research Laboratory. Thomas graduated from Morehouse College with a B.S. in Mathematics and Physics. He is a native of Albany, GA.

She applies these novel measurements to study the underlying photophysics of nanomaterials, specifically noble and transition metal nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene and other 2D materials resulting in over 160 publications. Presently Angela’s research is pushing the forefront of optical methods to characterize magnetic phenomenon in layered 2D systems. She also leads a team of experts from the National Metrology Institutes all over the world concerned with enabling SI-traceable, Raman measurements.  An issue of great importance to Dr. Hight Walker is encouraging the young and underrepresented to participate in science.  Through on and off site demonstrations and lectures, she actively engages in promoting the excitement of science.  She has co-organized two Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CUWiP) and this will be her third Conference for Undergraduate Underrepresented Minorities in Physics (CU²MiP).  Angela also leads the NIST side of the NIST-Howard APS-IDEA team.

She is also passionate about inspiring future scientists and increasing diversity and inclusivity in physics, and has participated in a wide variety of outreach and volunteering activities. When she isn’t in the lab or doing outreach, she enjoys traveling, hiking, attempting to cook, visiting all the Smithsonians and playing with her pet chinchilla. Dr. Amber McCreary is a physicist in the Physical Measurement Laboratory at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, MD. She is a member of the Nanoscale Spectroscopy Group under Dr. Angela Hight Walker in the Nanoscale Device Characterization Division. Her research interests include utilizing Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopies to investigate the properties of a variety of 2D materials, including graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides, transition metal phosphorus trisulfides, and transition metal halides. Currently, she is working towards developing methods to use Raman spectroscopy, which is non-destructive and extremely sensitive to minute changes in a material, to investigate magnetism in quantum materials, as well as facilitate their use in next-generation electronics.

His research interests include two-dimensional systems and applications of those systems’ behaviors for electrical metrology. He is a member of the American Physical Society and the Mellon-Mays Initiative of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

She is a member of the Center for Fundamental Laws of Nature and the Black Hole Initiative, studying black holes (BHs) and gravity under Prof. Andrew Strominger. In her research she characterizes universal observational signatures of Kerr BHs using analytic tools such as the analysis of critical null geodesics, and the emergent conformal symmetry of the near horizon region of near extremal BHs. She did her undergraduate at the University of Maryland, College Park where she studied physics and math.

Originally from Burundi, he came to the United States when he was 7 years old. He had a complicated path to physics yet eventually graduating with two degrees in physics and interdisciplinary physical sciences. He currently conducts research on shear driven waves near dipolarization fronts at the Naval Research Laboratory and is also interested in fusion research. Additionally, Landry is committed to expanding outreach and mentorship programs for people from marginalized backgrounds and to highlighting the value of diversity in physics. Apart from physics, he enjoys playing soccer, board games, and philosophy.

Angel has previously done research in gravitational theory and high-energy physics. His next goal is to become proficient in machining.

He has been part of the CU2MiP (2016, 2017) and CUWiP (2020) Conferences and is excited to be part of the team again!  As part of the University’s response to COVID-19, Eliot led the Academic Ambassadors Program this Fall.

He has chaired the Department of Physics at the University of Maryland since 2016, and before that served as co-Director of the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI), a collaborative center formed by UMD, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Laboratory for Physical Sciences. In 2016-17, Rolston served as Chair of the American Physical Society’s Division of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics.

Rolston is a Fellow of UMD’s Quantum Technology Center, the JQI, the American Physical Society, the Optical Society of America, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the recipient of the Arthur S. Flemming Award, the Sigma Xi Young Scientist Award, the U.S. Dept. of Commerce Silver Medal, and UMD’s Kirwan Undergraduate Education Award.

Their research experience includes computational work in radio astronomy and biophysics, and some work in theoretical gravity. Sergio also has a passion for education and outreach and has worked with the Physics Inspiring the Next Generation camp at the Green Bank Observatory, as well as having served previously as an organizer for CU2MiP. Currently, Sergio works at the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology in Barbados, building oceanographic models and studying floating matter dispersion due to weather and currents.

Kate received her B.S.E. in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University in 2011 and her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Rutgers University in 2017. While at Rutgers, Kate worked with Prof. Bonnie Firestein on her dissertation, titled “The role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the regulation of dendritic arbor morphology, neuronal network activity, and neuroprotection”. Kate's time at Rutgers is also where she discovered her passion for outreach. To this end, she volunteered at New Brunswick High School for five years and developed a “Neuroscience Day” experience with Prof. Firestein.

 

For the first two years of her postdoctoral training, Kate was a joint postdoctoral fellow at UMD and at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at NIH, where she collaborated with the Giniger laboratory on a joint project in the Drosophila wing disc. Kate's current research employs live imaging to understand the role of the cytoskeleton in the physiology and function of brain cells, and she conducts this research by mentoring a team composed of graduate and undergraduate students. She is also involved in several outreach initiatives at UMD, such as Physics is Phun, Maryland Day, and the Losert laboratory's annual MATLAB Boot Camp.

Erin began working in educational outreach with the UMD Physics Department in 2005 as a summer camp counselor. From that time on, Erin has dedicated her career to educating and inspiring students in Prince George's County Public Schools. Currently, Ms. Lukomska-Schlauch is in her 10th year teaching at Charles Herbert Flowers High School. Outside of the classroom, she serves as the science department chair and sponsor of the class of 2024 and the Science National Honor Society.

At UMD, she is the SPS Outreach Coordinator, has launched a new mentoring program for students, and is jointly leading an effort to create a diversity, equity and inclusion seminar for physics majors. She currently conducts research in laser-matter interactions under Dr. Howard Milchberg. In addition to physics, Ela enjoys hiking, drawing, and painting.

He is also the science department chair and the Education Online Program (EOP) coordinator in his school. Aside from teaching high school physics, he is also an adjunct professor at Prince George’s Community College teaching various Physics courses. 

Dr. Mendevil obtained his undergraduate (BSE major in Physics) and graduate degrees (MA in Physics and Ph.D. in Development Education) from a university in the Philippines.

As an honors physics and astronomy teacher, she encourages students to see physics everywhere in their daily lives and to appreciate our vast universe while building a strong foundation for their further scientific endeavors. Experimenting with new perspectives and teaching strategies, novel and engaging projects, and diverse learning opportunities keeps teaching fresh and exciting for Mrs. Hollies and her students. She applies similar approaches when teaching a select group of high school girls at the University of Maryland in their Summer Girls program. Designed to entice girls into majoring in physics, the program melds modern physics topics and current physics research with the aid of the UMD staff. Earlier in her career, Mrs. Hollies performed radiation research for the military, and cancer and HIV research at a private lab. She finds teaching the most challenging and rewarding of the positions she has held.