Subramanian and Wheeler win 2015 ISR awards

At ISR’s annual awards reception on Sept. 16, Sowmya Subramanian was honored with the George Harhalakis Outstanding Systems Engineering Graduate Student Award and Dawn Wheeler received the Susan Frazier Outstanding Systems Engineering Staff Award.

Subramanian was selected for the award by the ISR Educational Program Committee. She was nominated by her Ph.D. advisor, Professor Reza Ghodssi (ECE/ISR).

Subramanian’s research focuses on real-time bacterial biofilm detection and treatment for in-vivo clinical applications using Lab-on-a-Chip technology. This is a multi-disciplinary effort with components from electrical engineering, MEMS, material science, microfluidics, chemistry, biotechnology and biology.

Receiving support through the prestigious Robert W. Deutsch fellowship, Subramanian previously won the best graduate student poster award at the 2014 Mid-Atlantic Micro/Nano Alliance (MAMNA) workshop. She also has worked on a mathematical model for quantifying a DNA amplification technique called loop mediated isothermal amplification, with the goal of developing a screening platform for pathogens and diseases, ranging from Escherichia coli in food samples to screening for different types of cancers.

Wheeler nominated for the staff award by Professors Prakash Narayan (ECE/ISR), Gary Rubloff (MSE/ISR), and Shihab Shamma (ECE/ISR).

Wheeler was honored for her ability to write research proposals under tight deadlines in a cheerful manner, and her answers to nettlesome financial questions. Wheeler's dedication to the ISR makes her careful and thorough in highlighting minute but critical changes in a sponsor's proposal requirements from year to year.

Published September 17, 2015