How could we help reduce malaria from spreading? What if plants could hold the next breakthrough in cancer treatment? And how do First Amendment Rights manifest in everyday student life on campus?
These are just a few questions College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) students examined this summer, thanks to the LAS High Impact Research Experience Award. Paid undergraduate research is key to the LAS student experience, and in summer 2026, nine students received this financial award to conduct paid research and scholarship alongside an Iowa State faculty mentor.
Following is a more in-depth look at some students’ research projects. A list of all summer 2026 recipients appears at the end of this story.
Emma Allen (‘27 anthropology, minor in English)
Mentored by Abby Dubisar, associate professor in the Department of English
Inspired by personal experiences and observations while a student at Iowa State, Emma Allen (’27 anthropology, minor in English) spent the summer researching freedom of speech on college campuses.
With the guidance of mentor Abby Dubisar, associate professor in the Department of English, Allen began her research by first defining First Amendment rights and its nuances, investigating how these rights manifest in everyday life, and positioning students in the center of it all.
“After completing this research and continuing to stay informed about shifting legislation and university policies, I have become more cognizant of how legislators’ and administrators’ choices impact students and classroom environments,” Allen said. “This research has caused me to appreciate my position as a college student and to value my role as an engaged citizen. Moving forward, I will continue to advocate for faculty’s academic freedom and students’ right to learn in classrooms.”
As part of her project, Allen created a presentation for Iowa State students that explains their First Amendment rights. She will present the information this fall in ENGL 3690: Teaching the Reading of Young Adult Literature.
“This course represents a pivotal moment in my education where I became more invested in censorship and free speech rights,” Allen said. “I look forward to sharing my work and connecting it to the course content this fall.”
Allen is also working with ISU Digital Press to write and publish a handbook for students about her research findings.
Allen is grateful for this research opportunity and intends to continue investigating future projects.
“Being able to follow my own interests and carve out my own research plan was simultaneously daunting and exciting,” Allen said. “In my future plans, I hope to continue to explore other research interests in graduate school and beyond.”
Emilee Clemensen (’27 biology)
Mentored by Raquel Espín Palazón, associate professor of genetics, development, and cell biology
Humans share more than 70% of our genes with zebrafish. So, it’s no surprise that these members of the minnow family play a critical role in scientific research. As part of her summer undergraduate research, Emilee Clemensen (’27 biology) utilized zebrafish to develop a better understanding of tissue regeneration.
Macrophages are immune cells that can help us fight germs, destroy cancer cells, or promote healing for tissue repair and organ function.
“My research project was focusing on how overexpressing or knocking out grna (which is involved in macrophage formation) affects healing and blood stem cells specification to macrophages,” she said.
Clemensen is mentored by Raquel Espín Palazón, associate professor of genetics, development, and cell biology. Clemensen’s undergraduate research supports the Espín Palazón lab’s goal of understanding blood formation and finding treatments and therapies for people with blood disorders.
Clemensen conducted several experiments this summer, including one where she used a zebrafish tail-wounding assay to see how grna overexpression affects tissue regeneration. She took images after the cutting at 24, 48, and 72 hours post-wounding, and then calculated the area of the tail to see if there was difference in growth.
“You were able to see the regrowth of the tail fin just a day after wounding it, and it was fully healed after just three days,” Clemensen said. “I thought it was cool how quickly it was able to regrow.”
She said this shows that increasing grna expression increases production of macrophages that can increase tissue regeneration, which could have future clinical applications.
While working in the lab, Clemensen also learned new technologies, such as taking high-quality images with a Leica Thunder microscope and using GraphPad Prism to collect, quantify, and analyze data through professional graphs.
The technical and professional skills she gained this summer are directly helping her pursue future career goals in science. Clemensen plans to eventually apply to medical school to become a forensic pathologist or perhaps earn a master’s or Ph.D. degree that prepares her for other careers in research or forensic science.
Mason Eisenhauer (‘27 biochemistry)
Mentored by Reuben Peters, Distinguished Professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology
When it comes to plants, there’s a world of yet-to-be discovered possibilities. Senior biochemistry major Mason Eisenhauer is examining their potential by studying plant natural products. These products include an arsenal of chemicals that plants naturally create for purposes such as defense against insects or infections, he said.
They also are used in industry and medicine. For example, over 300,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. One common chemotherapy treatment involves a well-known cancer drug called paclitaxel, or Taxol. Paclitaxel was originally discovered in Taxus brevifolia, commonly known as the Pacific Yew. Today, it’s derived from Taxus baccata, or the English/European Yew. Discoveries like these illustrate the importance of research into plant natural products.
Eisenhauer is mentored by Reuben Peters, Distinguished Professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology. The Peters lab focuses on conifer trees, rice, and a special bacterium called Bradyrhizobium japonicum. This rhizobia bacterium works alongside rice to produce some of these natural plant products, Eisenhauer said.
“We look into how special proteins produced by these species can create these interesting chemicals, and how we may be able to engineer them to develop new products or more efficiently produce the necessary chemicals for industrial or medicinal purposes,” Eisenhauer said.
This summer, thanks to the LAS High Impact Research Experience Award, Eisenhauer was able to dig deeper into his study of plant natural products. He made progress towards better understanding the active site dynamics of a monomeric model of a bacterial kaurene synthase.
Eisenhauer also traveled with his lab group this summer and presented work from another project at the Phytochemical Society of North America (PSNA) Annual Meeting in Madison, Wisconsin. Those connections to faculty in his field even led to invitations to apply to graduate programs.
Following graduation, Eisenhauer plans to pursue a Ph.D. in biochemistry and aspires to lead his own research lab as a university professor.
Ben Hansen (‘27 economics and philosophy with minors in German and statistics)
Mentored by Peter Orazem, Emeritus University Professor and interim chair in the Department of Economics
When inflation spikes, how will it impact factors like productivity, employment, or compensation? Ben Hansen (’27 economics and philosophy with minors in German and statistics) has spent his spring and summer examining big economic questions that intersect with our daily lives.
His research project is aimed at identifying the equilibrium relationship between macroeconomic variables – think labor productivity, employment, compensation, and inflation – based on the long-standing microeconomic relationship between these variables.
Hansen started collecting research data last spring with support from Emeritus University Professor Peter Orazem and Associate Economics Professor Donghyuk Kim.
This summer, he built models, conducted statistical tests, and began helping write a research paper. The model will help simulate responses to shocks – like an inflation spike – and provide a way to assess unanticipated future shocks or show the impact of policy.
Their research also yielded some interesting findings, he said.
“We found that a shock to labor productivity led to increased nominal compensation in addition to lower inflation, meaning that worker purchasing power increased from both fronts,” Hansen said. “This is a significant finding because there has been debate over whether workers still receive gains from increased productivity since real compensation and labor productivity have been diverging since the 1970s, a topic covered significantly in the paper.”
Once the paper is completed this fall, Hansen and his faculty mentors will submit it to Economics Scholars Program at the Federal Reserve of Cleveland and the Midwest Economic Association Undergraduate Program.
Hansen said that undergraduate research taught him how to work independently, collaborate on a design process, read and write in academic style, and use new software and research methods. It’s also a key part of helping him pursue a new goal – earning a Ph.D. and becoming an economics professor.
“Having a paper and research experience under my belt will be valuable for being admitted to and being successful in a graduate program,” he said. “Additionally, this project piqued my interest in macroeconomics even more, and I plan on pursuing a specialization in macroeconomics in graduate school.”
Hansen said working alongside his faculty mentor Orazem has helped him see what’s possible with his passion for economics.
“The opportunity to work so closely with such an experienced professor was very valuable and inspired me to pursue graduate school and a career as an economics professor even more,” he said.
Naomi Johnson (‘27 genetics, minor in bioinformatics and computational biology)
Mentored by Sudhir Kumar, assistant professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology
Cases of malaria could decline in the future thanks to the research Naomi Johnson (‘27 genetics, minor in bioinformatics and computational biology) conducted this summer alongside her mentor Sudhir Kumar, assistant professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology.
In the Kumar Lab, which studies the biology of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, Johnson’s research focused on two proteins in the parasite and their roles in the parasite’s transmission from humans to mosquitoes. Understanding these proteins could help identify ways to prevent the parasite from being passed from infected people to mosquitoes. This work may help create new ways to stop malaria transmission.
As part of her research, Johnson worked with immunofluorescence assays, which use fluorescent antibodies to make specific proteins and cellular structures visible under a microscope. Repeatedly doing this work boosted Johnson’s confidence in designing experiments and interpreting results.
“By performing many immunofluorescence experiments, I became more confident in making decisions about which antibodies and cellular markers to use, which images provided useful information, and how to interpret the results,” Johnson said. “I also became much more comfortable identifying different stages of parasite development by examining them under the microscope. These skills have given me a stronger foundation for designing and interpreting future experiments in the lab.”
In addition to gaining valuable laboratory experience this summer, Johnson strengthened her communication skills by presenting her research at two symposiums and in bi-weekly lab meetings. Both opportunities challenged her to adapt her messages to people with a variety of scientific backgrounds.
“From this experience, I feel more prepared to present research findings to industry teams, where it is valuable to know how to effectively communicate data, explain research clearly, and respond to questions,” Johnson said.
Johnson’s future career plans include applying her genetics skills in industry and eventually pursuing graduate studies in genetics.
Summer 2026 LAS High Impact Research Experience Award recipients:
Emma Allen (‘27 anthropology)
Mentored by Abby Dubisar, associate professor of English
Emilee Clemensen (’27 biology)
Mentored by Raquel Espín Palazón, associate professor of genetics, development, and cell biology
Mason Eisenhauer (‘27 biochemistry)
Mentored by Reuben Peters, Distinguished Professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology
Dornubari Godpower (’29 integrated health sciences)
Mentored by Shawn Dorius, professor of sociology and criminal justice
Ben Hansen (‘27 economics, philosophy)
Mentored by Peter Orazem, Emeritus University Professor and interim chair in the Department of Economics
Yingjia (Nina) Huang (’29 biology)
Mentored by Hongqing Guo, assistant professor of genetics, development, and cell biology
Owen Kennedy (’27 bioinformatics and computational biology)
Mentored by Dior Kelley, associate professor of genetics, development, and cell biology
Naomi Johnson (‘27 genetics)
Mentored by Sudhir Kumar, assistant professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Molecular Biology
Hector D Maymi Nieblas (’28 physics)
Mentored by Frank Krennrich, professor andchair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy