Students

March 2023 Graduate Student Spotlight: Mohammad Rahman

Mohammad Rahman is a Ph.D. candidate at UC Davis working as a Graduate Student Researcher at the University of California Pavement Research Center (UCPRC). 

In this month's Graduate Student Spotlight, we'll be learning more about Mohammad and his research at UC Davis.

February 2023 Graduate Student Spotlight: Patrick Cunningham

Patrick Cunningham (he/him) has been studying at UC Davis for 5 years, first completing his MS degree and now completing his Ph.D. 

In this month's Graduate Student Spotlight, we'll learn more about Patrick and his research at UC Davis.

Tell us about yourself in a few words.

Currently, I'm doing research in Berlin, DE. I love cooking and I am fascinated by the towering role of concrete in our global society.

UC Davis Researchers Explore Environmental Benefits of Soil-Stabilizing Microbes

Naturally occurring microbes could help stabilize the ground under buildings during earthquakes due to the way they reduce the water content in soils, according to new research. One existing approach to stabilizing liquefaction-prone soils known as grouting is to inject concrete into the soil under vulnerable structures to cement the ground together.

January 2023 Graduate Student Spotlight: Samantha Sharp

Samantha Sharp (she/her) is a fifth-year Ph.D. Student in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a focus on Water Resource Engineering. 

In this Graduate Student Spotlight, we'll learn more about Samantha's journey and her research at UC Davis. 

December 2022 Graduate Student Spotlight: Sampat Kedarisetty

Sampat Kedarisetty (he/him) is a sixth-year Ph.D. student in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a focus on Pavement Management.

In this Graduate Student Spotlight, we'll learn more about Sampat's journey and his research at UC Davis. 

Tell us about yourself.

I'm originally from India and came to UC Davis for my Ph.D. I'm also newly married to the love of my life who I met here and am a cat-dad.

Prof. Michele Barbato and PhD Student Diogo Zignago selected for Editor's Choice for the ASCE Journal of Composites for Construction

Professor Barbarto along with CEE Ph.D. Student Diogo Zignago, who co-authored the paper “Reliability-Based Calibration of New Design Procedure for Reinforced Concrete Columns under Simultaneous Confinement by Fiber-Reinforced Polymers and Steel” (https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/%28ASCE%29CC.1943-5614.0001199) has been selected as Editor’s Choice for 2022’s 3rd issue of the ASCE Journal of Composites for Construction. 

CEE Graduate Student Selected for Inaugural AGU Program

Zoe Kanavas, an MSc/Ph.D. candidate in Water Resources Engineering, has been honored for her outstanding work through the American Geophysical Union. She was selected to join the first cohort of AGU's Local Science Partners program, which empowers ambassador AGU members to build sustainable partnerships with their local policymakers. Ambassadors will receive skills-building workshops and have the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. to visit Congress members. Congratulations, Zoe!

Awards bestowed upon Laura Hernandez-Bassal

Laura Hernandez-Bassal, PE, is a current structural and earthquake engineering Ph.D. candidate at UC Davis. Recently, she was awarded fellowships from the ACI Foundation and ASCE. 

The ACI Foundation is a non-profit subsidiary of ACI that promotes progress, innovation, and collaboration in the concrete industry through strategic investments in research, scholarship, and ideas. 

The ACI Foundation awarded Hernandez-Bassal the ACI Presidents' Fellowship. 

Student Spotlight: Ann Willis

Ann Willis, a first-year Ph.D. student in civil and environmental engineering, recently achieved a milestone typically reserved for a senior researcher or faculty member: she secured a $492,000 grant through the state of California Wildlife Conservation Board for studying reconciliation ecology.