Meet our 2023-2024 Peer Mentors!

The Peer Mentoring Program is designed to provide support to undergraduate students who are interested in pursuing research and inquiry. Our peer mentors are wonderful undergraduate and graduate students who represent active researchers and role models from FAU's colleges and partner campuses. If you are interested in participating in undergraduate research or have questions related to how you can get started in research please email one of the mentors in your college to set up a time to meet. Mentors are available to meet in person or virtually. The Peer Mentor page can tell you more about how YOU can become a mentor too!

To meet with a Peer Mentor, visit them during their office hours, or send them an email to set up an appointment. The Peer Mentor's office hours schedule can be found here.

Peer Mentor Name	College	Peer Mentor email address
Benjamin Cohen	A&L	cohenb2021@fau.edu
Dylan Lewis	BUS	dylanlewis2021@fau.edu
Prajwal Nagaraj	ENG&CS	pnagaraj2023@fau.edu
David Baldwin	HON	dbaldwin2019@fau.edu
Briana Thomas	SWCJ	bthomas2020@fau.edu
Adrianna Tran	MED	trana2019@fau.edu
Isabella Klopukh	SCI	iklopukh2021@fau.edu
Gustavo Mundim	SCI	gmundim2020@fau.edu
Alexis Crowder	EDU/NUR	acrowder2022@fau.edu
Kayla Ahlness	Broward	kahlness2020@fau.edu
Numana Luqman	FAU High	nluqman2019@fau.edu

Peer Mentor Bios

Benjamin Cohen

College & Major College of Arts and Letters, History and Political Science, 4+1 BA/MA in History Program
Research Interest(s) American History, Legal History, Dueling in Early Modern America and England
Fun Facts & Awards I love animals and traveling. Awards: 1st Place in "Music, Art, Literature, Theatre, History, and Philosophy" Category at the 2023 Undergraduate Research Symposium, Martin & Sylvia Shaw Award for Best History Essay, Hugh W. Ripley Prize in History Research
Email cohenb2021@fau.edu

Prajwal Nagaraj

College & Major College of Computer Science and Engineering; MS in Data Science
Research Interest(s) AI in Health, compression sensing, Deep learning, Cybersecurity, OISC Computer Architecture, Robotics, Autonomous vehicles, IOT.
Awards/Scholarly Programs Co -Author for paper on Early Alzheimer disease Recognition using Machine Learning -Feb 2023, Best project Award Aug 2017 for project presentation in B.M.S IT & M.
Hobbies Road Trips, Camping, and Snorkeling
Email pnagaraj2023@fau.edu

David Baldwin

College & MajorWilkes Honors College; Biological and Physical Sciences with a Concentration in Environmental Science
Research Interest(s) molecular biology techniques and quantitative methods to map parasite lifecycles and food webs of the Indian River Lagoon
Awards/Hobbies/Fun Facts Awards: Goldwater Scholarship, two-time Yale Conservation Scholar; I enjoy exploring natural areas, botanical gardens, and natural history museums, as well as spending his time cooking, writing, or watching RuPaul’s Drag Race. I am passionate about exploring the intersections of botany, molecular ecology, and natural history. As well as science communication and equitable access to STEM education.
Email dbaldwin2019@fau.edu

Kayla Ahlness

College & Major College of Science; B.A. in Anthropology, MS in Biological Sciences-Thesis Track
Research Interest(s) Animal conservation, behavioral ecology, data science, citizen science, and biological education
Hobbies & Awards/Scholarly Programs I love playing the drums and learning new songs. I’ve also played competitive roller derby for 10 years. When I have free time, I play board games with my family and friends. Awards: Florida Undergraduate University Dean's Fellowship, 2022-2023; Poster Winner at the FAU Data-Driven Science and AI Conference, Spring 2022; Published two articles in FAURJ 2023
Email kahlness2020@fau.edu

Adrianna Tran

College & Major College of Science; Biological Sciences
Research Interest(s) Epilepsy, Neuro-Inflammatory Pathways, Neuromorphology
Hobbies/Fun Fact Listening to music, watching nature documentaries, and studying different languages
Email trana2019@fau.edu

Isabella Klopukh

College & Major College of Science; Psychology
Research Interest(s) Cognitive Psychology, Attention, Memory and Metacognitive Confidence, Computational Modeling
Awards/Hobbies OURI Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship 2023; I am a teaching assistant for a children’s choir, I love dog training, and I am a Friends TV show super-fan. In my free time I love playing board and card games, as well as going to the theater.
Email iklopukh2021@fau.edu

Gustavo Mundim

College & Major College of Science; Biochemistry
Research Interest(s) Alzheimer’s Disease, Glycobiology, Peptide Chemistry
Awards/Scholary Programs Co-author: “Mucin-type O-glycosylation proximal to β-secretase cleavage site affects APP processing and Aggregation Fate” (DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2022.859822); OURI Undergraduate Research Grant, Spring 2021 and Spring 2022; OURI Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship 2023; Carey and Rosamond Jackson Memorial Scholarship for Outstanding Chemistry Major, Spring 2023
Hobbies I enjoy going to the movies and listening to music in my free time.
Email gmundim2020@fau.edu

Alexis Crowder

College & Major College of Science; Biochemistry
Research Interest(s) Behavioral Neuroscience; Influence of cognitive factors on performance
Hobbies/Fun Fact & AwardsI enjoy spending time outside with my dog, listening to music, and reading. My career goal is to be a surgeon. Awards : OURI Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship 2023
Email acrowder2022@fau.edu

Numana Luqman

College & Major College of Science; Cellular Neuroscience
Research Interest(s) Cellular and Behavioral Neuroscience and Cell Biology
Hobbies Listening to music, swimming, and reading
Email nluqman2019@fau.edu

Briana Thomas

College & Major College of Social Work & Criminal Justice; Criminal Justice
Research Interest(s) Legal System
Hobbies/Fun Fact & Awards I enjoy listening to music and painting. My career goal is to become an attorney. Awards: Undergraduate Researcher of the Year 2023, 2nd Place in "Classroom Research Project/Assignment" Category at the 2023 Undergraduate Research Symposium
Email bthomas2020@fau.edu

Dylan Lewis

College & Major College of Business; Economics
Research Interest(s) Business, economics, and stock investing
Hobbies/Fun Fact & Awards I enjoy spending my free time working out, listening to music, and hanging out with my friends. My career goal is to open my own business.
Email Dylanlewis2021@fau.edu