The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) proudly announces a highly successful year for our WE Local Collegiate Competition program!
Collegiate members from around the world participated in five WE Local conferences held in 2025, where they demonstrated their research to a wide audience of engineering professionals, showcased their presentation skills, and competed for prestigious awards.
These conferences were held across the globe ― three in the U.S. (Milwaukee, Wis.; Cherry Hill, N.J.; and San Jose, Calif.), one in Bengaluru, India, and one in Prague, Czechia.
The WE Local Collegiate Competition student finalists were selected via a rigorous online abstract judging process. Award recipients in the U.S. were selected from the finalists based on oral and poster presentations. Award recipients outside of the U.S. were selected from the finalists based on poster presentations.
The competitions provided the audience and finalists with a diverse array of interesting topics, innovative research, and inspiration for the future.
Here are the recipients of the 2025 WE Local Collegiate Competition awards by city:
San Jose, United States
Undergraduate
- 1st place: Diya Godavarti (Georgia Institute of Technology)
Development of a Point-of-Care Potassium Biosensor for Early Detection of Chronic Kidney Disease - 2nd place: Rim Nassiri (Augustana College)
Leveraging Vision Language Models for Specialized Agriculture Tasks - 3rd place: Milena Zeru (University of California, San Diego)
Affinity Hydrogels for Protein Immobilization
Graduate
- 1st place: Eden Winslow (University of California, Davis)
Affected Muscles of Children Born with Upper-Limb Deficiencies Retain Proportional Motor Control - 2nd place: Hayley Kumagai (University of California, Davis)
Utilizing Motion Capture and Neural Networks to Study Human Hand Kinematics for Embodiment
Cherry Hill, United States
Undergraduate
- 1st place: Maya Schreiber (University of Maryland, Baltimore County)
Measuring Oxygen Consumption Rate to Understand Optimal Chronic Wound Healing Environments - 2nd place: Nicole Massoumi (Yale University)
Combining WEE1/PKMYT1 Dual Inhibition and CDK4/6 Inhibitor to Enhance Therapeutic Efficacy in Breast Cancer - 3rd place: Sanya Majmudar (New Jersey Institute of Technology)
Neurovascular Pressure Injury Model for TBI and Blast Injury Mechanisms
Graduate
- 1st place: Morgan Smith (University of Houston)
Python-Based Machine Learning for Three-Dimensional Model Segmentation and Analysis - 2nd place: Devin Golla (University of Pennsylvania)
Engineering Split Cas13bt3 for Inducible RNA Editing - 3rd place: Ozge Uyanik (University of South Florida)
Development of 3D Printed Master Molds for Microfluidic Channel Fabrication
Milwaukee, United States
Undergraduate
- 1st place: Ashley Strehlow (Illinois State University)
Intelligent Intersection Management: Using AI to Replace 4-Way Stops With Real-Time Traffic Lights - 2nd place: Aquarina Hoanca (University of Minnesota Twin Cities)
Effects of Greenhouse Building Materials on the Energy Consumption of Cold Climate Solar Greenhouses - 3rd place: Callah Robinson (Marian University)
Micropatterned Surfaces Affect Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Alignment and Osteogenic Potential
Graduate
- 1st place: Ayomide Zul (Case Western Reserve University)
Surrogate Modeling and Machine Learning Framework for Lead Pipe Classification: Data-Driven Approach - 2nd place: Kate France (University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy)
“Anaphylactic Shocker!”: The Use of a Dynamic QR Code Medical Bracelet to Administer a Practice Epinephrine Auto-Injector During a Staged Medical Emergency - 3rd place: Akosua Cobbina (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville)
Extending the Lifespan of Internet of Things (IoT) Systems: Tackling Early Decommissioning and Electronic Waste
Bengaluru, India
Undergraduate
- Best in Show: Alina Paul & Shrilekha Mudunuri (CMR Institute of Technology)
Optimizing Cancer Detection Through Gene Expression Data
Prague, Czechia
Undergraduate
- Best in Show: Candela Cusnaider (Munster Technological University, Cork)
Enhancing Laparoscopic Surgical Safety With TroSure: A Real-Time Force-Sensing Device
Postgraduate
- Best in Show: Daniela Janstová (University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague)
VR-Based Translation of Czech Sign Language Using Machine Learning
Congratulations to all the finalists for their hard work and excellent display of their research! Special thanks go to the WE Local Advisory Board, Local Host Committee, and SWE Headquarters staff for their tireless work to organize the conferences and ensure the WE Local Collegiate Competition was a resounding success.
Planning for the 2026 WE Local conferences has already begun! Keep an eye on the WE Local website for more information about how you can participate in the 2026 WE Locals.
