Math & Computer Science Archives - ��TV

Computer science takes flight in bird conservation effort

amandaorourke — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 12:00:00 +0000

Computer science and environmental science may seem worlds apart, but at ��TV, one project is showing how closely connected they can be.

Students and faculty from ��TV are collaborating with the Middle ��TV Riverkeeeper to create a digital platform designed to support bird conservation research. It will organizeeverything from bird sightings to audio recordings that are currently being collected via electronic monitoring stations placed along local creeks and the ��TV River.

Anusha Veluswamy, assistant professor of math & computer science at ��TV, and two of her students are building the platform using digital tools from BirdNET, an open-source research and bioacoustics platform developed by CornellLab. They are also linking a third-party database from the BirdWeather platform.

The new platform will allow ��TV and the Middle ��TV Riverkeeper to track how bird species populations change over time, creating a centralized system for long-term environmental analysis. Users will have access to a dashboard in the fall. At the center of this effort is computer science, which is helping transform scattered observations into meaningful environmental data.

“In simple terms, we are building the technology that turns individual bird observations and recordings into a coordinated, organized conservation effort,” said Veluswamy. “The goal is to make it easier for researchers, students and the community to understand what is happening in our local ecosystems and to use that information to support environmental health.”

Ibrahim Alqassass ’28 and Jaylon Lewis ’28, both computer science majors, recently joined the development team. Alqassass interned with the Middle ��TV Riverkeeper Association last year and was immediately interested in joining the initiative.

“My work is primarily focused on building the user interface for our website in coordination with my co-worker, Jaylon,” Alqassass explained. “Currently, I am transitioning the user interface from a static design into a fully functional website. This includes developing role-based user dashboards, a function that will allow individuals to view specific bird sightings filtered by their chosen time periods.”

The project reveals how essential technology is to modern conservation work.

“E�Ա��ǲԳ��Գٲ�� research today generates too much information to manage by hand,” Veluswamy said. “Computer science helps bring order to that information, connect the pieces together and make it useful for long-term conservation planning.”

One of the biggest challenges for Lewis has been learning the programming languages he needs to create the platform.

“We’re working with a lot of different languages that I’ve never used before so there’s a learning curve,” Lewis said. “The biggest reward has been learning a new programming language and then applying it to the project and seeing the benefits.”

Another challenge is managing the wide range of data collected. Audio recordings gathered from monitoring stations often contain much more than bird calls, including wind, flowing water, insects and distant traffic. Veluswamy and her students must also organize volunteer-submitted sightings, species records and conservation information while ensuring everything remains accurate and connected within the system.

“Real-world environmental data is rarely neat or perfectly organized,” Veluswamy said. “The challenge is bringing structure, accuracy and clarity to a large and complex collection of sounds, observations and conservation records.”

The work highlights the growing importance of interdisciplinary collaboration. Environmental scientists provide expertise on ecosystems, migration patterns and species behavior, while computer scientists develop systems capable of storing, organizing and analyzing large amounts of information.

“Computer science allows us to look at the bigger picture. It turns individual observations into long-term trends. It highlights changes that develop slowly and might otherwise go unnoticed,” Veluswamy said. “By organizing and analyzing environmental information on a scale, technology helps reveal insights that support better conservation decisions and a deeper understanding of ecosystem health.”

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Computer science grad begins career with U.S. State Department

amandaorourke — Sat, 09 May 2026 17:00:00 +0000

After his graduation from ��TV, KaMeron Hopkins will begin a position with the U.S. Department of State, a continuation of the prestigious and highly competitive Foreign Affairs Information Technology Fellowship awarded to him in 2024.

FAIT Fellows agree to a five-year commitment upon entry into the U.S. Foreign Service as information management specialists. The first assignment for the Odenton, Maryland, native is an internship in Brussels, Belgium, to prepare him for onboarding as a full-time Diplomatic Technology Officer. After he completes his internship Hopkins will return stateside for onboarding training and to choose his State Department post.

“I’m looking forward to the travel that comes with being a DTO, along with the challenges,” Hopkins said. “Being a DTO requires you to adapt to constantly changing environments from embassy to embassy, and that’s a nice change of pace compared to what I’m used to.”

DTOs support and maintain secure and reliable IT tools and resources, ensuring that the State Department, other federal agencies, nongovernment partners and Americans overseas can effectively communicate at over 275 overseas posts in nearly 200 countries.

In addition to tuition assistance, mentorship and professional development, FAIT Fellows are also placed in summer internships. Hopkins, who majored in computer science, completed an internship last summer at one of the State Department’s annexes in Washington, D.C., where he provided IT support.

“The FAIT Fellowship prepared me professionally by allowing me to become more adaptable,” Hopkins said. “When the other fellows and I came to the department, it was going through a mass reorganization, causing a lot of challenging and stressful obstacles. That experience taught me how to adapt to situations as they arose.”

Hopkins’ interest in the State Department and fellowship stemmed from his work as an intern with the U.S. Department of Defense, a position he began in high school that centered around data engineering and analysis.

“I chose this career path because it combines what I like to do as well as interests I never had the chance to capitalize on,” Hopkins explained. “My original plan was to do government work on a military scale. But over time, I felt unfulfilled and wanted to lean more into my personal interests. I believe this career path will accomplish this.”

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Using abstract mathematics to solve real-world problems

amandaorourke — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 13:00:00 +0000

Steven Scheirer, assistant professor of mathematics and computer science at ��TV, and Alessia Revelli ’27, a mathematics and data science double major from Harleysville, Pennsylvania, collaborated to explore how abstract mathematics can model real-world systems.

Alessia Revelli ’27 presents at the fall meeting of the Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware Section of the Mathematical Association of America.

“One of the beauties of mathematics is the ability to frame real-world systems, such as moving robots throughout a factory, in an abstract setting,” Scheirer said. “By studying these systems abstractly, we can discover properties that must always hold, regardless of the specific real-world implementation.”

The duo built upon his prior research on configuration spaces.

“You can think of this as a way of mathematically modeling a system of robots that move along a set of tracks throughout a factory,” Scheirer said. “Different versions of configuration spaces depend on specific rules the robots must follow, with each configuration representing a snapshot of where the robots are at a given moment.”

In their project, Scheirer and Revelli introduced a new structure called a grouped configuration space. In this setting, the robots must follow two key rules: certain predefined locations must always be occupied by at least one robot, and the robots are divided into groups, with no two robots from the same group occupying the same location.

With this framework in place, they set out to answer a fundamental question: is it always possible to move the robots from one valid configuration to another without breaking the established rules? The answer was dependent upon the number of groups involved.

“If there are only two groups, there are certain cases in which it’s not possible to move from one configuration to another,” Scheirer said, “but we were able to show that if there are at least three groups, then it’s always possible to move between any two configurations.”

For Revelli, the project constituted a personal milestone: her first experience writing a research paper.

“Learning how to write for a mathematical audience — being precise and clear while still making the ideas accessible — was a new experience,” Revelli said. “I had to adjust to the revision process, which involved rethinking explanations, restructuring arguments and refining proofs. It was challenging at first, but it ultimately helped me grow as both a writer and a mathematician.”

Scheirer and Revelli presented their work at the fall meeting of the Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware Section of the Mathematical Association of America at York College.

“Sharing our research and engaging with mathematicians was an amazing experience,” Revelli said. “It helped me develop confidence in communicating mathematical ideas and gave me insight into the broader research community.”

Revelli believes the skills she gained through this experience will serve her well as she pursues her dream of working at NASA. This summer, she will intern with Barrios Technology at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, where she will gain hands-on experience applying mathematics and data science in a research environment.

“This research has strengthened a wide range of skills that are directly applicable to both engineering work and graduate-level research: problem solving, communication and collaboration,” Revelli said. Should Revelli choose to pursue an advanced degree, she adds that “having experience with a full research process will be extremely beneficial.”

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��TV student earns Gilman study abroad scholarship

amandaorourke — Tue, 20 Jan 2026 13:00:00 +0000

Alessia Revelli ’27, a mathematics and data science double major from Harleysville, Pennsylvania, was awarded the prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to support her study-abroad program at the Sant’Anna Institute in Sorrento, Italy.

“I was really drawn to Gilman’s mission of cultural exchange,” Revelli said. “I appreciate that Gilman emphasizes bringing lessons home and I want to what I learn not just for myself, but to help other students see that studying abroad is possible for them too.”

The Gilman Scholarship is a merit-based program funded by Congress that supports American undergraduates in gaining skills vital to the nation’s security and economic strength through immersive experiences with other languages and cultures. Eligible applicants must be U.S. citizens or nationals and recipients of a Pell Grant, a federal need-based aid program.

Following graduation, Revelli plans to pursue a career in STEM research with the goal of working at NASA. This summer, she will intern with Barrios Technology at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, where she will gain hands-on experience applying mathematics and data science in a real-world research environment.

“Studying abroad will strengthen the analytical, intercultural and problem-solving skills essential for my long-term goal of working as a NASA researcher in mathematics and data science,” Revelli said. “Working with peers from diverse backgrounds, academically and culturally, will prepare me for the international, interdisciplinary collaborations that define STEM research today.”

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Computer science major awarded FAIT Fellowship from U.S. Department of State

ERI — Thu, 02 May 2024 04:00:00 +0000

��TV’s KaMeron Hopkins ’26, a computer science major from Odenton, Maryland, has been awarded the prestigious and highly competitive Foreign Affairs Information Technology Fellowship by the U.S. Department of State — one of only 15 awarded annually in the United States.

The FAIT Fellowship provides undergraduate and graduate students in IT-related fields with tuition assistance, summer internships, mentorship and professional development to launch their careers in the U.S. Foreign Service as information management specialists.

KaMeron Hopkins ’26

Hopkins’ interest in the fellowship opportunity stems from his work as an intern with the U.S. Department of Defense, a position he has held since he was in high school that has generally centered around data engineering and analysis.

“Last summer I focused on data interoperability between system networks and was mostly tasked with finding and researching how compatible two different data systems are and how one system can transfer, receive and intercept data efficiently,” Hopkins said. “Through my time interning with the Department of Defense I’ve gained insight into how I can use my computer science skills to make a difference on a national level.”

A first-generation college student, Hopkins said news of his fellowship success felt surreal.

“It felt rewarding, though, as I had been putting in a lot of hours and long nights working on my application over the last eight months,” he said. “It felt good to see the fruits of my labor.”

“Being chosen for the FAIT Fellowship reflects an intense competition, and seeing KaMeron’s dedication acknowledged with this remarkable opportunity fills me with pride,” said Karol Weaver, professor of history and coordinator for fellowship advising. “The journey ahead through the FAIT Fellowship promises transformative experiences that will shape KaMeron’s career path for years to come.”

The FAIT program launched in 2016 as part of the State Department’s efforts to attract top technology talent. Foreign Affairs IT Fellows receive:

Up to $43,500 annually for two years in academic funding for tuition, room and board, books, mandatory fees and some travel expenses.
Stipends, housing and travel allowances for two summer internships: A domestic internship in Washington, D.C., at the U.S. Department of State and an overseas internship at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate.
Personalized mentoring and professional development opportunities throughout the program.

Upon successful completion of the fellowship program and the State Department’s entry requirements, fellows receive an appointment in the Foreign Service as a Diplomatic Technology Officer. Fellows agree to a five-year commitment upon entry into the Foreign Service, where they will support and maintain secure and reliable IT tools and resources, ensuring that the State Department, other federal agencies, nongovernment partners and Americans overseas can effectively communicate at over 275 overseas posts in nearly 200 countries.

Hopkins plans to remain with government work in the IT field after completing his Foreign Service.

“An important piece of my motivation for pursuing my postgraduate goals is all the people who have supported me thus far. I owe what I have not just to myself but to a few others and knowing that they’ve helped me get this far fills me with a sense of purpose,” Hopkins said. “I’m someone who refuses to settle for something comfortable when I know I can pursue greater heights, even if it’s a dream greater than myself. I owe it to myself to continue to push for bigger things.”

Hopkins’ FAIT fellowship is the second in three years awarded to a ��TV student.

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Double-major interns with tech company that supported her college education

ERI — Thu, 24 Aug 2023 04:00:00 +0000

Sarah Vigliotti ’24, a double major in mathematics and computer science, reunited with a tech company in Syracuse, New York.

Vigliotti, of Chittenango, New York, first made connections with SRC Inc. as a high schooler and returned four years later as a software engineer intern to design and develop testing software for physical equipment — and implementing new features as needed.

Vigliotti participated in the CNY STEM Scholarship Program, which supports central New York high school seniors who plan to pursue a college degree in a STEM-related field. Vigliotti interviewed with SRC engineers, who later recommended her for a scholarship.

Sarah Vigliotti ’24

“This program put me into a local network of STEM professionals to create connections, as well as a scholarship for college, and the guaranteed internship I just completed,” Vigliotti explained.

Her internship with SRC gave her real-world experience similar to what a full-time employee might experience.

“I dealt with tasks that could have been given to full-time software engineers and attended meetings with project leads and other developers to contribute to the software.” Vigliotti said. “SRC Inc. has a good reputation for treating their interns well and providing excellent learning opportunities and actual work experience. They also have a variety of other departments, and that gave me a broader understanding of the different facets of the tech industry.”

For Vigliotti, the real-world experience has been remarkable.

“Gaining real work experience working in an industry facility with a software team will prepare me greatly for a full-time position in a similar environment.”

After graduating, Vigliotti is considering a “three-peat” at SRC — but next time, for full-time employment.

Learn more about ��TV’s Department of Mathematics & Computer Science.

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Mathematician Nurtures Belonging, Community Among Students

ERI — Thu, 08 Dec 2022 05:00:00 +0000

This is the second story in our series on Women in STEM.

As a child, Alathea Jensen always enjoyed playing with patterns, solving puzzles and using logic. So logically, math became her passion. Math was also her father’s best subject and he encouraged her to try as hard as she could. Jensen sees a pattern in that too.

“That’s something a lot of female mathematicians have in common – our dads encouraged us,” Jensen, assistant professor of mathematics at ��TV, said. She also speculates that the solitary nature of mathematics drew her to the field.

“Math has traditionally been a subject where people could be successful working alone, for the simple reason that it doesn’t cost any money to do,” she explained. “All you need is paper and pencil. That’s also the reason why there were always a few successful female mathematicians even in past centuries. It’s the kind of thing you can do while sitting sedately in your parlor.”

I try to build up their confidence and help them understand that it’s normal not to be able to do everything perfectly. Being aware of what you don’t know is a sign of intelligence. If you have confidence in your ability to learn, then you can do anything.

Today, Jensen mentors her own female students. “It’s really important to feel a sense of belonging and community, because without that, students won’t want to finish the major or enter the field professionally, and why should they?” she said. “That’s what’s so difficult about fields where one group of people is underrepresented. It’s a self-perpetuating problem.”

Jensen’s female students are fortunate to have a mentor guiding them, something Jensen did not always have. In high school, she described having teachers who supported and encouraged her. Unfortunately, when she went to a big college, she felt she “just kind of disappeared in the crowd.” After college, Jensen taught high school math, where her principal was a role model for her.

“She demonstrated the idea that women can be authoritative, self-confident, a little bit terrifying, and also compassionate and kind at the same time,” Jensen said. “These things are not mutually exclusive.”

Currently, 10 out of her 22 advisees are women and 18 of the 35 math majors at SU are women.

However, not all environments are as welcoming and inclusive as SU, something Jensen tries to prepare her female students for.

“I try to build up their confidence and help them understand that it’s normal not to be able to do everything perfectly,” Jensen explained. “Being aware of what you don’t know is a sign of intelligence. The most important thing is to pay attention and ask questions so that you can pick up the needed skills quickly. If you have confidence in your ability to learn, then you can do anything.”

Not One To Be Underestimated

Despite the progress society has made in making math a more inclusive field for women, Jensen still faces assumptions about her level of expertise and competence.

“Once, a computer programmer I know mentioned that I should learn to program computers,” Jensen said. “I replied that I had been programming computers since I was 16 and reeled off about a dozen programming languages that I know.

“Another time, after a talk I attended on the topic of radio interference, some attendees were speculating about how walkie-talkies work,” Jensen said. She explained the answer to their question, drawing on personal experiences. “Everyone stared at me for a few seconds like I was crazy, and then continued to discuss how walkie-talkies might possibly work as if my voice was just the sound of the wind in the trees,” she explained.

Jensen thinks the reputation of mathematicians as loners is getting to be less true today.

“There is a lot more collaboration than there used to be,” she explained. “I attended a summer research program this summer where I collaborated with eight other mathematicians all across the country, and we’re writing some papers together now. There are a lot of programs like that to bring people together.”

Excitingly, in those current research collaborations, about half of the members are women.

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Math Major Accepted into Four NSF Research Programs

ERI — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 04:00:00 +0000

Elizabeth Balas ’23, a mathematics major from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, has been accepted into four notoriously competitive Research Experiences for Undergraduates programs funded by the National Science Foundation.

Balas was accepted into programs at Ithaca College, the University of Michigan-Dearborn and Texas State University, and will attend the University of Wisconsin La Crosse for an in-person program focused on ecological modeling of the Mississippi River Basin, which Balas said is a “mix of my interests in math and biological subjects, and would overall strengthen my interest in applied mathematics.”

Balas believes the program will “benefit my future career aspirations because it will expose me to applied math topics that I have not seen in undergrad so far and will hopefully motivate me further to pursue this topic in graduate school.”

The National Science Foundation funds a large number of research opportunities for undergraduate students through its REU program. An REU site consists of approximately ten undergraduate students who work in the research programs at the host institution. Each student is assigned a specific research project, where they work closely with the faculty and other researchers. Students are granted stipends and, in many cases, assistance with housing and travel.

Balas found out about the REU opportunities through her advisor, Alathea Jensen, assistant professor math and computer science, who encouraged Balas to apply and wrote one of the recommendation letters Balas needed.

Jensen estimates she has written recommendation letters for 15 to 20 students since arriving at ��TV three years ago. Balas is the first student who was accepted into any REU program, let alone four.

“I was shocked and elated when I heard of Liz’s acceptance into four programs,” Jensen said.

“I’m extremely grateful for my professors and wonderful advisor, Dr. Jensen, who cares so much about her students,” Balas said.

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Notice Regarding Blackbaud 2020 Ransomware Attack

ERI — Sat, 18 Jul 2020 04:00:00 +0000

��TV was recently notified of a security incident at one of our third-party software application partners—Blackbaud.

This incident occurred wholly at Blackbaud, a widely used software service and research provider for engagement and fundraising offices in higher education and nonprofits. Blackbaud experienced a ransomware attack and informed us on July 16, 2020, that SU is among the institutions that may have been affected. SU is aware of at least 250 other institutions around the country that have been affected. None of ��TV’s on-campus systems or its computing environment were affected. A full description of the incident is available from Blackbaud here: .

Please note that no credit card, banking information, or social security numbers were compromised in this incident. SU’s use of Blackbaud is similar to a basic directory—name, address, phone number, etc. We retrieve information from within the Blackbaud system, but we do not store or share any information with Blackbaud. SU values the privacy of our individual community members and we are dedicated to protecting the information with which we are entrusted. We take the protection and proper use of your information very seriously.

SU will continue to monitor this incident. If more detailed information about the incident becomes available, we will post updates to the SU website in this location.

If you have any immediate concerns or questions, please contact SU’s IT department at .

Jennifer Servedio
Chief Information Officer
��TV

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Class of 1959 Grad Helped Launch Apollo 11

ERI — Thu, 18 Jul 2019 04:00:00 +0000

Jon Haussler ’59 graduated from ��TV with degrees in math, physics and chemistry, so it would surprise few that the idea of launching rockets and satellites into space intrigued him.

Responding to an ad touting endless job opportunities in northern Alabama, the then recent grad made the trek from Pennsylvania and was hired almost immediately at the U.S. Army Ballistic Missile Agency. Haussler, along with thousands of other young engineers, possessed the skills, determination and unrelenting curiosity necessary to build the nation’s bourgeoning space program.

John Haussler ’59

In 1960, two years after the establishment of NASA, Haussler became an original member of the Marshall Space Flight Center, which was tasked to develop the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo program.

“To me, landing on the moon sounded pretty good. And we had the resources we needed to get the job done,” Haussler recently recalled to Catherine Godbey of .

As a member of the early Apollo missions, Haussler plotted the velocity of rockets and worked on flight evaluations, looking for anomalies between post- and pre-flight trajectories.

During Apollo 11, the mission that ultimately culminated with Neil Armstrong becoming the first person to step on the lunar surface, Haussler was an integral member behind the scenes. He worked with a team to slingshot Apollo 11’s Saturn V rockets around the moon to avoid trajectories that presented collision hazards.

After Apollo 11 and the first moon landing, Haussler continued at NASA, eventually overseeing various elements of the Apollo missions that followed. He retired in 1994, after a 34-year career.

“It was an amazing experience,” Haussler told Godbey. “There aren’t many of us still around that worked through the entire Apollo program. That is probably one of the things I’m most proud of, working in the program from its inception to completion.”

Saturday, July 20, marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. NASA is celebrating with .

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Math & Computer Science Archives - ����TV