Undergraduates Search for Pathways to Disaster Resilience

On May 28, 14 undergraduate students gathered at the University of Kansas in Lawrence for an orientation to the ARISE Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. Packed into the three-day event was teambuilding, research training, and other learning activities to prepare students to do research related to community resilience.

To acclimate students to the program, its goals, and the research, several ARISE faculty members gave presentations at the event. KU professor Elaina Sutley described what motivates her research to design structures that can withstand tornados. She also described the methods she uses to develop risk-informed, decision-making tools.

K-State Professor Jason Bergtold introduced the students to the Seven Community Capitals. These hidden and visible assets give life to towns, and include things like parks, power lines, people, and much more.  Local leaders can build on these assets for a stronger future. Afterwards, students mapped out capitals at KU and gave short presentations about their findings.

A tabletop role-playing game taught the students about city planning. It was facilitated by John Colclazar, program manager at the Wichita State University Environmental Finance Center. After deciding how to invest in infrastructure, the game simulates the consequences of natural disasters on the town.

On a trip to KU’s Natural History Museum, students were welcomed by Teresa MacDonald, Associate Director of Informal Science Education. She divided up the group into teams for a fun ‘backpack breakout’ activity.

Besides learning about ethics and human subject protection, students learned about science communication from Kansas NSF EPSCoR Education Director Claudia Bode and data science from KU Research Assistant Benjy Jacobs. They also socialized and nurtured new connections over dinner.

The orientation concluded with a chance to ask professors and a past participant some questions about the program. Joel Mendez, assistant professor of urban planning at KU, said he not only mentors his students during the summer, but he also learns from them as well. Abe Pankratz, former participant and recent KU graduate, shared advice about conducting research, telling your story, and making friends.

Following the orientation, the students began their nine-week trek to conduct resilience research with 10 faculty mentors across three universities. Six students are living and researching at Kansas State University, six at the University of Kansas, and two at Wichita State University.

Here’s a list of the 2025 ARISE REU students, their faculty mentors, and university placements.

University of Kansas Placements

• Nathan Bishtok, economics & political science at the University of Kansas; mentor: Prof. Joel Mendez
• Joshua Burns, mechanical engineering at the University of Kansas; mentor: Dr. Ted Peltier
• Hannah Gideon, geoscience at Fort Hays State University; mentor: Dr. Justin Hutchinson
• Matthew Goodman, chemical engineering at the University of Kansas; mentor: Dr. Belinda Sturm
• Monique Haynie, chemical engineering at the University of Kansas; mentor: Dr. Belinda Sturm
• Nicholas Thompson, economics and statistics at Kansas State University; mentor: Dr. William Duncan

Kansas State University Placements

• Emily Greer, electrical engineering at Kansas State University; mentor: Dr. Bala Natarajan
• Aneesh Sivakumar, electronics at Kansas State University; mentor: Dr. Bala Natarajan
• Ryan Corrigan, political science at the University of Kansas; mentor:  Dr. Jason Bergtold
• Camille Taylor, agribusiness at Mississippi State University; mentor: Dr. Jason Bergtold
• David Hipp, urban studies and planning at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaig; mentor: Dr. Shakil Kashem
• Joseph Schauwecker, environmental economics at Mississippi State University; mentor: Dr. Vaishali Sharda

Wichita State University Placements

• King Nguyen, computer science at Wichita State University; mentor: Dr. Vivaskumar Aravinthan
• Fayrouz Zeidan, computer science at Louisiana Tech University; mentor: Dr. Vivaskumar Aravinthan