Shurtz and Monfort Awarded Graduate Research Fellowships

Two graduate students within the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering have been notified that they will receive graduate research fellowships funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Benjamin Shurtz and Scott Monfort were named to the list of 2014 NSF Fellows. Those students receiving an honorable mention in the annual fellowship award program included aerospace engineering graduate students Waindim Mbu Youpughu, who is advised by Professor Datta Gaitonde; and Jonathan Kratz, who is advised by Professor Rama Yedavalli. Mechanical engineering (ME) graduate students earning an honoarable mention are: Timothy Seitz, who is advised by Professor Rama Yedavalli; and Michael Vignos, who is advised by Associate Professor Robert Siston. In addition, two ME undergraduates who have applied to enter the ME graduate program this fall received honorable mention — they are Simon Kalouche and Aniruddha Kaushik.

Benjamin Shurtz has demonstrated an interest in medical research, especially in biomechanics and locomotion.

Scott Monfort, who is advised by Ohio State College of Medicine Assistant Professor Ajit Chaudhari, studies mechanisms related to lower extremity sports injuries. One of the projects he works on investigates the role that core stability plays in running injuries in novice runners. He is also part of a project that investigates gait balance of chemotherapy patients as they progress through their treatments​.

This marks the seventh consecutive year that students within the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering have been named recipients of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.