SUNY New Paltz | Undergraduate Research

Summer Grants

Our Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) grant supports faculty-mentored undergraduate student projects during an 8-week summer period.

Funding

Up to $750 for supplies, participant payments, etc. to carry out the project. For more details, see our chart of purchase types allowed by each RSCA grant.
A stipend of approximately $3,700 (hourly rate) to the student.
A stipend of $1,500 to the faculty mentor.

Supplemental Rising Sophomore Award

Most SURE applicants are advanced students (ex, rising seniors). Therefore, we offer the Rising Sophomore Award to a rising sophomore (someone in between first and second years) who works on the project with the faculty mentor and the upperclass SURE student. This award provides up to $3,700 stipend (hourly rate) for 300 hours of work, and an additional $300 stipend to the mentor. The award is not a stand-alone award; it must be associated with a funded SURE project. See the application below for details and expectations.

We hope that an early opportunity like this will develop into a fruitful long-term collaboration with the faculty mentor or prepare the student for later grant opportunities.

Eligibility

These competitive grants are open to all undergraduate students and their full-time faculty mentors.

Projects must satisfy these core criteria are:

Through one-on-one training from the faculty expert, the project extends the student’s learning and professional development beyond what is possible in the classroom.
Projects are also intensive, taking the 8-week summer period (or longer) to complete. Mentors should meet regularly each week with their student to discuss progress and problems that arise during the semester.
The student is involved at a high level in multiple phases of the project.

Most projects involve only one faculty mentor and one student. But we have occasionally supported larger projects with two faculty mentors and/or two students who split the award.

SURE Application Materials

SURE 2023 Call for Proposals (Word).
SURE Supplemental Award for Rising Sophomores (Word)
SURE Proposal Evaluation Sheet (pdf)

Samples of Prior Proposals (pdfs)

*These samples use discontinued proposal forms. None should be viewed as a flawless model to imitate. Rather, they should be viewed as good models for clarity in particular.

SURE 2023 Award Winners

Paula Abruzzo, Psychology with a concentration in Psychobiology, ‘25

Mentor: Giordana Grossi, Psychology

An Electrophysiological Exploration of Orthographic Precision

Michael Anderson, Mathematics, ‘24

Mentor: Jaiung Jun, Mathematics

The Linear and Integer Programming and Their Applications

Mireya Anthony, Biology, ‘24

Mentors: Maureen Morrow, Biology & Pamela St. John, Chemistry

Characterization of the New Bacterial Species: Bradyrhizobium NP1

Matt Benson, Printmaking, ‘26

Mentor: Aurora De Armendi, Printmaking

Exploration in Lithography; Lo-Shu, Manière Noire, and Creating a Negative Image

Briana Bonilla, Electrical Engineering, ‘25

Mentor: Kevin Shanley, Engineering

Diffusing CO2 Through Agilus-30

Vic Bucci, Biology, ‘24

Mentor: Kara Belinsky, Biology

Conservation in the Face of Urbanization: What Nest Boxes and Bird Banding Can Tell Us About Ecosystem Health

Jazmyne Daily-Simpson, Graphic Design, ‘25

Mentor: Keely Heuer, Art History

Before the Bauhaus: An Exploration of Branding in Ancient Greek Coinage

Mariah Day, Sculpture, ‘24

Mentor: Michael Asbill, Studio Art/Sculpture

Community Carbon

Dylan Frawley, Geology, ‘24

Mentor: Kaustubh Patwardhan, Geology

Study of the 3D Geomorphology of Magma Mingling Structures Using Digital Image Analysis

James Gordineer, Mechanical Engineering, ‘24

Mentor: Ping-Chuan Wang, Engineering

Simulation of Degradation in Al(Cu) Interconnect in IC Chip

Ryan Grodin, Chemistry, ‘24

Mentor: Megan Ferguson, Chemistry

Characterizing Bacterial Predator-Prey Adhesion Using Atomic Force Microscopy

Ezra Heller, Printmaking, ‘24

Mentor: Aurora De Armendi, Printmaking

Printmaking Inks with Local and Accessibly Foraged Pigments and Colorants as an Educational Practice

Emily Herbert, Physics, ‘24

Mentor: Cheyne Glass, Mathematics

A Category-Theoretic Approach to Language Processing

Delaney Long, Biology, Environmental Concentration, ‘24

Mentor: David Richardson, Biology

Understanding the Largest Daily Migration: Zooplankton Daily Migration in Mohonk Lake

Claire O’Connor, Physics & Astronomy, ‘23

Mentor: Eric Myers, Physics & Astronomy

Investigating Gravitational Waves with Data from LIGO

Brian Ordonez, Computer Engineering, ‘25

Mentor: Jiun-Hsin (Vincent) Liao, Engineering

Establishment of Semiconductor Test and Characterization Capability in SUNY New Paltz

Alessandra Papaleo, Art History, ‘25

Mentor: Beth E. Wilson, Art History

Cutting Critique: Dada Collage and Photomontage in Opposition to World War I

Jennifer Poroye, Music, Concentration in Recording & Electronic Music, ‘24

Mentors: Mark Dziuba, Music & Roy Thompson, Music

“In My Head”: EP Project

Glenda Rodrigues Santos Giordani, Mechanical Engineering, ‘’24

Mentor: Rachmadian Wulandana, Mechanical Engineering

Assessing the Thermal Conductivity and Moisture Transport of Hempcrete

Oliver Similton, Psychological Science, ‘24

Mentor: Matthew Wice, Psychology

The Morality of Ghosting

Katherina Szurnicki, Geography, ‘24

Zoe Eagle, Geology, ‘24

Mentor: Salvatore Engel-Di Mauro, Geography and Environmental Studies

Urban Soil Contamination in Kingston, NY

EmmaJean Taylor, Psychology, ‘23

Mentor: Tabitha Holmes, Psychology

How True Personal Stories Help Us Understand Ourselves and Others

Brandon Torres, Mechanical Engineering, ‘24

Mentor: Mahdi Farahikia, Mechanical Engineering

Machine-Dynamic Visualization Software Development - An Engineering Education Approach

Carolyn Weinstein, History/Geography/Political Science, ‘24

Mentor: Stephen Pampinella, Political Science & International Relations

Racial Hierarchy during US Military Occupations, 1898-1952