In 2022 CSU was awarded a $2,000,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (read story here). The heart of the program is to create teams of engineers, therapists, psychologists, and urban experts who collaborate on physical rehabilitation teams.  The end goal is to create technologies that empower people with disabilities. This fall we accepted our first cohort of doctoral students into the traineeship program.  Not only are these students interacting with faculty across colleges at CSU, but they are assembling transdisciplinary research teams that actively partner with people with disabilities.

Luci Duncan comes to CSU from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, however this is not her first trip to Cleveland!  In the summer of 2022 she participated in CSU’s “Research Experiences for Undergraduates” rehabilitation engineering program.  Her work centered on issues with patients with Chiari Malformation, and culminated with her presenting her research findings at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized Scientists.  Since starting at CSU this fall, she is already leading a journal club initiative!

Breanne Welsh graduated from Mount Union’s Biomedical Engineering program. As an undergraduate student she analyzed human gait parameters and assessed both voluntary and non-voluntary muscle activity and heart performance. She also ventured outside of the USA, completing a trip with a group of students and faculty member to Nigeria.  Her current interests are related to tissue mechanics and the application of engineering to solve medical problems.

Erin Clark graduated with a degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Akron.  Her interests in the field can be traced all the way back to her high school days when she shadowed researchers involved with Functional Electrical Stimulation of paralyzed individuals at the Veterans Affair Hospital in Cleveland.  This interest has been re-awakened at CSU where she is working with the spinal cord injury lab within the Center for Human Machine Systems.

Claire Foley started this fall in the Levin College of Urban Affairs.  She has two masters degrees from the University of Montana, one in Public Administration and the other in Environmental Studies.  She has a wealth of experience with AmeriCorps programs, specifically efforts related to recruitment and assessment.  In addition, she served on the Montana Campus Compact Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, and created a strategic, long-term DEI plan for the organization.  Her interests at CSU relate to public policy and meeting the needs of individuals with disabilities.

About CSU and the Washkewicz College of Engineering

​​​​​​Cleveland State University is a public institution located in Cleveland, Ohio. The university has an enrollment of more than 16,000 students in programs at the baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral levels. The university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is currently awaiting reaffirmation of accreditation. Washkewicz College of Engineering offers graduate and undergraduate program. The undergraduate programs are accredited by ABET. This year, the College will celebrate its Centennial Anniversary. Visit csuohio.edu/fenn100 to support and engage in activities. To learn more about the College, please visit: engineering.csuohio.edu.