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New Jersey Institute of Technology served up a full day of fanfare as its advanced degree graduates walked across the stage in the Wellness and Events Center in three commencement ceremonies on May 15. The 2024 class comprises more than 1,400 graduates and reflects the institution’s steady growth and upward trajectory.

Danna Valentina Sanchez Hernandez '25 took a big leap leaving her home country of Colombia to pursue her undergrad studies in the U.S., but that journey is paying off at NJIT — her research exploring the fluid dynamics and locomotion of marine life has recently led to a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship.

This year’s Goldwater class is comprised of just 438 scholars from across the U.S.

An all-freshman team, Rackify, was the top NJIT winner and third overall at this year’s MakeNJIT hardware hackathon, creating a smart bicycle rack that automatically locks your ride by activating an RFID reader and extending an arm through the spokes or frame.

NJIT’s annual celebration of its top student researchers kicked off at the 2024 Dana Knox Student Research Showcase, which once again highlighted a stunning array of innovation and discovery from every corner of the STEM disciplines.

Now in its 19th year, the showcase competition featured 68 diverse research projects presented by students from NJIT’s six colleges at the university Campus Center.

From an estimated pool of over 5,000 college sophomores and juniors, two NJIT students — Danna Valentina Sanchez Hernandez and Owen West — have been named Goldwater Scholars this year by the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation. The scholarship is recognized as among the country’s most prestigious for STEM undergraduates pursuing research careers.

Vaccines remain the gold standard of protection against dangerous pathogens, but take considerable time and vast resources to develop. Rapidly mutating viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 can blunt their effectiveness and even render them obsolete.

New Jersey Institute of Technology aims to be a nexus of innovation that embraces new tech, commercializes groundbreaking research, leverages its diversity and tackles global environmental and socioeconomic challenges under a new strategic plan that extends through 2030.

The plan, NJIT Makes An Innovation Nexus, identifies six priorities, spells out the university’s mission to be a leader in research, innovation and entrepreneurship, and reaffirms its core values, including collaboration, social responsibility, diversity and sustainability.

NJIT has established employee resource groups (ERG) that meet regularly and encourage faculty and staff to connect outside of their direct working relationships. This month, NJIT is celebrating its Women’s Leadership and Employee Resource Group and publishing an employee spotlight on one of its members: Miosotis Hernandez, assistant director for first year engineering programs in Newark College of Engineering.

Can you introduce us to your ERG?

Six NJIT researchers have secured grants in the latest round of funding provided by the New Jersey Health Foundation (NJHF), which has increased its funding in both its Community Health, Social Services and Education Program, as well as its traditional research program this year.

The $4 million round of funding brings the NJHF’s total to $70 million since the inception of its annual grant program.

Recently, the ingenuity of Newark College of Engineering’s brightest first-year students was on full display at the 2024 NCE First Year Engineering Design Showcase.