Pulver Science Scholars

Saathvika Diviti ’25 attended Farmington High School in Farmington, CT. In high school, Saathvika’s already established love for science was enhanced through her experiences with her school’s science olympiad team, taking science oriented classes, and participating in research projects. The summer before her senior year, she worked with a professor at the University of Connecticut that does research on the deaf community. Saathvika focused on how hearing abilities can affect people’s ability to learn, which was different from traditional lab bench work, but this opportunity helped her realize that research comes in all kinds of different forms. At Colby, Saathvika hopes to major in biology and is on the pre-med track. Though she is still exploring her options, her interests of how technology and race impact science, might lead her to pursue an interdisciplinary double major in those fields. Throughout her first year, she hopes to stay academically strong, learn new things, meet different types of people, and go beyond her comfort zone. Through the Pulver Scholars program, she looks forward to doing research in the scientific and humanities fields. On campus, Saathvika is a member of CER, the Women’s Network, SPB, and Pre-Health Society. She is excited about being among Maine’s gorgeous nature, and exploring Colby’s location.

Zehra Gundogdu ’25 is from Istanbul, Turkey and attended Istanbul Bahcesehir High School for Science and Technology. In high school, she was a member of the Physics Olympiad Society since her freshman year. Prof. Recep Venstsislav Dimitrov of the Bahcesehir University taught them undergraduate level physics, and students took TUBITAK (Turkish National Science Institute) election exams to build the Turkish National Team of Physics Olympiads. Zehra learned about electromagnetism and quantum mechanics, winning a bronze medal in the national tournament, and silver in a local Istanbul competition. She was also one of the 50 volunteers chosen among 50,000 applicants for Young Guru Academy Global Impact High School Program 2019 – 2020. This meant she was heavily involved in scientific outreach, as she volunteered to design science kits, traveled to different parts of rural Turkey, and taught the kids how to use them. Zehra also conducted research on the role of iconoclasm in medieval Byzantine through the Pioneer Academics research program, and with the help of her mentor Dr. Lisa Reilly of the University of Virginia. Her interest in Byzantine artwork in Istanbul led her to pursue research in iconoclasm. At Colby, Zehra is thinking of majoring in physics and computer science, with a minor in art history. Throughout her first year, she eagerly looks forward to participating in computer science or astrophysics research. On campus, she is a member of the Women in Physics and Women in CS organizations, international club, and figure skating club. Zehra is excited to be in Maine, where she can explore new cultures, and meet people with different backgrounds and experiences.

Dimitri Lin ’25 is from Arcadia, CA and attended California School of the Arts High School. In high school, Dimitri was a summer research intern at the City of Hope/California Institute of Regenerative Medicine. Throughout his three summers there, he investigated the role of natural killer cells and genetic driver sequences in carcinogenesis, certain epigenetic modifications, how those might be connected to certain metabolic diseases like methylation, and is going back to the City of Hope for Jan Plan in 2022 to resume his work. Dating back to middle school, Dimitri started working on a substance abuse prevention project. He continued his volunteer work in high school, based on a peer based approach to preventing substance use in collaboration with the American Cancer Society, as a youth ambassador. They focused on vaping and tobacco use, and helped train other high schoolers to implement this approach in their schools. At Colby, Dimitri hopes to major in biochemistry and is on the pre-med track. Throughout his first year, he will work towards doing well academically with a rigorous class load, finding people to support each other, and getting to know his professors. On campus, Dimitri plans to join the running club and jazz band. Through the Pulver Scholars program, he looks forward to finding research opportunities on and off campus. Dimitri is also excited to be going to school in Maine, as he will get to experience the four seasons.

Elaine Liu ’25, a native of California and China, graduated from the International Division of Shanghai High School. In high school, Elaine was the president of the China Youth Neuroscience Association, an organization with over 150 members, with chapters all over the nation. She was in charge of the online publishing account, organizing lectures and activities, and holding competitions for neuroscience posters in collaboration with NYU Shanghai. Her interest in science, neuroscience in particular, is largely due to her work with spreading info about mental health disorders through the Association. The culmination of using her passions for academics to help real people, has inspired Elaine to pursue a neuroscience major with a minor in data science at Colby. She looks forward to pursuing research in the computational biology and neuroscience fields through the Pulver Scholars program. Outside of academics, Elaine is excited about going to school in Maine, as she gets to spend time outdoors, read by Johnson Pond, and join the outing club.

Lily Moy ’25 attended Brookline High School in Brookline, MA. In high school, she was heavily involved with the New England Aquarium LiveBlue Ambassador program. Through this program, she was able to take off-site trips where they did invasive species removals, marine monitoring, and phytoplankton monitoring. From this experience, Lily reinforced her interest in science, and went on to take care of seals and sea turtles at National Marine Life Center. She worked with the Massachusetts Audubon Society to conduct general check ups on the animals, ID trails and species, and take care of goats. Her previous research experience was part of a study in the LiveBlue program, where she did extensive phytoplankton monitoring, and reported back to the organization about what preventative measures need to be taken. At Colby, Lily hopes to double major in biology and environmental science. Throughout her first year, she aims to maintain a strong academic record, and explore the type of research she would want to pursue during a summer internship. On campus, she is a member of the varsity swim team, and the outing, biology, and environmental clubs. Lily looks forward to finding creative things to do around Colby and in Maine, such as hiking, canoeing, skiing, and stand-up paddle boarding.

Giovanna Novi ’25 is from São Paulo, Brazil and attended Liceu Jardim High School. Giovanna’s research experience began before high school. She was a part of her middle school’s First Lego League robotics team. She joined the team to do the programming part, but fell in love with the research side of their year-long project on how to make education more interesting for students. In high school, she became the research mentor for the middle school team, guiding the younger students in their academic endeavors. After high school, Giovanna took a gap year to do independent research with a mentor that studied the social and economic impacts of Alzheimer’s disease. She considered factors such as life expectancy in each country, education rate, and available preventive medical resources as she studied this research question. At Colby, Giovanna hopes to major in biology with a concentration in neuroscience. She is also interested in creating affordable medical treatments, so she might create a public health independent major to be mindful of this growing concern in healthcare. Throughout her first year, she looks forward to making the most of her classes, learning about the real world applications of her subjects, getting involved in research, being a part of civic engagement, and exploring how different professions in the healthcare field work together. On campus, she works in Dr. Ahmad’s lab, and is a member of the biology club and Partners in Health. Giovanna wants to revive the Alzheimer’s club and the Legacy Storytelling project, which is an initiative that records the life stories of older adults living with dementia. Through the Pulver Scholars program, she looks forward to having college research experience, working in clinical trials, and exploring pharmaceutical labs. She is excited to be in nature, and watch Maine’s beautiful sunrises and sunsets.

Sophia Riazi-Sekowski ’25 is from Cheverly, Maryland and attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School. In high school, she was part of the Science and Technology Program, which allowed her to intern at NASA Goddard during her senior year. There, she did an independent research project studying the effect of translational and rotational misalignments on the optical aberrations of a Newtonian telescope. Sophia was also involved with the Butterfly Garden Initiative Team, and the Envirothon team at her school, specializing in aquatics and winning awards at both country and state competitions. Her interest in optics was cultivated by precision engineer Dr. Manal Khreishi and optical engineer Dr. Joseph Howard in the NASA Optics Branch while she was an intern compiling a database of all optical systems entering space. Sophia’s research interests date back to sixth grade when she designed science projects to study refraction, light scattering, and diffraction. At Colby, she hopes to major in physics or chemistry with a concentration in environmental science. Her curiosity about how science connects to global issues might lead her to pursue a major or minor in anthropology or theater as well. Throughout her first year, Sophia hopes to continue to be comfortable taking risks and asking questions, as she synthesizes experiences in classes to formulate future research questions. As a Pulver Science Scholar, she looks forward to having an interdisciplinary lab experience. On campus, she is a part of the fall play, and is involved with the theater, space, and environmental clubs. Sophia is also excited about going to school in Maine, as she gets to have more outdoor experiences.

Hans Toulmin ’25 is from Newton, MA and attended Concord Academy. In high school, he participated in athletic and academic extracurricular activities. Hans’s love of science was enhanced when he established a close relationship with his chemistry teacher, as they were learning how to navigate through the new high school community together. The summer before his senior year, Hans worked in a neuroscience lab that mapped neural pathways in zebrafish brains through computer software programming. Although this experience was remote, he developed his data analysis skills, and got the opportunity to do his own research on the nasal pathway of zebrafish senses. At Colby, Hans hopes to major in biochemistry. Throughout his first year, he looks forward to developing close relationships with professors, meeting all different kinds of people, staying focused and driven in his academic pursuits, and experiencing new research positions through the Pulver Scholars program. On campus, Hans is exploring what kinds of opportunities fit his interests the most, and is a part of the ferment club. He is excited for blueberry season, the foliage, and skiing in Maine.