The Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering is pleased to announce the recipients of the Clare Boothe Luce graduate fellowships at the University of Michigan. Jessica Conrad, MS, currently an internee at LLNL, and Elizabeth Livingston, MS, a graduate of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, will be joining the University of Michigan in the Fall of 2019 to work towards their PhD. They were chosen because of their exceptional academic records and excellent preparation for graduate studies in computational sciences. Elizabeth will join the Mechanical Engineering department in the College of Engineering, and Jessica will join the Applied and Interdisciplinary Mathematics program in the College of Literature, Sciences and the Arts. As required by the fellowship, both students will enroll in the joint PhD in Scientific Computing program.
Jessica Conrad, Clare Boothe Luce Fellow at the University of Michigan
Elizabeth Livingston completed a BSc in Engineering Mechanics (with a minor in Computational Science and Engineering) and a MS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Elizabeth will join Prof. Garikipati’s research group in Mechanical Engineering. Elizabeth will carry out research in computational modeling of biomedical engineering problems. Of particular interest to her is the growth and remodeling of the cardio-vascular system. She will apply cutting-edge techniques of data-driven computational modeling to this topic using principles of scientific computing, including machine learning, uncertainty quantification, and finite element methods.
Elizabeth has a strong academic background, thriving while performing research in fields where women are underrepresented. Her ambition is to become a university faculty member, doing research in computational science. She looks forward to collaborating with colleagues and working with students to help them to succeed as others have helped her.
Jessica Conrad has a BS in mathematics and public health, a master’s in biostatistics, and an excellent track record of computational research both in her training and current work at Los Alamos National Laboratories. This background forms an ideal foundation for blending computing and mathematics in her PhD work, which will enable her to build a successful career in STEM. Jessica’s proposed area of study is in inverse problems in mathematical epidemiology, particularly focused on using computational and mathematical methods to gain useful insights into public health problems. A critical part of this work will include developing computational approaches to parameter identifiability. Conrad plans to work with Prof. Marisa Eisenberg, an expert in identifiability and infectious disease modeling, as one of her two primary co-mentors in the AIM program.
Elizabeth Livingston, Clare Boothe Luce Fellow at the University of Michigan
The Clare Boothe Luce program is funded by the Henry Luce Foundation. The program was created by Clare Boothe Luce, with the goal of increasing the participation of women in the sciences, mathematics and engineering at every level of higher education. It also serves as a catalyst for colleges and universities to be proactive in their own efforts toward this goal. At the University of Michigan, the program aims to increase women’s participation in the scientific computing community by recruiting top-of-the class women into the PhD in Scientific Computing program. The program is designed to allow the fellows to focus on their academic success by funding their first 3 years in the PhD, freeing them to try high-risk, innovative research projects in a unique interdisciplinary program, with ample networking opportunities and career support.