{"id":13726,"date":"2026-10-29T02:45:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-29T06:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/?p=13726"},"modified":"2026-11-09T15:22:19","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T20:22:19","slug":"research-that-ripples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/?p=13726","title":{"rendered":"Research that ripples"},"content":{"rendered":"

TODAY, SHIRLEY WANG \u201917 runs her own <\/span>psychology research lab as an assistant <\/span>professor at Yale University, where she <\/span>builds computational models to under<\/span>stand how mental health problems develop <\/span>and change over time. She also mentors <\/span>the next generation of scientists.<\/span><\/p>\n

Before that came a PhD from Harvard <\/span>and a recognition on Forbes\u2019 2024 list of <\/span>30 Under 30 in Healthcare. <\/span>The roots of Wang\u2019s career stretch back <\/span>to an undergraduate classroom at TCNJ.<\/span><\/p>\n

When she arrived at the college in 2013, <\/span>Wang was a first-year student with <\/span>wide-ranging interests in math, statistics, <\/span>psychology, and medicine \u2014 and no idea <\/span>that research would eventually become <\/span>central to both her career and her identity <\/span>as a scientist. Her introduction <\/span>to that world came during psychology <\/span>professor John Ruscio\u2019s stats course.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wang loved the class. She came early, <\/span>stayed late, and lingered to explore the <\/span>ideas discussed. Her professor noticed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe reached out to me and said, <\/span>\u2018It seems like you\u2019re really interested <\/span>in these topics. Would you want to do <\/span>research with me?\u2019\u201d says Wang. \u201cI had <\/span>never done research before. I didn\u2019t <\/span>really know what it involved.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That invitation would become the <\/span>first of many. Wang continued working <\/span>with Ruscio throughout her four years <\/span>at TCNJ and developed relationships <\/span>with other faculty mentors who <\/span>opened doors to clinical psychology <\/span>and neuroscience, including Joanna <\/span>Herres and Ashley Borders. She <\/span>learned to code, run simulations, and <\/span>analyze data. She designed studies, <\/span>presented at conferences, published <\/span>her work in peer-reviewed journals, <\/span>and brought these skills together <\/span>through her undergraduate thesis on <\/span>cognitive and affective mechanisms of <\/span>eating disorders.<\/span><\/p>\n

But looking back, Wang realizes the <\/span>most consequential thing her profes- <\/span>sors gave her may not have been a <\/span>research skill at all. It was confidence. <\/span>She remembers sharing ambitions <\/span>that, to her, felt audacious: applying to <\/span>PhD programs, pursuing a National <\/span>Science Foundation Graduate <\/span>Research Fellowship. The response <\/span>from her professors wasn\u2019t just <\/span>encouragement \u2014 they fully believed <\/span>these goals were well within her reach.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey had such unwavering <\/span>confidence in me,\u201d Wang says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Shirley
Shirley Wang ’17<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Years later, as Wang navigated the <\/span>vast and unfamiliar research ecosys<\/span>tem at Harvard, her TCNJ mentors\u2019 <\/span>belief in her became an anchor, even <\/span>when she doubted herself. \u201cI really <\/span>think it was borrowed from them,\u201d <\/span>she says of the confidence TCNJ <\/span>professors instilled in her.<\/span><\/p>\n

WANG\u2019S EXPERIENCE WAS NOT <\/span>UNIQUE. It\u2019s part of a culture that <\/span>stretches across TCNJ\u2019s campus: <\/span>A professor recognizes a student\u2019s <\/span>potential, invites them into meaningf<\/span>ul research, and trusts them to <\/span>investigate questions whose answers <\/span>are not yet known.<\/span><\/p>\n

Take biomedical engineering major <\/span>Hannah Hoer \u201927. She\u2019s had to get <\/span>comfortable tackling problems she <\/span>doesn\u2019t yet know how to solve. Her <\/span>testing ground? A powered exoskele<\/span>ton for the human hand.<\/span><\/p>\n

Working in professor Brett BuSha\u2019s <\/span>robotics lab, Hoer has spent nearly <\/span>two years developing a 3D-printed <\/span>wearable device that combines hard <\/span>and soft robotics to assist people with <\/span>hand weakness or nerve damage. <\/span>Inflatable components help power <\/span>everyday movements most of us rarely <\/span>think twice about \u2014 grasping a cup or <\/span>pinching a pen between two fingers.<\/span><\/p>\n

The work has pushed Hoer well <\/span>beyond what she already knew. After <\/span>her sophomore year, she began <\/span>tackling the project\u2019s circuitry before <\/span>she had even taken a formal circuit <\/span>analysis course. \u201cI\u2019d come across a <\/span>problem, and I\u2019d be like, I know abso<\/span>lutely nothing about this,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Hannah
Hannah Hoe ’27<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So she learned. With BuSha\u2019s <\/span>encouragement, Hoer turned to <\/span>textbooks, built circuits, and worked <\/span>through problems as they arose. As <\/span>she put in the time to solve each new <\/span>challenge, her initial uncertainty gave <\/span>way to confidence in her abilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

FOR PSYCHOLOGY MAJOR SIMMER <\/span>JEALF \u201927, research has been as <\/span>much about finding purpose as finding <\/span>answers. As a Barbara Meyers <\/span>Pelson \u201959 Student Fellowship <\/span>recipient, Jealf engaged in TCNJ\u2019s <\/span>Mentored Undergraduate Summer <\/span>Experience (page 35). She examined <\/span>how racial trauma intersects with <\/span>mental health among Latinx college <\/span>students \u2014 and whether factors such <\/span>as ethnic identity, advocacy, and a <\/span>welcoming campus climate can help <\/span>protect students\u2019 well-being. The work <\/span>aligns closely with Jealf \u2019s broader <\/span>interest in immigrant populations and <\/span>her belief that research can ultimately <\/span>help colleges better support marginal<\/span>ized students. \u201cI feel like I am making <\/span>an impact,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Professor
Professor Raquel Sosa and student Simmer Jealf<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Part of the wonder of research, Jealf <\/span>has learned, is that discovery unfolds <\/span>gradually. She likens the process to <\/span>nurturing a tree. \u201cYou keep watering <\/span>it, and sometimes you wonder, \u2018Is this <\/span>tree even growing? It looks the same,\u2019\u201d <\/span>she says. \u201cBut slowly, you start to see <\/span>the progress.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That growth has been personal, too. <\/span>MUSE marked Jealf \u2019s first major leap <\/span>into independent research, working <\/span>under the guidance of psychology <\/span>professor Raquel Sosa. She learned <\/span>statistical coding \u2014 something she <\/span>once struggled to imagine herself <\/span>doing \u2014 and realized she had earned <\/span>the opportunity she was given.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jealf took her research beyond <\/span>campus: She presented at conferences <\/span>at University of Pennsylvania and in <\/span>Denver. \u201cI\u2019ve really proven to myself <\/span>that I can do this,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

ONE OF THE BIGGEST SURPRISES <\/span>OF CONDUCTING FIELD RESEARCH <\/span>in Alaska had little to do with stickle- <\/span>back fish, and everything to do with <\/span>the people working alongside him, <\/span>says biology major Miles Pedowitz \u201927.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pedowitz joined biology professor <\/span>Matt Wund and fellow TCNJ students <\/span>to study the early stages of species <\/span>formation in stickleback populations <\/span>near Anchorage. Days were spent <\/span>setting and checking nets, collecting <\/span>juvenile fish, and taking in a stunning <\/span>landscape.<\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond the fieldwork itself, <\/span>Pedowitz was struck by how quickly <\/span>the group came together. Working, <\/span>cooking, and eating together, the group <\/span>quickly became more than classmates <\/span>and colleagues. \u201cBy day three, we were <\/span>already in sync,\u201d he says. \u201cWe knew <\/span>what to do, how to do it.\u201d The experi<\/span>ence, he says, taught him the value of <\/span>learning how to adapt and work <\/span>together as a team.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Professor
Matt Wund, Miles Pedowitz, Madison Wojciechowski, and Shane Kennedy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For Wund, the magic of undergrad<\/span>uate research is most exciting at that <\/span>moment when the traditional roles of <\/span>professor and student start to blur. In <\/span>the classroom, there is generally an <\/span>answer waiting to be learned, he says, <\/span>and the professor knows what comes <\/span>next. But research is different.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re doing research, you\u2019re <\/span>actually applying what you know to <\/span>answer questions that no one else <\/span>knows,\u201d Wund says. \u201cThe goal of <\/span>science is to answer questions that no h<\/span>uman has ever answered before.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

That shared pursuit of the unknown <\/span>changes the relationship, he adds. <\/span>Professors and students must adapt t<\/span>ogether when results are unexpected, <\/span>drawing on creativity, different <\/span>strengths, and each other. The student <\/span>is no longer absorbing knowledge from <\/span>an expert; professor and student <\/span>become collaborators in discovery.<\/span><\/p>\n

That, Wund says, can lead to a <\/span>powerful shift in how undergraduates <\/span>see themselves: \u201cWow, I\u2019m a scientist. <\/span>I\u2019m helping to make discoveries.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Wund sees another transformation <\/span>when students return to the TCNJ lab <\/span>after accompanying him to Alaska. <\/span>The names on the fish tanks are no <\/span>longer simply labels \u2014 they are lakes <\/span>the students have stood beside, <\/span>habitats they have explored, and fish <\/span>they helped collect. That connection <\/span>creates a deeper sense of ownership <\/span>and pride in the work.<\/span><\/p>\n

For Pedowitz, who hopes to pursue <\/span>field biology, the experience reinforced <\/span>both his love of nature and something <\/span>less expected: the understanding that <\/span>discovery is rarely a solo pursuit.<\/span><\/p>\n

A DECADE AFTER GRADUATING <\/span>FROM TCNJ, Wang can now see <\/span>another ripple from those early <\/span>research experiences: They influence <\/span>not only the scientist she has become, <\/span>but the mentor she wants to be. <\/span>At Yale, Wang is intentional about <\/span>creating the kinds of research <\/span>opportunities for students that shaped h<\/span>er own development at TCNJ. She <\/span>wants undergraduates to do more than <\/span>assist with someone else\u2019s science; s<\/span>he wants them to have \u201creal intellec<\/span>tual ownership\u201d of their work.<\/span><\/p>\n

She has already watched that <\/span>approach bear fruit. Wang\u2019s first <\/span>undergraduate thesis student went on <\/span>to win a departmental research prize <\/span>and was selected to present her work <\/span>at a conference alongside a group <\/span>composed largely of PhD students and <\/span>postdocs \u2014 a moment Wang describes <\/span>with unmistakable pride.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was also a moment that felt <\/span>familiar. She was once the undergrad<\/span>uate whose professors saw possibili<\/span>ties she had not yet learned to see in <\/span>herself. Now, she is the professor <\/span>opening that door for someone else. <\/span>\u201cMentorship propagates through a <\/span>network,\u201d Wang says. \u201cIt flows.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Photos Peter Murphy \/ Alaska photo Miles Pedowitz<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How mentored research at TCNJ can shape a student \u2014 and generations to come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":357,"featured_media":13760,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13726","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/357"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13726"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13726\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13786,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13726\/revisions\/13786"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tcnjmagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}