CUSE Staff
The Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement is located in 230 Mary Idema Pew Library, atop the stairs on the second floor. Contact us or come see us today to schedule a meeting, inquire about getting involved in undergraduate research and/or applying for fellowships, or give us an update about your success.
Full Time Staff
Susan Mendoza, Ph.D. she/her/hers
Director, Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement
Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship
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Dr. Susan Mendoza is the founding director of the Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (OURS). She earned her PhD at Western Michigan University, Master of Arts at Michigan State University, and two Bachelor of Arts degrees in political science and anthropology from Michigan State University with specializations in African Studies and International Development. Dr. Mendoza was also selected as a King, Parks Chavez Faculty Fellow in 2012. Prior to her role with OURS, Dr. Mendoza has held multiple roles at GVSU, Kalamazoo College, and Michigan State University in integrative learning, career development, academic advising, residence life, and internationalizing student life. As a practitioner, Dr. Mendoza focuses on employing innovative programmatic design networks as a mechanism to build equity for students across disciplines and social identities. Dr. Mendoza’s current research focuses on the intersection of disciplinary epistemology, high impact interventions, mentorship, and student agency.
Brenda Tooley, Ph.D. she/her/hers
Associate Director, Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement
Frederik Meijer Office of Fellowships
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Brenda is an experienced academic administrator and faculty member, with a focus in recent years on international education and international students. She has most recently administered a very active study abroad program, promoting off-campus study, volunteer opportunities and internships, curricular offerings and programs supporting internationalization and globalized perspectives upon complex issues; she has also directed a Peace Corps Prep program and looks forward to encouraging students to explore Peace Corps as well as the many other national fellowship possibilities available to them. Dr. Tooley received her PhD from the University of Notre Dame in 1991. Her training and scholarship initially focused on eighteenth-century British literature and literary theory; her teaching and publication work has been primarily on eighteenth-century satire and novels, Gothic novels, and utopian/dystopian literature, and more recently on the use of English as creative medium by young writers within the former Eastern bloc. She is also a published poet who loves cats, opera, jazz and country music, books of many sorts, long walks, and gardening.
Dantya Jennings she/her/hers
Associate Director, Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement
Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship
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Dantya Jennings is a graduate of Michigan State University with a Masters in Higher Adult and Lifelong Education coupled with a Higher Education teaching certification. Dantya has dedicated the last 15 years to serving first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented populations gain access to higher education opportunities. She has held many positions within academia that emphasize her passion for academic success, establishing pathways for access to research opportunities and graduate degree attainment. Before her role with OURS, Dantya served as the Director of TRIO McNair Scholars at GVSU, Director of Disability Services at Lansing Community College, and Case Manager for the Behavioral Intervention Team. She also previously served as the Director and Case Manager for the High School Diploma Completion Initiative at Lansing Community College.
Minh Tran, M.Ed. he/him/his
Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement Assistant
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Minh Tran joined the Center for Undergraduate Scholar Engagement in 2023. He previously worked as a Records Assistant - Auditor when he joined Grand Valley 5 years ago and currently works with Dr. Mendoza on organizing CUSE programs, managing budgets, and assisting students, among other roles. Minh earned his BS in Case Management at Davenport University and MED at Grand Valley in Adult and Higher Education. He enjoys vacationing, spending time with family, video games, building PCs, basketball, tennis, ping pong and all things Michigan and Detroit sports. He doesn't have any pets, unless you count his son's two fishes, Ninja and Dusty.
Part Time Staff & Partners
OURS Faculty Fellows
Caitlin Callahan
OURS Faculty Fellow
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Professor Callahan’s scholarship focuses on questions related to broadening and supporting participation in the geosciences and in the STEM disciplines generally. As a teacher, she enjoys geology for experiences and ideas that emphasize the massive scales of time and space on Earth. In research, Professor Callahan uses qualitative methods to understand how we learn in different contexts, how we reflect on our learning, and how we can use individual stories to support and express our learning. If you meet her in person, you can ask why she wears a bracelet with a ladybug charm.
Anna Hammersmith
OURS Faculty Fellow
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Professor Hammersmith’s areas of specialization are aging, health, parent’s relationships with their adult children, caregiving, as well as union dissolution and formation in later life. At GVSU, Professor Hammersmith mentors students in many disciplines (e.g., Sociology, BMS, Movement Science, and Nursing) on all types of social science research projects including students’ own independent research, faculty led work, as well as Honor’s Projects.
Rachel Powers
OURS Faculty Fellow
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Dr. Rachel Powers received her BS in Chemistry from Michigan State University. After working in industry for two years, she returned to graduate school and received her PhD in Biochemistry and Structural Biology from Northwestern University. She completed her post-doctoral training at Michigan State University. Dr. Powers is currently a biochemistry professor in the chemistry department at Grand Valley State University where she also mentors undergraduate students in her research. Projects in the lab focus on overcoming antibiotic resistance by understanding the structure/function relationships of beta-lactamase enzymes.
Hope to see you soon!
Brad Wallar
OURS Faculty Fellow
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Dr. Brad Wallar received his BS in biology at the University of Michigan-Flint and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics at the University of Minnesota. He performed cancer research at the Van Andel Institute for the next few years. His research involved studying certain proteins involved in cellular movement and the “skeleton” of the cell. He continued that research in his laboratory at GVSU. For the last 13 years, Dr. Wallar’s lab has focused on the structure and function of specific enzymes (beta-lactamases) involved in the important field of antibiotic resistance. Dr Wallar has mentored dozens of undergraduate students in their chosen career paths.
CUSE Graduate Assistants
Katie Jones (she/her/hers)
Katie received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a minor in Women and Gender Studies from Grand Valley. She now pursues her Master of Social Work here at Grand Valley State University and plans to seek a career in the therapy field. Her areas of interest revolve around mental health and well-being. Katie enjoys traveling, binge -watching TV shows, taking pictures, and spending time with family and friends!
Meghan McCann
Graduate Assistant
Meghan received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Social Work Direct Practice from Valparaiso University. She now pursues her Master of Science and Psy.S. at Grand Valley to become a School Psychologist. Meghan loves reality tv, plants, mac and cheese, and most of all, her cat Gnocchi.
Student Staff
Brynn Buschle (she/her/hers)
Student Assistant
Brynn is a junior double majoring in public and non profit administration as well as dance. When she’s not dancing or in the library Brynn likes to read, go on hikes, and hang out with her friends.
Macie Ward (she/her/hers)
Student Assistant
Macie is currently a sophomore here at Grand Valley. Her major is in communication sciences and disorders and she wants to become a speech pathologist. She loves baking, dancing, and crafting in her free time!
Heather Kirsch
Student Assistant
Heather is a freshman at Grand Valley majoring in Biology and minoring in Spanish. She intends to pursue a career in veterinary medicine or surgery after graduation. Outside of school, she enjoys reading, gaming, and practicing her alto saxophone.
Kylie Louch (she/her/hers)
Student Assistant
Kylie is a sophomore at Grand Valley State University majoring in Nursing with the intent of becoming a Midwife. Kylie is a proud Oliver Wilson Scholar. She enjoys reading romance books, playing video games, as well as going swing dancing downtown Grand Rapids. A fun fact about Kylie is she can recite word for word the full movie of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
Nile Stewart
Student Assistant
Nile is junior studying at Grand Valley State University. She is majoring in Social Work and is currently in the BSW program for her bachelors! She also is a Resident Assistant on the Allendale campus and loves getting to know her residents and being a resource for them. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, grabbing a sweet treat, and being active in student organizations S.L.A.M. and GVSU Voices. Outside of school she works with local youth and young adults in her community through her local church, volunteers at non-profits, and spends a lot of time with her loving family.
OURS Student Ambassadors
Annika Hawley (she/her/hers)
Annika is a junior majoring in chemistry with interests in biochemistry and cell biology. She is involved in the Honors College as a mentor, is the president of Alpha Phi Omega, Alpha Zeta Iota chapter, and now a proud student ambassador for OURS. When she's not in the lab, Annika enjoys journaling, hiking, and hanging out with her roommates, especially their cat. Post graduation, she plans on pursuing a PhD in biochemistry and cancer biology.
Jack Foreback
Jack is a Junior going into his 3rd year as a double major in Computer Science and Mathematics. In addition to conducting research on machine learning theory, he enjoys playing volleyball, reading fantasy books, and playing video games. He plans to pursue his PhD, and become a professor and researcher at a university.
Tapanga Witt
Tapanga is majoring in Computer Science with minors in Business and Writing. She is involved in Computing Club, Women in Computing, and SWE, among other clubs. Outside of class, Tapanga enjoys hiking, reading, baking, and finding new ways to be creative. After graduation, she plans to pursue a PhD focused on human-computer interaction and UX/UI design.
Zach Spencer
Zach is a senior undergraduate majoring in Psychology with a minor in Business. Passionate about research and academia, he plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. His research interests include occupational health psychology (OHP), employee well-being, work motivation, workplace incivility, and counterproductive work behaviors (CWB). Outside of academic work, he enjoys working on motorcycles, practicing photography, and relaxing at the beach.
Marcos Sanson
Marcos is a senior majoring in Computer Science with an interest in evolutionary computation research. He has worked on projects involving neuroevolution for robot control, machine learning for medical imaging, phylogeny-informed evolutionary algorithms, and evolvability-enhancing mutations. In his free time, he enjoys drawing, hiking, traveling, and being involved in student organizations. After graduation, Marcos plans to pursue a PhD in Computer Science.