Where Students Become Researchers

When Luke Chandler ’26 conducts research in the lab of Engineering Science Professor Dany Munoz-Pinto, Ph.D., he’s not just performing experiments; Chandler’s trying to understand why his grandmother developed dementia and passed away the year before he started at Trinity University. 

Getting to conduct research as an undergraduate “is what separates Trinity for me as an undergrad program,” says Chandler, a neuroscience major and a Trinity soccer player from Glasgow, Scotland. 

Recently, Trinity moved its undergraduate research administration, which had been divided between the Center for Experiential Learning and Career Success and the Office of Academic Affairs, under the Research and Sponsored Programs Office. 

Research and Sponsored Programs convenes research-focused committees to monitor and recommend improvements to the University’s research ecosystem. They’re starting to capture a fuller picture of the research environment at Trinity, and this fall, they’ll have results of a faculty survey to help inform strategies and tactics. 

Under the leadership of Senior Director Armando Saliba, the office has streamlined and simplified processes, such as the application for the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program, and has made student travel funds available—changes that have directly impacted Chandler. 

Thanks to his SURF award and additional travel funds, Chandler presented his research at an annual science meeting in San Francisco in February. Chandler’s experiences in Munoz-Pinto’s lab have set him on a path to further discovery. Fueled by his recent $10,000 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, Chandler will pursue a master’s in neuroscience at University College London this fall.