JOHN & VIOLET KAY SUMMER RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP
John "Papa Jack" Kay, a 52-year faculty member at 'Iolani School, believed strongly in providing students with opportunities to conduct hands-on scientific research. To honor his legacy and to expand research opportunities for students across the state, the John & Violet Kay Summer Research Fellowship was established. Since 2014, students have spent their summers at ʻIolani Schoolʻs Sullivan Center for Innovation and Leadership Research Lab and various labs across the country, pursuing scientific research that addresses real-world challenges.
2023 kay Research Fellows Symposium
Logan Lee ‘25 - A study of microbiome transplantation in axenic Culex quinquefasciatus and implications for male mosquito fitness, Mentor: Ms. Lorraine “Mamo” Waianuhea
Kaelyn Pacpaco ‘25 - The effect of culturally tailored storytelling on mood and engagement of assisted living residents with dementia, Mentor: Dr. Megan Chock
Chase Graham ‘24 & Elle Mizue ‘24 - Using Machine Learning to predict phenotype from genotype in Oryza sativa, Mentor: Mr. Ethan Hill
Tim Sharipov ‘24 - Exploring the complexities of the soil microbiome and the effects of bacterial diversity on growth and nutrition of Lactuca sativa, Mentor: Dr. Yvonne Chan
Chisato Tarui ‘25 & Audrey Lin ‘25 - The Impact of Urban Form in Honolulu on Carbon Emissions in the Household Sector, Mentors: Dr. Makena Coffman and Dr. Paul Bernstein
Elijah Devendra ‘25 - Determining the correlation between cytokines and Cognitive function in Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19, Mentors: Dr. Dominic Chow, Dr. Juwon Park
Chloe Sanada ‘26 - A study demonstrating the diversity of species of algae within the intertidal zone located in Haleiwa Beach Park, Mentors: Dr. Yvonne Chan, Dr. Ken Hayes, and Dr. Norine Yeung
Jaymie Frith ‘24 - Understanding the relationship between glutamate consumption and inflammatory gene expression through DNA methylation and demethylation, Mentor: Dr. Rafael Perez-David & Mr. Ethan Hill
Maddux Springer ‘24 & Elle Sugimoto ‘25 - Determining the distribution of native and invasive algae in Kaneohe Bay at turtle (Chelonia mydas) foraging sites, Mentor: Dr. Celia Smith
2022 kay Research Fellows Symposium
Holden Schermer and Kenjiro Otake ‘23 - Integrating the Canvas API with Google Apps Script to Create a Schedule-Tracking Assignment Creation Tool, Mentor: Ms. Okumura and Dr. Lara Lee
Zoe Hirashima ‘23- Engineering An Ergonomic Modification for the Common Rollator and an Accompanying Educational Website
Ava Watanabe ‘23 - Identifying the overlap between the diet of Pseudorca crassidens and fisheries in Hawai’i using DNA extraction from stool samples, Mentor: Dr. Kristi West
Anabel Kinsey ‘23 - Implementing Market Information and Food Insecurity Response Analysis on O’ahu to Mitigate Emergency Relief Funds Vacuum
Katelyn Shu ‘23 - Responses to the Asian IAT - A Comparison Between Asian Americans and Euro Americans in Hawaiʻi and the Mainland US, Mentor: Dr. Kristin Pauker
Logan Lee and Tamara Lum ‘25 - Validating the Detection of Mosquito Species Aedes albopictus and Culex quinquefasciatus in Water Using eDNA, Mentors: Dr. Matthew Medeiros and Ms. Lorraine “Mamo” Waianuhea
Maddux Springer and Trenton Lau ‘24 - The Effects of Cesspools on Stable Isotope levels of Nitrogen -15 in Gracilaria salicornia in Kaneohe Bay That Increases Rates of Fibropapillomatosis In Chelonia mydas, Mentor: Dr. Celia Smith
Mackenna Tamanaha ’23 - Predicting the Suitability of Hypnea musciformis and Ulva lactuca in Future Climates Using Species Distribution Modeling
Yumi Mizobuchi ‘23 - A Sustainable Alternative to Textile Dyes: Synthesizing and Applying Starch Acetate Nanoparticles to Create Structural Coloration. Mentor: Ms. Saylors
2021 kay Research Fellows Symposium
1. Seyeon Moon ‘22 - The Influence of Culture on Students’ Social Perceptions of other Students and Teachers
2. Scott Watanuki ‘22 - Developing a Convolutional Neural Network to Diagnose Cataracts for Early Treatment
3. Cheny Yang ‘22 - Identification of Relationship between mmpL4a Sequences of Clinical and Environmental NTM, Mentor: Dr. Chan, Dr. Jennifer Honda, Dr. Michael Strong
4. Avnish Gupta ‘23 - The Creation of a Convolutional Neural Network to Help Diagnose Chronic Ulcers, Mentor: Dr. Rajnish Gupta, Dr. Ryan Delahanty
5. Kailee Tanaka ‘22 and Marissa Kusumoto ‘22- Quantification of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Honolulu Beach Waters, Mentor: Dr. Yvonne Chan
6. Arisa Moore ‘23, Megan Ikeda ‘23 - Bioplastic Alternative for Six Pack Soda Rings from Food Waste
Mentor: Ms. Jessica Lynn Saylors
7. Clara Ontal ‘22, Yumi Mizobuchi ‘23 - Sustainable Structural Color Mentor: Ms. Jessica Lynn Saylors
8. Elise Danko ‘22 - Understanding Great White Shark Behavior in Nearshore Waters off Cape Cod
Mentor: Dr. Kristian Sexton
9.Clara Li and Mackenna Tamanaha ‘23- Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria and Total Coliform/E. Coli levels in Oahu’s Kahalu’u Stream, Beach, and Lagoon
Mentor: Dr. Chan, Dr. Dulai
10. Gina Wang ‘22 - Quorum sensing in Dickeya species novel, strain K61
Mentor: Dr. Prescott, Ms. Christy Handel