MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — Outstanding student projects were recognized during the Penn State Harrisburg School of Science, Engineering, and Technology Capstone Design Conference held April 24. The conference was the culmination of students’ undergraduate studies and provided the opportunity to combine classroom learning with real-life applications and collaborate with industry sponsors.
Winners were recognized across several program categories, including civil engineering; computer science; electrical engineering; and mechanical and mechatronics engineering. The awards also included the James A. Andrews Memorial Award for Excellence in Capstone Design and a Student Choice Award.
View photos from the 2026 Capstone Design Conference.
Awards were given to outstanding group projects based on criteria including overall appearance and quality of display, overall professional appearance of presenters, effectiveness of display, support materials and experimental setups, project summary by the team or individual, interaction with visitors, and innovation. Each program had its own judges.
The James A. Andrews Memorial Award for Excellence in Capstone Design recognizes students who demonstrate interest, motivation and ability in identifying and solving an engineering problem that addresses a real-world concern. This sponsored award is intended to honor students who couple creative approaches with practical ability to successfully resolve a situation.
The award was established by the family of James "Jim" Andrews, who was an alumnus of Penn State and worked as a senior field support engineer for Rockwell Automation in York, Pennsylvania, in admiration of Andrews’ flexible, "can-do" spirit. The award is presented annually. The winner of this award was chosen from among the first-place winners in each category.
First place, civil engineering
- Project: ASCE Sustainable Solutions - EcoStream Data Park
- Team members: Adam Bova, Alex Brummett, Connor Ceci, Katherine Eimer, Nathan Holton, Adam Kalmanowicz, Tyler Kull, Jack Sella
- Advisers: Yen-Chih Chen, Shirley Clark, Shashi Marikunte
Project description: The development of four water-cooled data centers totaling about 120,000 square feet and substation to be planned along with the associated site improvements, such as stormwater, utilities and others. To incorporate these data centers in the most sustainable matter possible, there will be further analysis into the energy, structural and other practices.
First place, computer science
- Project: Spotnik
- Team members: Joseph Cooper, Daniel Johnston, Dimitri Orion Nearchos, Stewart Stewart
- Advisers: Michael Melusky, Md Sultan Al Nahian
Project description: Spotnik is an application that takes the user’s geo-positional data and phone’s sensor data to allow the user the ability to see the positions of satellites currently in the sky around them through a 3D environment viewed in the app. The view shown in this environment is controlled by the movement of the mobile device. The satellites’ positions remain accurate as the app is in use, and the user can point their mobile device at the satellites and be shown information about them.
First place, electrical engineering
- Project: Real-Time Optimization Framework for Solar-Powered Community
- Team members: Daniel Chatsaz, Owen Hess, Janiece Saulsberry, Chloe Scarazzo, Elena Thomas
- Advisers: Bimal Ghimire, Md Habib Ullah
Project description: Efficient energy management is vital for sustainable solar communities. This project implements a real-time distributed optimization framework for smart homes using a decentralized P2P ADMM algorithm to balance local generation and demand. Utilizing Raspberry Pi controllers and custom smart meters with voltage and current sensors, the system executes discrete power decisions based on continuous local objectives. To ensure security, the team used encrypted communications and a blockchain ledger to log all price history and transactions. Finally, a local dashboard provides users with real-time status visualizations and control overrides ensuring a transparent, secure, and autonomous community energy grid.
First place, mechanical and mechatronics engineering and the James A. Andrews Memorial Award for Excellence in Capstone Design
- Project: Ventriculo-Mastoidal Shunt (VMS)
- Team members: Likith Giddi, Gene Jackson, Chris Lasher, Sam Psoras
- Advisers: Amit Banerjee, Michael McDowell
- Sponsor: Center of Medical Innovation, Penn State College of Medicine
Project description: The ventriculo-mastoidal shunt is a concept in hydrocephalus treatment where excess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the brain’s ventricles could be diverted into the mastoid air cells, which are the air spaces in the temporal bone behind the ear. The mastoid region has a large surface area and is connected to mucosal-lined spaces, so it could potentially absorb CSF, similarly to how other body cavities do. The goal is to create an alternative drainage pathway without placing fluid into the abdomen or heart, reducing common shunt complications.
Student Choice Award
- Project: Customizable Voice Synthesizer
- Team members: Alex Chmielowski, Tyler Lawer, Het Patel, Sakshi Sahay
- Advisers: Hyuntae Na, Md Sultan Al Nahian, Guy Slonimsky, Seth Wolpert
- Supported by: Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Project description: This app is designed to help laryngectomy patients communicate more naturally and confidently after losing their voice. It allows users to create a personalized digital version of their voice and use it for everyday interactions. It includes features like whisper-to-speech, which transforms soft whispers into clear, audible speech, and text-to-speech, which speaks typed messages aloud in the user’s own voice. By providing a simple, accessible interface, the app supports easier, more comfortable communication in daily life.