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We are also thrilled to announce the inaugural designation of seven scholarships to admitted students who show outstanding potential to study physics at ����ԭ��. These scholarships, dubbed the Kihlstrom Scholarship for Promise in Physics after beloved Professor Emeritus of Physics Ken Kihlstrom, each carry a one-time award of $2,000 for a deserving student who demonstrates financial need. We hope to build momentum in this initiative as well, increasing the amount and frequency of these scholarships so we can bring in and maintain a cohort of students who will be encouraged to persist in the study of physics during their entire time at ����ԭ��.

We hope you are encouraged by what God is doing in our department, and we thank you for your continued support and prayers. Wishing you and your families a restful, peaceful, and joyful summer!

God bless,

Bob Haring-Kaye 

Instead of asking the dreaded question– “What are your plans after graduation?”– we wanted to ask this year’s seniors about their favorite memories during their time in the physics department. These memories included favorite professors, classes, research opportunities, and more. This year's seniors mentioned classes like Modern Physics and Electricity & Magnetism, which allowed them to dig deeper into concepts that were newer to them. Research opportunities also made an impact on these graduates; it was not only the prestige of the research they participated in that made these experiences special, but the ability to learn from experienced physicists and be entrusted with meaningful contributions to these projects. The graduates also reflected on the community within the physics department, which were able to grow through things like PEP (Physics and Engineering Phellowship) rallies, where physics and engineering students can spend time in community with each other and their professors. We will greatly miss these seven members of our community, but we look forward to seeing what is in store for them in this new chapter ahead. 

Summer Plans

This summer, we have multiple students participating in summer research, including Berit Lunstad, Michael Hemmett, and Reese Toepfer.

 Berit and Michael will both be at CERN, looking for dark photon particles and studying unique decay pathways. Berit will be working on potentially adding on an extra jet reconstruction in the analysis, while Michael will be designing his own analysis program. Berit and Michael both expressed excitement about this summer’s research– both for the ability to learn and create professional connections, but also the unique opportunity to spend the summer living in France and commuting to Switzerland. 
 

Reese will be working with chemistry professor Dr. Allan Nishimura this summer on research related to molecules and planar states. Reese, a physics major, reflected on the opportunity to do some interdisciplinary research with the chemistry department, expressing excitement about working with Dr. Nishimura as well as a friend who is a chemistry major on this project. Reese also writes children’s books in her free time that relate to her work in physics, so she is excited to potentially incorporate chemistry into her books as well.  

This conference was also an opportunity to connect with peers and professionals in physics. Michael was able to network and get some insight and advice for his upcoming summer there. Overall, Michael expressed appreciation for the way this conference gave him a broader sense of what is going on in physics. It gave him an opportunity to learn about anything from theories for black holes, to small particle accelerators for new medical technology. One talk that stood out among the rest was UC Berkeley professor Dr. Hitoshi Murayama, who was the director of the Particle Physics Project Prioritization Panel (P5). During his presentation, Dr. Murayama recapped some of the topics included in the . Michael was able to be introduced to Dr. Murayama later in the conference, giving him the opportunity to meet someone who is a leader in the field. 

Grace and peace, 
 
Bob Haring-Kaye – Professor and Chair of Physics and Engineering 
Ben Carlson – Assistant Professor of Physics 
Jen Ito – Assistant Professor of Physics 

This newsletter was edited by  (Communications Major, ‘26)