Benedict College Student Environmental Research Team Presents at the National Environmental Justice Conference in Washington, DC
Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, President and CEO Columbia, South Carolina
The team from Columbia, SC was selected out of 100 Teams across the country
Columbia, SC — The United States Environmental Department’s Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are actively working together to help expand the workforce readiness of minority students in STEM fields by leveraging a successful partnership.
Each year, students from across the country participate in the MSEIP Student Research Conference which showcases the research supported by the MSEIP grant. The EPA selects and pays for top MSEIP environmental research teams to present their research at the National Environmental Justice Conference held in Washington, DC.
“I am extremely proud that Benedict College’s MSEIP student research team was selected out of 100 teams across the country,” said Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, President and CEO of Benedict College. “Our college has a great history of success with this innovative program that is assisting our STEM students in being competitive in the workforce.”
L-R: Jeannie Williamson, Program Coordinator, College/Underserved Community Partnership Program (CUPP), USEPA Region 4; Tony Munnings, Benedict College Student; Kevin Mason, Jr., Miles College Student; Dr. Bernadette Hence, Senior Program Manager, Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program (MSEIP), U.S. Department of Education; Mark Rupp, Assistant Deputy Administrator, USEPA; Dr. Adrian Gale, Assistant Professor, Benedict College; Telaya Montgomery, Winston-Salem State University Student, and Anthony Stubbs, Benedict College Student.
“Our scholars were not just impressive because of their presence and scholarship, but also because of their professionalism and poise,” noted Dr. Adrian Gale, Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering at Benedict College. “At the end of the conference, everyone knew that the BC Environmental Engineering Program and the Department of Engineering and Computer Science were on the path to excellence.”
The Benedict team presented their research on Detecting Spatial Changes in Methane in Urban Communities. The study explores using methane detection equipment on the Benedict College campus to monitor and trace methane emissions. The low-cost technology enables precise detection of methane leaks by identifying areas with different concentrations.
Human senses are insufficient for methane detection due to its lack of smell and color. A machine learning (ML) model will be calibrated using the sensor results to recognize trends and traits related to methane leaks. This research aims to expand our understanding of methane emissions and improve environmental monitoring methods by integrating sensor technology and machine learning capabilities.
