Student Spotlight | National Institute for Transportation and Communities

Student Spotlight: Frank Boateng Appiah, Portland State University

Sep 02, 2020

Frank Boateng Appiah is a graduate student and research assistant in civil engineering at Portland State University, working with Chris Monsere and Sirisha Kothuri on best practices for the installation of Rapid Rectangular Flash Beacons with or without Median Refuge. He graduated from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology with Bsc. Civil Engineering in 2013. Frank is interested in how transportation improves life by increasing productivity, efficiency and other aspects of mobility.

LinkedIn | Instagram

Tell us about yourself?

I come from a small town in Ghana called Adamsu but spent most of my formative years in Accra, the capital city. Living in Accra, a city where road transport has been the primary mode for several decades, I came to appreciate how a disintegrated transportation system affects a nation’s economic growth and therefore requires effective and efficient planning and design to increase productivity. This informed my decision to read civil engineering during my 4-year undergraduate study at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and technology. At Tech I was much involved in student groups such as CESA (Civil Engineering Students Association), where I held some leadership positions. In PSU I am an active member of...

Right: Kayla deHoop in a black shirt posing in front of a brick wall. Left: Rural highway in Oregon. Text: NITC student spotlight, Kayla deHoop, Oregon Tech.

Student Spotlight: Kayla deHoop, Oregon Institute of Technology

Aug 03, 2020

Photo by ChrisBoswell, iStock

Kayla deHoop recently completed her bachelors degree in Civil Engineering at Oregon Tech and is currently a masters student. Her graduate project will focus on the safety impacts of raising the speed limit on rural two-lane highways in Eastern Oregon. During her time at OIT, she has been actively involved in many of the engineering student clubs on campus including the American Society of Civil Engineers-Associated General Contractors (ASCE-AGC), Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and Tau Beta Pi. Kayla has also had the opportunity to hold several internships in the transportation field including working with ODOT and WSDOT as a field intern on highway reconstruction and paving jobs and Kiewit Infrastructure Engineering as a roadway design intern.

Tell us about yourself?

I grew up in Klamath Falls, Oregon on a dairy farm and didn't really consider engineering until my senior year of high school. I took a personality and placement test and several times civil engineering came up as the top career for me, so that is what I pursued and I am so glad I did! At Oregon Tech I have become very involved with many student clubs including ASCE-AGC, ITE, and Tau Beta Pi, often taking on a leadership...

A bus coming up to a bus stop with a pedestrian nearby

Introducing the Newest NITC Dissertation Fellows Researching Transit and Transportation Access

Jul 08, 2020

The National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) is proud to introduce our four Summer 2020 Dissertation Fellows, together awarded $60,000 in total funding. Read about their projects below, or learn how to apply for funding through the NITC Dissertation Fellowship Grant.

Travis Glick, Portland State University

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Travis Glick is a PhD student, graduate teaching and research assistant in civil & environmental engineering at Portland State University. He served for two years as president of Students in Transportation Engineering and Planning (STEP), Portland State University's transportation student group. Travis is a NITC scholar and three-time Eisenhower fellow, and his ongoing research examines dwell times, bus-bike conflicts, and transit modeling. Travis's doctoral work tackles a new class of problem that... Read more

Student Spotlight: Robert Hibberd, University of Arizona

Jul 07, 2020

Robert Hibberd is a Ph.D. student and Graduate Research Assistant in the University of Arizona's College of Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture. His research emphasis is on urban and transportation planning, demographics, Smart Growth and New Urbanism, housing affordability issues, and sustainable development. He has worked on multiple NITC projects including LRT/BRT/SCT/CRT Development Outcomes FINAL PHASE and Updating and Expanding LRT/BRT/SCT/CRT Data and Analysis with his advisor, Dr. Arthur C. Nelson. He is a 2020 NITC dissertation fellow.

LinkedIn | Twitter | NITC Researcher Profile

Tell us about yourself?

Robert E. Hibberd grew up in Syracuse, Utah, north of Salt Lake City. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Utah, and a Master’s degree in Historical Resources Management,...

Jake Gallaher, alongside a photo of a bike lane at an intersection in Salt Lake City, Utah. Text reads, "Student Spotlight: Jake Gallaher, University of Utah."

Student Spotlight: Jake Gallaher, University of Utah

Jun 04, 2020

Photo by Google Streetview

Jake Gallaher is a graduate assistant at the University of Utah's College of Architecture and Planning. He is a leader in Point B, the University of Utah's transportation student group, and his work with that group focuses on improving bicycle safety. Jake earned his B.S. in civil engineering from Ohio Northern University in 2019. In 2018 he served as an engineering intern at SDS Mechanical & Automation.

Tell us about yourself?

I am entering my second year in the Master of City and Metropolitan Planning program at the University of Utah. I’m originally from Ashville, Ohio and I received my B.S. in civil engineering from Ohio Northern University in 2019. Shortly after, I picked up from Ohio and moved to Salt Lake City where I’ve been enjoying hiking around in the Wasatch Mountains and exploring a new city outside of my studies.

What (or who) has influenced your career path in transportation?

Ever since I was a little kid, I could be found studying, or drawing maps. The transportation system as a whole has always been a curiosity of mine and ultimately...

Student Spotlight: Md Mintu Miah, University of Texas at Arlington

May 07, 2020

Md Mintu Miah is a Ph.D. student and research assistant in transportation engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington. He is interested in data mining and machine learning in the field of transportation engineering. He obtained his MS in transportation engineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and BS in civil engineering from Bangladesh.

Tell us about yourself?

Md Mintu Miah was born in 1989 in a small village of Bangladesh. He obtained his Bachelor Degree on Civil Engineering from Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology (RUET), Bangladesh in 2012. In the year 2014, he joined as a full-time lecturer in the same department and worked until 2017. Later, he obtained his Master's degree in Transportation Engineering from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA (2018). Currently, he is working as a Ph.D. student and Graduate Research Assistant of Transportation Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington, USA under the supervision of Professor Stephen P. Mattingly.

What (or who) has influenced your career path in transportation?

The destitute transportation system of my own country and ample research opportunity in the U.S. have jointly influenced me to study in the field of Transportation Engineering. Initially, I was encouraged by my family, colleagues; later, this dream came...

Student Spotlight: Finley Heeb and Maddy Reznick, University of Oregon

Mar 03, 2020

Finley Heeb and Maddy Reznick are both undergraduate students in the School of Planning, Public Policy and Management (PPPM) at the University of Oregon. They are both active in the UO's transportation student group, LiveMove, and have worked together as LiveMove's speaker series coordinators for the past two years. Finley was recently featured in a Student Spotlight story in UO news, recounting what they gained from their participation in the summer 2019 Sustainable Bicycle Transportation in Europe study abroad program with faculty Marc Schlossberg and Rebecca Lewis. Maddy was an intern in 2019 at the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability, working with a team of University students to collect and present case study research supporting implementation of a TDM Ordinance in Los Angeles County to the Chief Sustainability Office of LA County.

Finley's LinkedIn | Maddy's LinkedIn

Tell us about yourself?

Finley: I am in my third year of the Planning, Public Policy, and Management program at the University of Oregon. Learning about cities, transportation, and communities has influenced every aspect of how I interact with where I live. Now, I...

Student Spotlight: Gabby Abou-Zeid, Portland State University

Feb 05, 2020

Gabby Abou-Zeid is a first-year civil engineering graduate student, 2019 Eisenhower Fellow and recipient of the 2019 IBPI Rex Burkholder and Lydia Rich Scholarship. She is pursuing her M.S. at Portland State University and working with Dr. Kelly Clifton's SUPER (Sustainable Urban Planning & Engineering Research) Lab. She received her BS in sustainable built environments from the University of Arizona in 2019, and plans on pursuing a PhD in a transportation-related field after her master's program. Prior to coming to PSU, she conducted research with Dr. Clifton through the Transportation Undergraduate Reearch Fellow (TURF) program*. Gabby will present her work on the demand for freight at multifamily apartment buildings on February 14 in a Friday Transportation Seminar at Portland State.

Watch an interview with Gabby about her research at University of Arizona on Walkability in Tucson, Arizona.

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NITC Student Spotlight: Samuel Jensen of University of Arizona

Student Spotlight: 2019 NITC Student of the Year - Samuel Jensen, University of Arizona

Dec 18, 2019

Samuel Jensen is a planning masters student at the University of Arizona. He has been selected as the 2019 NITC Student of the Year, and will be presented with the award at the Council of University Transportation Centers banquet at the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board in January 2020. He will present research on "An Inventory of Bus Stop Amenities Guidelines at U.S. Transit Agencies" at TRB, in the Bus Transit Research and Practices poster session. Samuel's interest in transportation developed through his work as an advocate for transit justice. He also serves as the president of Graduate Planning Society, UA's planning student group, and as vice-chair of the city of Tucson's Pedestrian Advisory Committee.

Tell us about yourself?

I'm a somewhat non traditional masters student with a background in transportation and social justice/community organizing. I'm currently studying at the University of Arizona where I'm assisting with separate research projects in the areas of bus transit and walkability. I also serve as the president of our planning student organization, Graduate Planning Society, and vice-chair of the city of Tucson's...

Student Spotlight: Damian Matzen, Oregon Institute of Technology

Dec 02, 2019

Photo by Ruffnekgal/iStock

Damian Matzen is a masters student at the Oregon Institute of Technology. He is a 2018-2019 National Institute for Transportation and Communities (NITC) scholar, and was selected by NITC's executive committee as the 2019 NITC Outstanding Masters Student. As a recipient of this recognition, NITC is supporting Damian's attendance at the 2020 annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in Washington, D.C. next month.

Tell us about yourself?

I’m a third-generation college student from rural Oregon who has always had a passion for solving complicated problems and wading through numbers. My early days were spent with Camp Fire USA exploring local wilderness areas and teaching the younger kids about how to survive. As I grew older, my hobbies began to shift towards the virtual world. Video games became a big part of my life around middle school, with them becoming the dominant hobby during high school. As school became more intensive, video games had to take a back seat, becoming a weekend hobby. During school, I devoted time to helping my classmates and anyone else in the degree who needed it. I never went so far as to give the other students answers, but I would explain terms and equations and do my best to guide them towards the right process.

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Travis Glick, Portland State University

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