Research News

A growing partnership between Hamilton College and the Masonic Medical Research Institute (MMRI) is giving students the opportunity to pursue biomedical research. This summer, Lydia DeTraglia ’28 and Aksel Reid ’27 are spending 10 weeks at the institute in Utica conducting independent research projects while gaining firsthand experience in a professional laboratory.

While most of campus is asleep, the lights inside Hamilton’s Peters Observatory are still on. This summer, Associate Professor of Instruction for Physics Adam Lark and students Marcus Raabe ’27 and John Fitzgerald ’27 spend their nights tracking distant stars, searching for tiny flickers that reveal exoplanets: planets orbiting stars beyond our solar system.

For most people, the sound of croaking frogs signals a summer evening. For a small group of Hamilton researchers, it’s a sign that the workday is just beginning.

As the 2025-26 academic year wrapped up, students were honored with scholarships and awards, and presented research at professional conferences.

Four Hamilton seniors are finalists for the 2026-27 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, a national fellowship for purposeful, independent exploration outside the U.S.

As a senior fellow, Julia Afsar-Keshmiri ’26 has amassed a network of scientists to further unravel the mysteries of brain development and neurodegenerative diseases. Through her fellowship, Afsar-Keshmiri has the opportunity to devote her entire senior year to her project, giving her a taste of life as a professional researcher.

Hamilton students Angel Apollos ’26, Ricaldo Lewis ’26, and Mia Wrisley ’26 partnered with Eileen Brinck, OHSWA recycling coordinator, and Alma Lowry, lecturer in environmental studies, to create the app modeled after the “Am I Recyclable” feature on OHSWA’s website.

Big — in fact GREAT — Names on campus. Student research with a practical use. Memorable seasons for the Continentals. Check out our most popular stories from 2025.

This summer, Levitt Center student researchers Luke Hanson ’26, Delaney Patterson ’26, Samuel Low ’28, and Ton Somnug ’27 joined forces with Griffiss Institute CEO and Hamilton alumna Heather Hage ’02 to investigate the holistic impact of federal spending on the local economy. In November, the Griffiss Institute released findings from the research study.

Through Emerson Foundation Grants and Levitt Summer Research Fellowships, Hamilton students forge their own research paths. Explore what three summer grantees said about the inspiration and significance of their projects.