Contact FRI
Location: Science 2 Building – Room 257
Main Office: (607) 777-5523
Email: fri@binghamton.edu
FRI Office Staff
Megan Fegley, Ph.D.
Director
First-year Research Immersion Program
Caitlin Light
Assistant Director, Researcher, Microbial Biofilms in Human Health
First-year Research Immersion Program
Anita Cipolla
Administrative Assistant 1
First-year Research Immersion Program
Research Educators
Christina Baer
Ecological Genetics, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Umur Ciftci
Image and Acoustic Signals Analysis, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Trevor Cross
Biofilms, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Deborah Kreiss
Neuroscience, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Yiliang (Yancy) Luan
Clean Energy, Research Assistant Professor
Chemistry; First-year Research Immersion Program
Shane McCarty
Public Health, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Joe Panzik
Environmental Visualization, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program; Department of Earth Sciences
Jonathan Schmitkons
Biogeochemistry, Research Associate Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program; Department of Earth Sciences
Michel Shamoon Pour
Molecular and Biomedical Anthropology, Research Associate Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Patricia Wolfe
Drug Discovery, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
Andrew Ziesel
Biomedical Chemistry, Research Assistant Professor
First-year Research Immersion Program
FRI Affiliates
Michelle D. Withers, Ph.D.
Associate Professor; STEM Educator
Biological Sciences
FRI Student Interns
Rachel Liu
Kyla Dowdy
Lydia Luo
Amanda Nariani
anariani@binghamton.edu
Rabia Khan
Letter from the Director
Thank you for finding our research community! We believe science and engineering are
not learned by watching from the sidelines, but by asking bold questions, testing
ideas, and engaging fully in discovery.
We believe in preparing students for a wide range of career pathways by focusing on transferrable skill development through the research process. Students learn to solve problems, collaborate, communicate, and adapt to challenges. Students leave FRI ready to navigate complexity and succeed as scholars, innovators, and leaders.
FRI is more than a research experience or sequence of courses. We are a community that brings together faculty, peer mentors, and a growing network of thousands of alumni to support the growth of our students.
Our approach works. Over the past decade, FRI students have excelled academically, graduated at higher rates, and continued their career pursuits at top-ranked graduate programs, medical schools, and meaningful careers. By laying a strong foundation from the start, FRI sets students up for long-term success.
Whether you are a prospective student, collaborator, or partner, we believe there is a place for you in our community. Your involvement can strengthen our work and expand what we can accomplish. We encourage you to further explore our research streams, connect with our community, and support our transformative vision for a student-centered higher education.
Sincerely,
Dr. Megan Fegley
Director, First-year Research Immersion (FRI)
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