2026 RSI-WAVE Fellows
Meet the 2026 RSI-WAVE Fellows
This summer we are delighted to welcome a cohort of 8 undergraduate researchers to campus as RSI-WAVE fellows.
Elizabeth Bank (she/her)
Elizabeth is a rising senior at University of California, Irvine studying chemistry with a concentration in computational chemistry and research experience in organic chemistry. This summer, she will be working with Professor Sarah Reisman to investigate the reactivity of samarium-catalyzed asymmetric ketyl–olefin cross-couplings and expand the scope of compatible substrates. She is passionate about exploring the intersection of computational and organic chemistry and applying innovative chemistry to solve meaningful real-world problems.
Nico Bartolomeo (he/him)
Nico is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County majoring in Mathematics, with minors in Computer Science, Statistics, and Geographic Information Science. This summer he will be working with the Climate Modeling Alliance using solar-induced fluorescence data to inform photosynthesis modeling.
Jesse Benitez (he/him)
Jesse Benitez is a rising Junior at Brown University studying Geochemistry and Environmental Chemistry. This summer, he will be working in the Adkins lab to study the ways that the isotopic composition of deep-sea corals can tell us about the environmental conditions that the corals formed in. Outside of the lab, he enjoys anything that gets him outside, including backpacking, playing soccer, and taking photos.
Cara Brown (she/her)
Cara is a visiting student from Rice University in Houston, Texas studying Chemistry and Art History. This summer at Caltech, she will be working in the Agapie Group developing vanadium complexes for use in molecular qubits. In her free time, she enjoys visiting museums, trying new restaurants, and spending time outdoors.
Claire Fagan (she/her)
Claire Fagan is a rising senior math major from the University of Maryland with particular interests in geophysics and seismology. Her research this summer focuses on analyzing seismic swarms in the Salton Sea region to improve the existing California seismic catalog. She aims to identify patterns between seismic swarms and geographic location or geothermal activity.
Ella Giampietro (she/her)
Ella is a rising junior from Rhode Island studying geochemistry and environmental chemistry. At Caltech, she will be applying novel vibrational spectroscopy techniques to fossilized plant materials in order to study the Amazonian paleoclimate. Outside of research, she is hoping to explore some hikes around California and pick up the guitar!
Jas Hollis (he/they)
Jas is a rising senior from San Antonio, TX, studying atmosphere, ocean, and climate dynamics at Yale University. He has worked on projects involving Arctic Ocean properties, cloud physics, and atmospheric convection, and will be studying water-mass transformation in the Southern Ocean this summer. Outside of research and academics, Jas sings with an a cappella group, plays guitar with a mariachi band, has conversational proficiency in French and Mandarin Chinese, and engages in science outreach on campus.
Denis Mahila (he/him)
Dzianis (Denis) is an undergraduate in Chemical Engineering at UC Santa Barbara. In his free time he likes to crochet, draw, bake and play video games.