Giavanna Riker presented her innovative work focused on enhancing public safety during severe weather events. With Dr. Bernhardt of Hofstra's Department of Geology, Environment, and Sustainability she and a team leveraged virtual reality (VR) technology to create a powerful educational tool aimed at increasing awareness of snow squalls. The VR experience is designed to share critical information about the onset of squalls, reinforce the importance of heeding emergency weather advisories, and instruct drivers on immediate, life-saving actions to take if they are caught on the road when a snow squall occurs. Her use of immersive technology showcases the program's commitment to supporting impactful research with real-world applications. Kevin Tierney presented his project, under the guidance of Dr. Yalan Xing of Hofstra's Department of Chemistry, which tackled a significant environmental challenge: plastic degradation. Kevin's research explored the potential use of photocatalysts?substances that accelerate chemical reactions using light?to safely degrade common polystyrene plastics. To analyze the efficacy and structure of the degradation process, he incorporated sophisticated analytical techniques, including Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) technology. It was a great opportunity for the students to share their work with family & friends, and gain feedback from faculty and other participants of the program.