MEES IN THE NEWS

FEBRUARY 2026 - national black history month

NEWS ARCHIVE

MEES RESEARCH CENTER

physics, Aviation safety & fostering future Careers in STEM

dr. joseph Dodoo (UMES)

Dr. Joseph Dodoo is a Professor and physics lecturer at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES), known for teaching introductory courses such as general college physics I (PHYS 121), and a long time MEES faculty member, whose current research activity has been in the area of Aviation Safety. In particular, the development of monitoring technologies to enable detection of unsafe behaviors in the flight. Dodoo’s previous research focused on the application of Thermogravimetric Analysis-Mass Spectrometry-Gas Chromatography (TG/MS/GC), a powerful hyphenated technique, or multi-coupled method, that combines three power instruments into one integrated system.  It is used primarily for evolved gas analysis (EGA) — studying the gases, vapors, or volatile decomposition products released ("evolved") from a sample as it is heated.  This technique is used to identify and quantify components in complex mixtures, polymers, and materials by measuring mass loss (TGA), separating evolved gases (GC), and identifying compounds (MS). This technique excels in analyzing decomposition, additives, plasticizers, and thermal stability in plastics, rubbers, and pharmaceutical materials.

Dr. Joseph D. Dodoo's research interest in astrophysics began in 1994 with a summer faculty internship at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, under the auspices of Universities Space Research Association.  Dr. Dodoo’s research at NASA consisted of the application of Monte Carlo techniques to model a germanium detector for use in astrophysics studies.  For over a decade, Dr. Dodoo was part of the Gamma Ray Observatory program on the WIND satellite, and the technique was also used to model the geometry of the Spectrometer for Integral (SPI) of the International Gamma Ray Astrophysics Laboratory (INTEGRAL).  Dr. Dodoo has made presentations in international forums in Serbia, Japan, Spain, Australia and Ireland.

Dr. Dodoo earned his doctoral degree in atmospheric physics from King’s College, University of London in 1980, his Master’s in nuclear and elementary particle physics from Bedford College, University of London in 1972.  Joseph Dodoo earned a bachelors in Physics in 1970 from the University of South Bank, London.

With a focus on Foundational science, Dr. Dodoo has contributed to academic literature, including a laboratory manual for physical science. In addition to lecturing, he has produced educational materials, including a lab manual for physical science and has participated in departmental initiatives to make physics engaging, such as "Making Physics Phun". Students who have taken his courses note his high academic, but fair standards, his time commitment to helping students learn, and his encouraging mentorship teaching style.

 Also, in collaboration with Dr. Joseph O Arumala Professor in the Construction Management Technology Program at UMES, developed a novel approach for a unique program with UMES’ Summer Transportation Institute offering intensive STEM education, hands on activities and field trips that provide awareness of transportation careers and encourages participants to consider transportation-related courses of study in their higher education pursuits.  The STI summer program draws instructors from the Wicomico County School system in partnership with UMES faculty and draws over 200 middle school students, comprising of minority and underserved groups,  from the lower Eastern Shore of Maryland to its campus. During the past decade, the institute has run an integrated program in Mathematics, Science, Communication, Skills/English and Recreation to participants with  field trips that take them to some of the major transportation establishments in the states of Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey and Washington, DC. For more on Dr. Dodoo, please click here.

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urban sustainability, green infrastructure & Environmental Policy

rhea thompson (Ph.D. ‘18)

Rhea Thompson (Ph.D., ‘18) is a Senior Communications Manager at Verdani Partners, a company based in Carlsbad, California who develops and implements strategies such as: climate resilience, decarbonization, net zero, data management, green building certifications, ESG frameworks, regulatory and annual reporting, ESG education, and stakeholder engagement.  Rhea has over 10 years of experience in environmental consulting and policy, leading sustainability annual reporting and communications programs for some of Verdani’s largest clients, managing collaboration across teams to delivery impactful sustainability reporting and engagement.  Under the advisement of Dr. David Tilley, Rhea earned her doctoral degree in MEES from the University of Maryland College Park in 2018.  Rhea’s doctoral research focused on evaluating the green infrastructure benefits of WaterShed, a sustainable solar house designed by University of Maryland researchers for the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2011 Solar Decathlon competition, in which the house won first place. Rhea’s broader research interests are in understanding the effects of climate, vegetation, building, and design on green infrastructure benefits (e.g., wastewater treatment, stormwater retention, energy savings) as well as in bridging socioeconomic disparities in green infrastructure accessibility.

Prior to joining the MEES graduate program, Rhea was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA to West Indian-American immigrant parents and earned her bachelor's degree in biology from Drexel University in June 2012.  While at Drexel, during the summer of her freshman year, Rhea performed research under Dr. Daniel Marenda, Assistant Professor in the departments of Biology and Neurobiology and Anatomy, through the STAR program focused on the characterization and application of Drosophila as a model for the CHARGE syndrome, a rare, complex genetic disorder affecting 1 in 8,000 to 10,000 births. Rhea was credited with her first publication on this research in Human Molecular Genetics entitled “Kismet/CHD7 regulates axon morphology, memory and locomotion in a Drosophila model of CHARGE syndrome.” Furthermore, she has presented her research at numerous conferences and placed second at the Minority Access 11th Annual National Role Models Conference in Las Vegas, NV.   In 2010, Rhea interned through Drexel University’s College of Medicine Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship under Dr. Brian Wigdahl, Professor and Chair of Microbiology and Immunology, on the correlation of genetic variation in brain-derived LTR sequences with HIV pathogenesis and disease. Rhea, an Amgen Scholar at the University of California San Diego, aspires to have a hands-on career that enables her to impact and interact with others through her scientific contributions and research.  However, it was during an opening of the new Papadakis Integrated Sciences Building at Drexel University that marked Rhea’s first exposure to ecological engineered systems through a 22 foot wide 80 foot tall biowall.  This sparked Rhea’s interest in merging ecology and design to create technologies that make use of the natural abilities and functions of ecosystems, like plants to provide benefits, such as improved air quality to humans and the natural environment.  Recalling this experience with the biowall, Rhea notes realizing the importance of urban sustainability in light of the many effects of climate change, such as flooding and an increase in the frequency and intensity of severe storms. Rhea matriculated into the doctoral MEES program in Fall 2013 and was awarded the highly prestigious Graduate School Dean’s Fellowship and the National Science Foundation Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) Bridge to the Doctorate Fellowship which allowed many opportunities to present her research at national conferences like the NSF’s Joint Annual Meeting, and served as a teaching assistant for several undergraduate bio-informatics (BISI) courses. Working with Dr. David Tilley, Rhea’s doctoral research used high-resolution sensors to study the energy savings potential and stormwater retention of the green roof on WaterShed, the 2011 winning sustainable home designed and built by College Park researchers and students for the U.S. Solar Decathlon competition.  With global populations becoming increasingly urbanized, urban dwellers in coastal cities tend to be exposed to more risks from climate change.  Rhea graduated with her doctoral degree in MEES with honors (magna cum laude) and did her post-doctoral research fellowship at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2016 through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) program.  While at the EPA, Rhea wrote technical guidance for cities regarding how to plan, site, design, construct, and maintain green infrastructure to improve sustainability, meeting with representatives from various cities and watershed management programs across the U.S.  Rhea assisted in awarding over $1.2 million annually for various design, construction and research projects. Rhea also developed guidance materials for federal, state, and local water program partners providing quality assurance support, and aided in database improvement efforts. Over the next five years, Rhea was appointed in increasing roles in various non-profit organizations before being appointed to her current position at Verdani Partners. In her spare time, Rhea travels back and forth to the Caribbean where she enjoys celebrating the local Carnival, visiting family and the beach, and hiking to waterfalls. For more information on Rhea, please click here.

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MEES RESEARCH CENTER

enabling resilient infrastructure in urban, RURAL & COASTAL COMMUNITIES

nylah mcclain (‘2o, Emst)

Nylah McClain (‘20, Ph.D.) is a doctoral student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) with an interest in ecotoxicology; specifically in how contaminants build and affect food webs.  Under the advisement of Dr. Ali Ishaque, Nylah’s doctoral research focuses on looking further into various diseases that affect crabs (not just bitter crab disease) as well as contaminants (not just organic) that suppress the immune system.  Specifically analyzing the gut content of the blue crab to investigate the effects of secondary microplastic contamination in the Maryland Coastal Bay (MCB).  Prior to joining the MEES graduate program, this Fort Washington, Maryland native’s early interest in environmental science started at Oxon Hill High School, a science and technology magnet school in Prince George’s County, where Nylah was a student in the Science and Technology program.  This program encourages students to pursue a higher education and careers in STEM fields by providing different curriculum pathways including environmental science.  Nylah's initial biology pathway leaned toward medicine, but broadened from the effects of environmental pollutants on humans, to the greater ecosystems. After exploring HBCUs that offered an environmental science program, Nylah applied and was admitted to the Marine & Environmental Science bachelor’s program in Fall 2016 at UMES selected to be part of the prestigious Richard A Henson Honors program, which recruits freshman whose high school rank is in the top 10% and must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.  Working with Dr. Ali Ishaque and MEES alum Chelsea Richardson, Nylah, through two summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) internship program (2016, 2017), conducted research involving analyzing the gut content, stable isotopes, and fatty acids of the summer flounder, Paralichthys dentatus. This information was used to create a dynamic food web of the Maryland Coastal Bays.  In 2019, Nylah was awarded the highly acclaimed Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Scholars Program and In 2020, Nylah was one of only 124 American college students nationwide and the first from UMES,  who were awarded the highly selective and acclaimed Boren Fellowship named after a former U.S. senator from Oklahoma, which focuses on building “a broader and more qualified pool of U.S. citizens with foreign language and international skills.”committed to providing students opportunities for overseas study and to public service”(link).  According to the award website, Boren awardees receive funding to study the languages most critical to the nation’s security in the regions with the agreement to seek and secure national security employment in the U.S. federal workforce for at least one year.  This opportunity appealed to Nylah’s interest in languages, specifically in Japanese comic books and graphic novels which began as a child, and Nylah seized the opportunity to spend a year in the Land of the Rising Sun.  According to the UMES feature on Nylah (link), through its Foreign Language Instruction Center, Nylah spent two semesters under the tutelage of Dr. Phillip Broussard, the center’s director who commended “Nylah-san”’s determination, motivation, and diligence in “..learn[ing] and master[ing] a new language, particularly a difficult language like Japanese”.  Nylah matriculated into the MEES doctoral program in Fall 2020.  Working with Dr. Ali Ishaque, Nylah’s doctoral research analyzes the gut content of the blue crab for secondary microplastics and will be used to determine if there are any resulting health effects that may impact the blue crab fishery Blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) are a keystone species in Maryland's Coastal Bays and although supplying roughly half of the nation's blue crabs, the blue crab industry is currently threatened by a declining (link) population with 2025 seeing the second-lowest numbers on record. Nylah’s research aims to provide tools to inform sustainability management practices in the blue crab industry.  After graduation, Nylah aims to work for the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs for a year pursuing working with the federal government where language skills can be put to practical use. Concerning her future career path after working with the State Department, Nylah aspires to work as an environmental scientist for NOAA or the Peace Corp.  For more info on Nylah, please click here.

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