Eight students in the Master of Science in Health Technology program showcased their Capstone Presentations on Aug. 4 at the I-Hotel in Champaign.
The capstone is the final presentation for the students’ Master of Science degrees. Invited guests included faculty members and capstone sponsors as well as friends and family of the students. Special guests included Illinois alumni and donors Michael Vitoux and Jim and Karen McKechnie.
Falguni Deshpande was selected to receive the Michael Vitoux Capstone Excellence Award, which included a $2,000 prize. Deshpande’s capstone was entitled “Inclusion of Minority Patients in Alzheimer Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) Clinical Trials through Care Partner Engagement” and was supervised by Kinesiology and Community Health Assistant Professor Mina Raj in the Aging, Caregiving and Technology Laboratory.
Lauren Komrska received honorable mention in the same category, which includes a $1,000 award. Komrska’s capstone in the Disability, Participation, and Quality of Life Laboratory with KCH Associate Professor Laura Rice was entitled “Development and Validation of a Fall Detection Device for Older Adults who use Wheelchairs or Scooters”.
Vitoux was present for the award presentations and said he was impressed by the students’ work. The recipients were selected by the awards committee based on presentations and assignments about their capstone projects throughout the academic year.
Dr. and Mrs. McKechnie celebrated all of the MS-HT students’ accomplishments at the luncheon and poster session. They were especially proud of the work of Deshpande and Komrska, who were recipients of the 2021-2022 James and Karen McKechnie Fellowship in Applied Health Sciences.
You can find more information on the MS-HT program with the following link;