Sommer L. Amundsen
Sommer is a 2008 - 2012 Self Fellow pursuing a Ph.D. in
bioengineering. She received a B.S. (2007) in a dual major
of engineering with a mechanical emphasis and dance from
Hope College in Holland, MI. At Hope Sommer was on the
Dean's List each semester and also received numerous awards
and grants including a four-year Presidential Scholarship.
As a student she was involved with Strike Time and Sacred
Dance Companies. As part of her senior design project she
helped design a water system for a small rural village in
Cameroon through Engineers Without Borders. She was also
involved in undergraduate research at the Milwaukee School
of Engineering. During her first year in the bioengineering
program at KU she helped design a tool to be used in spine
surgery. Sommer is involved in multidisciplinary research
developing effective physical therapies for people with
Parkinson's Disease. She hopes to use her knowledge of the
science of movement in industry, therapy and possibly
entrepreneurship. Sommer's mentor is Dr. Carl Luchies,
associate professor, mechanical engineering.
Clayton Wauneka
Clayton is a 2008 - 2012 Self Fellow pursuing a Ph.D. in
bioengineering. In 2007 he received a B.S. in electrical
engineering with a minor in mathematics and a B.A. in
Spanish from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New
Mexico. His awards there include the Dean's List, All
American Scholar, Crimson Scholar, and ATLAS Scholar.
During his undergraduate career Clayton interned at both
Raytheon Missile Systems in Farmington, NM, and with IBM in
Austin, TX. Before beginning graduate school Clayton worked
for two summers as a technical aide at the Johns Hopkins
University Applied Physics Lab. Clayton also spent time
abroad doing mission work in Paraguay. Clayton's research
at KU will focus on developing novel devices and methods to
improve current rehabilitation treatment for paretic upper
limbs in stroke survivors. He is working with his advisor to
develop a low-cost robot with an internet accessible control
system that stroke survivors can use from home. Clayton may
pursue starting up a small company, industry or research and
teaching in a university setting. Clayton's mentor is Dr.
Wen Lieu, associate professor, physical therapy and
rehabilitation science, KUMC.
