The OSCAR Peer Leaders are a cohort of peer advisors that assist Mason students with undergraduate research. The peer leaders help other Mason students prepare their grant proposals, work on their posters, and practice their conference presentations.
Sofie Strompf

Neuroscience 2026
Research Interest: Her research interest lies within translational neurobiological research. She is particularly interested in immunological mechanisms of neurodegenerative disease, specifically in the context of mast cells and their involvement in dopaminergic neurodegenerative disease.
Last Research Project: Her last OSCAR project involved wet lab research at the Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine on Mason’s SciTech campus. Her project explored induction of mitophagy as a potential mechanism for the reversal of neuronal cell damage, particularly in the instance of drug-induced damage to dopaminergic neurons. This year, she is continuing her research in the same lab under an NCI R21 supplemental grant.
Luciano Byrd

Government and International Politics 2025
Research Interest: His research interest focuses on American Politics, with particular emphasis on legislation, legal studies, and the executive branch.
Last Research Project: While he has not participated in an OSCAR project, he presented research on executive orders at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) under the mentorship of Dr. Lee, Associate Director of the Office of Student, Creative Activities, and Research.
Aaron Morton

Biology 2026
Research Interest: His research interest centers on avian biology with a particular focus on bird conservation and genetics.
Last Research Project: His last OSCAR project was conducted in the HC Lim lab, working alongside PhD student Will Brooks. The research focused on analyzing Bornean bird diets through fecal metabarcoding techniques. His work involved extracting and sequencing insect DNA from bird fecal samples to investigate the relationship between diet breadth and fragmentation sensitivity in avian populations.
Karissa Raucheisen

Criminology 2026
Research Interest: Her research focuses on comparative legal research and the effects of victimization.
Last Research Project: She participated in a STIP (Summer Team Impact Project) project analyzing and addressing inequalities in Fairfax County's Domestic and Sexual Violence Services, with particular attention to at-risk communities.
Angela Rivera

Medical Laboratory 2027
Research Interest: Her interests lie in biomedical research, with a focus on analyzing the tumor tissue microenvironment and tumor progression in cancer.
Last Research Project: She participated in the Undergraduate Research Scholars Program (URSP), where she studied metabolic plasticity in the tumor microenvironment in vivo through mitophagy-generated extracellular vesicles.
Margaret Doan

Biology 2026
Research Interests: Her research interest is to examine neurological diseases and other diseases as well as develop possible diagnostic tools for those diseases to improve the wellbeing of human life.
Last Research Project: Her last Oscar project was to search for a new and potential diagnostic tool for Alzheimer's Disease by examining biological substances.
OSCAR Peer Leader's Office Hours
Wondering about how to get started in research as an undergraduate? Interested in finding out more about OSCAR programs?
Come to our office to talk to an OSCAR Peer Leader, an undergraduate student who has done research at Mason. OSCAR Peer Leader drop-in hours are as follows:
Monday - 11 AM to 5 PM
Tuesday - 9 AM to 10 AM, 12 PM to 1 PM, 3 PM to 5 PM
Wednesday - 10 AM to 1 PM
Thursday - 9 AM to 10 AM, 1 PM to 5 PM
Friday - 10 AM to 12 PM, 1 PM to 5 PM