AAAR Summer 2026 Student Chapter Updates

Texas A&M University

Dorothy Grimmer

The AAAR student chapter at Texas A&M University, now informally deemed TAMU AAARosols, has recently gotten new leadership. The board is now comprised of the following: President – Dorothy Sue Grimmer, Vice President and Social Media Manager – Taylor Peña, and Treasurer – Kyle McCary. The new president, Dorothy Sue, is an oceanography student studying marine biogenic aerosols co-advised in the oceanography and atmospheric science departments. She is spending this summer with the NASA Student Airborne Research Program as a graduate mentor advising 6 students in research projects using airborne and satellite remote sensing data.

Looking forward, the chapter aims to gear up for an even higher participation and retention in TAMU AAARosols activities and discussions particularly for the fall with the new cohort of students. We plan to release flyers and have several get-togethers including student speed talks, guest lectures, and craft and dinner nights. Dorothy Sue is also on the board for the Oceanography Graduate Council and is passionate about integrating the oceanography and atmospheric sciences departments to encourage interdisciplinary discussions and growth.

Carnegie Mellon University

Ziheng Zeng

The CMU chapter had a busy spring! We hosted several coffee hours for community building, held our annual flower planting event with the Western Pennsylvania Conservatory, and welcomed Dr. Eleanor C. Browne (University of Colorado Boulder) for our annual Donora Lecture. Dr. Browne presented on new particle formation and growth in agricultural regions, highlighting the role of reactive nitrogen emissions and implications for cloud formation. We look forward to another great year ahead!

University of Maryland

Steph Jacoby

The University of Maryland AAAR Student Chapter had a productive Spring semester full of engaging Journal Club discussions. We covered a range of topics including particle morphology, oxalic acid in the atmosphere, the effects of mixing state on the water-uptake properties of aerosol particles, and cloud condensation nuclei closure studies. The selected papers spanned from the fundamental studies introducing these concepts to the most recent publications to help demonstrate the progression of the research area. This helped facilitate discussions surrounding the progress that has been made and what questions are yet to be answered.

This summer members of the UMD student chapter are working hard to prepare for the upcoming AAAR annual conference this fall. We hope to share our ongoing research projects, engage with other student chapters, and learn about the outstanding work being done in the aerosol science community while at the conference.

Lastly, we are excited to welcome our new chapter president Steph Jacoby and treasurer Rayal Smith and look forward to the continued growth of the AAAR UMD student chapter.