Bio Page Link Tino Nyawelo, a Professor (Lecturer) in the University of Utah’s Department of Physics & Astronomy, has been at the U since 2007. In 2012, Tino founded the REFUGES program which supports underrepresented students through an after-school program (grades 7-12) and a summer science “bridge” experience for incoming college freshmen. Tino the Director of Undergraduate Research, and also coordinates the Summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. In 1998, Tino obtained his master’s degree in theoretical high energy physics at the Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy. He received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from the Free University of Amsterdam in 2004. His main area of research deals with (quantum) field theory, supersymmetry and gravity.

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John Matthews is a Research Professor working with the University of Utah’s Cosmic Ray Physics group which he joined in 1995. His current research is the study of the origin and nature of ultra high energy cosmic rays with the Telescope Array. The central Utah observatory measures particle showers induced by cosmic rays arriving at the Earth over an area of 750 square miles. Matthews also serves as Co-Spokesperson of the Telescope Array Collaboration. Before the Telescope Array, some of his previous experiments included The High Resolution Fly’s Eye (HiRes) which also studied ultra high energy cosmic rays and FLASH measuring the fluorescence light yield from cosmic ray air showers. Matthews also works with Prof. Nyawelo’s INSPIRE project, helping to bring science, computing, and technology to young under-represented students through cosmic ray detectors and experiments.

John earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago in physics, math, and economics. As an undergraduate he worked on a search for cosmic ray magnetic monopoles. He then moved to the University of Wisconsin where he earned his M.S. while he worked on low mass detectors to measure particles near the collision region at Fermilab and electronics for plasma experiments. John earned his Ph.D. from Rutgers University for his studies into CP Violation at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.

Ricardo Gonzalez is a passionate educator with a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez. After a brief stint in the graduate program at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Utah, he transitioned to work for Utah State University, where he worked with Sarah Braden on the InSPIRE research team as a STEM instructor. Ricardo later took on the role of Program Manager at the Center for Science and Mathematics Education at the University of Utah, overseeing the REFUGES afterschool program and other initiatives aimed at enhancing STEM education. He is committed to fostering a love of science and mathematics in students of all backgrounds.

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Dennis Soldin studied physics at the University of Wuppertal, Germany, where he also received his doctorate degree in 2017 for work on measurements of cosmic rays with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory (IceCube). As a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Delaware he continued his work in cosmic ray research with IceCube where he was also the convener for the comic ray working group from 2018 to 2023. Since 2021 he is also involved in plans to build a Forward Physics Facility (FPF) at CERN as a member of the FPF coordination panel and convener for the working group on light hadron production. In 2022, Soldin moved as a postdoctoral researcher to the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany, before he became an assistant professor at the University of Utah in 2023.