Rachel Hurley ‘23 has always been interested in the environment, and as an incoming first-year, decided to pursue engineering as a means of addressing environmental issues. The Integrative Engineering program enabled her to pursue her particular interests with greater flexibility.
“As an Integrative Engineering major I can more deeply focus not only on the environment, but on specific topics I’m interested in by choosing related courses across several engineering departments,” Rachel said. “I’m particularly interested in natural disasters and climate change as well as its impacts on indoor environment and human health, and Integrative Engineering enables me to explore these areas.”
Outside of classes, Rachel has been conducting research for several years. As a sophomore she was a Clare Boothe Luce Scholar, working with Professor Brandes to develop a multivariable model to predict flash flooding in the Delaware Watershed Region. They are continuing
this research by investigating new metrics for the model. The earlier research was presented at the 2021 EWRI conference virtually, and subsequent research will be presented at the 2023 conference in Henderson, Nevada, in May.
During the summer of 2021, Rachel participated in a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) titled “Advanced Materials for a Resilient Society,” in which she worked with the Architectural Engineering Department. She was involved in three research projects over the course of the program, with Professor Shichao Liu as her advisor. She continued this research as a research assistant at WPI over the fall of 2021 where she was involved in the design, execution, and heading of paper writing for an experiment focused on personal cooling devices as well as face mask wear on emotions, cognition, perceived task load and thermal comfort in a warm environment. This research was presented at the 2022 COBEE Conference in Montreal in July 2022 where she served as chief presenter for the full-length paper. She has continued working with the WPI research team virtually, and has worked on additional projects with them over the summer of 2022.
Rachel also serves as co-president of Engineering student Council as well as co-president of the Integrative Engineering student group. She is a member of Lafayette’s cross country and track team and the OAKS athletic leadership academy.
Rachel also participated in INDS 201 From Plate to Plate: Terroir and the Geology and Agriculture of Food in Italy. The three-week summer course explored how location, climate, soil and topography play a role in the “taste of the place” suggesting how food and drink are geographically and culturally specific. In her free time Rachel enjoys being outdoors, traveling, and searching for the best local hikes.