Student-Faculty Research
As a nationally designated R2 research university, Montclair creates multiple opportunities for students to conduct research alongside faculty. For Messina, that research began the summer of her freshman year when she joined the biochem lab of Associate Biochemistry Professor Jaclyn Catalano and began assisting in researching an enzyme that is overexposed in breast cancer cells. Messina was named a 2023 Goldwater Scholar, becoming the first student in University history to earn this prestigious award. Read more about Marisa and her research work here.