The Department of Forest Biomaterials is excited to welcome a new team of Graduate Student Association (GSA) officers for the 2026-2027 academic year. Meet the new officers and learn more about the experiences, goals, and perspectives they bring to their roles!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My name is Hao-Chen Sun, and most people call me Howard. I am originally from Taiwan, and before joining the department, I completed my master\u2019s degree in Forestry at National Chung Hsing University in Taichung, Taiwan. In Fall 2026, I am entering the third year of my Ph.D. program in our department. My research focuses on the characterization of lignocellulosic biomass and how its intrinsic characteristics affect pulping applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I look forward to creating more opportunities for communication, collaboration, and student engagement across the department. I hope to encourage more students to participate, share their ideas, and help us develop activities that reflect their interests and needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was born in Palmira, a city near Cali, Colombia. Pursuing a Ph.D. brought me to NC State about eighteen months ago, where my research focuses on pulping with deep eutectic solvents and the recovery processes associated with these systems. My work aims to better understand their behavior and identify opportunities to improve process performance. Looking beyond my Ph.D., I hope to pursue a career as a university professor or researcher in Colombia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I would like to create more opportunities for graduate students to connect beyond their research groups through social, academic, and well-being activities. I also believe it is important to listen to students\u2019 ideas and concerns so that GSA activities reflect what the community actually needs. My goal as vice president is to help create an environment where students feel supported, comfortable participating, and able to build meaningful connections with one another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am Vaishnavi, from India, with a background in biotechnology and chemical engineering. I am currently a second-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Forest Biomaterials at North Carolina State University, working under the guidance of Dr. Lokendra Pal. My research focuses on enzyme characterization,
biochemical conversion, and sustainable biomass utilization to develop innovative and environmentally sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Treasurer role inspired me, as I see it as an opportunity to support the graduate student community and contribute to GSA’s continued growth. As a Treasurer, my priorities are to manage GSA resources responsibly, maintain transparency, and support events that create a meaningful impact within the community. I see this role as more than managing finance; it is also an opportunity to help turn ideas into initiatives that can positively impact our community. I am excited about creating more opportunities for graduate students to collaborate and get involved while contributing to a supportive graduate student community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am originally from M\u00e9rida, a small city in the mountains of Venezuela. I began my Ph.D. at NC State two years ago, where my research focuses on modifying high-lignin-content fibers using enzymatic cocktails to improve their performance. After graduation, I hope to bring the knowledge and skills gained throughout this journey into industry, contributing to innovative and sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What inspired me to take on this role was the opportunity to give back and contribute positively to our department. I want to support the growth, inclusion, and success of graduate students while helping create an environment where everyone feels heard, represented, and supported. For me, this role is a meaningful opportunity to serve others and contribute to strengthening our graduate student community.<\/p>\n","protected":false,"raw":"\n
The Department of Forest Biomaterials is excited to welcome a new team of Graduate Student Association (GSA) officers for the 2026-2027 academic year. Meet the new officers and learn more about the experiences, goals, and perspectives they bring to their roles!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My name is Hao-Chen Sun, and most people call me Howard. I am originally from Taiwan, and before joining the department, I completed my master\u2019s degree in Forestry at National Chung Hsing University in Taichung, Taiwan. In Fall 2026, I am entering the third year of my Ph.D. program in our department. My research focuses on the characterization of lignocellulosic biomass and how its intrinsic characteristics affect pulping applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I look forward to creating more opportunities for communication, collaboration, and student engagement across the department. I hope to encourage more students to participate, share their ideas, and help us develop activities that reflect their interests and needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was born in Palmira, a city near Cali, Colombia. Pursuing a Ph.D. brought me to NC State about eighteen months ago, where my research focuses on pulping with deep eutectic solvents and the recovery processes associated with these systems. My work aims to better understand their behavior and identify opportunities to improve process performance. Looking beyond my Ph.D., I hope to pursue a career as a university professor or researcher in Colombia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I would like to create more opportunities for graduate students to connect beyond their research groups through social, academic, and well-being activities. I also believe it is important to listen to students\u2019 ideas and concerns so that GSA activities reflect what the community actually needs. My goal as vice president is to help create an environment where students feel supported, comfortable participating, and able to build meaningful connections with one another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am Vaishnavi, from India, with a background in biotechnology and chemical engineering. I am currently a second-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Forest Biomaterials at North Carolina State University, working under the guidance of Dr. Lokendra Pal. My research focuses on enzyme characterization,
biochemical conversion, and sustainable biomass utilization to develop innovative and environmentally sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Treasurer role inspired me, as I see it as an opportunity to support the graduate student community and contribute to GSA's continued growth. As a Treasurer, my priorities are to manage GSA resources responsibly, maintain transparency, and support events that create a meaningful impact within the community. I see this role as more than managing finance; it is also an opportunity to help turn ideas into initiatives that can positively impact our community. I am excited about creating more opportunities for graduate students to collaborate and get involved while contributing to a supportive graduate student community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am originally from M\u00e9rida, a small city in the mountains of Venezuela. I began my Ph.D. at NC State two years ago, where my research focuses on modifying high-lignin-content fibers using enzymatic cocktails to improve their performance. After graduation, I hope to bring the knowledge and skills gained throughout this journey into industry, contributing to innovative and sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What inspired me to take on this role was the opportunity to give back and contribute positively to our department. I want to support the growth, inclusion, and success of graduate students while helping create an environment where everyone feels heard, represented, and supported. For me, this role is a meaningful opportunity to serve others and contribute to strengthening our graduate student community.<\/p>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Department of Forest Biomaterials is excited to welcome a new team of Graduate Student Association (GSA) officers for the 2026-2027 academic year. Meet the new officers and learn more about the experiences, goals, and perspectives they bring to their roles! Hao-Chen (Howard) Sun, President My name is Hao-Chen Sun, and most people call me…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":26369,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26368","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"displayCategory":null,"acf":{"ncst_posts_meta_modified_date":null},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26368"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26368\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26381,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26368\/revisions\/26381"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/26369"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26368"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnr.ncsu.edu\/fb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}