Diné College Graduate Successfully Defends Master’s Thesis on Biomedical Signal Processing
May 06, 2025
TSAILE, Ariz. Diné College proudly celebrated a key academic milestone as Alana Benally, a graduate student in the MEA Lab, successfully defended her Master’s Thesis on biomedical signal processing. The defense was held at 9:00 AM MDT in LIB-206 of the Kinyaa’áanii Library on the Tsaile Campus.
Benally’s thesis, “Assessing the Importance of Optimal Laplacian Estimation Coefficients for Commercially Available Concentric Ring Electrodes on Human Data and via Finite Element Method Modeling,” focused on enhancing biomedical signal processing methods.
Under the mentorship of Dr. Oleksandr Makeyev, Benally’s research explored advanced modeling techniques to improve the accuracy and reliability of human data acquisition.
Her thesis committee approved her work, recognizing her substantial contribution to the field. Following the successful defense, Benally was honored with a commemorative plaque and a stole to celebrate her achievements. She is now set to participate in the commencement ceremony on Friday, May 9, 2025, at Diné College’s South Campus in Shiprock, New Mexico, where she will be formally hooded.
“This accomplishment underscores the caliber of research and academic excellence Diné College fosters, while also highlighting the growing presence of Indigenous leadership in biomedical and computational science,” said Dr. Makeyev.
Benally’s achievement marks a significant step forward for the college and its commitment to advancing research efforts within the Navajo Nation.
For more information about Diné College’s graduate programs and research opportunities, visit www.dinecollege.edu.
