(l to r) Anshul, Grand Prize Winner; Asghar Sedaghat, Runner Up Winner; Hadley Copeland, People’s Choice Winner
Thank you to all of the students who participated in the 2025 University of Georgia Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition.
The 2025 3MT® Competition drew 72 submissions from students representing 48 different departments across UGA’s campuses. A team of judges during the preliminary heats advanced ten students to the final competition. The 3MT® Competition was open to any currently enrolled UGA master’s or doctoral student.
The final competition was held Thursday, November 13, 2025, at the Morton Theatre in downtown Athens and was livestreamed on Facebook.
(l to r) Addi Mavengere; Anshul, Grand Prize Winner; Athar Yeganeh Neysiani; Margaret Lemons; Kendall Clay; Allison Arne; Vijay Mohakar; Asghar Sedaghat, Runner Up Winner; Hadley Copeland, People’s Choice Winner; Cameron Wysocky
Congratulations, 2025 3MT® Winners!
Anshul, Grand Prize Winner
The 2025 Grand Prize Winner was Anshul for her presentation titled “Peanuts: The Uncrushed Oil Potential.”
Anshul is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Crop and Soil Sciences at the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Georgia. Coming from India, where she earned her undergraduate degree in Horticulture, she has always been fascinated by how agriculture connects science, sustainability, and human well-being. She is drawn by how farming not only feeds families but also shapes livelihoods and economies, a realization that continues to inspire her academic and professional journey.
Anshul began her master’s degree at the UGA Tifton campus in Fall 2024 under the mentorship of Dr. Cristiane Pilon and Dr. R. Scott Tubbs, whose research focuses on peanut physiology and agronomy, respectively. Peanuts hold special significance in the United States, especially in Georgia, the nation’s leading peanut-producing state. Despite this strong production base, the country still imports a considerable amount of peanut oil each year. This gap between production and utilization sparked her interest. Additionally, peanut farming for producing edible peanuts like peanut butter, is far from simple. Pest pressure from thrips, diseases like white mold, and drought stress are some of the major concerns in peanut farming as they significantly affect peanut yield and seed quality which results in rejection of harvested peanuts from food industry. These reasons led Anshul to explore how peanuts can be cultivated more efficiently for oil, not just for edible products.
Her research broadly focuses on developing strategies to optimize peanut production for oil yield and quality. By understanding how different production factors influence oil concentration, her goal is to provide farmers with practical, sustainable options that enhance profitability while promoting resource efficiency, especially in current times where climate and rainfall patterns are so uncertain.
Asghar Sedaghat, Runner Up Winner
The Runner Up Winner was Asghar Sedaghat for presenting “The Tale of Laying Hens Told by Immune Markers.”
Asghar is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Poultry Science at the University of Georgia, working under the supervision of Dr. Rami Dalloul, R. Harold Harrison Distinguished Professor of Poultry Immunology and Health. One of his research areas focuses on understanding the relationship between the immune system and skeletal health in laying hens — particularly how immune markers can reveal signs of pain or stress in birds with keel bone damage.
Keel bone fractures are one of the most pressing welfare challenges in modern egg production, affecting a large proportion of laying hens worldwide. Yet, the invisible side of this issue — how the bird’s immune system responds to the pain and physiological stress — remains poorly understood. Asghar’s work aims to identify immune signatures that could serve as reliable indicators of suffering, paving the way for more objective welfare assessments and management strategies that improve both bird well-being and productivity.
Before joining UGA, he earned his master’s degree in Poultry Science from Iran and was involved in industry for a few years, where he developed a strong interest in avian immunology and disease prevention. His broader academic goal is to advance scientific understanding of poultry health while contributing to sustainable and ethical food production systems.
Beyond research, Asghar is passionate about science communication and public engagement. He believes that complex scientific questions — like how an immune cell can tell us that a hen is in pain — can be shared in ways that connect with people’s emotions and curiosity. His participation in the 3MT competition reflects his dedication to making science accessible and meaningful to diverse audiences.
Hadley Copeland, People’s Choice Winner
The People’s Choice award, which is given to the contestant who receives the most votes from viewers of the competition, went to Hadley Copeland for her presentation, “Risk Runs Downstream: Managing Forested Watersheds.”
Hadley is a master’s student studying Wildlife Sciences at the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources. During her time at UGA, she also works at the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Histology, where she prepares microscope slides for the study of tissue structures and diseases. Hadley earned her undergraduate degree in Biology, Chemistry, and Biochemistry from Coe College in 2020.
Her current research, under the direction of Dr. John Maerz, examines the ecotoxicological impacts of pesticides used in forest conservation, with a focus on salamander responses. Having worked in both water quality analysis and veterinary diagnostics, her professional background allows her to bridge laboratory science with field-based ecology and conservation. Her passion lies in connecting data-driven research with real-world management decisions to better protect wildlife and their habitats.
When she’s not in the lab or field, Hadley enjoys hiking, swimming, and caring for her dog, frogs, and snakes; a reflection of her lifelong fascination with the natural world.
Special Thanks
The Graduate School would like to extend our gratitude to the Fall 2025 Panel of Judges, Master of Ceremonies, and Graduate Student Arts Performer.
Master of Ceremonies: Nic Laconico, Associate Director for Business Engagement, UGA Office of Business Engagement
Graduate Student Arts Performer: Jennifer Whitehead, Department of Theatre and Film, UGA Arts Collaborative
Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is an academic competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia.
