Meet the Newest Sigma Pi Sigma Leadership Scholarship Recipients

Raisa Rahman Richi

A senior at Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania, Raisa Rahman Richi is pursuing a double major in physics and mathematics. Her passion for physics began in childhood, when science fiction novels inspired her to pursue a research career.

Through a summer internship at Fermilab in 2024 and at CERN in 2025, Richi developed an interest in experimental particle physics. At Fermilab she used machine learning algorithms to improve neutrino reconstruction techniques, and at CERN she contributed to an energy efficiency analysis of a high-energy physics event generator.

Richi is the president of the SPS chapter at Franklin and Marshall College, leading weekly meetings, organizing research presentations, and coordinating conference participation. Next year Richi plans to pursue a PhD in physics, with hopes of becoming a research scientist at a national laboratory or a university professor. Outside of physics, she enjoys traveling, hiking, running, and playing guitar.

Yurok Song

Yurok Song is a senior physics major at Emory University interested in applying physics to living systems and medicine. He is completing an honors thesis in Ilya Nemenman’s theoretical biophysics group, where he uses quantitative models to study population activity and inhibitory–excitatory dynamics in mouse auditory cortices. He has also conducted research at Stanford University on accelerating diffusion-weighted MRI using computational methods.

Yurok serves as copresident of the Emory SPS chapter, a learning assistant captain in the physics program, and an advanced EMT and division chief of operations for Emory EMS. He is committed to strengthening the physics and broader scientific and health communities through outreach, mentoring, and creating welcoming spaces for younger students. After graduation, he plans to pursue an MD/PhD in physics and pursue a career using quantitative tools to inform diagnosis, treatment, and health policy.