Dr. Luke Johnson graduated in 2017 with a BS in Computer Science, and joined the faculty in 2023 while finishing his doctoral studies at the University of Connecticut.
I first came to Gonzaga for "GEL weekend" in 2013. Immediately I could feel the community’s call to grow, care, and get involved. In my first semester, I didn’t feel challenged academically, and I was considering transferring. When I was handing in the final exam for my first Computer Science class, I was invited to join a research group.
I worked with Drs. Paul De Palma (Computer Science) and Shannon Overbay (Math) on an interdisciplinary project. I found a love for the challenge of research and stayed at GU. I presented a poster at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research Conference titled, “Book Embeddings: Using Polya’s Enumeration Theorem to Minimize the Search Space for the Genetic Algorithm (Part 2).”
I spent two of my summers at R1 institutions doing Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) since summer opportunities in computer science at GU did not exist at the time. At the end of my second summer of research at the University of Connecticut, my project advisor and lab engineer encouraged me to apply to the PhD program at UConn.
I am now back at Gonzaga as a faculty member in the Computer Science department, mentoring research students of my own. It would have been easy to leave after my first semester and miss a wonderful and fulfilling vocation. I am very thankful for the research support I have received: a McDonald Family Award at Gonzaga, two summer National Science Foundation REUs, and a Giolas-Harriot Fellowship while at UConn.
