MTSU’s QRISE lands $2M federal grant for quantum, AI research

Middle Tennessee State University is preparing a new generation of researchers and professionals for careers in quantum science and artificial intelligence through a $2 million National Science Foundation grant.

“If we want to build a sustainable quantum ecosystem in Tennessee, we also have to build the people who will power it,” said MTSU physics professor Hanna Terletska, director of the Quantum Research Interdisciplinary Science and Education Center, or QRISE.

Terletska recently welcomed the first cohort of eight graduate student trainees during an orientation session inside the James E. Walker Library.

Over the next five years, the NSF National Research Traineeship grant will help prepare MTSU graduate students to meet the growing demand for professionals with experience in quantum computing and artificial intelligence.

Trainees receive $16,000 in tuition assistance, professional development opportunities and a $37,000 stipend for eligible students.

“A student might begin with fundamental research at MTSU, spend time at Oak Ridge National Research Laboratory working at the frontier of quantum science, and then work with an industry partner where the questions become very different,” Terletska said. “What problem are we solving? Who is the customer? Can this technology be deployed? That is the workforce pipeline we want to build.”

The first cohort includes eight graduate students: Tomy Chet, a data science major from Murfreesboro; Laurel Koenig, a computational and data science major from Hampton; Patrick Wong, a computational science major from Lakeland; Danlei Zhu, a computational and data science major from China; Robert Dohner, a computational and data science major from Clarksville; Gavin Liles, a computer science major from Nashville; Dongyu Liu, a computational and data science major from China; and Hannah Osborne, a mathematics major from Chapel Hill.

Students in the program are also paired with faculty mentors who will guide them throughout their research.

“Another thing they get out of this program is a mentor, and so we pair them with a faculty member on our grant team,” said Aspen Malone, research project manager.

Terletska, computer science professor Joshua Phillips, assistant computer science professor Kritagya Upadhyay and assistant mathematics professor Donglin Forrest Wang will provide mentorship to the first cohort during the 2026-27 academic year.

The combination of mentorship, financial support and professional development is designed to allow students to focus more fully on their research while progressing toward graduation.

“We’re finishing our research so I can graduate on time and contribute to the quantum and theorized program,” Wong said.

Wong’s research with Terletska explores the behavior of materials that could be used to develop new technology through quantum simulations.

“It’s much cheaper to run the simulation of how the materials can behave rather than make it, because you can simulate it 10 times for the cost of making it once,” Wong said.

Koenig and her mentor, Phillips, have been planning her dissertation for approximately two years. Koenig said working part time while completing her studies has limited the amount of time she could dedicate to research.

“Part of the reason it has taken so long is that I have been working part time for Thompson Machinery during that time period,” Koenig said. “So instead of being able to be completely focused on school, I have had to spend 20 to 30 hours of my week working.”

Her research uses quantum machine learning to analyze data from large machinery and predict when maintenance may be needed on equipment such as construction vehicles.

“Preventive maintenance is scheduled,” Koenig said. “Predictive maintenance is trying to catch when something is going to fail so that you can fix it, essentially right before it fails, to get as much useful life as you possibly can.”

As quantum computing continues to become more capable and accessible, researchers say demand for professionals trained in the technology will continue to grow.

“In my head, quantum is really like the next space race,” Liles said. “As someone who cares about my community, about this country, how can we best prepare our country for this next space race?”

Wandi Ding, principal investigator for the grant and associate director of education for MTSU’s QRISE Center, said receiving the NSF funding represented a major milestone for the university’s quantum science efforts.

Ding developed the proposal alongside co-principal investigators Abdul Khaliq, Jing Kong, Phillips and Terletska, as well as senior personnel Upadhyay and Wang.

“We thought, ‘Our dream just came true.’ I’m very thankful,” Ding said.

The program is part of MTSU’s broader effort to expand quantum science research, education and workforce development while preparing students for emerging opportunities in academia, government laboratories and private industry.