NICOLE T. RAY, PhD Dr. Nicole T. Ray is research mechanical engineer and director of the Signature Tracking for Optimized Nutrition and Training (STRONG) Laboratory at the Human Effectiveness Directorate, 711th Human Performance Wing, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. She is responsible for the development and execution of research studies to enhance warfighter readiness and resilience within the STRONG portfolio. She is an expert in biomechanics and leverages this experience to lead laboratory efforts aimed toward the development of novel training technologies to promote improved performance for all groups of military personnel. Ray joined the STRONG Lab as a research scientist in 2022 after completing a post-doctoral fellowship at the Naval Medical Research Unit – Dayton (NAMRU-D) from 2020 – 2022. She earned her PhD in 2020 from the University of Delaware, and her dissertation focused on the optimization of training and rehabilitation tools to promote improved functional outcomes for stroke survivors. EDUCATION 2015 Bachelor of Science degree, Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 2020 Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, Del. CAREER CHRONOLOGY June 2020 – May 2022, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Naval Medical Research Unit-Dayton, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio June 2022 – August 2022, Exercise Science Research Fellow, STRONG Lab, 711th Human Performance Wing (711 HPW),Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio August 2022 – December 2023, Scientist III supporting STRONG Lab, InfoSciTex Corp., Dayton, Ohio December 2023 – Present, Research Mechanical Engineer and Director of STRONG Lab, 711 HPW, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio SELECTED PUBLICATIONS Ray, NT, BA Knarr, JS Higginson, “Walking Speed Changes in Response to Novel User-Driven Treadmill Control,“ Journal of Biomechanics, 2018. Ray, NT, DS Reisman, JS Higginson, “Walking Speed Changes in Response to User-Driven Treadmill Control Poststroke,” Journal of Biomechanics, 2020. Ray, NT, DS Reisman, JS Higginson, “Combined User-Driven Treadmill Control and Functional Electrical Stimulation Increases Walking Speeds Poststroke,” Journal of Biomechanics, 2021. Merrigan, JM, AJ Strang, JJ Eckerle, NS Mackowski, KM Hierholzer, NT Ray, RL Smith, JA Hagen, RA Briggs, “Countermovement Jump Force-Time Curve Analysis: Reliability and Comparability Across Force Plate Systems,” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2023.