Randolph Native Daniel Meza Becomes Fulbright Scholar

Written by: Evan Koblentz

Students applying for Fulbright scholarships often see their work described as advanced, insightful, sophisticated or any number of similar platitudes -- but for New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) senior industrial design major Daniel Meza the word was also slimy.

Meza, who plans to graduate in December from NJIT’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design (HCAD) and who's also an Albert Dorman Honors College student, found his medium in mold and slime. He is just the fourth NJIT student to become a Fulbright Scholar and the first from HCAD.

"You're not missing anything," the Randolph, N.J., native explains to people who question if they heard that correctly. "Two years ago I had a design studio. It was experimental furniture. One of my best friends mentioned slime mold because I was talking about moss furniture."

Meza said he found other artists and designers around the world who use mold and slime in photography and prints, but he doesn't know of anyone using it for furniture. His current work uses the natural materials for decorative purposes, but he really wants to merge the materials with a form of plastic for actual construction elements.

So far he's worked on a lamp, stool and table. He also wants to work on lights as well as seats.

The scholarship will take him to Macquarie University in January 2021, where he'll develop a method for creating furniture out of slime mold. He applied for 10 months of study and was surprised when the scholarship committee awarded him two years.

"It is funny. It's ridiculous. I love telling people. I love seeing the look on their face," he said. However, he said, there is real work to do. "There are a few different things that make slime mold interesting on the research end. It's one of the few single-cell organisms that you can see with the naked eye. It doesn't have a central nervous system but it's able to solve problems. It's able to remember where food sources are, and we don't know why."

"I first met Daniel in an advising meeting and he told me about his design work, including the slime mold table. I was intrigued and, to tell the truth, a little grossed out at first," said Lorna Ronald, associate director in the Honors College, who manages the fellowship program at NJIT. "I asked to see it and, like Daniel, thought the vibrant yellow slime mold was incredibly beautifully incorporated into the design of the table."

Research at a university like NJIT is typically associated with beakers and coding, not art and design. But it's open to all students. "I love hearing about unique and unusual interests. Students often feel very bound by the careers that they have planned for themselves -- when there are in fact a greater number of options for them. My job in advising for fellowships is to help students come to know themselves very well so that they can see clearly where their real passions lie and imagine ways to pursue them," Ronald said.

Meza agreed — "As a designer, I didn't really think there were opportunities for me to do research or get grants," he said. "I'm so thankful for the faculty and staff who told me about this opportunity."

Looking past the research grant, Meza said, "My dream is to become a professional artist. That's where I feel the most energized and the most passionate."

About New Jersey Institute of Technology:

One of only 32 polytechnic universities in the United States, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) prepares students to become leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. NJIT’s multidisciplinary curriculum and computing-intensive approach to education provide technological proficiency, business acumen and leadership skills. NJIT is rated an “R1” research university by the Carnegie Classification®, which indicates the highest level of research activity. NJIT conducts approximately $170 million in research activity each year and has a $2.8 billion annual economic impact on the State of New Jersey. NJIT is ranked #1 nationally by Forbes for the upward economic mobility of its lowest-income students and is ranked 53rd out of more than 4,000 colleges and universities for the mid-career earnings of graduates, according to PayScale.com. NJIT also is ranked by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top 100 national universities.