Two 2025 graduates of the Master of Science in Lighting program at RPI’s Lighting Research Center (LRC) were recently honored with top industry awards recognizing exceptional student design work.

Keshan Maharambe, MS '25, currently a lighting designer at Brandston Partnership Inc., was one of two first-prize winners in the Robert Bruce Thompson annual student light fixture design competition, which asked entrants to design a light installation over a bakery counter. Maharambe’s design took inspiration from the shape of a donut, playfully enhancing the visual appeal of the space.

Maharambe was also a winner of a 2025 Howard Brandston Student Lighting Design Award, sponsored by the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), for an office lighting design inspired by the beauty and logic of computer circuit boards.

“While working as an architect, I realized there was a significant knowledge gap between architecture and lighting,” Maharambe said. “RPI’s MS in Lighting stood out to me because it provides a strong foundation in the physics of light, lighting technology, lighting design, and human factors.”

For her MS project, Kai-Di Peng, MS '25, developed a 3D-printed optic for an LED accent light used in museum applications. “Traditional museum lights often use framing projectors, which use four blades to cut off excess light, meaning some of it goes to waste,” Peng explained. “This project tries to redirect the light with a lens, so the light doesn’t get wasted, making it a more efficient fixture.”

Her project, which resulted in patent-pending optics, was selected as a winner of the Hilbert memorial optical design competition sponsored by Synopsys, an engineering software company. She also received one of three thesis awards given by the New York City section of the IES, and presented her work at the organization’s annual conference in California.

Peng recently accepted a full-time position at lighting design consultancy Tillotson Design Associates after interning at Lighting Services Inc., a leading lighting manufacturer.

Nadarajah Narendran, Ph.D., director of research and the graduate education program at the Lighting Research Center, said the recent honors underscore why the center is recognized as a leading institution in lighting education.

“Our MS in Lighting program is unique in that it draws on so many different disciplines, like engineering, science, and architecture,” Narendran said. He added that the program recently added a guaranteed three-month paid internship with leading lighting design firms and manufacturers.

“With a 100% placement, our graduates in lighting have gone on to industry careers in technology, architectural and lighting design, manufacturing, government laboratories, and educational institutions where they hold senior level positions” he said. “Some have chosen to continue their education in Ph.D. programs or in medical school. We are very proud of the many LRC alumni who are now world-renowned designers, researchers, and scholars.”

About the Lighting Research Center

The Lighting Research Center’s mission is to advance the effective use of light for society and the environment. Established in 1988 by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, the LRC today continues its three-decade history of research excellence with pioneering work in LED technology, 3D printing for lighting, aviation lighting for safe visual guidance, and the effects of lighting on human perception, behavior, and wellbeing in the built environment.