The National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellows Program’s (GRFP) 2026 Class of Fellows includes 22 University of Delaware students and alumni — a record number of recipients for a single year. 

UD’s previous record-high was 19, in 2022. Since 2007, 210 UD students and alumni have been selected to participate in this prestigious program.

The highly competitive fellowship supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing research-based master’s or doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and STEM education. Fellows receive a three-year annual stipend of $37,000 and a $16,000 cost-of-education allowance for tuition and fees.

Among this year’s UD recipients is Alyson Schwartz, a doctoral student who is passionate about the significant difference medicine and engineering can make in people's lives. Schwartz has been conducting biomedical research since her sophomore year of college at Clemson University. Now at UD, she is pursuing a doctoral degree in biomedical engineering focused on developing nanoparticles to engineer and regulate the autoimmune system, under the guidance of Robert “Smitty” Oakes, assistant professor of biomedical engineering. It’s work she hopes one day could contribute to the treatment of chronic autoimmune diseases.

“After I graduate from UD, I would like to pursue a career in industry working on drug discovery and drug development,” she said. “The support of the NSF GRFP will allow me to pursue research in this area and give me the foundational knowledge needed to work in pharmaceutical development.”

Fellow awardee Colby Constantine is a first-generation college student with a nontraditional academic journey. After vocational training to become an electrician, Constantine pursued chemical engineering as an undergraduate student at the University of Rhode Island while working as a pharmacy technician in a busy retail drug store. It was then that he realized how “deeply parents rely on access to effective therapies.” That epiphany led Constantine to pursue a doctoral degree in chemical and biomolecular engineering at UD, where his research focuses on making therapeutic treatments more reliable and effective.

“This fellowship represents both validation of an unconventional path and the opportunity to pursue research that I believe can have real impact on patient care,” Constantine said. He plans to mentor students from non-traditional backgrounds while at UD, showing others that there is more than one path into science and engineering.

Read on to learn about UD’s other current and alumni awardees and honorable mentions.

UD awardees

Talha Mahmood, computer science

Doctoral student Talha Mahmood is designing deep-learning architectures to analyze high-dimensional data, with the goal of building more accurate predictive models for satellite remote sensing, geological monitoring and medical imaging. Working under the guidance and mentorship of Xu Yuan and Leila Barmaki, associate professors of computer science and information systems, and Bingqing Liu, assistant professor at Florida State University, Mahmood aims to bridge the gap between AI and physical discovery. He earned a bachelor of computer science degree at UD.

Kira Ann Zautcke, oceanography

Kira Ann Zautcke, a doctoral student, is analyzing hydrothermal vent-associated samples to better understand deep water pools of organic carbon in the ocean, under the guidance of Sunita Shah Walter, associate professor of marine science and policy. 

Shefra Shah, chemistry and biochemistry

Doctoral student Shefra Shah is developing methods to create molecules that trigger or enhance the body’s immune response, under the guidance of Catherine Grimes and Catherine Fromen, professors of chemistry and biochemistry and chemical and biomolecular engineering, respectively, and credits the UD Chemical Biology Interface (CBI) program with instilling in her the value of collaborative and interdisciplinary work. 

Alex Joseph Mulrooney, machine learning

Meredith Morse, chemical and biomolecular engineering

Meredith Morse, a doctoral student, is leveraging microbial communities to break down plastic waste, under the guidance of engineers Mark Blenner and Kevin Solomon. She wants to harness microbes to drive advances in areas such as biobased and living materials, environmental remediation and alternative food sourcing.

Terra Miley, chemical engineering

Terra Miley, a doctoral student, wants to improve how we understand and address complex biological challenges. Under the guidance of engineers Wilfred Chen, Millicent Sullivan and Mark Blenner, Miley is applying engineering approaches to biological challenges that can contribute to the production of therapeutics and pharmaceuticals.

Amanda Holt, cognitive psychology

Doctoral student Amanda Holt is examining how the brain distinguishes between familiar and novel information during recognition memory using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), under the guidance of Adrian Gilmore, assistant professor of psychology and brain sciences, and Cory Inman, assistant professor at the University of Utah. Her project investigates whether the parietal memory network’s activity is driven primarily by familiarity signals or by attentional orientation during memory retrieval.

Samantha Chittakone, engineering

Ryann Chatfield, engineering-biomedical engineering

Ryann Chatfield, a doctoral student, is pursuing research in drug delivery and immunoengineering to address clinical problems and improve patient care, working with biomedical engineer Jason Gleghorn. Chatfield also earned an honors bachelor’s of biomedical engineering at UD.

Melisa Ecem Bilgili, engineering

Doctoral student Melisa Ecem Bilgili is developing a textiles recycling computational framework with experimental validation in the chemical and biomolecular engineering department at UD, under the direction of engineers Marianthi Ierapetritou and LaShanda Korley, and the encouragement of lab director Rees Rankin.

Samantha Andes, organic chemistry

Samantha Andes is a doctoral student exploring ways to control chemical reactions using catalysis, under the guidance of Mary Watson, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, who is known for her novel methods to construct organic molecules. 

Alumni awardees

Nine UD alumni earned fellowships this year to continue their graduate research.

Timothy Smoot, geosciences–marine ecology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Jasmin Antonia Bioteau, chemistry–chemical catalysis, University of California, Los Angeles

Abigail Spangler, engineering-chemical engineering, Regents of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Megan Elise Tarr, engineering-biomedical engineering, North Carolina State University

Schuyler Brennan, mathematical sciences-mathematical biology, North Carolina State University

Nina Borodin, materials research–computationally intensive research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Calista Shank, psychology–developmental psychology

Caldonai Carmello, engineering–environmental/ecological engineering

Lindsay Maire Gallagher, bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania

Honorable mention

An additional four current UD students and one UD alumni earned honorable mentions. 

UD students (undergraduate and graduate) 

Sophia Glastein, geosciences–biological oceanography

Mason Kellinger, engineering-chemical engineering

Laura Tompkins Kirshenbaum, life-sciences – microbial biology

Krista Zogg, engineering–chemical engineering

Alumni

Mitchell Gale, physics and astronomy–atomic, molecular and optical physics, University of Texas at Austin.

Application support available

UD's Office of National Fellowships (ONF) supports students and alumni as they apply for a wide range of nationally competitive fellowships, including the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. ONF works with students through individualized advising, application essay writing workshops and interview preparation. Students and alumni interested in applying to the NSF GRPF should contact ONF at national-fellowships@udel.edu.