College of Sciences alumni and graduate students are among the seventy-five Yellow Jackets awarded Graduate Research Fellowships (GRF) from the National Science Foundation. The fellowships, valued at $159,000, include funding for three years of graduate study and tuition for graduate students pursuing full-time, research-based master’s and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) or STEM education.  

The Georgia Tech recipients of the fellowship, which has supported over 70,000 students since its inception in 1952, were selected from a pool of more than 14,000 applicants nationwide. Fellowships are awarded to students “who have demonstrated potential for significant achievements in research.” 

Alumni: 

• Mariah Castillo – Chemical Catalysis 
• Brandon Choi – Physics and Astronomy - Artificial Intelligence
• Brice Bradley Edelman – Comp/IS/Eng - Artificial Intelligence 
• Marielle Frooman – Chemistry – Chemical Synthesis  
• Kush Gandhi – Physics and Astronomy - Quantum Information Science 
• Divya Iyer – Materials Research - Chemistry of Materials 
• Elizabeth Mone – Physics and Astronomy - Astronomy and Astrophysics 
• Akash Narayanan – Mathematical Sciences – Topology 
• Matthew Rohan – Materials Research - Chemistry of Materials 
• Isaac Sipp-Alpers – Geosciences – Paleoceanography 
• Skylar Taylor – Life Sciences – Organismal Biology  

This month, nineteen Georgia Tech faculty and researchers were honored by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG) with 2026 Regents’ Awards. These distinctions, awards, and reappointments recognize excellence in teaching, research, innovation, and entrepreneurship across the USG. 

The recipients were approved during the University System of Georgia’s 2026 awards cycle, recognizing individuals whose sustained contributions have made a significant impact on their fields, their students, and the broader research and education community. 

This cohort includes faculty who represent all six schools across the College of Sciences.

2026 Regents’ Award Recipients and First Renewals 

College of Sciences

• Randall Engle, School of Psychology (Regents’ Professor) 

• Thomas Orlando, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and School of Physics (Regents’ Professor Renewal) 
   
• Rafael L. Bras, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences and School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (Regents’ Professor Renewal) 
  (Joint with College of Engineering)

• Santosh Vempala, School of Computer Science with courtesy appointments in Mathematics and Industrial and Systems Engineering (Regents’ Professor) 
  (Joint with College of Computing and College of Engineering)