Four outstanding undergraduate students are redefining the boundaries of STEM through their high-impact research — and in doing so, placing the university among the nation’s top producers of Goldwater Scholars.

The prestigious Goldwater Scholarship identifies and supports the nation’s best student researchers in the fields of engineering, mathematics and natural sciences.

This year’s honorees — all expected to graduate next spring — have propelled UCF into an elite tier of research institutions, surpassing several Ivy League institutions and tying for fourth in the nation in total Goldwater Scholars produced alongside Stanford University, the University of Notre Dame and the University of Chicago. Their impactful work reflects UCF’s commitment to building a high-level research environment that empowers students to lead projects addressing significant global and scientific challenges.

Supporting Space Exploration

Goldwater Scholar: Keanu Brayman

Major: Mechanical engineering

Ultimate Goal: To develop robotic systems to support human exploration on Mars.

Keanu Brayman’s passion for space began early.

“One of my earliest memories is watching a Space Shuttle streak across the sky from a beach in South Florida,” Brayman says. “I remember being amazed there were people on board and feeling drawn to one day help explore the stars and discover what lies beyond our planet.”

ɫ����, Brayman has refined that dream with the support of faculty and mentors — including Associate Professors Adrienne Dove (physics) and Tarek Elgohary (mechanical and aerospace engineering), and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Engineer Christopher Proctor — as well as through programs like the .

He plans to pursue a doctoral degree in aerospace engineering to support lunar exploration and NASA’s Artemis program, as well as develop robotic systems that can extract resources and build infrastructure to support human exploration on Mars.

Engineering the Brain

Goldwater Scholar: Kyle Coutray

Majors: Computer engineering and biomedical sciences

Ultimate Goal: To research ways to restore communication, movement and cognitive function to the brain through engineering methods.

Kyle Coutray is focused on the intersection of neuroscience and technology.

“I’m interested in building systems that interact directly with the brain,” Coutray says. “In the lab, … [I’m] blending [both majors] into one approach.”

He aims to pursue a doctoral degree in neural engineering to further his research on brain-computer interfaces that translate complex brain activity into useful functions.

A 2026 Order of Pegasus inductee and a Burnett Honors Scholar, Coutray credits his success to disciplined focus and strong mentorship, particularly from Charles N. Millican Professor of Computer Science Joseph LaViola and Associate Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Helen Huang.

Advancing Patient Care

Goldwater Scholar: Varun Nannuri

Major: Molecular and cellular biology

Ultimate Goal: To pursue a career as a physician-scientist.

Varun Nannuri is driven by a desire to understand why people experience different health outcomes and improve care.

“Through my clinical experiences, I have seen how much patients and families rely on physicians during some of the most difficult moments of their lives,” Nannuri says. “My research experiences have shown me that better care depends on asking better questions.”

Nannuri plans to pursue a dual M.D./Ph.D. degree and become a physician-scientist. His ambition earned him recognition as a 2026 Order of Pegasus inductee while also completing his Honors Undergraduate Thesis. Nannuri is also a member of the Burnett Honors College as a Burnett Medical Scholar, a program that offers guaranteed admission to the UCF College of Medicine upon completion.

“UCF has given me opportunities to grow as a student, researcher, leader and future physician,” Nannuri says.

Restoring Human Senses

Goldwater Scholar: Trevor Overton

Majors: Electrical engineering and biomedical sciences

Ultimate Goal: To improve the lives of people with disabilities through advanced robotic prostheses.

Burnett Honors Scholar Trevor Overton’s work centers on neuroengineering and next-generation prosthetics.

“I’ve always had a passion for building things, and I also love reading and watching sci-fi,” Overton says. “When UCF offered me the opportunity to join the MEDD [ … I knew I had to take it.”

UCF’s MEDD program provides scientifically driven students like Overton with a unique opportunity to integrate engineering principles into medicine.

Much like the development of cochlear implants, Overton imagines similar breakthroughs with vision and touch.

“I envision a future where robotic prostheses are so advanced that they could completely replace or enhance the abilities of humans,” Overton says. “It’s not entirely impossible.”

After earning a doctoral degree in electrical engineering with a focus on neuroengineering, he hopes to inspire the next generation — just as his professors inspired him — emphasizing that UCF’s strength lies in professors who actively invest in their students.

A Growing Research Powerhouse

With four 2026 Goldwater Scholarship recipients, UCF continues to strengthen its position as a leader in undergraduate research. The achievement reflects both students’ immense dedication and a university-wide commitment to driving innovation, mentorship and hands-on discovery. As these Knights prepare for the next steps in their academic journeys, they carry forward a shared mission: to turn research into real-world impact.

Students interested in applying for the Goldwater Scholarship or other major national awards should contact the Office of Prestigious Awards at opa@ucf.edu.

Casey Bruno ’18 is one of those people.

Bruno’s 2-year-old dalmatian, Paisley, not only helps her deal with depression, but also has enhanced her social life and is a constant reminder of her life’s passion.

Originally from Tampa, Bruno, who graduated with a biology degree from UCF in August, says she had anxiety from a young age that turned into depression while she was in college. She heard that services dogs were helpful for treatment and the idea grew on her. It’s now been two years since Bruno brought home Paisley, who was then only 8 weeks old.

“One of the biggest things I tell people is that taking care of a dog helps you to take care of yourself.”

In that time, she’s been able to complete most of Paisley’s ADA-compliance training, gotten her accustomed to attending classes on campus and even brings her along on shifts at Banfield Pet Hospital, where Bruno works as a veterinary assistant. Through outings at dog parks and Memory Mall, Bruno has found it easier to meet people.

“Before I knew it, I was making friends,” Bruno says. “[Paisley] helped me fulfill all of my wishes.”

Having Paisley by her side has also helped her to get off her anti-depressants.

“She’s helped me so much. One of the biggest things I tell people is that taking care of a dog helps you to take care of yourself,” Bruno says. “When I was depressed, I wouldn’t want to do anything, but taking care of a dog, you have to take her out, you have to feed her. It got me out of the house and doing stuff.”

Top Dog

Last month, a post Bruno posted went viral, earning her a spot on several television news segments. The tweet featured a few photos of the two both wearing decorated grad caps. Bruno’s featured a paw print to represent Paisley, and Paisley’s displayed Bruno’s hand.

“When I thought about my college experience, I thought about Paisley. I knew that I wanted my cap to have the paw print on since it goes with me being pre-vet, but then I thought it would be so cute if she had a cap with my hand print on it because her experience has been [all about] me,” Bruno says.

Animal Helper

She is now pursuing a master’s degree in biomedical sciences and ultimately wants to become an animal neurologist. This interest is partly inspired by her uncle, who does that for a living, and partly by the live-action version of 101 Dalmatians.

“They have a scene where they train a dalmatian to turn off the alarm in the morning, start the coffee and turn on the shower. More than the movie [being entertaining], I was like, ‘How do they train the dog to do that?’ So I got really into the breed,” Bruno says.

“You can’t always see problems that people have. … A lot of people don’t realize the impact service dogs have on people.”

While many people find trained animals like service or emotional support dogs to be helpful, there are some who criticize the use of them, especially when a person’s disability isn’t visible. They may seem fine in public, but are struggling with issues behind closed doors. Or their symptoms can be sporadic and difficult for them to figure out on their own. But ultimately emotional support animals provide companionship and aid their owners in dealing with personal issues, while service dogs are specifically trained to perform tasks to help individuals with disabilities.

“You can’t always see problems that people have,” Bruno says. “I used to get really bad panic attacks, but I have asthma so I didn’t know if I was having a panic or asthma attack. [Paisley] was always able to help me distinguish between it and helped me not have panic attacks anymore. A lot of people don’t realize the impact service dogs have on people.”

New Member of the Pack

While researching dalmatians, Bruno found the breed loves being trained and pleasing their owners, so when the time came for her to get a service dog two years ago, she knew this was the exact kind she wanted. Earlier this month, she stayed loyal to the breed when she picked up her second service dog, a now 9-week-old male dalmatian puppy named Chevron, from the same breeder as Paisley.

“He’s actually a lot better than [Paisley] was as a puppy,” Bruno says. “He’s more mellow. [My boyfriend and I] joke that he spends all his energy on growing.”

“It’s not just for me, other people love [service dogs] too.”

Paisley and Chevron were apprehensive of each other at first, but Bruno says they’re inseparable now. She’s excited for the opportunity for Paisley to help teach her younger brother how to be a good service dog. She also sees this as a chance for Chevron to help tighten up his older sister’s training. So far, Bruno and others are simply enjoying having a new puppy around.

“I brought him to lab for the first time just to get him used to being around people and the teacher’s assistant was like ‘I’m so happy. I’ve been so stressed. You just made my day.’ So it’s not just for me, other people love [service dogs,] too,” Bruno says.

A senior research technician at the College of Medicine’s Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, Alex Bosak works in the lab of Dr. Brad Willenberg. Together, they study mosquitoes to help curb diseases the insects transmit like the Zika virus. They also create biomaterial scaffolds — manmade tissues that are used for regenerative medicine, wound healing and nerve regeneration.

But when Bosak is not in the lab fighting Zika, you can probably find him in a makeshift art studio in his garage using prosthetic sculpting, molding and casting techniques to create harrowing masks and sculptures.

“I basically recreate aliens, creatures and monsters from different films that I like,” said the UCF grad, whose masterpieces include Demogorgon from the series, Stranger Things, a number of aliens from Star Wars, Velociraptor from Jurassic Park and his most popular piece this Halloween, Scary Terry from Rick and Morty. “People just love that!” he said.

After watching his high school English teacher suffer with multiple sclerosis, Bosak developed an interest in the brain, , which led him to pursue to a degree at in molecular microbiology with an emphasis in neurosciences.

It was during his undergraduate studies that he first discovered his hidden talent. He was working at Universal Studios part-time as a cast member in the Rocky Horror Show live stage performances.  He played the part of Rocky Horror and saw special effects makeup artists bring characters to life with prosthetics, masks and airbrushing.

“I thought it was pretty cool, and I decided I wanted to learn how to do that.”

Shadowing one of the make-up artists, he first learned to make the noses for the characters in How The Grinch Stole Christmas production and was soon offered a job doing that. But he wanted to learn and do more. So he pored over online videos, practiced on his friends, and with a lot of trial and error in between, he perfected his art.

Pretty soon, he was creating blood-curdling zombies for The Walking Dead attraction at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights and doing special effects make-up for several independent films.

“There is a lot of crossover and understanding the science of art really helps me,” Bosak said. “To make these characters look real, they have to follow nature and so if a bone isn’t supposed to go there, you can kind of tell it’s a weird design. So having an understanding of anatomy and physiology and how the musculoskeletal system should work really helps with designing the sculpture.”

For his horror projects he uses similar materials to what he uses in the lab, such as silicone and alginate, for mold making and casting.

“Working with Dr. Willenberg on biomaterials has definitely pushed my understanding of art and made me a lot more confident working with any material that I have my hands on,” He said.

Though he has given up the job at Universal to work full-time doing research at the College of Medicine, Bosak has kept doing special effects make-up as a hobby. He does masks and makeup for friends and family for Halloween parties and special events like comic book conventions.

Ultimately, Bosak wants to combine his passions and bridge the gap between art and medicine by designing stand-ins that can be used in medical training and simulations instead of cadavers or actual body parts.

“I want to design something that is as realistic as possible for students and other doctors practice on in the absence of actual cadavers,” Bosak added. “I want it to be reactive, for example if you inject a certain amount of liquid or administer a drug, the mannequin would be able to give some feedback or response. There is definitely a market for it and I think it’s a good way to use my skills to contribute to the medical community.”

Bosak’s work was featured Monday on Fox 35 News. Watch the clip .

Led by researchers from the Institute for Simulation & Training (IST), the Department of Philosophy and the College of Medicine, the study will attempt to answer the question, “Why do astronauts and other space travelers consistently describe their experiences as aesthetic, spiritual or religious?”

This will be the first-ever scientific study of these experiences as it attempts to link philosophy and the humanities with cognitive and neural sciences.

The John Templeton Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to “supporting science – investing in the Big Questions,” will fund the two-year, $300K effort. Principal Investigators include: Shaun Gallagher and Stephen Fiore (Philosophy/IST), Bruce Janz (Philosophy), Stephanie Lackey, Lauren Reinerman and Eileen Smith (IST), and Garrett Riggs (College of Medicine, Neurology).

The various team members will (1) analyze astronaut reports in detail, (2) select NASA photographs for use in experiments, (3) compare astronaut experiences to those created in a virtual environment, (4) measure effects on physiology and brain changes, (5) study precisely the environmental conditions present, and (6) show how all these factors are interrelated.

Since setting up a lab in a corner of the International Space Station is out of the question, researchers will design and build a virtual environment at IST. The Virtual Space Lab (VSL) will be a test bed for experiments that will attempt to recreate the awe and wonder space travelers experience.

Researchers from the Bildakt research group at Humboldt University (Berlin) will study the specific images from the NASA archive to be used in the VSL. UCF’s Bruce Janz and Shaun Gallagher and philosophy graduate students from the University of Memphis will do the hermeneutical (textual) analysis and post-experiment interviews with subjects.

On the experimental side, three labs from IST will collaborate to design and run experiments that explore the experiences of participants in the VSL. Stephanie Lackey and Lauren Reinerman will direct the work of IST’s ACTIVE lab, Eileen Smith will manage her E2i lab’s participation and Stephen Fiore the Cognitive Sciences Lab’s contribution.

The team will use near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) technology to study brain processes and subjective reactions of participants in the VSL. Dr. Garrett Riggs from the UCF College of Medicine and Dr. Jonathan Cole from the University of Bournemouth (UK) will provide neuroscientific support.