Sam Schwartz and Erin Wolfram
LAWRENCE — Four University of Kansas honors students who have been actively involved in undergraduate research during their university careers are competing for Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships, regarded as the premier undergraduate award to encourage excellence in science, engineering and mathematics.
The students’ applications are coordinated by the Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships.
KU’s 2025 nominees:
Seventy-nine KU students have received Goldwater scholarships since they first were awarded in 1989. Congress established the program in 1986 in tribute to the retired U.S. senator from Arizona and to ensure a continuing source of highly qualified scientists, mathematicians and engineers.
The Goldwater Foundation trustees will announce the 2025 winners in late March. The scholarships cover eligible expenses for undergraduate tuition, fees, books, and room and board, up to $7,500 annually. Each year the trustees award approximately 450 scholarships.
Only sophomore- and junior-level students with outstanding academic records, significant research experience and high potential for careers in mathematics, the natural sciences or engineering are eligible for nomination. Nominees submitted applications that included essays related to their career goals and research experience and three faculty recommendations. Students interested in applying next year should contact the Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships via email at curf@ku.edu. The next application cycle will begin in fall 2025.
Brief descriptions of the nominees’ research experience, organizational involvement and career plans follow.
Alexa Magstadt, from Shawnee, is the daughter of Dave and Amy Magstadt and a graduate of Shawnee Mission Northwest High School. Magstadt is majoring in molecular, cellular & developmental biology and minoring in Spanish. She aspires to obtain a dual M.D./Ph.D. in cancer biology and practice as a physician-scientist and medical oncologist. At the KU Lawrence campus, she has been a member of the Baer Ecology Lab and the Dixon Cancer Prevention Lab. Last summer, after being selected as a K-INBRE Summer Scholar, she conducted an independent project with Dr. Dan Dixon centered around drug discovery in colorectal cancer, specifically inhibiting oncogenic KRAS mutations with small molecule therapeutics. Currently, she is performing research related to the impact of metabolic syndrome on the progression and metastasis of colorectal cancer with Dr. Jennifer Davis at KU Medical Center in the Department of Cancer Biology. In spring 2024, she presented her work at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting in San Diego. She received the Nathan Parker Undergraduate Research Travel Award from the Department of Molecular Biosciences and an Honors Opportunity Award from the University Honors Program to attend this conference. She was also selected as an oral presenter at the 2024 K-INBRE Annual Symposium. Additionally, she is a 2024 University Scholar, a KU BioScholar, a recipient of a 2024 Undergraduate Research Award and a KU Chancellor’s Merit Scholar. Magstadt is the vice president of the KU club waterski team, an Honors Program ambassador, a member of Phi Delta Epsilon Pre-Medical Fraternity, a member of Phi Kappa Phi Academic Honor Society and a volunteer at the University of Kansas Cancer Center.
Elizabeth Miller, from Emporia, is the daughter of Daniel Miller and Jai Park and a graduate of Emporia High School. She is majoring in interdisciplinary computing with a concentration in chemistry and plans to pursue a doctorate in computational biology, focusing on its applications to biomedical research. Currently, Miller works in the computational biology lab of Joanna Slusky, professor of molecular biosciences, where she is working on the structural determination of the major outer membrane protein in Chlamydia trachomatis and developing a dataset of human metalloenzymes. Previously, she worked in the lab of Zarko Boskovic, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry, synthesizing and characterizing novel organic compounds with possible biological activity. Her contribution to optimizing and exploring the scope of a new photochemical reaction led to a publication in the Journal of Organic Chemistry, of which she is a co-author. Miller has presented this work at the 2024 KU Honors Mossberg Pharmacy Symposium and the 2024 Kansas Undergraduate Research Day at the Kansas State Capitol. Miller, a member of the University Honors Program, was a previous Emerging Scholar and is a recipient of the KU Chancellor’s Merit Scholarship and Engineering Dean’s Scholarship. Additionally, she volunteers as a tutor for KU’s Association of Computing Machinery chapter and participated in KU LibArt; her paintings are currently displayed in KU libraries for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Kai Smith, from Pretty Prairie, is the son of Patrick and Andrea Smith and a graduate of Pretty Prairie High School. He is majoring in biochemistry and minoring in astrobiology. After graduation, he plans to pursue a doctorate in biochemistry with the goal of achieving a career in academia. Smith, a member of the University Honors Program, serves as an astrochemist in the CO-ACES research group, studying prebiotic molecules that form in interstellar media. Outside of the research lab, his current goal is to expand his STEM outreach program in rural areas, providing scientific demonstrations for underprivileged schools to foster broader community engagement. He also aims to increase KU student participation by involving students from disciplines beyond the Biochemistry and Microbiology Club. Additionally, Smith serves as a Payload Team mass spectrometry expert, has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and has worked with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory School. He has received the Jayhawk Undergraduate Research Training Fellowship, the Honors Opportunity Award, the University of Kansas Traditions Scholarship and the ASBMB Travel Award. Smith also works as a Polish saber expert at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival.
Lily Tackett, from Davenport, Iowa, is the daughter of Nathan and Jeni Tackett. Tackett is majoring in chemistry and minoring in mathematics. She plans to pursue a doctorate in physical chemistry, aspiring to continue conducting research in surface science while teaching at the university level. She is a member of the Farber Lab, an ultra-high vacuum surface science lab, and the Ovchinnikov Lab, focused on condensed matter physics. Her research centers on using atomic force microscopy to study self-assembled monolayers, with an emphasis on understanding molecular organization and surface interactions at the nanoscale. Previously, Tackett was a member of the Gleason Lab, focused on molecular evolution and behavioral genetics. Additionally, she is a peer tutor and teaching assistant for the Kansas Algebra Program, a member of the University Honors Program, the vice president and social media chair for KU Environs and a member of the KU Running Club. She is a KU Excellence Scholar, a K. Barbara Schowen Scholarship recipient, a Clark E. Bricker ChemScholar, a U.S. Figure Skating gold medalist and a U.S. Figure Skating gold level award recipient.
Sam Schwartz and Erin Wolfram
Erin Wolfram
Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships

ewolfram@ku.edu

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