ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ Students, Alumni Earn Goldwater, NSF Graduate Research Fellowships
EL PASO, Texas (May 13, 2026) – From the Chihuahuan Desert to the Arctic tundra, ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ students are conducting globally significant research — and earning national recognition for it. Five current students and recent graduates have been selected for the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, two of the most prestigious and competitive scholarship programs in the country for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
“These five scholars represent the very best of what our University stands for — brilliant, driven students who are tackling important scientific questions,” said ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ President Heather Wilson. “We are incredibly proud to see them recognized on a national stage.”
Goldwater Scholar: Renata Ortega
Renata Ortega is ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½’s fifth Goldwater Scholar in four years. The Barry Goldwater Scholarship is awarded to sophomores and juniors actively engaged in undergraduate research and provides up to $7,500 annually for tuition and fees.
Ortega, a junior in engineering leadership and education, has conducted research under the guidance of Thomas Boland, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, and has participated in highly selective summer research programs at Yale University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard. This summer, she will join the Cardiac Undergraduate Research Experience at Cornell University.
NSF Graduate Research Fellowships
The NSF GRFP supports undergraduate seniors and first or second-year graduate students pursuing research-based master’s degrees or doctoral programs in eligible STEM fields, providing three years of funding. Four ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ students and recent alumni received the fellowship in 2026.
Maegan Beckage is currently completing an NSF-funded postbaccalaureate research position at ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ in the lab of Marguerite Mauritz-Tozer, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biological sciences. She studies carbon fluxes in the Chihuahuan Desert, and her research focuses on understanding Earth system dynamics, particularly the global carbon cycle. She will begin doctoral studies at Cornell University this fall.
Ricardo Chacon is graduating from ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ this May with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering and minors in physics and mathematics. He has conducted research at ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½’s Aerospace Center and W.M. Keck Center for 3D Innovation and interned at Sandia National Laboratories, studying radiation-induced heating. Chacon will intern at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory this summer before beginning a Ph.D. program in nuclear and radiation engineering at The University of Texas at Austin.
Brooke Dorsey earned her Bachelor of Science in chemistry from ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ in December 2024. While at ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½, she worked with Dino Villagran, Ph.D., a professor of chemistry, on developing electrochemical sensors for the detection, quantification and degradation of water pollutants. In the summer of 2024, she participated in a research internship at MIT. She is now a first-year Ph.D. student at the University of California, Irvine.
Victoria Villagomez, a previous Goldwater Scholar, graduated from ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ in December 2025 with a Bachelor of Science in environmental science. Mentored by Craig Tweedie, Ph.D., a professor of biological sciences, and the Systems Ecology Lab research team, her work examined the impact of climate change on evolving Arctic landscapes. She also interned at Cornell’s Hydrology, Ice, and Radar Physics Lab. This fall, Villagomez will begin a Ph.D. program in geophysics and glaciology at Rice University.
The students received support throughout the application process from ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½’s Office of Student Fellowships and Awards, which helps students and recent alumni identify nationally competitive scholarship opportunities and prepare their application materials.
For more information about ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½’s Office of Student Fellowships and Awards and the support available to students pursuing nationally competitive scholarships, visit utep.edu/student-affairs/student-fellowships-awards.
Last Updated on May 13, 2026 at 12:00 AM | Originally published May 13, 2026
By MC Staff ÃÛÌÒ´«Ã½ Marketing and Communications
