Each spring, Georgia Tech recognizes the achievements and excellence of students, staff, and faculty across the Institute. Dozens of members of the College of Sciences community were honored during celebrations held in March and April 2025. 

Please join us in congratulating the following honorees:

ANAK Awards

• Outstanding Faculty ANAK Award: Susan Lozier, Dean and Betsy Middleton and John Clark Sutherland Chair, College of Sciences

Center for Teaching and Learning Awards

• Innovation and Excellence in Laboratory Instruction Award: Emily Weigel, Senior Academic Professional, School of Biological Sciences
• Undergraduate Educator Award: Mary Holder, Senior Academic Professional, School of Psychology
• TA and Future Faculty Awards: Twenty members of the College of Sciences community were honored for teaching excellence during a ceremony in March 2025.

College of Sciences Student Excellence Awards

• A. Joyce Nickelson and John C. Sutherland Prize: Phat Phan
• Cynthia L. Bossart and James Efron Scholarship: Sabrina Downie
• Metha Phingbodhipakkiya Memorial Scholarship: Arya Akbarshahi
• Robert A. Pierotti Memorial Scholarship: Alexander Divoux, Jedrzej Konarkowski, Austin Shoemaker
• Roger M. Wartell, Ph.D., and Stephen E. Brossette, M.D., Ph.D. Award for Multidisciplinary Studies in Biology, Physics, and Mathematics: Rehaan Naik
• Virginia C. and Herschel V. Clanton Jr. Scholarship: Haelin Lee

Georgia Tech Chapter Sigma Xi Awards

• Best M.S. Thesis Award: Nikolas Alansson, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Advisor: Lynn Kamerlin
• Best Ph.D. Thesis Award: Yuqing Wang, School of Mathematics, Advisor: Molei Tao
• Best Undergraduate Research Award: Alice Heranval, School of Physics, Advisor: Laura Cadonati
• Young Faculty Award: Pengfei Liu, Assistant Professor, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences

Georgia Tech Division of Student Life and SGA Awards

• Dean George C. Griffin Award for faculty member of the year: Chris Jankowski, Director of Graduate Advising and Assessment and Assistant Director of Teaching Effectiveness, School of Mathematics

Institute Awards

Research Awards

• Outstanding Achievement in Research Program Development Award: TRU CoRE:NNSA Transuranic Chemistry Center of Research Excellence
  • Henry Storms La Pierre, Associate Professor, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Julie Niklas, Research Scientist II, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Keisha Durggin, Research Admin Manager, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Staff Performance Awards

• Spirit of Georgia Tech Award: Christopher Pruitt, Facilities Manager II, School of Physics 

Academic Advising Awards 

• Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Advisor – Faculty Advisor: Meghan Babcock, Academic Professional, School of Psychology 

Awards for Student Excellence

• Outstanding Learning Assistant Award: Emily Hill
• Outstanding Tutor Award: Eric Baker
• Provost’s Academic Excellence Award: Alexander Divoux

Students from all majors are invited to register for the new Minor in Astrobiology at Georgia Tech. Welcoming its first enrolled students in Fall 2025, the minor is the latest degree offering from the College of Sciences and Georgia Tech Astrobiology Program.

Astrobio in focus

The Minor in Astrobiology will provide a broad, interdisciplinary introduction to the field of astrobiology while encouraging exploration beyond students’ primary fields of study. 

The program will foster the development of well-rounded scientists and engineers who will graduate with confidence in their knowledge and ability to engage in cutting-edge endeavors across the astrobiology discipline. 

The Minor in Astrobiology is open to all undergraduates at Georgia Tech. Students who enroll now and meet program requirements may graduate with the minor designation as early as the end of Fall 2025 term.

Enrolled students will learn about the physical and chemical conditions for development of a habitable planet; deeply understand Earth, space, and planetary science as well as the origin and evolution of life on Earth; and critically evaluate scientific issues related to astrobiology in media and popular culture.

Habitable Planet

The foundation of the new minor is the popular School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (EAS) course EAS 1601: Habitable Planet. Led by EAS Assistant Professor Frances Rivera-Hernández, the course enrolls up to 300 students a semester and expands options for study and career horizons. 

"Students from a lot of different majors enjoy 1601 where they get a true sense for the broadness of astrobio — stars, galaxies, biology, life beyond Earth, and how we create technology and science to explore those places,” Rivera-Hernández explains.

Like the new minor, EAS 1601 is also open to all majors. The class is offered in person across fall and spring semesters, and also available online during the summer term.

“We’re purposely very flexible with that course and the overall minor,” adds EAS Jean “Chris” Purvis Professor Jennifer Glass. “Students use EAS 1601 as a launchpoint to pick their interests for their wider field of study and to hone career interests — whether that’s space, biology, and autonomous rovers; hunting for chemical signs of life beyond our planet; or becoming an entrepreneur.” 

Over the past five years, students in the class frequently asked for formal degree offerings in astrobiology. Glass and fellow faculty partnered with then-graduate fellow Tyler Roche to explore the idea of a minor, leveraging Sutherland Dean's Chair funding in 2021 to officially launch the Georgia Tech Astrobiology Program in tandem with the Astrobiology Graduate Certificate Program, Astrobiology Fellows, and ExplOrigins young researcher group. 

Astrobio and beyond

The Astrobiology Program is now supported by the new Georgia Tech Space Research Initiative and co-directed by Rivera-Hernández and EAS Assistant Professor Christopher E. Carr, who holds a primary appointment in the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering. 

Glass and Rivera-Hernández co-direct the Astrobiology Graduate Certificate Program, and co-direct the Astrobiology Minor with Nicholas Hud, Regents' Professor and Julius Brown Professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry.

The team’s collaborative approach to interdisciplinary leadership mirrors unique opportunities ahead for students who are interested in exciting careers across the field of astrobiology and beyond. 

“The minor is designed across three broad divisions of study,” Glass adds. “Whether you’re curious about ‘Foundations of Life,’ want to dive deep into ‘Earth, Space, and Other Worlds,’ or are exploring career ideas for ‘Astrobiology in a Wider World,’ we’ve built a solid home for you in Astrobio at Tech.”

The Minor in Astrobiology will be listed in the 2025-26 Catalog beginning May 12.

Benjamin Freeman, assistant professor and Elizabeth Smithgall-Watts Endowed Faculty in the School of Biological Sciences, has been named a 2025 Early Career Fellow by the  Ecological Society of America (ESA). 

Freeman is one of only 10 Early Career Fellows and eight Fellows honored by ESA this year for advancing the knowledge and application of ecological science in a way that strengthens the field and benefits communities and ecosystems.

“Ecological science tells us how nature works, and my research uses birds as ‘canaries in the coal mine’ to learn how animals are responding to the rapid changes taking place on our planet,” he says. “I am delighted by this honor.”

Freeman studies why species live where they do and how their ranges are changing in response to climate change. He is recognized for integrating evolutionary and ecological approaches to address fundamental questions in bird biology and for communicating science to the public. Freeman leads the Mountain Bird Lab at Georgia Tech and launched the Mountain Bird Network, which aims to compile systematic survey data on mountain birds across the globe. He is currently developing “Tech Mountain,” a first-of-its-kind field site to study how birds and other organisms are responding to climate change.

Freeman, who joined the Institute in 2023, received a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Cornell University.

Early on, Georgia Tech graduate students William Trenton Gantt and Hugh (Ka Yui) Chen imagined working in the space industry.

“When I was 14, I dreamed about being in space one day,” recalls Chen, 22, a native of Hong Kong and a Ph.D. student in aerospace engineering. “I think the industry has been making space more accessible to everyone. Commercialization is a big part of enabling this.”

Gantt, an engineer and former U.S. Army veteran graduating with an MBA from the Scheller College of Business this spring, remembered seeing the space shuttle retire and companies begin privatizing space as he entered young adulthood. 

“I’ve always been interested in space, and a lot of it comes from the challenge of going to space,” he observes. “Seeing how hard it is to get to space and seeing it become achievable — that to me was the most attractive thing about it.”

For Gantt, the feeling always brings to mind John F. Kennedy’s famous line that spelled out America’s space ambitions: “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”

Recognizing Georgia Tech’s aerospace strengths, Gantt didn’t waste time building bridges within Scheller and in other parts of Georgia Tech. He founded the Scheller MBA Space Club, a first at the College, to track the industry as it grows and develops. 

“I came from a military background, so I had my eye on the defense industry going into the MBA program. Georgia Tech, being the No. 2 aerospace engineering undergraduate school in the nation, I knew they already had strong industry connections. Making connections was a big goal coming into this program.”

Assessing Early-Stage Space Tech 

He took part in the Entrepreneurship Assistants Program (EAP), which pairs a Scheller MBA student with a faculty or student inventor to evaluate early-stage technology for potential commercialization. He evaluated two space-related technologies, one with Chen’s support. 

“The EAs conduct technology commercialization assessments and develop a business model canvas. By applying an entrepreneurial strategy compass, they predict potential go-to-market strategies for new technology,” says Paul Joseph, principal in the Office of Commercialization’s Quadrant-i unit, who created the EAP.

 (See sidebar to read more about the EAP and the specific technologies assessed.)

Tapping Into a Nearly $2T Industry

According to McKinsey & Co., the space technology market, fueled by advancements in satellite technology, commercial space travel, and 5G networks, is projected to reach $1.8 trillion by 2035.

“We're seeing an industry shifting from a multibillion-dollar market cap to a multitrillion-dollar market cap in less than a decade. If you look at this from a business perspective, this is a massive addressable market for entrepreneurs," says Gantt.

From its Center for Space Technology and Research to the new Center for Space Policy and International Relations and labs like the Space Systems Design Lab, which focuses on areas such as CubeSat propulsion, lunar research, and hypersonic flight, Georgia Tech excels in space research across disciplines. In July, Georgia Tech will launch the Space Research Institute (SRI), one of its newest Interdisciplinary Research Institutes (IRI), to foster additional collaboration in this growing field.

“At Georgia Tech, there are competencies across every single College that will help to augment our understanding of space,” says Alex Oettl, professor of strategy and innovation in Scheller College, whose interest in the new space economy spans the last 20 years. “When you look at the technologies coming from Georgia Tech, they can impact this future trillion-dollar industry.”

 An economist by training, Oettl led Georgia Tech’s involvement in the Creative Destruction Lab-Atlanta, a multi-university program that helped commercialize early-stage scientific technologies.

Leveraging Affordable Launch

The emergence of affordable launch, spurred by SpaceX’s introduction of the Falcon 9 rocket using reusable rocket technology, has made space much more accessible, from biomedical companies to academic institutions.

“Because there has been a drop in the cost of accessing space, it allows experimentation to flourish,” says Oettl. 

He recalls Mark Costello, former chair of the Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, explaining how he could launch a CubeSat into Low Earth Orbit out of his research budget, whereas before it would have been cost-prohibitive.

Today, Georgia Tech students and researchers are poised to capitalize on the new space economy stack — from new launch capabilities to new development in propellants and in-space operations and maintenance to more powerful sensors on Earth-observation satellites.

“I’ve seen firsthand the traction occurring on the commercial side. There are a lot of social scientists waking up to the opportunity that exists and thinking about business dynamics that will emerge as a result of this great opportunity,” he says.

Georgia Tech, an interdisciplinary, tech-focused university, brings significant capabilities across its Colleges to drive new and emerging technologies that have implications for space. 

“Space hits on all the strengths that exist at the various Colleges,” Oettl explains. “Faculty at Georgia Tech are pushing the boundary and showing our students innovations that will emerge in the space economy that are not immediately obvious — such as in adjacent industries.”

Oettl calls these first-order and spillover impacts of new technology. By first-order impacts, he means businesses can take advantage of these opportunities and create new products on top of the original innovation. By spillovers, he cites as an example an Earth-observation satellite enabling other industries to take advantage of data from the ground. For instance, insurance companies are one of the largest users of space technology by way of satellite imagery.

Bringing Capabilities Together Through New Space IRI

The SRI will bring together the best in engineering, computer science, policy, and business research across Georgia Tech. Along the way, it could help engineers and computer scientists think with a more business-minded approach to pitch their innovations to the commercial space sector. 

“You don’t see a lot of engineers having that inherent ability,” notes Gantt. “The Space IRI can shine by fostering collaboration between business students and engineers, enabling them to develop innovative go-to-market strategies and clearly define the unique value propositions these technologies offer to end users. You can bring these people together and create some forward momentum in the space industry.”