Maria Elena Casas, a Georgia Tech PhD student in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, has been awarded a Graduate Research Fellowship by the National Science Foundation. The program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines who are pursuing research-based master's and doctoral degrees at accredited United States institutions. 

As the oldest graduate fellowship of its kind, the program has a long history of selecting recipients who achieve high levels of success in their future academic and professional careers. Fellows benefit from a three-year annual stipend of $30,000 along with a $10,500 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees, opportunities for international research and professional development, and the freedom to conduct their own research at any accredited U.S. institution of graduate education they choose. 

Casas holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Miami and is a second-year doctoral ChBE student at Georgia Tech. She is also part of the Goizueta Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Initiative and holds a Goizueta Fellowship, a two-year merit-based award given to Hispanic students who are dedicated to diversifying academia and making a difference in the Hispanic community.