12 students selected as 1st cohort of Tracy Farmer Scholars

Article | Grace Whitworth (Tracy Farmer Institute for Sustainability and the Environment) | May 7, 2026

four photos of students conducting research in different settings

Clockwise from top left: Jessica Nwafor, Motunrayo Oladele, Isabel Anne Tessier Shirey and Muhammad Usman Yousaf are part of the inaugural cohort. Photos provided.

The Tracy Farmer Institute for Sustainability and the Environment (TFISE) at the University of Kentucky selected 12 students for the inaugural cohort of Tracy Farmer Scholars conducting research in environment and sustainability.

The cohort includes eight graduate students and four undergraduate students who will each receive a $6,000 fellowship to support their research, either during the summer or the 2026-27 academic year. Scholars will conduct their research under the supervision of a UK faculty or staff research mentor. The cohort will meet regularly to share ideas across disciplinary boundaries and learn about UK’s many research resources.

This new program from the TFISE, a cross-college research institute under the Office of the Vice President for Research, aims to expand student engagement in environmental and sustainability-focused research across colleges, programs and disciplines.

“The Tracy Farmer Scholars represent the next generation of environmental and sustainability research in the Commonwealth,” said Lauren E. Cagle, Ph.D., Tracy Farmer Institute director and associate professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Studies. “Our investment in scholars is an investment in an environmentally resilient and sustainable future.”

TFISE received applications from 38 students across 20 departments in five colleges. Applications were reviewed by subject matter experts, and the 12 students selected received top marks from reviewers and represent a wide cross-section of disciplines at UK.

“This program supports my research on how residents in Florida’s Space Coast understand and prioritize risks where spaceflight, conservation and coastal hazards intersect,” said anthropology Ph.D. candidate Jessica Nwafor. “It will fund my initial fieldwork, allowing me to collect data directly from communities and inform local decisions on disaster preparedness, land use and environmental risk management.”

The cohort also includes Isabel Shirey, a master’s student in studio arts, conducting research on the utility of natural materials for artistic practice.

“By approaching my practice through considered, sustainable and untapped resources, I have boundaries to push against and a well of creative opportunities under the surface to investigate,” said Shirey. “This fellowship allows me time and energy to better harness the forgotten and discarded resources of plants and animals and illuminate their value in return.”

Crystal Gregory, the Arturo Alonzo Sandoval Endowed Professor and associate professor in the College of Fine Arts School of Art and Visual Studies, is Shirey’s faculty mentor.

“Her work is grounding and poetic and has the potential to expand circles of sustainability within our community,” Gregory said of her student.

Faculty mentor Manoj Sapkota, Ph.D., assistant professor of horticultural crop breeding for nutrition, had two undergraduate students selected as Tracy Farmer Scholars.

“Support like the Tracy Farmer Scholars program gives students the time, confidence and resources to turn curiosity into meaningful research. It helps them grow through hands-on learning, mentorship and discovery beyond the classroom, while advancing solutions that support sustainable agriculture and resilient food systems,” said Sapkota.

Sapkota’s student, Ella Shields, is evaluating strawberry varieties for resistance to Neopestalotiopsis, an emerging disease threatening Kentucky production.

“By identifying less susceptible cultivars, I hope to support more resilient breeding, reduce reliance on chemical controls and advance a more sustainable future for strawberry growers,” said Shields. “This fellowship will allow me to expand that work and better serve growers.”

“We are thrilled to have such a breadth of expertise and interests in the inaugural cohort of Tracy Farmer Scholars,” said Cagle. “Environment and sustainability touch every aspect of our lives, and that is reflected in how many of our faculty and students at UK are conducting research in these areas.”

2026 Tracy Farmer Scholars

Undergraduate students

Ella K. Shields, Department of Horticulture, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Mentor: Manoj Sapkota)
Amanda Carrithers, Department of Entomology, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Mentor: Hannah Tiffin)
Md Hamil Ahamed Joy, Department of Agriculture and Medical Biotechnology, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Mentor: Manoj Sapkota)
Anish Penmecha, Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, Lewis Honors College (Mentor: Yosra Helmy)

Graduate students

Lucca Madeo Cortarelli, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Mentor: Olga Tsyusko-Unrine)
Muhammad Usman Yousaf, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, Stanley and Karen Pigman College of Engineering (Mentor: Isabel Escobar)
Motunrayo Oladele, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts and Sciences (Mentor: Marcelo Guzman)
Jessica Nwafor, Department of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences (Mentor: Crystal Felima)
Skylar Gillies, Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Mentor: DJ McNeil)
Cat Lamb, Department of Sociology, College of Arts and Sciences (Mentor: Keiko Tanaka)
Isabel Anne Tessier Shirey, School of Art and Visual Studies, College of Fine Arts (Mentor: Crystal Gregory)

For more information on the Tracy Farmer Scholars, visit research.uky.edu/tfise/scholars.