University of New Hampshire

Behind every big call this World Cup is a room full of screens you'll never see.

VAR, or Video Assistant Referee, is one of soccer's most debated technologies, and it's front and center at the 2026 World Cup. We asked Nina Windgätter, senior lecturer in philosophy at UNH and a former U.S. Youth Soccer National Female Young Referee of the Year, to break it all down.

Swipe for her full explainer on how VAR works, what's new this year, and why the debate isn't going away anytime soon.

Read the full article: https://www.unh.edu/news/world-cup-2026-unh-expert-video-assistant-referee-technology?utm_campaign=facebook&utm_content=1781718481&utm_medium=20260617&utm_source=fb

These are the stories you make possible.

Students showing up, building something bigger than themselves, and getting there with support from people like you.

Be the reason these stories continue.

Make your gift before June 30: https://give.unh.edu/unh-standard-giving-form/?a=13218638&utm_campaign=facebook&utm_content=1781704833&utm_medium=20260617&utm_source=fb

"My long-term goal is to conduct impactful research on the molecular mechanisms of cancer, contribute to the development of new therapies, and eventually lead a research lab that integrates experimental biology with genomic analysis."

Meet Disha Hegde '26, a recent grad of UNH's bioinformatics accelerated master's program, completing both a bachelor's and master's degree in just four years.

Through UNH's accelerated program, Disha has built expertise across cancer biology, developmental genomics, and evolutionary genetics, conducting undergraduate research at both UNH and Dartmouth's Cancer Center before diving into graduate-level work.

Her graduate research focused on single-cell RNA sequencing to better understand the role of macrophages in systemic sclerosis. Along the way, coursework in programming for bioinformatics introduced her to Python, opening up new ways to process and visualize complex biological datasets.

With plans to pursue a Ph.D. in cancer biology, Disha hopes to one day lead a research lab integrating experimental biology with genomic analysis.

Thanks for sharing your story with us, Disha! 💙

UNH Research UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture

Kinoa Witt, Dylan Nye, and Aidan Cronin met during welcome week. A few months later, they were walking away with the $15,000 grand prize at the 38th Holloway Competition.

Their company, Armored Pig Studios, develops virtual reality games, including Buddy Beatdown, a multiplayer stress-relief experience that has already reached hundreds of thousands of players on the Meta platform. The trio, all members of the Class of 2029, brought together backgrounds in computer science, liberal arts, and finance to build something that's well past the idea stage.

Five other teams rounded out this year's finals, pitching ventures in AI, government services, research collaboration, indoor climbing, and workplace productivity. In total, 34 teams entered the competition.

Read more about this year's competition: https://www.unh.edu/news/first-year-students-win-holloway-competition-virtual-reality-gaming-venture?utm_campaign=facebook&utm_content=1781122921&utm_medium=20260610&utm_source=fb

UNH Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics

Good news, seafood lovers: UNH will lead a new national effort to grow and strengthen America’s seafood supply through aquaculture research. NOAA selected UNH to oversee the first-of-its-kind NOAA Cooperative Institute Fostering Aquaculture Research and Markets (CIFARM).

With approximately $13.5 million in initial funding, CIFARM will support research and partnerships that will make it safer, more environmentally friendly and cost-effective to produce seafood domestically.

Working with partners across the country — University of Miami, University of Southern Mississippi, Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute, University of Hawaii, and Sea Grants in Florida, Mississippi-Alabama, California, and Hawaii — researchers will focus on solving real-world challenges that affect both seafood producers and consumers.

“The goal is to expand, build working waterfront capabilities, and grow an educational structure for seafood economic growth and marine resource stewardship on a national scale,” says David Fredriksson, director of UNH’s Center for Sustainable Seafood Systems.

NH Sea Grant UNH Research UNH School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering

Look at all these Wildcats back in Durham for Spring Reunion!

So many old friends reconnecting to make new memories has us feeling 🥹. Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat!

Meet Cassidy Barcome '26, a justice studies accelerated master's recent grad who arrived at UNH with a clear purpose: to build the experience and expertise needed to make a difference in juvenile justice.

Juvenile justice has been Cassidy's professional focus since interning with the Child Advocacy Center of Laconia and working as a children's case manager after earning her bachelor's in psychology from Southern New Hampshire University. When it came time for graduate school, UNH stood out for its rich research resources in the field, including the Crimes Against Children Research Center.

Those opportunities have delivered. Cassidy landed an internship with Juvenile Probation and Parole of Rochester, N.H., a role she hopes to pursue long-term, while also working as a dispatcher with the Somersworth Police Department. Together, these experiences give her a well-rounded, real-world view of the justice system that she brings directly into her coursework.

The community she's found at UNH has meant just as much. Her cohort has become a close-knit team, and faculty have been welcoming and accessible from day one.

Thanks for sharing your story with us, Cassidy! 💙

UNH College of Liberal Arts

UNH Graduate School

N.H. Sea Grant is putting $1.2 million toward the issues that matter most to New Hampshire's coast and the people who depend on it.

The work spans a lot of ground: coastal flooding in Portsmouth, blue crabs moving into New Hampshire waters, salt marsh restoration and recovery, better oyster aquaculture, PFAS in Great Bay species, and a new study on Atlantic cod diet and sustainability in the Gulf of Maine.

Teams from UNH, Dartmouth College, and the Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve will lead the work. Full details here: https://www.unh.edu/news/2026/05/nh-sea-grant-awards-12m-funding-coastal-marine-research-new-hampshire?utm_campaign=facebook&utm_content=1780681561&utm_medium=20260605&utm_source=fb

UNH Research NH Sea Grant UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture