UNL McNair Scholars Program

We kicked off the 2026 UNL McNair Summer Research Experience today. Excited to work with these talented Scholars this summer!

Congrats to UNL McNair Scholar and Chancellor's Scholar Nayla Torres Ruiz who graduated with highest distinction on May 9 with a bachelor’s degree in anthropology, history, and Spanish. Nayla conducted research with Dr. Isabel Velázquez from Modern Languages and Literatures. After graduation, she plans to continue working on two research projects for publication and will apply for graduate school in the fall. So proud of you Nayla!👏🎉🎓

Congratulations to the UNL McNair Scholars who will graduate on Saturday. So proud of all of you! Once a McNair Scholar, Always a McNair Scholar! 🎓🎉Thank you to their faculty and graduate student mentors whose support and expertise were invaluable to the success of these Scholars! 👏

Congrats to UNL McNair Scholar and Chancellor's Scholar Ella Guerra, who will graduate with highest distinction on May 9 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She conducted research with Dr. Cody Hollist from the Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies and Dr. Lisa Crockett and Dr. Manda Williamson from the Department of Psychology. Ella will be pursuing a master’s degree in educational psychology with a specialization in counseling psychology at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. So proud of you Ella! 👏🎉🎓

Congratulations to UNL McNair alum Daisy Guiza Beltran who earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in December 2025. She was advised by Dr. Limei Zhang. So proud of you Dr. Guiza Beltran! 👏🎓🎉

Shout out to UNL McNair alum Mark Nail who successfully defended his dissertation, “Leveraging Intentional Collisions to Enhance Aerial Manipulation” at the University of Michigan in December 2025! Dr. Nail has accepted a R&D Engineer position at Anduril Industries in Costa Mesa, CA beginning in January. Congrats Mark! 👏🎉

Congrats to UNL McNair Scholar Symone who will graduate with distinction on Saturday with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She conducted her research under the guidance of Dr. Cynthia Willis-Esqueda and Dr. Ashley Votruba from the Department of Psychology. So proud of you Symone!👏🎉🎓

Shout out to UNL McNair Scholar Nayla Torres Ruiz who is studying abroad this semester in Montevideo, Uruguay and taking classes through Universidad ORT. Such a great opportunity to explore other South American countries while you are there. We can’t wait to hear more about your exciting adventures when you return!

Congratulations to UNL McNair alum Jaquelin M. Garcia Castorena who earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry & molecular biophysics from Washington University in St. Louis in May 2025. Dr. Garcia Castorena is employed in WashU's Office of Technology Management working in technology transfer and commercialization of academic inventions. So proud of you! 👏🎓🎉

Congratulations to UNL McNair alum Catelyn Bridges who earned a Ph.D. in horticulture and agronomy from the University of California, Davis in Summer 2025. Dr. Bridges is now an assistant professor in Biological Systems Engineering at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. So proud of you! 👏🎓🎉