Two University of Alaska Fairbanks graduate students have reached new milestones in their academic careers, as recipients of a prestigious national science research fellowship.
Willa Johnson and Xochitl Muñoz are two of 1,500 recipients of the 2025-2026 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships.
Johnson is pursuing a master’s degree in marine biology in the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. Their research focuses on concentrations of microplastics in wild-caught marine fish in Southeast Alaska and how these contaminants may move through fish tissues and up the food chain.
Originally from Seattle, Johnson earned a bachelor of arts in biology from Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, and has lived in Sitka since 2019. They previously worked as a fisheries biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and as a communications specialist with UAF’s Rural Alaska Students in One Health Research program.
Muñoz is a master’s student in paleontology. Their research focuses on small theropod dinosaurs from the Prince Creek Formation on Alaska’s North Slope, which preserves some of the northernmost dinosaurs ever discovered. Muñoz’s project builds on their earlier work studying ancient Arctic mammals from the same region, offering new insight into the ecosystems that once surrounded these Arctic dinosaurs.
Originally from California, Muñoz received a bachelor of science in geoscience with a concentration in paleontology from UAF in May. In 2024 they received a Barry Goldwater Scholarship, a national scholarship awarded to college sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering.
Johnson and Muñoz will each receive three years of financial support, including a $37,000 annual stipend and funds to cover tuition and fees, in addition to professional development opportunities.
The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program is the country’s oldest fellowship program directly supporting students pursuing master’s and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields, including STEM education. Started in 1952, the program has funded over 75,000 fellowships. More than 40 fellows have gone on to become Nobel laureates, and more than 450 have become members of the National Academy of Sciences.
