Recent achievements for the University of Nebraska–Lincoln community were earned by Ulises Alaniz, Michael Burton, Caro Còrdova, Madison Castor, Elizabeth Exstrom, Shoun Hill, Bijesh Maharjan, Max Perry Mueller, Massimiliano Pierobon, Daniel Schachtman, Shohaib Shaffiey and Ankit Yadav.
Honors
Madison Castor, a third-year law student, has been named the Mountain Region recipient of the 2026 Equal Justice Works Regional Public Interest Award, a national honor recognizing law students who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to public service and access to justice. Castor was one of eight law students selected nationwide for the award.
Caro Còrdova, an assistant professor in agronomy and horticulture and at the school of natural resources, was one of four individuals honored with Commendation Awards by the Nebraska Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society at its state chapter meeting June 26 in Ord.
Elizabeth Exstrom, extension educator, received the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents during the organization’s 2026 Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference, held July 11 in Denver. The award recognizes Exstrom’s contributions to agricultural extension and her service to the association, a professional organization representing extension educators, agents and specialists nationwide.
Shoun Hill, assistant professor of practice of journalism, had his film “I’m Just a Layman in Pursuit of Justice – Black Farmers Fight Against USDA” selected for the 2026 IndieFest. The film received the Award of Merit: African American Theme, Award of Recognition: African American Filmmaker and Award of Recognition: Documentary Feature. Hill was also named a finalist in the 2026 Dodho Portrait Awards.
Max Perry Mueller, associate professor of religious studies, was selected as a 2026-27 Public Fellow by the Public Religion Research Institute. Mueller is among nine interdisciplinary scholars selected nationwide for the fellowship, which supports research and public-facing analysis at the intersection of religion, culture and politics through PRRI’s Religion and Protecting Democracy Initiative.
Massimiliano Pierobon, Susan J. Rosowski Associate Professor in the School of Computing, and Shohaib Shaffiey, doctoral student, co-authored a paper presented at the 2026 International Conference on Machine Learning, held July 6-11 in Seoul, South Korea. The paper introduces a machine learning architecture designed to model biological processes occurring across different timescales, with potential applications in disease modeling, drug discovery and drug repurposing. Shaffiey presented the research at the conference.
Ankit Yadav, a doctoral student in agronomy and horticulture, received three first-place awards at the 2026 North Central Weed Science Society/Western Society Weed Science Joint Weed Competition July 29-30 in Gothenburg, Nebraska. Yadav won first place in the Farming Problem Solving, Weed Identification and Graduate Individual Overall categories.
Appointments
Michael Burton, associate professor of art and digital fashion, has been named director of Nebraska Innovation Studio, effective Aug. 17. Burton succeeds David Martin, who retired in July. An artist, filmmaker, educator and creative technologist, Burton brings more than 16 years of experience at the intersection of art, technology and hands-on making. He will provide strategic leadership and oversee Frontier Tech Lab.
Bijesh Maharjan, associate professor and extension specialist at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Panhandle Research Extension and Education Center, will be officially honored with the Ray and Jolene Ward Professor of Soil Health Science on Sept. 24 at the 2026 Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources Distinguished Faculty Celebration. The inaugural professorship honors Ray and the late Jolene Ward for their longstanding contributions to the university’s agriculture programs; it recognizes an accomplished scientist who translates their research into practice through outreach, engagement and extension activities that make a difference in agricultural practice.
Retirements
Daniel P. Schachtman, George Holmes Professor of Agronomy and Horticulture and director of the Nebraska Center for Biotechnology, retired Aug. 15 after more than a decade of research, mentorship and leadership. Schachtman’s work advanced understanding of plant roots, soil microbes and crop resilience. He leaves a lasting legacy through his research, students and contributions to the Nebraska Center for Biotechnology.
Publications
Ulises Alaniz, a second-year doctoral student in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures and a poet from Nicaragua, recently had his first book of poetry, “Suma de Fracturas/ Sum of Fractures,” published by Valparaíso Ediciones. Valparaíso is an international independent literary publishing house that publishes Spanish-language poets for readers in the Americas and Spain through bilingual editions.
