Julia Fancher ’26 Earns Second Astronaut Scholarship

Julia Fancher, a rising senior majoring in physics and mathematics in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), a logic minor in A&S and a member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program, has been renewed as an Astronaut Scholar for the 2025-26 year by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF). She was originally named as a 2024-25 Astronaut Scholar.

Founded by the Mercury 7 astronauts, the foundation awards scholarships to students in their junior or senior year who are pursuing a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) degree with intentions to pursue research or advance their field upon completion of their degrees. Astronaut Scholars are among the best and brightest minds in STEM who show initiative, creativity and excellence in their chosen field.

The Astronaut Scholarship includes funding of up to $15,000 toward educational expenses, a paid trip to the ASF Innovators Week and Gala in Houston in August, and lifelong mentoring and engagement opportunities with astronauts, Astronaut Scholar alumni, industry leaders and the ASF.

You can read more about Julia's research and the ASF via this SU News Story: https://news.syr.edu/blog/2025/07/16/star-scholar-julia-fancher-earns-second-astronaut-scholarship-for-stellar-research/