Record-tying Four Notre Dame students named Goldwater Scholars

The original article, shared by Notre Dame News, was written by Erin Blasko.

A record-tying four University of Notre Dame students, all from the College of Science, have been named 2026 Goldwater Scholars in recognition of their exceptional promise as future leaders in the natural sciences, engineering and/or mathematics. Juniors Charles Sander, Katherine Sopko, Ian Talty, and Oliver Wardhana each will receive $7,500 for tuition and other expenses for the upcoming 2026-27 academic year.

This is the third consecutive year that Notre Dame has had four Goldwater Scholars.

“At Notre Dame, we seek to form scientists who are driven by curiosity, grounded in purpose and committed to serving others through scientific discovery,” said Holly Goodson, interim associate dean for education and undergraduate programs in the College of Science. “The Goldwater Scholarship affirms those same ideals by supporting students who aspire to research careers that advance the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics. Charles, Katherine, Ian, and Oliver exemplify this alignment of mission by balancing intellectual excellence with a desire to make a difference. Their achievements reflect the very best of a Notre Dame science education.”

Charles Sander

Sander is an honors biological sciences, economics, and applied and computational mathematics and statistics (ACMS) triple major from Sacramento, California. He is a Glynn Family Honors Scholar, a Phi Beta Kappa early inductee, and a Stamps Scholar. At Notre Dame, Sander conducts neurobiology research in the lab of Christopher Patzke, the John M. and Mary Jo Boler Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences. His work with Patzke has led to research collaborations under the mentorship of Patrick Flynn, the Fritz Duda Family Professor of Engineering; Meenal Data, the Jane Schoelch DeFlorio Collegiate Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering; and others at Notre Dame. He has also conducted neuroscience research on Alzheimer’s disease under Nobel laureate Thomas Südhof at Stanford University. Currently, he is involved in bioinformatics research with Jun Li, professor of ACMS at Notre Dame. He is also writing a review paper on the therapeutic properties of psychedelics under the mentorship of Diane Lane, assistant teaching professor of biological sciences. Outside of his research, Sander does community health work with the Eck Institute for Global Health. He also serves as director of academic affairs for Notre Dame Student Government, is a teaching assistant in the introductory biology lab, and is associate chief of staff of Scientia.

Katherine Sopko

Sopko is an honors biochemistry major from Waltham, Massachusetts. She conducts research in the lab of Mariko Morimoto, the Huisking Foundation, Inc. Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Notre Dame. In the Morimoto Lab, Sopko contributes to research around the development of chimeric molecules to promote cancer cell elimination through immune response modulation. She is co-president of the Biotechnology Club, a chemistry tutor, a peer tutor for first-year chemistry and biochemistry students, and a member of both Farley Hall Council and the Hesburgh Women of Impact program.

Ian Talty

Talty is an honors chemistry and mathematics double major from Haddonfield, New Jersey. He conducts research with Aliaksandra Lisouskaya, associate research professor at Notre Dame, in the Radiation Laboratory. Talty contributes to research around the formation rate of transition metal oxides. He is vice president of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Club and treasurer of the Curling Club. In his free time, he volunteers around South Bend through Mercy Works.

Oliver Wardhana

Wardhana is an honors biological sciences and ACMS double major from Arcadia, California. A Glynn Family Honors Scholar, he conducts research in the lab of Xin Lu, the John M. and Mary Jo Boler Collegiate Associate Professor of Biological Sciences at Notre Dame. In the Lu Lab, Wardhana is involved in a benchmarking study comparing single-cell RNA sequencing cell type annotation methodologies, algorithms and tools. The study is also his thesis project. He is president and co-founder of iGEM@ND, a student-run synthetic biology team. The team won a gold medal at the 2025 iGEM Grand Jamboree in Paris. In his free time, he volunteers at Holy Cross School in South Bend through Mercy Works.

In applying for the Goldwater Scholarship, Sander, Sopko, Talty, and Wardhana all worked closely with the Flatley Center for Undergraduate Scholarly Engagement (CUSE), which supports the intellectual development of Notre Dame students via scholarly engagement, research, creative endeavors and the pursuit of fellowships.

Emily Buika Hunt is assistant director of scholarly development for CUSE.

“Congratulations to Charles, Ian, Katherine, and Oliver on the well-deserved recognition of their hard work and accomplishments. Each one of them has chosen to take advantage of the opportunities available to them at Notre Dame, including research, mentorship, and rigorous coursework,” Buika Hunt said. “Many Notre Dame faculty and staff members have played an important role in their development thus far, and will continue to do so as they move forward into their future studies and careers.”

CUSE works with dozens of aspiring Goldwater Scholars each application cycle, Buika Hunt said, supporting them through the application process by offering guidance on writing, content framing and reference choices. A faculty nomination committee reviews the materials and selects the nominees. Rising sophomores and juniors who are interested in applying for the 2027 application cycle should reach out to CUSE by September to learn more.

Named for former U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, the Goldwater Scholarship seeks to foster and encourage outstanding sophomores and juniors to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics. It is the preeminent undergraduate award of its type in these fields.

For more on this and other scholarship opportunities, visit cuse.nd.edu.

When you give to Notre Dame, your belief in students like Sander, Sopko, Talty, and Wardhana turns into life-changing opportunities. Thank you for paving paths for students like these four to excel and become a force for good.