UCF Alumni Announces 30 Under 30 Award Winners for 2020
Bold. Innovative. Excellent. Each year, UCF Alumni honors the best of what the university has to offer with its 30 Under 30 awards. These Knights are beacons of the UCF creed in their professional workplaces and local communities, helping make the world a better place.
The 2020 class of 30 Under 30 honorees includes leaders in space exploration, civil engineering and even dunking basketballs. These alumni were chosen for their great professional success, commitment to helping others and track record of giving back to UCF and their local community.
“At UCF we continue to showcase what a truly remarkable young alumni community we have with our 2020 30 Under 30 recipients,” says Marley Hughes ’11, chair of UCF’s Young Alumni Council. “This year, as much as any in the past, we are impressed by the extraordinary things our young alumni are doing in their professional and civic communities. These young leaders continue to set an incredible example for our alma mater. On behalf of the Young Alumni Council, I extend my sincerest congratulations on this well-deserved accomplishment.”
Nominations for the awards were accepted on UCFAlumni.com from Nov. 26, 2019, to Jan. 5, 2020. Nominations were reviewed and scored by UCF staff and previous award recipients, and winners were selected by the UCF Young Alumni Council. The finalists were then confirmed by the UCF Alumni Board based on the following criteria:
- Must be a graduate of the UCF (undergraduate or graduate degree)
- Must be age 29 or under on May 1, 2020
- Must demonstrate a commitment to maintaining a lifelong relationship with Knights and strive to uphold UCF Young Alumni values
The 2020 award recipients will be honored in a formal ceremony on May 9. Below is a complete list of the 2020 winners, listed alphabetically. Past recipients can be found on the UCF Alumni website.
UCF Alumni 30 Under 30 2020 Honorees
Andrew Aboujaoude ’18
College of Medicine
Burnett Honors College
Jessica Aksu ’13 ’18MBA
College of Sciences
College of Business Administration
Caroline Castille ’15
College of Business Administration
College of Arts and Humanities
Frankie Catalfumo ’13
College of Health Professions and Sciences
Peri Chajet ’16
College of Sciences
Brittany Dansereau ’13
College of Sciences
Juan Escobar ’12 ’14MA
College of Community Innovation and Education
Brandon Fair ’13
College of Sciences
Tacko Fall ’19
College of Undergraduate Studies
Angelica Garcia ’17MS
College of Engineering and Computer Science
Sarah Goldman ’14
College of Health Professions and Sciences
Michael Herman ’13
College of Engineering and Computer Science
Christopher Jones ’13
College of Sciences
Jenna (Doerfler) Kelly ’13 ’14MBA ’15MSBM
Rosen College of Hospitality Management
College of Business Administration
Steven Lerner ’13
College of Community Innovation and Education
Blake Lynch ’14
College Nursing
Paula Machado ’12
College of Sciences
Santiago Martinez ’14
College of Business Administration
Marsha Mena ’15 ’16MSW
College of Health Professions and Sciences
Kristina Merritt ’12
College of Sciences
Michael Metzner ’16MD
College of Medicine
Alexis Neigel ’15MS ’17PhD
College of Sciences
Nikunj Patel ’17 ’19MSAE
College of Engineering and Computer Science
Andrea Piazza ’19MA
College of Community Innovation and Education
Jonell Radabaugh ’15
College of Engineering and Computer Science
Burnett Honors College
Amanda Schultz ’17
College of Nursing
Burnett Honors College
Emily Smith ’13
Rosen College of Hospitality Management
Jade Taylor ’14
College of Sciences
Alexandra Thompson ’13
College of Sciences
James Weschler ’14
College of Engineering and Computer Science
