Sydney Bryson has a long-term goal: to keep the planet eco-friendly and sustainable for the next generation.

Now, a new honor brings her closer to that goal: by the time she graduates in May 2026, the senior will be named a Graduate Research Fellow by the National Science Foundation.

Widely considered one of the country’s most prestigious academic honors for early-career scientists and engineers, the merit-based fellowship is one of the oldest and most competitive federal fellowships, signifying someone who has the potential to make a significant contributions in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math. Nationwide, only 12 to 16% of applicants are chosen for the fellowship.

“It’s pure disbelief that I’d won this,” said Bryson, who is majoring in sustainable land and food systems. “I had applied last year and figured, ‘What’s the harm, right?’ You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”

Arnab Bhowmik, Ph.D., associate professor in soil science and program coordinator for sustainable land and food systems, was Bryson’s mentor in the college’s Undergraduate Research Scholars program; Bhowmik said that her success was well deserved.

Sydney Bryson explains her research during the Showcase of Excellence presentations in fall, 2025. She is researching fiber hemp’s nitrogen needs under the direction of Arnab Bhowmik, Ph.D.

“Sydney’s success in earning the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship is a recognition of her talent, dedication, and potential to make meaningful contributions to agricultural and environmental sciences,” he said.

The NSF program recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students who are pursuing full-time research-based master's and doctoral degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, including STEM education. According to NSF, each fellowship provides a $37,000 stipend and $16,000 cost-of-education allowance payment to cover all tuition and mandatory fees.

Bryson, who will continue to graduate school in the fall, has maintained a lifelong passion for sustainable agriculture.

“I feel this urge to protect the planet,” said Bryson. “When I was young, seeing single-use plastics or machinery that’s not built to last, and later, seeing the consequences of hurricanes, longer droughts and wildfires that come as a result of irresponsible agricultural practices — it made me upset. So being able to tackle that will help improve our environment and make it last for future generations.”

Bryson said she chose N.C. A&T to pursue her degree for two reasons: the opportunity to enroll in a Historically Black College and University (HBCU,) and the chance to go to a university that emphasized her major.

“By the time I was ready to enroll in college, I knew I wanted a major in sustainability and environmental aid, and A&T was the only university at the time that not just had a major in sustainability, but had a good, well-funded research program that was focused on sustainability,” she said.

Bryson enrolled in 2022, and two years later, joined Bhowmik’s Soil Sustainable Research Lab. In fall 2025, under Bhowmik’s mentorship, Bryson applied and was accepted into the Undergraduate Research Scholar Program.

That decision, Bhowmik said, was likely a key reason that she was chosen for the fellowship.

“Through her work in the URSP Scholars Program, Sydney developed the research independence, technical skills, and scientific communication abilities that the NSF was looking for in its criteria,” said Bhowmik. “The program enabled her to conduct original research with clear intellectual merit while addressing broader impacts related to sustainable agriculture, positioning her as a highly competitive applicant for the fellowship.”

Bryson’s URSP research targets root analysis in fiber hemp, with particular emphasis on nitrogen cycling and soil processes in the rhizosphere (the area around the root.)

“Nitrogen is a major source of nutrients for the plant,” said Bryson. “Of all nutrients available, fiber hemp needs nitrogen the most. So it’s a matter of seeing how root characters are influenced by nitrogen in soil and how much nitrogen is too much or not enough for the plant.”

This research benefits growers, who need to know proper nitrogen application for the type of fertilizers they have chosen, and also helps small farmers by make fiber hemp a more easily accessible and understandable crop, Bryson said.

Bryson graduates with her bachelor’s degree in May 2026, and will continue her master’s education at N.C. A&T supported by the NSF fellowship.