Kai Smith - 2025 Goldwater Scholarship Nominee

Kai Smith, from Pretty Prairie, is the son of Patrick and Andrea Smith and a graduate of Pretty Prairie High School. He is majoring in biochemistry and minoring in astrobiology. After graduation, he plans to pursue a doctorate in biochemistry with the goal of achieving a career in academia. Smith, a member of the University Honors Program, serves as an astrochemist in the CO-ACES research group, studying prebiotic molecules that form in interstellar media. Outside of the research lab, his current goal is to expand his STEM outreach program in rural areas, providing scientific demonstrations for underprivileged schools to foster broader community engagement. He also aims to increase KU student participation by involving students from disciplines beyond the Biochemistry and Microbiology Club. Additionally, Smith serves as a Payload Team mass spectrometry expert, has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and has worked with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory School. He has received the Jayhawk Undergraduate Research Training Fellowship, the Honors Opportunity Award, the University of Kansas Traditions Scholarship and the ASBMB Travel Award. Smith also works as a Polish saber expert at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival.