“Our top rankings underscore our dedication to research excellence and innovation.” — Winston Schoenfeld, vice president for research and innovation

Recently, U.S. News & World Report ranked UCF among its 2024-25 Best Global Universities — highlighting UCF’s excellence in education across many areas. Among these rankings, UCF received quite a few for highly cited publications.

“We pride ourselves on the impactful research of our faculty, staff and students,” says Winston Schoenfeld, UCF’s vice president for research and innovation. “Our top rankings underscore our dedication to research excellence and innovation, and I am delighted to see a number of our UCF researchers recognized among the most cited in their fields.”

From optics and photonics to health and education, the fingerprints of UCF’s highly cited researchers leave marks on advancements in their fields.

Harnessing Light: Applications of Optics and Photonics

UCF is a global leader in optics and photonics, ranking No. 29 in the world, according to U.S. News & World Report. UCF also ranks among the top 10 in the nation for the field — as well as No. 5 for total optics publications, optics citations and the number of optics publications among the 10% most cited.

These citations are a reflection of advancements in technologies used daily, such as liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and glass.

Several faculty in UCF’s College of Optics and Photonics are highly-cited researchers in their field. One of whom is Pegasus Professor Shin-Tson Wu, whose work has been cited more than 52,000 times, according to Google Scholar (the source used for all following citation counts). Wu’s pioneering research has led to cutting-edge display technologies, including smartphones, tablets, computers, TVs, and, more recently, augmented reality and virtual reality — making them more energy-efficient, vibrant and versatile. This year, Wu received UCF’s inaugural Medal of Societal Impact for his contributions to the field.

“My main priority is not myself,” Wu says. “I am delighted to see my research making impact to the society. A rich life to me is not just about money. It’s helping others have better lives.”

“I am delighted to see my research making impact to the society. A rich life to me is not just about money. It’s helping others have better lives.” — Shin-Tson Wu, Pegasus Professor

Kathleen Richardson, whose expertise is in high tech glass design and fabrication has earned her over 17,800 citations, established and directs UCF’s Glass Processing and Characterization Laboratory. At the lab, she and a team of students design and process novel glass and glass ceramic materials for varying applications. The unique optical properties embedded in the materials have a vast field of applications from thermal imaging instrumentation on a Mars rover to optical phase change materials that change their physical state once triggered by an outside source such as light, which may be useful for detecting toxic leaks.

“Most people don’t realize the role glass plays in our lives,” Richardson said in a 2022 article about her involvement with the United Nation’s Year of Glass. “From Egyptian glass art to infrared security cameras made possible because of glass with special properties, glass has changed our lives. And only now is glass really being recognized for its versatile and renewable possibilities as a sustainable option for challenging problems.”

Fueling Optimal Performance: Nutrition and Exercise Science

Human health and quality of life is another area UCF faculty help improve through their curriculum, research and published work.

UCF ranks No. 92 for Public, Environmental and Occupational Health — placing the university in the top 18% of institutions worldwide, according to the U.S. News & World Report. This year’s ranking is also a 72-spot advancement from the previous ranking.

Researchers, including those in the College of Health and Human Performance (CHPS), at UCF are No. 1 in the nation for the percentage of total publications that are among the 10% most cited in public, environmental and occupational health, and No. 5 in the world.

Jeff Stout, the founding Director of UCF’s School of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Sciences, is one of the world’s leading researchers on of creatine and other dietary supplements and nutritional interventions for performance enhancement — with nearly 27,000 career citations. The Pegasus Professor has researched ways to use nutrition and exercise to improve health for older adults experiencing muscle loss and reduced mobility. His work has also focused on sarcopenia, a condition characterized by loss of muscle mass and function that typically begins after 30.

“The goal of my research is to figure out what is the most optimal way, from both nutritional and exercise perspectives, to slow down the loss of strength and muscle as we age.” — Jeff Stout, Pegasus Professor

“The goal of my research is to figure out what is the most optimal way, from both nutritional and exercise perspectives, to slow down the loss of strength and muscle as we age. This is crucial because the quality of our life in later years is directly affected by these factors,” says Stout. “You want to maintain as much muscle, strength and functionality as possible. Skeletal muscle is very important to overall health. It’s a reservoir of nutrients that our body needs when under stress.”

Some of the most significant findings Stout has discovered include that a combination of resistance training and consuming protein daily promotes muscle growth. Additionally, research shows that consuming 1.4 grams to 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight helps adults who exercise regularly maintain sufficient muscle mass.

Excellence in research also extends to staff and leadership at UCF.

With over 21 years of faculty experience at various R1 institutions, Joel Cramer joined UCF’s CHPS in 2022 as senior associate dean for academic and faculty affairs.

His research spans human skeletal muscle health and metabolism across the lifespan. His more recent work aims to identify slower-digesting carbohydrates that don’t spike blood sugar, or insulin levels, which can aid in understanding of diabetes and related diseases. Much of his research, which has been cited more than 15,000 times, has also been sponsored by the USDA and nutritional supplement companies.

“A lot of food products and dietary supplements that are on the market are not particularly well-regulated and anything that we can do to improve the science of understanding of those products is good, so the impact is great for the consumer,” he says.

Cramer’s research impacts extend across the campus community, as he has a passion for supporting young researchers. On Aug. 8, he’ll be broadening that reach across research and faculty support when he becomes UCF’s interim vice provost for faculty excellence.

“It takes a lot of hard work at the beginning [of researchers’ careers] to be, first, published and then cited,” Cramer says. “Understanding and navigating those waters is probably the No. 1 thing I can contribute the most here in the world of university metrics for scholarship.”

Enhancing Education: Improving Student and Teacher Outcomes

For the first time, U.S. News & World Report ranks UCF in the category of Education and Education Research — placing the university at No. 94 in the world. UCF also ranks in the top 40 in the nation.UCF’s College of Community Innovation and Education faculty have earned the university the No. 2 in the nation and No. 4 in the world rankings for the percentage of highly cited papers that are among the top 1% in education and educational research. Learning sciences is a field that aims to advance learning for all, from English to engineering, and research in this area has an exponential impact. For over 10 years, Assistant Professor Michelle Taub has studied positive and negative influences on learning, which has led her to become one of the most highly cited researchers in her field.

With nearly 2,400 career citations, much of the self-described data nerd’s work explores self-regulation, which involves learners’ ability to monitor and regulate their thought, emotional and motivational processes.

To help enhance students’ learning experiences, researchers across disciplines reach out to Taub for her expertise on learning. At UCF, she’s helping engineering faculty enhance foundation course teaching for students. She’s also supporting the UCF Coastal FCI’s Gulf Scholars Program, which aims to recruit students invested in addressing critical problems facing the Gulf of Mexico region.

“My goal is to help learners and that’s a goal that other people are sharing.” — Michelle Taub, assistant professor

“My goal is to help learners and that’s a goal that other people are sharing,” Taub says. “It’s a really good feeling [when other faculty reach out for collaborative projects] because that demonstrates I’m not just doing the research for me to do the research, but it’s actually research that is helping students and teachers.”

Her expertise is also being leveraged on studies with researchers at other institutions, as she’s a co-principal investigator on a North Carolina State ����ֱ�� project aimed at enhancing math and special education, as well as interest in STEM careers, through a video game embedded within a fraction curriculum.

Careers in STEM are growing twice as fast as non-STEM careers, with 11.2 million projected position available by 2023, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While there are many efforts happening nationally to increase students’ interest, access, and success in STEM, research around this topic is critical to making sure the most effective strategies are being implemented.

Professor and Lockheed Martin Eminent Scholar Chair Sarah Bush’s research, which she’s been building on for nearly 15 years, aims to improve STE(A)M education, particularly mathematics. As a former middle school mathematics teacher, Bush knows firsthand the experiences and pressures students and educators face in classrooms.

With over 2,100 career citations, one of her most influential works relates to the benefit of informal learning experiences, such as summer programs, on students’ STEM learning and interest in STEM careers. These experiences have been shown to provide context and purpose to formal learning, provide opportunity and access to STEM education for students, and extend STEM content learning and engagement. This work has been part of Bush’s research as a member of the STEM Rocks Research Collective, which consists of STEM education professionals across more than a dozen institutions in the United States.

“The goal of my research, across numerous STE(A)M education projects and programs, has been to examine how meaningful integration of the STE(A)M disciplines empowers educators and students to be advocates and empathetic solution seekers as they pursue transformational ideas that continue advancing our world,” she says.

A panel of faculty experts from the College of Health Professions and Sciences, many of them accomplished long-distance runners themselves, share what it takes to prepare for 26.2 miles and discuss some of the new trends and technologies competitors are using to prepare and compete.

What kind of running regimen should be followed to prepare for a marathon?  Training for this distance has unique demands in terms of how to fuel and hydrate the body as well as developing a successful training regimen, says Peter Buffington ’12DPT, UCF Physical Therapy Clinic director. He has run 17 marathons, including six Boston Marathons, and has already qualified for the 2025 Boston Marathon.

For most prospective marathoners, training will take four to six months, Buffington says.

“A runner must figure out how to increase running velocity (through speed work) and to maintain that pace even when their legs have a significant amount of fatigue,” he says. “For many runners coming to the marathon from a shorter distance, this means extending their long run to 2.5 to 3 hours.”

Buffington says one training technique is “slow running,” which places an emphasis on running slower on easy days, coupled with adequate recovery, to ultimately improve speed.

“Some experts use the analogy of a sponge: people are better able to ‘absorb’ the training when running at a slower pace on the day or two after a fast session,” he says. “Those easy miles serve a purpose: they allow for less stress on the lower legs which, in turn, allows a runner to withstand an overall higher volume of training.”

Aside from running, what other physical preparation is needed?
Get your body checked out before you start training, sports medicine experts say. An examination from a physical therapist can assess joint range of motion, muscular strength and muscular flexibility to identify any asymmetries or weaknesses and help prevent injuries. Carey Rothschild, a clinical associate professor in the Division of Physical Therapy, says core and hip stability are key components of running, and strengthening them is essential to support the demands of marathon training.

“Runners want to run, not strength train,” Rothschild says. “But for longevity in sport, the body’s tissues must be robust and resilient to withstand the demands of marathon training. Ultimately, the runner should complete functional strength training a minimum of two to three times per week to maximize muscular capacity.”

Common exercises Rothschild recommends for runners include plank variations, hip abductor and extensor training, calf and foot muscle exercises, and variations in squats, deadlifts, lunges, and plyometric activities. A long-distance runner for more than 30 years, Rothschild has completed the Boston Marathon eight times.

What’s the latest gear and tech runners are seeking to improve performance? “The advancement of wearable technology allows runners to get multiple streams of real-time physiological feedback beyond heart rate, step count, and even GPS,” says David Fukuda, professor and chair of the Division of Kinesiology. “They can track or even recommend appropriate intensity zones or monitor indicators of fatigue and metabolism through blood or sweat samples. This information can also be used to assist with decision making during training or competitions.”

“Wearables such as Garmin watches, Whoop armbands, Oura rings, and others are providing more feedback about recovery and sleep, measuring things like heart rate variability and respiration rate, which give a runner data that indicates how well they are recovering,” Buffington adds.

“Recently, elite runners have been trialing super light, single use shoes which may improve performance due to their extremely light weight and propulsive construction,” Rothchild says. “There’s no consensus on the ideal shoe type for runners. Many shoe types exist and ultimately must be comfortable for the runner at first try. The best shoe for a runner will be based on individual foot structure and gait pattern.”

VO₂max tests, short for maximum oxygen uptake, used to be just for elite athletes, but are now becoming more affordable and used more broadly. The test is the gold standard measure of cardiorespiratory fitness and reflects how efficiently your body uses oxygen to generate energy during strenuous activity, says Sarah Fretti, clinical assistant professor in the Division of Kinesiology. “Imagine your body like a car engine. Oxygen is the fuel, and VO₂max reflects how well your engine converts that fuel into energy. The higher your VO₂max, the more efficiently you use oxygen, allowing you to run faster for longer durations.”

A test typically involves exercising on a treadmill or cycle ergometer with gradually increasing intensity until maximum effort is reached. VO₂max testing offers runners metrics that are valuable for targeted training and progress tracking. Some smartwatches and fitness trackers can estimate VO₂max based on various data points, though their accuracy can vary, Fretti says.

What should runners look for in a performance enhancement supplement?
“The market for performance supplements is extensive, and there is a wide range in terms of safety and effectiveness,” says Jeff Stout, Pegasus Professor and director of the School of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Science.

No supplements have been proven to provide immediate performance benefits beyond caffeine, says Stout, who has published extensively on the topic for more than 30 years. He cautions runners to avoid supplements that have not been proven or tested, and to always try out any supplementation approach before participating in competitive events.

To stay hydrated and maintain energy during races, drink a sports beverage like Gatorade or Powerade that contains around 6-7% carbohydrates (about 14 grams per 8 ounces or 240 milliliters). This provides roughly 0.5 grams of carbs per minute, helping you perform your best.

Another thing that might help boost performance is having a moderate amount of caffeine about 30 minutes before the race. A good range is 3 milligrams to 5 milligrams of caffeine per kilogram of body weight. For a runner that weighs 70 kilograms (154 pounds), that would be about 210 milligrams to 350 milligrams of caffeine, which is roughly two to three cups of coffee.

For marathon training, one of the most beneficial nutritional strategies is to consume a post-training recovery drink. Stout recommends choosing post-workout nutritional supplements that are rich in high-quality protein, high-glycemic carbohydrates, essential electrolytes (especially sodium), and water.  He says the ideal ratio of carbohydrates to protein may vary depending on the intensity of the workout: 1:1 for low-intensity training and 2:1 for more demanding, high-intensity sessions.

Tell us about the basic diet and nutritional needs for long distance runners? Do these needs change during training, race day and recovery? How?
“All nutrients are needed to optimize the performance of distance runners, but carbohydrate and fluid intake are of paramount importance,” says Cheryl Cavaliere, a lecturer in the Department of Health Sciences. “The body relies on glucose as the preferred energy source during running, and fluids are needed to replenish water and electrolyte losses that occur through sweating, breathing and metabolism.”

When adequate amounts of carbohydrate and fluids are not consumed before, during and after training and competitive events, performance can suffer, says Cavaliere, who has completed two marathons and is currently training run her first ultra-marathon, which will be a 50k.

“For runs lasting more than 60 minutes, carbohydrate and electrolyte containing liquids are often used because they are absorbed quickly to replenish lost nutrients and water,” she says. “During ultra-endurance events like marathons, athletes might also eat carbohydrate rich foods like pretzels, fruits, honey sandwiches, cookies, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes and Japanese sticky rice to support their need for glucose. However, it is important to practice nutrition prior to race day to understand personal tolerance. Runners should also consume carbohydrates immediately post-exercise to facilitate maximum recovery.”

Don’t overlook the value of foods with healthy fat, Cavaliere says.

“Fat is a fuel source needed to spare carbohydrate and to prevent the use of protein for energy,” she says. “The goal is to maintain adequate intake of overall calories prior to race day to help meet total energy needs, spare carbohydrate use during running, and spare protein breakdown post-exercise.”

A focus on having whole foods from a variety of food sources in the overall diet can help runners maximize energy stores for optimal performance.

Besides being a track and field athlete, he aspired to be a high-school science teacher and was working towards a bachelor’s degree in biology with a minor in physics. His career path changed after reading about Exercise Science Master’s and Ph.D. programs in a ����ֱ�� of Nebraska-Lincoln brochure during his junior year at Concordia ����ֱ�� in Seward, Neb.

Stout changed his major after learning Concordia ����ֱ�� was going to offer a bachelor of science degree in exercise science. He was the first student to graduate in the program and later received his master of physical education degree in exercise science and an Exercise Physiology Ph.D. from the ����ֱ�� of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, Neb.

Stout is fascinated with exercise physiology because “exercise has an effect on every physiological system in the human body, and how we manipulate exercise intensity, volume and mode can cause wide-ranging effects on the body.”

He also says “nutrition and exercise training are related intimately to athletic performance, and nutrition is a major factor for an athlete reaching their genetic potential.”

Stout has applied his research into practice by publishing more than 220 studies, eight books and 10 book chapters during his career.

For the past 25 years, Stout has been a member of research teams that have examined the impact of youth-sport participation on growth and development. He has also researched the influence of various nutritional supplements and its effects on body composition and exercise performance with men and women in different age groups. His main focus has been on skeletal muscle fatigue, which is a key factor in human performance in all age groups.

He provided service by consulting with Olympic athletes and professional baseball and football teams at no charge in the past. Stout’s expertise has also gone the distance in the NASCAR industry. He was contacted by Yates Racing’s owner Robert Yates while he was an assistant professor of exercise science at Creighton ����ֱ�� in Omaha, Neb. 15 years ago.

Yates asked for Stout’s assistance with getting his pit crew into better physical shape and improving their pit-stop time on the racetrack. NASCAR pit crews hustle while changing four 75-pound tires, filling up stock cars with 50-pound gallons of gas and washing the windows in under 20 seconds.

Stout’s challenge was breaking down the pit crews’ movements and determining how to improve their power and speed. Stout coordinated with a strength-conditioning coach about conducting specialized exercises three times a week while he provided the pit crew with a nutritional and dietary supplement program. The plan of action worked and resulted in the pit crew significantly improving pit times and winning NASCAR’s biggest prize, the Winston Cup championship, at the Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Penn. in 2001.

His accomplishments have continued at the UCF College of Education and Human Performance. Stout received the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s prestigious 2013 William J. Kraemer Outstanding Sport Scientist and 2015 Educator of the Year Awards during his tenure.

Persistence and hard work also paid off for the sport and exercise science’s faculty and doctoral students. The Ph.D. program was recently ranked sixth in the nation by the National Academy of Kinesiology.

Stout is proud of the vanguard program and says “great grad students and a team approach among faculty will always foster success every time.”

The CEDHP sport and exercise science faculty and graduate students conduct research in five state-of-the-art labs. The faculty mentor the students throughout the research process providing them with a chance to be principal investigators on funded studies, write and publish papers, teach and deliver presentations at national meetings.

Stout feels the labs are creating remarkable results that will help athletes in the long run.

“What’s exciting about the Institute for Exercise Physiology and Wellness is our capability to conduct translational research with animals and humans. We have examined the effect of different recovery modalities on immune response, cell signaling, oxidative stress and performance post-muscle damaging exercise. The results along with many other studies help practitioners like athletic trainers, strength and conditioning coaches and nutritionists develop recovery strategies for their athletes and to keep them healthy.”

In addition to being a professor and sports-nutrition expert along with spending quality time with his family and American Akita dog Sumo, Stout has a black belt (Shodan) in judo and enjoys coaching and watching his children Nicole, 18 and Jeffrey, 16 compete in national and international judo competitions.

Stout is passionate about teaching and advises students “to choose a school with a program that actively conducts sport and exercise science research because they’re the ones that are most up to date.”

Stout is proud of his CEDHP achievements but feels it wouldn’t be possible without the college’s assistance.

“I’m thankful for all of the support CEDHP has provided over the past four years. We would have never received our sixth place ranking as one of the best Ph.D. Exercise Physiology programs in the country. That’s what I’m most proud of at CEDHP.”

NAK promotes the study and educational applications of the art and science of human movement and physical activity, and conducts a doctoral program review every five years.

Fifty-two academic programs participated in NAK’s 2015 Doctoral Program Review. The organization used metrics to conduct an objective evaluation of the faculty’s productivity, funding and visibility and analyzed student admissions, graduate assistant support, doctoral publications and employment rates during a five-year span from Jan. 1, 2010 through Dec. 31, 2014.

CEDHP’s Department of Educational and Human Sciences chair and Sport and Exercise Science professor Jay Hoffman has been building the exercise physiology doctoral program for the past five years. He was ecstatic about the NAK doctoral program review ranking.

“There wasn’t a sport and exercise science program when I first came to UCF. I built the program from scratch. We went from zero to sixth in the nation by submitting four years of data to the National Academy of Kinesiology’s five-year doctoral program review. This is a big accomplishment for our faculty and students.”

Hoffman recruited professor Jeffrey Stout from the ����ֱ�� of Oklahoma three years ago. He had participated in the NAK doctoral program review during his employment at the ����ֱ�� of Oklahoma. The university was number 26 when he first came onboard, and helped raise its NAK doctoral program review ranking to 17. He was blown away by the results of the recent CEDHP rankings.

“UCF has never been on this list, so to be ranked in the Top 10 in our field, and higher than Penn State, Florida State ����ֱ�� and some of the other big-name schools in the country is quite an accomplishment for a university that is barely over 50 years old.”

CEDHP Dean Pamela Carroll is proud of the sport and exercise science’s exercise physiology doctoral program’s ranking.

“The sport and exercise science faculty is exceptionally talented and hard working. They not only push the field forward, but ensure that their graduate students have meaningful and funded research experiences and publish and present their research. The program is an excellent example of a group who sets high standards and works together to achieve them.”

The NAK doctoral program review also ranked CEDHP’s program number one in faculty publications and presentations. The program’s Institute of Exercise Physiology and Wellness, one of the most advanced exercise performance and lab facilities in the country, provides the faculty and students with a hub for research in its body composition, strength and conditioning, exercise biochemistry and human performance labs at CEDHP and another lab at the UCF College of Medicine.

Doctoral candidate Jeremy Townsend obtains hands-on experience in the labs and is honored to be a part of this high ranking.

“The ranking is a real testament to the hard work my advisers and fellow lab teammates have accomplished over the years. The ranking also benefits future doctoral program graduates because it shows that they’re from one of the top-tier labs in the country.”

During the past five years, the sport and exercise science program’s undergraduate program has grown from 400 to more than 1,300 students, and there are nearly an additional 100 students in the graduate program.

Doctoral students must have a high GRE score, strong work ethic, letters of recommendation and undergo an interview process with Hoffman and Stout.

The doctoral program, which Hoffman says “has a 100 percent success and hiring rate with tenure-track positions” is providing students with a chance to be principal investigators on grant studies, write and publish papers, teach and conduct presentations at national meetings and for prospective employers, and is giving them real-world experience.

The program’s doctoral alumni are making a mark in their careers. Georgia Southern ����ֱ��’s assistant professor of exercise science and alumnus Adam Wells ’15 feels the exercise physiology doctoral program prepared him for his future and is proud of its NAK doctoral program review ranking.

“The program set me up for success from day one. The guidance and opportunities provided by Dr. Hoffman and the Institute of Exercise Physiology and Wellness’ faculty enabled me to develop expertise in a number of areas related to exercise physiology. I was able to enter the job market with a highly desirable skill set and a competitive publication record. I’m delighted that the program has been recognized at such a high level and am proud to be one of the first doctoral students to graduate from the program.”