The Love Family Foundation Award annually recognizes one undergrad with the most outstanding scholastic record.
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Velin “Venny” Kojouharov fell in love with physics and woodworking in high school, so when the time came to think about college, mechanical engineering immediately appealed to him.
That’s why he came to Georgia Tech. And as a Yellow Jacket, Kojouharov has developed and pursued those passions, diving into research and discovering the possibilities of bioinspired robotics.
Along the way, he’s also clearly made an impression: as he prepares to graduate this semester, Kojouharov has received the Love Family Foundation Award, Georgia Tech’s top honor for graduating students.
I am extremely grateful to have been selected for the Love Award. To me, it is a recognition of the amazing support I have received at Georgia Tech through faculty, staff, and peers. I had so many wonderful people help me through my journey at Georgia Tech, and this award is validation of the time and energy they poured into me. Also, being recognized for following my passions in research has given me the confidence to not only pursue a Ph.D. but to try and become a professor in the future.
VELIN "VENNY" KOJOUHAROV
Jimmy Love presented the Love Family Foundation Award to Velin "Venny" Kojouharov at the Student Honors Celebration. (Photo: Allison Carter)
“I am extremely grateful to have been selected for the Love Award. To me, it is a recognition of the amazing support I have received at Georgia Tech through faculty, staff, and peers,” said Kohouharov, who grew up in Mansfield, Texas. “I had so many wonderful people help me through my journey at Georgia Tech, and this award is validation of the time and energy they poured into me. Also, being recognized for following my passions in research has given me the confidence to not only pursue a Ph.D. but to try and become a professor.”
The Love Family Foundation Award Is given to one undergraduate student each spring who has demonstrated the most outstanding scholastic record among graduating students. Each college nominates its top scholar, and the academic associate deans coordinate with Georgia Tech’s Office of Undergraduate Education (OUE) to select the winner. The honoree receives $10,000.
It's just the latest accolade for Kojouharov, who also is a Stamps President’s Scholar. He was named a 2023 Goldwater Scholar, a prestigious national honor that will support his graduate studies. He also received an Astronaut Scholarship last year for students who show a special drive or talent that suggests they’ll be leaders in advancing scientific knowledge.
George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering faculty member David Torello met Kojouharov in a dynamics class and became a mentor, including traveling together through the Scottish Highlands on a Stamps Scholars trip. Torello said Kojouharov has been the strongest engineering candidate for the Love Award he’s ever encountered — excellent in the classroom, interesting, compassionate, and emphathetic.
Kojouharov holding the robot he worked on throughout his college career as an undergraduate researcher in Daniel Goldman’s CRAB Lab. (Photo Courtesy: Venny Kojouharov)
“Venny is the complete package. And he gets it. He gets that the point of all of this is to solve problems that matter to people and elevate the people and community around him,” Torello said. “He’s always thinking about impact and always thinking about the reach of his actions.”
That mindset led Kojouharov to co-found an organization at Tech called BRITE — Bio-Inspired Robotics Initiative for Teaching and Education — to expose middle school students to bioinspired design and spark their curiosity about science, technology, engineering, and math. He also established a Biomechanics Day at Zoo Atlanta that has become an annual event.
Kojouharov’s outreach work has been an outgrowth of his research. He has conducted research in labs at Harvard University and ETH Zurich. But his home base since his first year at Tech has been in Professor Daniel Goldman’s lab in the School of Physics, where he has studied how animals move and how those movements can inspire robotic locomotion. Kojouharov credited Goldman with shaping him as a researcher, scientist, and engineer.
“He has given me the resources, motivation, and passion for the research that I do and has inspired me to continue doing it,” he said.
Kojouharov’s work in Goldman’s lab has included collaborations across physics and chemical and biomolecular engineering to design a robot inspired by the muscle movements of organisms without limbs, such as snakes and worms.
“Venny is the complete package. And he gets it. He gets that the point of all of this is to solve problems that matter to people and elevate the people and community around him. He’s always thinking about impact and always thinking about the reach of his actions.”
DAVID TORELLO
Senior Academic Professional
George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering
“I was introduced to research in robotics, biology, and physics, and loved the interdisciplinary approach,” he said. “I wanted to share this with others and had the opportunity when I was asked to present my robot for Zoo Biomechanics Day. I spent the day next to the snake exhibits and got to teach thousands of kids about how we can study animals to help design robots.”
That’s work he’ll likely continue as he moves to the West Coast to pursue graduate studies at Stanford University. His research will focus on developing sustainable robots that can safely interact with the natural world.
“Designing these types of robots is difficult,” Kojouharov said. “That’s why researchers look to nature as a source of inspiration.”
The Love Family Foundation Award is made possible by a generous grant from the Gay and Erskine Love Foundation.[JM1] Philanthropy is key to supporting Georgia Tech’s students and our mission to improve the human condition. Transforming Tomorrow: The Campaign for Georgia Tech is a more than $2 billion comprehensive campaign designed to secure resources that will advance the Institute and its impact — on people’s lives, on the way we work together to create innovative solutions, and on our world — for decades to come. Learn more about philanthropy at Georgia Tech by visiting transformingtomorrow.gatech.edu.
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