On Friday, they stood at National Match Day, arms around each other, waiting to learn where Fernandez would do her residency training.

Maria Luisa de Curtis Fernandez kissed her daughter’s head as Jessica opened her envelope and learned she’d gotten her top choice – Jefferson Medical College’s duPoint Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia. It’s one of only three pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation positions in the country that train doctors to care for children with movement disorders caused by conditions such as traumatic brain injury, cerebral palsy and Jessica’s condition, spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia. The rare genetic disorder affects bone growth and causes small stature. Jessica stands 4 feet 2 inches tall.

DuPont was the hospital program where Fernandez had surgery last year to fuse bones in her spine. She’d fallen in love with the facility’s spirit and that bond intensified when Fernandez did a rotation at the hospital months later.

“They were so motivating and accepting,” she said. “They wanted me to be me. With them, I can help children gain independence and mobility. I can heal patients like me.”

Fernandez was one of 114 Class of 2018 Â鶹ԭ´´ medical students who matched into residencies Friday. Across the country a record-high 37,103 applicants submitted choices for 33,167 residency positions, the most ever offered. Â鶹ԭ´´â€™s 98 percent match rate was again higher than the national average of 94.3 percent. During their fourth year of medical school, students interview with residency programs in their specialty of choice. They rank their choices; residency programs do the same. Then a national computer matches the two. The results are kept secret until noon on National Match Day, when students nationwide learn the results.

2018 Â鶹ԭ´´ graduates will do their residencies at top hospitals across the nation, state and community, including Georgetown, Harvard, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Mayo Clinic, Orlando Health, University of Florida, Vanderbilt and Yale.

Ion, the College of Medicine’s certified therapy dog, even received his next assignment on Match Day. Ion’s owner, Christa Zino, matched into a surgical residency at Grand Strand Medical Center in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Her residency program director said Ion, a rescued boxer, can join residents on surgical rounds to provide comfort to patients. “I’m so excited,” Zino said. “I love surgery because I can fix things with my hands. I can be that person. Now I just need to find a full-time dog walker.”

Professor Roseann White, who teaches at the medical school’s Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, attended Match Day to cheer on her neighbor’s grandson and former student, Â鶹ԭ´´ med student Tyler Hall. He graduated from Burnett and is now headed to a pediatric residency at the University of Chicago. Hall credited Burnett School faculty with advising and helping him be ready for medical school and then succeed to he could get his dream residency.

White was equally thrilled. “To see him grow up and embark on his journey to become a pediatrician was very special,” she said. “For Tyler, along with a few others, to be one of our Â鶹ԭ´´ biomedical sciences graduates matching makes me proud of our program.”

Best friends Stephen Rineer and Richard Taylor both matched into pediatric residencies at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. They met during their first year of med school. They studied together, prepared for their board exams together. Their wives are now best friends too.

“We were competitive but in a good way,” Reiner said. Added Taylor: “I’m ecstatic. It means so much to be able to match with my best friend, because we get to move there and already have a family of friends.”

Kyle Cox spent his undergraduate years competing on Â鶹ԭ´´â€™s soccer team while he was studying biomedical sciences for pre-med. In May, he’ll graduate and move with his wife to Montgomery, AL, for a residency in orthopedic surgery at University of South Alabama Hospitals.

“I’ve spent so many years in athletics, I think like an athlete and I think that will help me relate to my patients,” he said. “Orthopedic surgery will allow me to help athletes get back on the field and help patients gain mobility so they can get back to what they enjoy.”

After opening their envelopes on the College of Medicine’s Tavistock Green, the future physicians went to a microphone, announced where they matched and placed a thumbtack on a giant U.S. map to mark their residency destination. Dean Deborah German told students that when they opened their envelopes, they were “opening the door to your future.”

Jessica Fernandez was the second student to announce her future. She stood on a stool to see over the podium at a Match Day crowd of hundreds.

“I’m Jess,” she said. Then the future Dr. Jessica Fernandez announced where she will go to heal others. And the crowd roared.

He has published many books, narrated PBS specials, appeared on a variety of shows including The Colbert Report, Late Night with David Letterman and even had a guest spot on the TV comedy The Big Bang Theory.

That’s why Greene was a perfect fit for the conference, which focuses on science technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in everyday life and the importance of sharing that knowledge to motivate more young people to pursue careers in these fields.

“Understanding physics, math, engineering and science is critical because you may not be a scientist, but you certainly enjoy the technological advances they are creating,” said Michael Georgiopoulos, interim dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science. The college is home to the iCubed project, which is sponsoring the conference. “Likewise, you may not be an artist, but you can appreciate the beauty of what the artist creates. It takes the collaboration of people from different disciplines to move our society forward.”

That is the mission of iCubed, a National Science Foundation-funded project that partners with several colleges within the university, including the College of Engineering and Computer Science, College of Arts and Humanities, College of Education, and College of Sciences. The project goal is to ensure broader impact of NSF-funded projects through coordination and integration of the education and research activities by increasing participation in STEM fields.

To bring the point home, University of Oregon professor Richard Taylor will be joining Greene at the conference.

Taylor is a physicist and accomplished artist, which give him a unique way of seeing the world. Blending both backgrounds into his work led him to search for fractal patterns that are everywhere, from microbes to Jackson Pollock’s abstract paintings. Fractal patterns are mathematical structures that nature appears to use for many of the phenomena we observe. Taylor will talk about how science and art are more connected than most people recognize.

Leonardo da Vinci, for example,  is famous for his paintings, but he also developed early sketches for a helicopter, tank, robot and scuba gear among other things.

The conference concludes with a book signing and the STEAM artwork showcase.

STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) is a university project, and one of the iCubed activities that brings together science and art students and encourages them to work together to produce art pieces that are inspired by science or engineering.

“We have found that students initially face difficulties to work together, but they eventually find their own unique ways to communicate with each other to complete the project,” Georgiopoulos said. “It’s an important skill to have, to be able to communicate your scientific or artistic work to multiple audiences.”

Other STEM conference sponsors are the College of Sciences, the Office of Research and Commercialization, the School of Visual Arts and Design, the Steve Goldman Foundation and the Â鶹ԭ´´ Student Government Association.

The STEM conference will run from 8:15 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Cape Florida room in the Student Union on the main campus. Greene’s presentation will be 9 to 10:15 a.m. Taylor’s talk will begin at 10:30 a.m., and the book signing and artists showcase will begin at 1 p.m. Early arrival is advised as seating is limited.

For more information contact Costas Efthimiou at 407-823-0179 or costas@physics.ucf.edu