LSU Physics Students Sweep National Medical Physics Slam Competition

July 23, 2026

Communicating complex science in a way that informs and engages the public is an essential skill for scientists, particularly in fields like medical physics, where research can directly influence patient care and public health.

At the 2026 AAPM (American Association of Physicists in Medicine) Annual Meeting, LSU students demonstrated that skill on a national stage, claiming the top two spots in the national Medical Physics Slam. The annual science communication competition challenges graduate students and early-career physicists to distill years of complex thesis research into a compelling three-to-five-minute presentation for a general audience.

Shanice Manning, a Ph.D. student in LSU's Medical Physics and Health Physics Program, swept the competition, winning both first place and the People's Choice Award. Manning received her bachelor’s degree in physics from LSU in 2020 before returning to the university as a graduate student in 2022. Her research focuses on characterizing how galactic cosmic radiation affects the human brain, work that could help protect astronauts during long-duration space missions. She earned her place at nationals by winning the Southwest Chapter (SWAAPM) regional competition earlier this year.

Second place went to Breona McQueen, an LSU physics alumna who earned her bachelor’s degree from LSU in 2020 and now works as a practicing medical physicist, highlighting the program’s impact on both current students and graduates in the profession.

For Dr. Kip Matthews, director of LSU's Dr. Charles M. Smith Medical and Health Physics Program, the results reflect the program’s commitment to developing scientists who can communicate the importance of their work beyond the laboratory.

"This competition is about more than winning. It's about training scientists who can communicate why their work matters, to patients, policymakers, and the public alike. Shanice and Breona embody what this program is built to produce," said Matthews. 

The national sweep is the latest milestone in a growing record of success for LSU students in the competition. Nousha Afshari won the SWAAPM regional Medical Physics Slam in 2023 and represented the chapter at the national competition. Morgan Aire placed second and Richard Lesieur placed third at the 2024 SWAAPM meeting. Lilian Dickson earned second place at the 2025 regional Slam, hosted in Baton Rouge. This year, Manning won the regional competition before capturing both first place and the People's Choice Award at nationals.

Taken together, this pattern reflects a medical physics program that has built science communication into the fabric of its graduate training, producing students who consistently perform on a national stage. That kind of training carries weight beyond the competition itself: for a field like medical physics, where clear communication directly affects patient trust and care, it strengthens LSU's national visibility, supports recruitment of top graduate talent, and reflects the caliber of mentorship within the program.

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