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Five Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
students are among the first recipients of Discovery Scholarships,
paving the way for them to complete graduate studies and international
research programs at the new King Abdullah University of Science and
Technology in Saudi Arabia after earning their undergraduate degrees in
engineering and science fields.
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First KAUST
Scholars: Receiving Discovery Scholarships to attend the new
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi
Arabia were Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology students (from
left) Abigail Switzer, Salome Esteban Carrasco, Benjamin Cook,
Benjamin Frevert and Matthew LeMay. (Photo by Daniel J.
Moore) |
Nineteen students from 11 U.S. institutions were
selected to be among the first students from throughout the world to
participate in the elite international education program. The
group was honored by Saudi Arabia officials on Feb. 22 in Washington,
D.C.
Rose-Hulman students selected to receive the
award were:
* Salome Esteban
Carrasco, a sophomore optical engineering and physics major from Lake
Orion, Mich., is a former National Hispanic and National Merit Scholar.
He has recently started research that involves modeling photon
absorption in silicon. He plays trumpet in Rose-Hulman’s jazz band
and is a section leader with The Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps.
* Benjamin Cook, a
sophomore electrical engineering major from Algonquin, Ill., is an
aspiring business leader and entrepreneur who started his first business
in the technology sector at the age of 18 years old and is currently
working on a second startup enterprise. He is president of
Rose-Hulman’s Entrepreneurship Club and is business director for
Engenius Solutions, an incubator for student-operated businesses.
He has specific interests in renewable energy and hopes to use his
academic and business skills to find viable solutions in clean forms of
energy.
* Benjamin Frevert, a
junior optical engineering major from Minneapolis, Minn., has already
earned an International Baccalaureate Diploma. He has done
research in agricultural genetics at the University of Minnesota’s
Horticulture Research Center and computational chemistry at the Army
High Performance Computing Research Center. He is seeking a
certificate in semiconductor materials and devices at
Rose-Hulman.
* Matthew LeMay, a
junior mechanical engineering major from Downers Grove, Ill., has wanted
to research nuclear fusion technology and is excited about the
possibility of conducting research into alternative energy sources at
KAUST. He is risk chair for the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity,
webmaster for the Rose-Hulman Chorus, has performed in drama club
musical productions and was recently inducted into the Tau Beta Pi
engineering honor society.
* Abigail Switzer, a
junior chemical engineering and mathematics major from Marion, Ohio,
hopes to further her study of engineering and its environmental impact
while at KAUST. She is vice president of Rose-Hulman’s Engineers
Without Borders chapter, an international organization that’s using
engineering to aid the developing world. Switzer is helping
develop projects to improve living conditions in a small village in
Obodan, Ghana. She is also actively involved in Alpha Phi Omega, a
national service fraternity.
Rose-Hulman had the most students chosen to
receive Discovery Scholarships this year and hopes to have more students
participating in the program in the future, according to Daniel J.
Moore, associate dean of faculty. Other institutions having at
least one student selected included Stanford University, Rice
University, Rutgers University, University of California, Cornell
University, University of Minnesota, University of Utah, The Cooper
Union (New York City), Azusa Pacific University (Calif.) and Concordia
University (Canada).
Through the Discovery Scholarships, KAUST is
extending its hand to talented and deserving students from across the
world with full knowledge that the minds and lives of these students
will provide humanity with the next generation of scientific
discoveries, according to Ali Ibrahim Al-Naimi, minister of petroleum
and mineral resources of Saudi Arabia and chairman of KAUST’s board of
trustees.
“KAUST understands that developing and nurturing
relationships with leading institutions in global science, technology
and engineering is a must,” Al-Naimi stated.
The scholarships cover Rose-Hulman tuition and a
monthly stipend for the rest of the student’s career, along with
providing an excellent graduate school experience, according to Moore.
Rose-Hulman will be nominating students for the future KAUST scholarship
opportunities in late April.
“Rose-Hulman’s educational partnership with
KAUST opens more international experiences for our students,” Moore
said.
More information about KAUST can be found at
http://www.kaust.edu.sa/. | 
