Engineering Visionary Scholarship

Dana Yun, a freshman in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering, grew up in the Champaign-Urbana area and has always had her eye on attending the University of Illinois. Dana says, “Illinois Engineering was always in the back of my mind as I was figuring out what I wanted to pursue later on in life. Illinois consistently held outreach events which I would excitedly attend both as a middle school student and as a high school student. The passion of Illinois students always caught my eye and I knew that I aspired to be a well-rounded and inspiring student, like them.” In just one semester, Dana has already become involved with multiple organizations on campus. She is currently a member of Illini Solar Car and InSPIRE. Both clubs work with solar energy, something Dana may want to research more deeply further on in her career. Dana also is a member of the Korean-American Student Association. She says, “I love the community that the organization provides. Sharing Korean culture within our Americanized lives makes for some deeply interesting discussions.”

One of Dana’s hobbies is practicing musical instruments, “like the ukulele and the kalimba.” She likes to sing as well, nothing that, “Although I don’t consider myself to have the loveliest of voices, I do really enjoy singing as I play. Making music is something which distracts me from the stress of life.” Aside from channeling her creativity through music, Dana also likes to express herself through journaling, “I often update it weekly with pictures of friends or I’ll simply fill the pages with paintings and doodles.” One of Dana’s favorite courses so far is MSE 182, Introduction to Materials Science & Engineering, because of how detailed the class is in studying topics within a relatively broad subject. Dana is grateful and honored to be a recipient of the Engineering Visionary Scholarship. With the aid of her scholarship, Dana has been able to engage herself with her studies and participate across multiple organizations.

Elizabeth Atkinson, a freshman in Materials Science and Engineering, did not originally plan on attending the University of Illinois until she started researching Illinois’ engineering program. She explains, “As soon I started researching schools, I realized how many opportunities UIUC has and what a good engineering program it has, especially for my major. After receiving scholarships, it became the best option financially as well, and I decided to attend Illinois.”

Even though Elizabeth has only been at the university a short time, she has already taken an interest in becoming involved in her community. Currently, Elizabeth works as an Undergraduate Hourly Worker with the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) Lab. Here, Elizabeth works on maintaining a safe laboratory environment and assists in processes such as autoclaving and stocking supplies.

Outside of school, Elizabeth enjoys swimming and has joined the Illini Swim Club. Additionally, she has worked as an Assistant Coach for the Crystal Lake Nadiators Swim Team this past summer. Within this role, Elizabeth planned and executed workout sets and activities for each swim practice. Besides swimming, Elizabeth enjoys running (and is currently training for the Illinois Marathon!) and playing various instruments, such as the viola, violin, piano, and guitar. Elizabeth is excited for the next 4 years and “loves the atmosphere, the people, my classes, and all the other opportunities in CU. I can’t think of anywhere besides Illinois that I’d rather be.”

Elizabeth is grateful for the support this scholarship has provided her and is appreciative of “attending a prestigious engineering program at a price that was more affordable than any other comparable program.” She is honored to be a 2018-2019 recipient of the Engineering Visionary Scholarship.

If you ask Julia Brodecki, junior in Materials Science and Engineering, why she picked Illinois Engineering, she will enthusiastically say that “I really enjoy meeting new people and I love having in depth discussions with others. Illinois has been a great fit for me since it’s such a large and diverse campus.” When asked where her interest in MatSE started, Julia recalls how she first started her journey at Illinois with the weeklong WYSE engineering camp. She states that “it exposed me to the different types of engineering at Illinois, and helped me find out about MatSE. I don’t know if I would have found it without this camp. I really love my major, and Illinois is a great fit since the MatSE department here is one of the best in the nation.”

On campus, Julia is involved in various organizations, such as Illini Solar Car and Engineers Without Borders. Within Illini Solar Car, Julia works as a Solar Array Sub-Team Member where she makes solar arrays that are used as a source of power for the car during competitions. Julia is also involved in Engineers Without Borders, serving as team lead for the Guatemala group. She has also traveled to Guatemala and installed a springbox to provide water to a small village.

In her free time, Julia loves to explore the world around her. She “loves traveling and reading. Coming back from a semester in Europe, my wanderlust is definitely piqued. I also really enjoy hiking and go on camping trips on weekends when I have extra free time.”

Julia is grateful for the support her scholarship provides her as “this scholarship allows me to put more time into school work and research without the pressure of having to work too many hours at my campus job.” She is honored to be a 2018-2019 recipient of the Engineering Visionary Scholarship.

Laion Neves, a senior in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, had dreamed of attending Illinois Engineering for a long time. Laion says, “For years I’ve held Illinois Engineering as one of the highest regarded programs in my mind. Attending a world class university with innovative courses has always been a dream of mine.”

Laion is part of the Material Science and Engineering honors society, Keramos. One event which they host weekly called “Play with Clay,” is one of Laion’s absolute favorite activities. Laion has the heart of an entertainer and engages that side of him with his work for LabEscape. LabEscape is a playground full of educational fun in the form of an escape room littered with challenges. Families and groups must work together and engage with physics-based puzzles to solve various scenarios. Laion has worked on the creation of new puzzles and in running a community science outreach program through LabEsape. Laion loves his work and his classes, specifically the lab courses he’s taken. Laion says, “I just finished an eight-week lab course on ceramic processing, which was by far one of my favorite classes I’ve ever taken.” In his free time, Laion likes to play board games with his wife when they both have the time.

Laion is thankful for his scholarship support and is honored to be a recipient of the Engineering Visionary Scholarship. Laion says, “After I graduate, I plan on contributing to scholarships as I know firsthand how valuable a role they play in a student’s life.”

Amy Merkelz is in her first year as an engineering student at Illinois. She is majoring in Materials Science and Engineering. Receiving a scholarship made Illinois an affordable option for pursuing her education.

Since Amy is a freshman, she is taking several introductory courses and has not gotten into the thick of her classes for her major. The introductory courses are helping her determine what concentration she would like to pursue in her major. So far, she is interested in the metals and electronics materials concentrations.

Amy plans to spend the summer participating in materials science research on campus while taking classes. She is a member of the student organization, Material Advantage, which provides students with opportunities for networking in a professional capacity and helps organize professional events. This gives students a chance to learn more about companies involved in materials science.

When she’s not occupied with homework, Amy enjoys walking through the Arboretum on campus and attending Illinois Hockey games. She also loves to explore downtown Champaign’s coffee shops.

Amy feels honored to receive an Engineering Visionary Scholarship. It has helped eliminate financial stress from her life and enabled her to pay for tuition and fees.

When Justin learned he was a recipient of the Engineering Visionary Scholarship, he was thrilled and very grateful for this opportunity to come to Illinois with the help of generous support. Justin Bentancourt is a senior Materials Science and Engineering student with a focus in Biomaterials. He is also pursuing a minor in International Studies.

During his undergraduate experience, he has faced several exciting and challenging times. He has been the vice president and president of Alpha Chi Sigma, a professional chemistry fraternity, director of traffic and safety for the student-led Engineering Open House, and has served as a teaching assistant for the freshman orientation course, ENG 100, for the past two years. He did all of these activities while remaining on the Dean’s List and being a James Scholar.

Thanks to scholarship support, Justin was able to study abroad in Madrid, Spain over the spring 2015 semester. While studying in Spain, he completed a quantum physics course and received a perfect score. Additionally, he worked as a Research and Development Intern at Baxter Healthcare during summer 2016. During his internship, he worked on physical and mechanical characterization for some of the organization’s products. Justin will graduate in May 2017.