Outstanding seniors recognized at annual event
The College of Engineering at North Carolina State University presented outstanding senior awards in four categories to exceptional students during a ceremony on April 24.
Matthew Parker, a senior in biological engineering, received the Senior Award for Citizenship and Service. Catrina Rateb, a senior double majoring in chemical engineering and French language & literature, received the Outstanding Senior Award for Humanities. Rachel Scroggins, a senior in chemical engineering, received the Senior Award for Leadership. Dani Winter, a senior in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering (BAE), earned the Senior Award for Scholarly Achievement.
The College’s academic departments nominated seniors in all four categories. The winners and nominees were honored during the 2018 annual awards reception held at the University Club.
Matthew Parker | Citizenship and Service
Parker is president of the Alpha Epsilon Honor Society of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at NC State and vice president of the University’s chapter of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). His scholarly accolades also include being inducted into Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, Gamma Sigma Delta Honor Society for Agriculture, and Tau Sigma National Honor Society, and the maintaining of a 4.0 grade point average.
His commitment to citizenship and service is evident in his record fundraising for nonprofits through his unique talent as a licensed auctioneer. Since 2015, he has worked with numerous nonprofit organizations as a fundraising consultant and benefit auctioneer, reporting that more than $3 million has been raised for North and South Carolina nonprofit organizations, such as Smart Start North Carolina Partnership for Children, Family Resource Programs of Harnett County and March of Dimes, in events in which he has participated
Through his leadership role in ASABE, he chaired the fall 2017 sweet potato fundraiser, which raised nearly $3,000 for the chapter and supported his fellow students in attending the 2018 Southeastern Regional ASABE Rally. He also participates in an Agricultural Mentorship Program. This program encourages 8-15-year-olds to participate in a farmer shadowing program to learn about agriculture, food production, resource management and ecological sustainability.
Catrina Rateb | Humanities
Rateb is a Goodnight Scholar and member of the University Honors Program. She has maintained a 4.0 total grade point average, is a recipient of the Chancellor’s Study Abroad Scholarship, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, National Society for the Liberal Arts and Sciences; Omega Chi Epsilon, National Honor Society for Chemical Engineering; and Tau Beta Pi, National Honor Society for Engineering.
Her desire to expand her awareness of global relations and become a twenty-first century learner and cultivated citizen through exposure led her to participate in study-abroad experiences in Lille and Lyon, France. She also founded a STEM service trip to Cairo, Egypt targeting gender disparity in STEM fields and empowering young women in traditional societies. Through this experience, she also initiated a spring break service trip, The Mountains to Coast Service Trip, which focused on advocating for STEM education to under-resourced communities across North Carolina.
Rachel Scroggins | Leadership
Serving as the president of the student chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), Scroggins runs the highly active chapter’s industry-sponsored dinners, social events, and outreach activities. She also serves as a co-op ambassador, promoting the university’s program. Her contributions have been recognized, as she was elected to serve on the American Chemical Society’s Committee on Chemists with Disabilities for 2018.
She has received several merit-based scholarships, including the highly competitive John J. McKetta National Undergraduate Scholarship (AIChE) and the Ernie and Beverly Alexander Scholarship in Engineering. She has completed three co-op work terms at Chemours, in Fayetteville, NC, working in a variety of engineering -related roles encompassing equipment design, maintenance, process simulation, Six Sigma, process safety, and failure analysis, as well as an internship at PotashCorp in Aurora, NC.
Dani Winter | Scholarly Achievement
Winter is a Park Scholar, University Scholar, an inductee of Phi Kappa Phi, Tau Beta Pi, and Alpha Epsilon honor societies, and was recently named a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow. She has maintained a 4.0 grade point average during her undergraduate career while also conducting research every year as a student.
She actively pursues opportunities to present and discuss her research in both formal meetings but also through social media. She uses Twitter to document and share her research in the field and lab, as well as managing the NC State BAE Floating Islands Twitter account. She has worked on multi-year floating islands and stream restoration projects with several faculty members in the department and across campus. Her research, work ethic and passion for knowledge has been noticed by many, especially during the summer NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. She conducted a tracer injection study at a stream restoration project where two years earlier she conducted research during the construction period of the project.
Other nominees for the awards included:
CITIZENSHIP AND SERVICE
Tim Calhoun | Biomedical Engineering
Jacob Jacobs | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
John Merrill | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
Louis Le | Computer Science
Rasha Wahab | Electrical and Computer Engineering
Hanan Hsain | Materials Science and Engineering
Scott Cronson | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Samantha Michael | Nuclear Engineering
Rachel Raineri | Textile Engineering
HUMANITIES
Lauryn Kabrich | Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Neelam Modi | Biomedical Engineering
Soung Joung Hong | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
Justin Kuhn | Electrical and Computer Engineering
Savannah Abel | Industrial Engineering
Kevin Kronk | Materials Science Engineering
Raven Lauer | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Duncan Trosan | Nuclear Engineering
LEADERSHIP
Alexander Greeson | Biological and Agricultural Engineering
Ryen Ormesher | Biomedical Engineering
Thomas Lewis | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
Kelechi Kwazemem-Opara | Electrical and Computer Engineering
Anjali Mani | Industrial Engineering
Mitchell Moravec | Materials Science and Engineering
Stephen Scheuerle | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Samantha Casey | Textile Engineering
SCHOLARLY ACHIEVEMENT
Jonathan Alvarez | Biomedical Engineering
Kobi Felton | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Allie Dinwiddie | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
Jacob Stone | Computer Science
Afsana Chowdhury | Electrical and Computer Engineering
Ally Schueneman | Industrial Engineering
Tyler Pardue | Materials Science and Engineering
Nicholas Mazzoleni | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Benjamin Dacus | Nuclear Engineering
Courtney Oswald | Textile Engineering
Awards for Women and Minority Engineering Programs (WMEP), Benjamin Franklin Scholars, and National Academy of Engineers (NAE) grand scholars were also presented at the event.
