2021 Scholarship Awards

Liam Stack

South Dakota School of Mines & Technology

Liam is a junior Metallurgical Engineering student at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. He first became interested in metallurgy in high school when he built his own metal melting foundry for aluminum and copper. The interest in the science behind metals only kept growing from that point on, and Liam soon found himself applying to SDSMT. Since arriving at SDSMT, Liam has maintained a 4.0 GPA and is involved in a variety of different clubs and activities on campus such as Circle K International, undergraduate research with the Materials Science department, and Vice President of the Material Advantage chapter. After achieving his Bachelor’s in Metallurgical Engineering, Liam plans on pursuing a Master’s in Materials Science. He then hopes to put this knowledge to use in the research field of aerospace materials development.

Natalie Crutchfield

University of Central Florida

Natalie Crutchfield is a senior (BSMSE) in the Materials Science and Engineering department the at University of Central Florida. She spends her free time gardening with her dog Roxy. She has participated in research since her freshman year and worked in biomaterials, computer modeling, regenerative medicine, and tissue engineering. Natalie wants to pursue a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering after graduating and develop medical devices and therapies. She enjoys materials science because it is a very diverse and interdisciplinary, which allows her to collaborate with and learn from other research groups. Natalie recently participated in a Research Experience for Undergraduates funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF-REU) in the summer at University of Georgia (Athens, GA), where she worked with Prof. Handa to publish a paper on biomaterials research.

Sarah Gonder

McMaster University

Sarah Gonder is a senior at McMaster University in Materials Science and Engineering with a passion for materials innovation, decarbonization, and improving equity in engineering. After receiving an NSERC USRA, she has continued her research under Dr. Bosco Yu for the past 16 months. She has explored computational and cellular materials through developing algorithms to generate impact absorption architectures for additively manufactured helmets. With the support of AIST’s Samson Canadian Steel Intern Scholarship, Sarah is currently contributing to global decarbonization initiatives in the ferrous pyrometallurgy group at Hatch Ltd. Serving as President of McMaster’s MSE Society and supervising an undergraduate researcher in Dr. Yu’s group has highlighted her passion for mentorship. With immense gratitude to ASM’s support, she aspires to enter project management after completing a master’s degree in Europe.

Giovanna Janes

University of British Columbia

Giovanna is entering her third year of Materials Engineering at the University of British Columbia, where she is an All-American varsity track athlete as well as an Academic All-Canadian. This summer, she worked with Deacon Industrial Design, modeling structural elements, and developing a soon-to-be patented mechanism in Civil Engineering. As a member of the Strive business and Engineering team, she helped develop more efficient methods for delivering and collecting recyclable materials. Giovanna’s passion for volunteering led her to become a member of the UBC Student-Athlete Mental Health Initiative, participate in a volunteer trip to Lima, Peru, and raise over $4,000 for a group of young mothers finishing their high school degrees. Giovanna is hoping to specialize in biomaterials and advanced textiles while continuing her passion for helping others by one day creating adaptive devices and prosthetics.

Kaitlyn Khachadoorian

North Carolina State University

Kaitlyn Khachadoorian is a senior studying Materials Science & Engineering at North Carolina State University. After completing two collaborative and challenging internships working on materials analysis and root-cause investigation as a Defectivity Design Engineer at ASML, she is motivated to drive advancements in the semiconductor industry upon graduating. Kaitlyn is an All-American and Scholar Athlete on the NC State Cheerleading Team. Additionally, she is a member of the Honors Program, Grand Challenge Scholars Program, and University Ambassadors, as well as the Chairperson of her Material Advantage Student Chapter. Passionate about giving back to her community, Kaitlyn enjoys volunteering at the Boys & Girls Club and Esteemed Cafe, a local nonprofit employing people with disabilities. Kaitlyn is incredibly appreciative for ASM’s support and excited to achieve her goals as a driven Materials Scientist.

Owen Murdock

The Ohio State University

Owen Murdock is a senior majoring in Welding Engineering at The Ohio State University. At 16, Owen knew he would pursue a Welding Engineering degree and enrolled in a welding fabrication program to “walk the walk” and “talk the talk” of his field. With this philosophy, Owen worked as a welder at both Capital Steel and Worthington Industries, saving his earnings for his future studies at OSU. In recognition of his professional and academic accomplishments, Owen has received recognition and awards from numerous organizations including ASM, AWS, NACE, and the Ohio House of Representatives. In 2021, Owen was selected as a DAAD RISE scholar in Germany where he assisted in doctoral MSE research at RWTH Aachen. Owen’s tenacity led OSU to grant approval to complete his senior year as a full-time researcher with BMW (Munich). This research coincides with his senior capstone project. He plans to continue this research for his master’s thesis under the tutelage of Dr. Peter Mayr at the Technical University of Munich.

Emma Arterbury

Colorado School of Mines

Emma Arterbury is a rising junior at Colorado School of Mines studying metallurgical and materials engineering. She has always loved math and science and in high school when researching various types of engineering, she discovered metallurgical and materials. For the past year, Emma has performed undergraduate research under the supervision of Robert
Cryderman in the Advanced Steel Products and Processing Research Center at Mines. Here, she discovered a passion for problem solving, meticulous record keeping and out-of-the-box thinking research requires. In addition to her work in the classroom and lab, Emma is a member of the varsity cross country and track team at Mines. She aspires to obtain a Ph.D. in
metallurgical and materials engineering and become a professor.

Cassidy Sjovall

South Dakota School of Mines & Technology

Cassidy Sjovall is entering her junior year at South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, studying Metallurgical Engineering. She became interested in engineering through her fascination with her father’s and grandfather’s work as mechanical engineers. In high school, she enjoyed math and science, particularly chemistry. She enjoys the combination of mechanical engineering aspects and chemistry involved with metallurgical engineering. Cassidy excels in her studies, maintaining a 4.0 GPA while being vice president of her school’s chapter of the Society of Women Engineers, treasurer of the SDSM&T Baja SAE team, and participating in Material Advantage events. She recently finished a co-op with Nucor-Yamato Steel Company, where she enjoyed learning new skills on the job and working with others. She is grateful for this scholarship and excited for her career ahead.

Gladys Durán

Instituto Tecnologico de Morelia

Gladys Durán is a student based in Mexico enrolled in her final year at Instituto Tecnologico de Morelia, majoring in Materials Engineering and is specialized in metallurgy and welding. She has experience in field research in metallic glasses and speaking experience on national and international congress. She won third place in the undergraduate speaking competition held at MS&T20. She participated in the Cast in Steel 2021 Competition organized by Steel Founders´ Society of America with a team that represented Mexico. She held the chair position for the student chapter of Morelia that reach the recognition of Student Chapter of Excellence by Material Advantage Program. Gladys is fascinated about material science and its role in aerospace industry and green energy development. She is grateful for the ASM support to reach her goals to pursue a graduate degree in this field.

River Carson

University of Wisconsin – Madison

River Carson is a Senior in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Wisconsin Madison, with a second major in Mathematics. His plan is to pursue a PHD, focused on x-ray diffractometry as a
method or other areas where his background in mathematics will be of import. Over the first year of the covid pandemic he took a gap year to work as a potter and used his knowledge of materials science to work on the development of a thermal shock resistant clay body production of cookware. He is now returning to his position as president of the American Foundry Society, UW Madison chapter, where he hopes to solidify the recent establishment of the club forge that was disrupted by the pandemic.

Griffin Tong

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Griffin Tong is a rising junior in the Materials Science and Engineering program at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. During his freshman year, a visit to the university’s glass-working facility changed his academic trajectory and inspired him to pursue a degree in materials science. Now, Griffin is focusing his studies on high-temperature structural materials and heat treatment as an undergraduate research assistant in the John H. Perepezko group. He is also dedicated to supporting his peers as a co-president of the Materials Advantage chapter at UW-Madison and as an Undergraduate Learning Center tutor. His goal is to earn his PhD and further the field as a researcher and educator. Griffin is thankful for the support from the ASM Foundation and will continue to excel in both his work and his studies.

Emmie Benard

Arizona State University

Emmie Benard is a rising Junior at Arizona State University studying Material Science and Engineering. She intends to concentrate on materials chemistry and polymer synthesis as she continues her education. For Emmie, material science provides a creative and hands-on outlet for her love of chemistry, materials, and the great outdoors. She has worked on fabricating and characterizing photodetectors for medical imaging in the Radiological Instrumentation Laboratory at the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she obtained second authorship on a review article. Emmie is also a researcher in the Quantum Materials and Applications Laboratory at ASU, synthesizing and characterizing nanomaterials. She works as an undergraduate teaching assistant for an introductory materials engineering class at ASU and has been on the Dean’s List four times straight. She has received multiple scholarships through Medtronic, a local biomedical engineering company in Phoenix, Arizona. One day she hopes to use her technical knowledge to engineer materials for outdoor gear in a planet-conscious way.

Jennifer Johnson

South Dakota School of Mines & Technology

Jennifer’s passion for metals started in middle school with soldering in an engineering class, then continued with welding in high school. She is currently a junior in Metallurgical Engineering at South Dakota Mines and in the Accelerated Master’s program for Materials Science and Engineering. Jennifer has also gotten a certificate with Engineering Management from the Industrial Engineering Department. Since freshman year, Jennifer has conducted undergraduate research looking at sustainable mineral processing from mechanochemical processing applications to reduce water usage in mining. Other involvement on campus includes, President of Material Advantage, Treasure of SME, an active member of the welding club, and a student ambassador for SDSMT. Upon graduating in Spring 2023, Jennifer plans to work in the Research and Development sector of industry for improvement on metals and materials.

Katrina Santos

Arizona State University

Katrina Santos is in the midst of her last year as an undergraduate student. In May of 2022, she will receive her Bachelor’s of Science and Engineering in Materials Science and Engineering from Arizona State University. Her passion started in fall of 2018 when she and 4 of her classmates entered the ASM International Domesday Competition. Their team attended the MS&T Conference in Ohio where they were awarded first place. Her interests are currently focused in the semiconductor industry. Her work at Intel Corporation as a process engineer intern focuses on chemical vapor deposition using vertical deposition furnaces. She plans to work towards a master’s degree in materials science after completing undergrad. Katrina thanks ASM Materials Education Foundation for their support and generosity in the careers of aspiring materials engineers.

Zachary Katz

McGill University

Zach Katz, entering his fourth year of Materials Engineering at McGill University in Montreal, has excelled both academically and professionally since moving from White Rock, British Columbia. His passions for chemistry, biology, and tinkering led him to explore the field of bio-mimetic and bio-inspired materials, where via co-op and intern positions with the National Research Council of Canada, he has contributed significantly to research on tough architected ceramics. Of these projects, his work on crania-inspired suture structures won him the undergraduate award during ASM’s Student Night academic poster and video competition. Zach is a manager at the engineering student-run Blues Pub, is the composites and engine sub-team leader with the Baja team, and is involved in student council. Away from school, Zach likes to mountain bike, ski, and hike.