NEW: 11 WPI Students Awarded Prestigious Scholarship

Monday, November 26, 2012

GolocalWorcester Business Team

Eleven undergraduates majoring in electrical and computer engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have been awarded Power and Energy Systems (PES) Scholarships by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The scholarships are aimed at helping build a pipeline of talent for the electric power and energy industries.

Now in its second year, the PES program awarded 228 scholarships this year to students at 100 American universities. The scholarships were distributed through the IEEE Power and Energy Society Scholarship Fund, which is used to support the IEEE PES Scholarship Plus Initiative.

“Executives across the power and energy industries share a concern for the pipeline of talent entering the power engineering workforce, especially as more and more of the Baby Boomers who built today’s power system to its present strength prepare to retire,” said Wanda Reder, vice president for power systems services at S&C Electric Company in Chicago and co-chair of the scholarship program.

"The IEEE PES Scholarship Plus Initiative is one way we are helping support the next generation of power leaders. These are exceptional young men and women who are excited about power and the opportunities in the field."

S&C Foundation, which is affiliated with S&C Electric, and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories have each contributed $1 million to the scholarship fund. Other prominent supporters include National Grid, the Grainger Foundation, Alstom, Doble Engineering, Powell Industries, Cooper Power Systems, Southern California Edison, ISO New England, Autodesk, PSE&G, Ulteig, Westinghouse, MidAmerican Energy Foundation, NSTAR, PJM Interconnection, and the GE Foundation.

"We are delighted that IEEE selected 11 of our electrical and computer engineering students for this prestigious honor," said Selcuk Guceri, Bernard M. Gordon Dean of Engineering at WPI. "With our rigorous, project-based education and support from the PES program, these future innovators will be well prepared to help solve the challenges of developing viable and economical sources of alternative energy, creating next-generation smart grid technology, and building a robust and reliable electric generation and distribution network for the future."

Here are the WPI recipients of 2012 IEEE Power and Energy Systems Scholarships:

• Ali Akhtar '15 from Lahore, Pakistan
• Jeffrey Blanco '13 from Gardner, Mass.
• Anthony Cangello '14 from New Hartford, N.Y.
• James Corsini '13 from North Providence, R.I.
• Matthew Coughlin '14 from Falmouth, Maine
• Adrian Delphia '13 from Charlton, Mass.
• Mohammad Ghani '14 from Flushing, N.Y.
• Jeremy Giguere '15 from Tiverton, R.I.
• Christopher Sontag '14 from Leominster, Mass.
• Patrick Sullivan '14 from Stoughton, Mass.
• Jordyn Rombola '14 from Berlin, Conn.