Biography

I grew up in Madison, Alabama, with a twin brother and a younger brother. In my upbringing, academic prowess was strongly emphasized. My brother and I often compared our scores on tests and projects, so we naturally had high expectations for ourselves and for each other. Our competitive natures were reflected in the classes we took and our achievements in clubs and organizations in high school, and I think my competition with my brother is the main reason that I have a strong work ethic today and hold myself to high standards.

In addition to my classes, I was involved in numerous service organizations in high school as well as being involved with my church’s youth group and with the Boy Scouts. Regularly volunteering helped me to learn to enjoy helping others, and I hope to participate in service organizations at Texas A&M to help give back to the community. Service projects and other volunteer work have given me more awareness of how other people’s lives are different from mine, and have taught me to be grateful for the opportunities that I have been given. Relationships with family and friends are also important to me, and part of the reason I chose to go to a school that is so far from home is that it is a way to challenge myself to meet new people and create new relationships.

Growing up near the US Space and Rocket Center and having the opportunity to participate in Space Camp in elementary school sparked my interest in engineering and has shaped my interests through high school and college. In high school, I focused on taking math and science classes as well as specialized engineering classes where I learned to do things like 3D modeling and using a CNC mill. I joined clubs that fit my interests like math team, physics club, and FIRST robotics. I eventually developed a new interest in computers, and I took programming classes where I learned C, C++, and Java then joined the computer science team at my school. By the end of junior year, I thought software engineering was my destined career path. However, in my senior year I got the opportunity to participate in an internship as the final part of the series of engineering classes that were offered, and chose to gain experience working with a local software engineering firm. I enjoyed the internship and learned a lot, but it never really seemed like the right fit for me, and during the end-of-year presentations that each student gave about their experience I found myself much more interested in the presentations about aerospace engineering internships, so I decided that I wanted to pursue aerospace engineering as a career rather than software engineering.