Posted: May 26, 2004

About Ashante’
Ashante’ is a first-time summer intern at Sandia/CA. She achieved the high distinction of graduating Summa Cum Laude from the North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University with a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering. She is now pursuing a master’s degree in the same field at Georgia Institute of Technology.

Ashante’ was recently awarded the Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship and the NASA Harriet Jenkins Predoctoral Fellowship. Fellowship program guidelines preclude her from accepting both awards, so she has chosen to accept the Ford Fellowship.

Outside of school, Ashante’ enjoys reading, traveling, shopping, and attending various performing and visual art events.

About the Ford Fellowship
Approximately 60 predoctoral fellowships are awarded in a national competition administered by the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies on behalf of the Ford Foundation. These awards are given to individuals of underrepresented minorities who have demonstrated superior scholarship and show the greatest promise for future achievement as scholars, researchers, and teachers in institutions of higher education. Applicants must be enrolled or plan to enroll in a research-based Ph.D. or Sc.D. program in major discipline fields such as Archaeology, Anthropology, Art History, Astronomy, Chemistry, Communications, Computer Science, Earth Sciences, Economics, Engineering.

For up to three years, Ford fellows receive an annual stipend of $17,000 and an institutional award of $6,000 in lieu of tuition and fees. In addition, Ford fellows receive an expense-paid trip to attend at least one National Conference of Ford Fellows, along with mentoring and support from an established network of former Ford fellow liaisons.

Learn more about the fellowship.

About Her Work at Sandia
Ashante’ is an intern in the Microsystems Partnership Program (MPP) institute this summer, working with the LIGA Metrology group under the supervision of mentor Georg Aigeldinger. Her research project involves using a test pattern with negative and positive line-width features of varying thicknesses to qualify the reproduction of these features throughout each step of the LIGA process. At the end of the summer, Ashante’ will present her research findings at Sandia’s intern symposium.

Congratulations, Ashante’!