The NFPA Education and Technology Foundation has awarded 23 $2,000 scholarships to students pursuing fluid power related fields of study.
One of the winners, Hannah Shu, is attending Stanford University, and was selected for a Tom Wanke Legacy Fund Award. We asked Hannah a few questions about winning the scholarship.
What does winning a Fluid Power Scholarship mean to you?
Being recognized by the fluid power industry about my passions and accomplishments is extremely rewarding and it gives me more motivation to continue my journey throughout my college years and beyond. I hope to continue meeting the world’s most brilliant thinkers along the way!
Why did you choose to learn about fluid power?
I once went through a loophole with renewable energy sources on one of my many Wikipedia deep dives. Water has always been the core of humanity and nature, serving us as an essential life source due to its unique properties such as having a high heat capacity or vaporization. It made me question why such a basic compound hasn’t been implemented into society more (other than dams!). I am curious and excited to engineer solutions to aid the world wellbeing with a better source of energy.
What are your career aspirations? What type of fluid power job do you hope to get after you graduate?
I see myself being part of the rising group of scientists and engineers who are making hydraulic-powered motor vehicles a reality. Because cars are such a huge component of global carbon emissions, fluid power, and hydraulics can be the many solutions to make the planet greener.
A minimum GPA of 2.5 out of 4.0, 500-word essay, and letter of recommendation were required from each applicant. The NFPA Foundation’s goal is to help graduating high school students, and individuals enrolled in community colleges, technical schools and universities pursue their academic interests in fluid power.
Through the Thomas Wanke Legacy Fund Awards, the NFPA Education and Technology Foundation aims to increase both the number of students studying fluid power, and also the quality of fluid power education in our nation’s universities – two goals clearly aligned with and ennobled by Tom’s life and legacy.
One way NFPA members can get involved with scholarship programs is to volunteer as a judge to serve on the application review committee or mentor a robotics team as they work towards incorporating pneumatics in their designs. This year 16 judges from 13 NFPA member companies reviewed 50 student applications to the Fluid Power Scholarship program. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Haley Nemeth at hnemeth@nfpa.com.
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