Rossin Junior Fellows are undergraduate students who serve as ambassadors for the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. These students help with recruiting efforts and peer mentoring. The most recent class of Rossin Junior Fellows includes the following students from Material Science and Engineering.
Casey Dolan
Name: Casey Dolan (she/her)
Education: Pursuing BS in MSE
Where are you from?
From Bloomfield, NJ
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
My favorite part about being a Lehigh engineer is the community.
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
I first became interested in MSE after seeing the SEM/TEM demonstration in ENGR 005 MSE lab.
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
I am involved in LU eNABLE, oSTEM, Women's Club Basketball, and TRAC Fellowship.
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
My high school AP Physics teacher Mr. Di Domenico inspired me to pursue engineering in college.
What are your plans after graduation?
After graduation, I plan to either go to grad school or go into industry.
Isabelle Torrijos
Name: Isabelle Torrijos (she/her)
Education: BS in Materials Science and Engineering and BA in Product Design
Where are you from?
Powhatan, VA
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
The strong reputation of Lehigh graduates, and the vast alumni network that make finding internships and careers very accessible.
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
In middle school, I read an article about material science, and I thought it sounded interesting. When I came to Lehigh, I did the MSE Engineering 5 lab, and really enjoyed it, so I declared Materials Science as my major.
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
I am the president of a dance club, involved in Polynesian Student Alliance, and recently participated in an Iacocca International Internship.
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
Two professors who inspired me to see every opportunity as a learning experience are Doctor Angelina Rodriguez and Professor Chris Kauzmann. Professor Rodriguez pushed me to also study design, and Professor Kauzmann inspired me to pursue my interests and recognize my strengths.
What are your plans after graduation?
Not sure yet. I would like to pursue a Master's degree, but I may want to work for a few years beforehand.
Metri Zughbi
Name: Metri Zughbi (he/him)
Education: Materials Science and Engineering (Bachelors)
Where are you from?
Coplay, PA
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
The hands-on experience, the supportive community and the friends I've met in and out of classes.
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
I became most interested in Materials Science after learning more about it in an freshman engineering seminar class, ENGR 005, where we conducted mechanical testing on fiberglass and carbon fiber beams we casted out of epoxy.
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
Undergraduate research, course grading, various committees and an assortment of hobbies, including music studies and botany.
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
Many of the professors have had a profound effect on me and motivated me to push myself both academically and out of my comfort zone, especially Prof. Watanabe, Prof. Kundu, and Alexander Campos-Quiros. They have all inspired me to be more ambitious and work harder and I will forever be thankful for the opportunities they have given me.
What are your plans after graduation?
Graduate school
Thomas Theiner
Name: Thomas Theiner
Education:
Where are you from?
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
What are your plans after graduation?
Tucker Knupp
Name: Tucker Knupp
Education: BS in MSE
Where are you from?
Latrobe, PA
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
Strong relationships that I am able to form with my professors
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
In high school I spoke with a Materials Engineer from my dad's work and it sounded very interesting
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
Member of the Lehigh Football team
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
One of my HS football coaches was also my biology teacher and he encouraged me into doing football and also pursuing a difficult major like Materials Engineering.
What are your plans after graduation?
Hopefully work somewhere
Haley Bartosh
Name: Haley Bartosh
Education: BS in MSE
Where are you from?
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
What are your plans after graduation?
Madeline Jones
Name: Madeline Jones
Education: BS in MSE
Where are you from?
I'm from Lock Haven, a town near the center of Pennsylvania.
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
My favorite part of being a Lehigh Engineer is the amount of opportunities open to me. I can easily talk to professors about research projects I’m interested in starting or joining, there's a multitude of clubs and organizations that have communal projects you can freely join, and the engineering students are more than happy to help others succeed
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
I hadn’t heard of Materials Science before I came to Lehigh. I was originally planning on being a Mechanical or Chemical Engineer but wanted a more interdisciplinary experience. I took a class, Engineering Superheroes, my spring semester of freshman year that was a very basic overview of what Materials Science is. The class mainly was a lot of fun labs and gave us the chance to meet with some faculty and other upperclassmen in the Materials Science department.
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
Outside of my course work, I’m an active member of Lehigh’s Baja SAE team and Rocketry Association. I also am in a hybrid ceramic research project under Dr. Castro with a close friend of mine, and recently started a Society for Engineering Ethics on campus.
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
There are plenty of high school faculty, friends, and family who inspired me to be where I am today. My grandmother was the one who introduced me to Lehigh, since I would attend her Bach concerts on campus as a child and spend those evenings roaming around campus. In high school, I decided I wanted to become an engineer and spent a lot of hours talking with faculty or friends with similar goals to make that happen.
What are your plans after graduation?
To be completely honest, I don’t have any set in stone plans for when I graduate. I’d be happy to join the workforce, likely in a research or lab based occupation, or to stay in school for a Masters or higher degree.
Will Schueller
Name: Will Schueller
Education: BS in MSE
Where are you from?
Pleasant Ridge,Michigan
What is your favorite part about being a Lehigh Engineer?
The freedom of opportunities within research
How did you first become interested in Materials Science?
I took Engineering Superheroes my freshman year, and discovered a strong interest
What else are you involved with at Lehigh outside of course work?
I am on the business team for Baja and will be promoted to lead next year.
Also, I am on te student Advising Council.
Tell us about any teachers or mentors who have inspired you to get to where you are?
Proffessor Castro really inspired me to become a MatSci and all the other faculty I've met in the department have encouraged me to continue.
What are your plans after graduation?
I plan on going to grad school to truly find whta part if MAT Sci I want to do in the workplace.