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On April 24, the Department of Aerospace Engineering, along with the A. James Clark School of Engineering will celebrate more than  76 undergraduates who exemplify the college’s commitment to excellence during the school’s Annual Honors and Awards Ceremony.

Among this year’s recipients are 12 aerospace engineering students recognized with the following departmental and college awards:

The Clark School’s Dinah Berman Memorial Award is presented to a third-year engineering student who has combined academic excellence with demonstrated leadership or service to the Clark School.

  • Awarded to Amelia Skeers

The Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering Service Award is presented in recognition of dedicated service to the Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering through commitment to promoting diversity in engineering in the college, the university community, and through the Center’s recruitment, outreach, and retention programs.

  • Awarded to Valentina Cruz

The Department of Aerospace Junior Merit Award is presented to juniors in the department who have attained the highest overall academic average.

  • Awarded to Joseph Hauerstein, Kenshiro Lim, and Bence Szego

The Joseph Guthrie Scholarship Award is presented to a junior in the department who has attained the highest overall academic average.

  • Awarded to Robert Latyak

The Alfred Gessow Scholarship Award is presented to those seniors in the department who have attained the highest overall academic average.

  • Awarded to Kevin Franzblau and Benjamin Leazer

The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Outstanding Achievement Award is presented to the student who has made the most outstanding contribution through scholarship and service to the student branch and the department.

  • Awarded to Marissa Potts

The Women in Aeronautics and Astronautics Award is presented to the student who has made the most outstanding contribution through scholarship and service to the organization and the department.

  • Awarded to Rachel Boschen and Allison Julia "AJ" Rahr

The Department of Aerospace Engineering Chair's Award is presented to those students who have made the most outstanding contributions through excellence in academics and outstanding service and leadership to the department.

  • Awarded to Jeremy "JJ" Kuznetsov

About the 2025 Awardees

Rachel Boschen is a senior aerospace engineering student, a Banneker Key Scholar, and a Mighty Sound of Maryland Marching Band member. As co-chair of Women in Aeronautics and Astronautics, she plans networking, social, and outreach events for the greater University of Maryland community. She serves the music community through Tau Beta Sigma and Sigma Alpha Iota membership. Rachel participates in the Nearspace Balloon Payload Program and completed the L’SPACE NASA Proposal Writing and Evaluation Experience. She plans to enter the workforce following graduation this spring.

Valentina Cruz is a sophomore studying aerospace engineering. She is a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and Hermandad de Sigma Iota Alpha Incorporada. She is also an alumnus of the precollege program, Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Bridge. In her free time, Valentina enjoys volunteering at local churches disbursing food and clothes. She works as a STEM tutor through the Algebra By 7th Grade program for children in third through fifth grades.
Joseph Hauerstein is a junior majoring in aerospace engineering with a 4.0 GPA. He has completed the University Honors Citation and is currently a University Honors Student Fellow, designing custom radios for high power rocketry. Since his freshman year, he has been a member of the Terrapin Rocket Team on the avionics sub team, where he now leads the development of live video, telemetry, and ground station subsystems. For the past two summers, Joseph has interned in the Navigation and Mission Design Branch at Goddard Space Flight Center, working on improving branch trajectory optimization tools. Next summer, he plans to begin his master’s degree through the B.S./M.S. program at UMD.
Robert Latyak is a junior aerospace engineering student with a 4.0 GPA. He is in the University Honors program as well as the aerospace engineering honors program. Currently, he is conducting undergraduate research with the High-Speed Aerodynamics and Propulsion Laboratory. He is an active member of Engineers Without Borders, formerly as a travel team member and electrical team leader for the Senegal project, and currently, as a member of the Uganda project. Chase has studied abroad with the Clark in Madrid Program and is a member of club tennis.
Benjamin Leazer is a senior aerospace engineering student on the astronautical track, maintaining a 4.0 GPA. He serves as a leader within the Telescope Housing Event-based Imaging Apparatus (THEIA) nanosatellite project, where he works on general bus design and analysis. Benjamin is passionate about pursuing a career in autonomous systems and control. https://aero.umd.edu/sites/aero.umd.edu/files/2025awardee_Leazer.jpg
Kenshiro Lim is a junior aerospace engineering student and a part of the Gemstone Honors program. Under the student organization Students for the Exploration and Development of Space, he is currently in the process of constructing a liquid bipropellant rocket engine. As the safety liaison for the Wind TERPines competition team, he is working with fellow students to compete in the Department of Energy's Collegiate Wind Competition and spread wind energy awareness to secondary school students through cooperation with the Maryland branch of KidWind.

Marissa Potts is a junior aerospace engineering undergraduate. She is chair of University of Maryland's American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics chapter. She has served on the board since her freshman year in multiple positions. Marissa also serves as treasurer for Women in Aeronautics and Astronautics. During the past two years, she has been a mentor for the Women in Engineering Mentoring Program. Marissa is also a member of the clarinet section for the Mighty Sound of Maryland Marching Band.

Allison Julia "AJ" Rahr is a senior aerospace engineering student on the space track. She has completed a minor in robotics and autonomous systems and is currently finishing a second minor in astronomy. She is one of the co-chairs of Women in Aeronautics and Astronautics, with this being her fourth year on the executive board. AJ is also a member of the Nearspace Balloon Payload Program, working mainly on inflation operations. In the past, she has completed the University Honors, as well as Flexus Living and Learning Community, citations. After graduation, AJ plans to enter the workforce in the autonomous spacecraft field.

Amelia “Mia” Skeers is a junior aerospace engineering student. She is an alumna of the Women in Engineering Flexus Living and Learning Program, and is a member of the aerospace engineering honors program. Mia has been the communications officer for Women in Aeronautics and Astronautics for two years, and is an active member of Tau Beta Pi and Sigma Gamma Tau. She has also served as a ClarkLeader for the Clark School’s annual ClarkLEAD program and is currently researching methods to expand the asteroid tracking capabilities of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.

Bence Szego is a junior aerospace engineering student with a 4.0 GPA. He is involved in the Sigma Gamma Tau and Tau Beta Pi engineering honors societies, and is an alum of Honors Global Challenges and Solutions. Bence conducts undergraduate research with the University of Maryland Space Systems Lab, exploring the human factors of space exploration.



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April 25, 2025


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