WTS International has announced the selection of the winners of its seven scholarships for 2015. Each of the winners will be recognized at an awards banquet on May 21 during the 2015 WTS Annual Conference in Chicago. The scholarship winners are:
- Margaret-Avis Akofio-Sowah – WTS CH2M Partnership Scholarship
- Eleni Bardaka – WTS Leadership Legacy Scholarship
- Arianna Allahyar – WTS Helene Overly Graduate Scholarship
- Alyssa Manning – WTS Molitoris Leadership Scholarship for Undergraduates
- Kim Kinnison – WTS Sharon D. Banks Memorial Undergraduate Scholarship
- Amanda Grace Spradling – WTS Junior College Scholarship
- Hailey Elias – WTS Transportation YOU High School Scholarship
“WTS is proud of each of our scholarship winners. These women — as well as the hundreds who have won scholarships awarded by their local WTS chapters — have exhibited incredible dedication to preparing themselves to enter the transportation industry. With women like these focused on the disciplines required to bring our industry to the next level of efficiency and reliability in a sustainable and accessible way, we are all in good hands. WTS Foundation was established to foster the development of the transportation industry’s workforce through scholarship, research, and education, and our scholarship program has been extremely successful, as evidenced by the paths of our past scholarship winners,” said Marcia Ferranto, WTS president and CEO.
Margaret-Avis Akofio-Sowah, recipient of the WTS CH2M Partnership Scholarship, is currently pursuing a doctorate in transportation engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology where she is also a graduate research assistant working with the Infrastructure Research Group.
Eleni Bardaka, winner of the WTS Leadership Legacy Scholarship, is enrolled in a dual-degree program after the completion of a master’s degree in 2012. Along with a Ph.D. in civil engineering, she pursued a Master of Science in Economics in the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University, which she completed in May 2014. After completing the Ph.D. degree in August 2016, she plans to acquire a position at a well-established intergovernmental/non-governmental organization or global research institution.
Arianna Allahyar, recipient of the WTS Helene M. Overly Memorial Scholarship, recently graduated in June 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in urban and regional planning from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. She is now going to be continuing her graduate studies in transportation engineering at the University of Washington and hopes to continue her contributions to the planning profession upon graduation.
Kimberly Kinnison, winner of the WTS Sharon D. Banks Memorial Scholarship, is pursuing an undergraduate degree in geography with an emphasis in urban studies/planning from University of Colorado. After obtaining her BA in geography in May of 2015, emphasizing urban studies, she plans to continue her transportation education through graduate school.
Alyssa Manning, recipient of the WTS Molitoris Leadership Scholarship for Undergraduates, is committed to her career as a professional pilot. Currently, she is pursuing her flight instructor’s certification and upon graduation in May, she will be flying as a flight instructor, skydiving pilot, and working as a technical assistant for Cardinal Health Aviation.
Amanda Spradling, recipient of the WTS Junior College Scholarship, is currently a student at Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC) where she is studying high-level math, chemistry, and physics with a plan to transfer to the University of Minnesota for engineering next year.
Hailey Elias, winner of the WTS Transportation YOU High School Scholarship, recently shadowed an engineer at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston. This experience sparked her desire to obtain a degree in aerospace engineering and technologies.
