About Me
I am the first Black woman to get a PhD in Robotics at the University of Michigan. I am currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Robotics Department at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor where I am advised by Professor Jessy Grizzle in the Biped Robotics Lab.
My research focus is in controls with applications in bipedal locomotion.
I have an interest in effectively disseminating complex engineering and robotics concepts to a wide audience, and so one of my long-term goals is to become a professor.
Education
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University of Michigan Ann Arbor
PhD, Robotics (2024)
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University of Michigan Ann Arbor
MS, Robotics (2021)
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University of Michigan Ann Arbor
MSE, Mechanical Engineering (2020)
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University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
BS, Mechanical Engineering with honors, Hoeft Technology and Management minor (2017)
Organizations
Movement of Under-represented Sisters in Engineering and Science (MUSES)
MUSES is an organization designed to provide a unique support structure for women of color pursuing advanced degrees, particularly in STEM at the University of Michigan.
I served as President for the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 academic years. I then served as a general board member for the 2022-2023 academic year.
I served as an Outreach Co-Chair for the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years where I planned, organized, and hosted a series of outreach events including DAPCEP, Xplore Engineering, Discover Engineering, and FEMMES.
Pi Tau Sigma
Pi Tau Sigma is the Mechanical Engineering Honor Society. I served as the Sandcasting Chair and Trebuchet Chair for my chapter during the 2016-2017 academic year.
I served as the Pre-Collegiate Initiative Chair during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 years on the junior executive board and executive board respectively. I served as a Senator during the 2015-2016 year, and I served as the Executive Board Advisor during the 2016-2017 academic year.
HackIllinois
HackIllinois is a student-run, 36-hour long hackathon event open to universities around the country. During the years that I was involved in the organization, over 1500 students participated in the hackathon. I served as an Operations Committee Staff member during the Spring 2016 semester and as a volunteer during the Spring 2015 semester.
Toyota Co-Op
I completed a co-op at Toyota during the first semester of my sophomore year at Illinois. During this co-op, I worked on over 10 projects including designing and implementing a study for the Waterleak calibration process and developing my own project to improve a testing process for plant workers. At the end of the co-op, I presented my work in front of the president, managers, and assistant managers of the plant.
My travel experience
As an engineer, I recognize the importance of having a global mindset and learning about and from a diverse group of people and cultures. During my undergraduate years alone, I traveled to 8 different countries, visiting 29 international cities and villages. I also traveled to 23 domestic cities here in the United States. These are some of the highlights:
Singapore
I took part in the National University of Singapore's (NUS) Summer Engineering Research Internship for U.S. Students (SERIUS) program during the summer between my sophomore and junior year at Illinois where I had the opportunity to partner with two NUS mechanical engineering professors and a graduate student to begin the designing of a powder-based 3D food printer for home use.
Hong Kong
I competed in and won third place in a business plan competition in Hong Kong during the winter of my senior year at Illinois. Even though the competition was an intense 10-day experience full of rigorous work, I still found time before and after the competition to explore the beautiful city of Hong Kong and learn about its culture.
Costa Rica
During my senior year at Illinois, I enrolled in an extra-curricular honors course that afforded me the opportunity to learn about the country of Costa Rica. As part of the fully immersive experience, I got to spend my spring break in Costa Rica to learn more about the culture, even staying with a host mother who only spoke Spanish. I visited the cities and towns of San Jose, San Joaquin,Tarcoles, Poas, Alajuela, Quitirrisi, Carrizal, Las Milpas, Puntarenas, Jaco, and La Virgen; and I documented the experience in my blog and video.
Thailand
While doing my research abroad in Singapore, I took advantage of its central location to travel to nearby countries. My second excursion was to Bangkok, Thailand.
Taiwan
The business competition in Hong Kong was not all work and no play! Once the competition wrapped up, some of the participants hopped on a plane to Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Brazil
I competed in and won first place in a business plan competition in Brazil during the winter break of my junior year at Illinois. While the competition largely took place on the campus of the University of Sao Paulo, I still had the opportunity to visit the cities of Brotas, Rio de Janeiro, and Sao Pedro.
China
As part of my minor (the Hoeft Technology and Management Program), I traveled to the cities and villages of Beijing, Tianjin, Juyongguan, Zhangjiakou, Zhangbei, Shanghai, Kunshan, and Jiaxing to learn first-hand of how businesses operated in China. We also squeezed in time for some sightseeing!
Malaysia
My research abroad experience in Singapore was not all work and no play! While in Singapore, I took advantage of its central location to travel to nearby countries. My first excursion was to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Indonesia
While doing my research abroad in Singapore, I took advantage of its central location to travel to nearby countries. My third excursion was to Bali, Indonesia.