Student Spotlight - Melody and Mellany George
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| Polymer and Fiber engineering Dec. '05 graduates Melody (left) and Mellany George enhanced their education through involvement in projects such as a graphite fiber composite flywheel that, by serving as a power generator, can act as a new energy source to replace batteries in NASA's satellites. |
When first searching for a college to attend, identical twins Melody and Mellany George from Gardendale, Ala. didn't consider Auburn as one of their top choices. But Auburn offered them the most incentives, and there was something about it here that they liked.
"When we first came here, we thought we might transfer to another school in a year or two," remembers Mellany. "But after spending some time at Auburn, we were too attached to leave."
December '05 Polymer and Fiber engineering graduates, the sisters agree their Auburn Engineering experience gave them more than they had hoped for — including twin scholarships from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and being named NASA Space Grant Scholars.
"We have many friends here," says Melody, "including our professors, classmates, and advisor. We love it here. We know our professors so well, and Auburn's Polymer and Fiber engineering curriculum is so strong, that I think our professors were able to write powerful recommendation letters for us when applying for the NSF scholarship. It makes it mean more."
The sisters' fascination with engineering began in high school, where they were members of Future Engineers of America and Boy Scouts Explorers Club of America. By the time they came to Auburn, their appetite for engineering had been fed with leadership activities from building and testing bridges out of drinking straws to, quite literally, rocket science. They also toured Birmingham area plants and factories.
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| The George sisters, pictured with Peter Schwartz, Polymer and Fiber engineering department head, were honored as Outstanding Textile Seniors for 2004-05 at the Alabama Textile Education Foundation awards ceremony in March. |
"We gained many different interests from our experiences," says Mellany. "We chose fiber engineering as a major because it has such a variety of applications."
Adds Melody, "It's full of innovative ideas. Everyone is looking for lighter yet stronger, more rugged materials to make things from, ranging from airplanes to bullet-proof vests."
Both students have built on their education with internships at Southern Nuclear in Dothan, Ala. and the Department of Defense in Washington, D.C., where they worked in plastic and textile engineering.
They are now in the master's program in materials engineering at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, and hope to pursue a career including research in new fiber applications, advanced polymers and making composite structures with a combination of fibers and metals.
"We're excited to see what our future in engineering will bring," says Mellany. "It's been great so far."
