Junior in electrical and computer engineering awarded DOW SMART Scholarship

Catherine Franco has served as a mission control analysis lead systems engineer. She's been a hardware specialist for simulated lunar mission rovers. She’s even worked as a human landing system combustion devices and turbomachinery intern.

All at NASA. And all before her junior year in electrical and computer engineering.

“You can say that I’m a pretty big advocate for innovation,” she said.

It’s no wonder the Department of War (DOW) awarded Franco a highly competitive Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship, which covers full tuition, a paid fall internship and guarantees employment after graduation.

Franco will soon intern at the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville and ultimately return there for full‑time work service after completing her degree. SMART Scholars gain hands‑on experience at more than 100 sponsoring facilities across the country, working alongside DOW mentors on technologies critical to national security. Since 2006, the program has awarded more than 6,000 scholarships.

“I am deeply honored to receive the SMART Scholarship,” said Franco, a 2025 Universities Space Research Association (USRA) Distinguished Undergraduate. “This achievement reflects years of hard work, resilience, and personal sacrifice. I’m grateful for the opportunity to continue pursuing electrical engineering and a career in the aerospace industry while contributing to technologies that serve a greater mission.”

Franco’s path into engineering began in middle school in California, where she joined a competitive VEX robotics team.

“That’s where I fell in love with engineering,” she said.

That early spark carried into her time at Austin (Texas) Community College, where she sharpened her systems engineering skills through NASA’s Community College Aerospace Scholars program and the L’SPACE Mission Concept Academy. There, she served as lead systems engineer for a student team designing a lunar‑rover concept for a simulated mission, an experience that introduced her to real mission constraints, NASA engineers and a collaborative design environment.

That foundation set the stage for a propulsion engineering internship at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, her first of three NASA internship rotations. This summer will be her fourth and final internship with NASA before beginning her SMART contract.

Franco, who transferred to Auburn University last summer, said Auburn Engineering has played a defining role in strengthening both her engineering foundation and her sense of belonging.

“Auburn’s engineering program builds you the skillset to be a successful engineer,” she said. “While technical coursework helps, honestly the biggest factor was developing the ability to ask the right questions, communicate ideas effectively and approach problems with the mindset of an engineer.

“On top of that, it’s community. That’s been the biggest thing here. Auburn has such an incredible support system and that’s a big reason why I wanted to transfer to Auburn. Many Auburn alumni at NASA Marshall were very supportive of me.”

Beyond Auburn, Franco said her long‑term motivation is rooted in both impact and representation.

“I want to continue to grow my skillset, which I’ve started very early on, and growing that passion for engineering and innovation,” she said. “I want to make a huge difference in industry, but also as an inspiration to others, especially students who have been in my position. I’ve had to overcome a lot of adversity and have been able to accomplish much with the cards that I’ve been dealt. That’s mainly been grit and resilience.”