39 Exceptional Undergrads Earn Prestigious Patti Grace Smith Fellowships, Bringing More Black Excellence to Aerospace

WASHINGTON, D.C. – FEBRUARY 1, 2022 – Thirty-nine undergraduate students, hailing from twenty-six colleges and universities across the United States, have been selected as the newest recipients of the Patti Grace Smith Fellowship, the award-winning program that connects the nation’s leading aerospace companies with talented Black students. As part of the program’s rigorous selection process, each member of the program’s Class of 2022 has earned a challenging summer internship in the aerospace field, in addition to receiving a scholarship worth thousands of dollars, a pair of personalized mentors, and more.

To be selected as Patti Grace Smith Fellows, applicants must be Black students currently enrolled in the first or second year of a bachelor’s degree program or in an associate’s degree program who are seeking their first work experience in the aerospace industry. Over the course of a four-round selection process, each candidate was thoroughly vetted by a group of aerospace industry professionals, rising-star early career employees, and corporate employers, with the selected candidates displaying exceptional aptitude for their chosen discipline in addition to scoring high marks for creativity, ingenuity, and a commitment to serving others. The program serves students seeking a variety of career paths within aerospace, including engineering, science, policy, investment, and more.

“We are delighted to welcome this extraordinary group of talented students into our Fellowship and into our industry,” said Col. B. Alvin Drew, Jr., (USAF, Ret.), a two-time Space Shuttle astronaut and a co-founder of the Fellowship. “As they build on the strong foundation built by our Class of 2021 and as they blaze new trails of their own, these students are doing more than just the important work of starting their own impressive careers. They are bringing a much needed influx of talent, creativity, and commitment to our field.”

“As is readily apparent to all of us who have had the chance to become astronauts, the aerospace community has both the opportunity and the obligation to provide a service to all of us who call Earth our home. Historically, our collective progress in space has suffered because we didn’t take sufficient action to seek out and empower talent in all of its forms. Trailblazers like Patti Grace Smith helped open the door for future leaders; and this newest class of Patti Grace Smith Fellows now have the opportunity through their work experiences and more to answer that call, show their talent, and get the training we all need to be ready to lead.”

The Patti Grace Smith Fellowship has begun to make strides in the program’s quest to combat the longstanding and well-quantified under-representation of Black and African-American employees in the US aerospace workforce. Though the aerospace industry has made important strides since the days when African-Americans were legally barred from studying in many universities and holding many positions in the aerospace workforce, there is still a great deal of progress to be made. While African-Americans make up 14.2% of the US population and roughly 15% of American undergraduate and graduate students, a recent study conducted by Aviation Week Network found that only 6% of US Aerospace and Defense workers and only 3% of aerospace executives are Black.

The program, which is based closely on the award-winning Brooke Owens Fellowship, was founded by Drew, undergraduate student and Brooke Owens Fellowship alumna Khristian Jones, aerospace engineer Tiffany Russell Lockett, and aerospace executive Will Pomerantz. 

The program’s name was chosen to honor a beloved aerospace industry leader who overcame a system of legalized racial segregation: as a young girl, Patti Grace Smith (then Patricia Jones) was one of a dozen Black students to integrate Tuskegee High School, and was a plaintiff in a landmark case that integrated the public schools in Alabama, as upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States. Her illustrious career was highlighted by her role leading the Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation in the early days of the nation’s space renaissance. In 2021, Smith was selected as the recipient of the prestigious General James E. Hill Lifetime Space Achievement Award, one of the highest honors available to aerospace professionals.

The 2022 Patti Grace Smith Fellows are:

• Abdifatah Ali, originally of Hebron, KY, who is currently in his first year of studies at the University of Cincinnati with majors in Mechanical Engineering and University Honors Program. Mr. Ali will work this summer at Virgin Orbit.

• Alexis Horton, originally of Omaha, NE, who is currently a first year student at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, with an intended major of Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Horton will work this summer at Northrop Grumman.

• Aliya Belay, originally of Laurel, MD, who is currently a first year student at Rice University, with an intended major of Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Belay will work this summer at First Mode.

• Amani Toney, originally of Jacksonville, FL, who is currently in his second year of studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, majoring in Aeronautical Science. Mr. Toney will work this summer at Boeing. 

• Armand Destin, originally of Damascus, MD, who is a first year student at Purdue University, with an intended major of Aerospace Engineering. Ms. Destin will work this summer at Space Capital.

• Bille Daniel, originally of New Carrollton, MD, who is a second year student at the University of Notre Dame majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Daniel will work this summer at Maxar Technologies. 

• Chancellor Charles-Halbert, originally of Atlanta, GA, who is a second year student at Mississippi State University majoring in Electrical Engineering. Mr. Charles-Halbert will work this summer at United Launch Alliance.

• Christian Reid, born and raised in Waldorf, MD, who is a sophomore at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University majoring in Aerospace engineering. He will be working this summer at First Mode in Seattle, WA.

• David Di-Benedetto, originally of Rockwall, TX, who is currently in his second year of studies at the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Di-Benedetto will work this summer at Hermeus.

• De’Ashley Spain, originally of Norfolk, VA, who is currently a rising third year of studies at Old Dominion University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Spain will work this summer at Maxar Technologies. 

• Elijah McCoy, originally of Brea, CA, who is currently in his second year of study at Fullerton College, majoring in Computer Science. Mr. McCoy will work this summer at BlackSky.

• Elijah Simpson, originally of Missoula, MT, who is currently in his first year of studies at the University of Michigan, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Simpson will work this summer at Northrop Grumman.

• Elizabeth Antoine-Hands, originally of San Jose, CA, who is currently a second year at West Valley Community College, majoring in Engineering. Ms. Antoine-Hands will work this summer at Relativity Space.

• Garrett Robinson, originally of Winfield, IL, who is currently in his second year of studies at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Robinson will work this summer at Relativity Space.

• Harrison Jenkins, originally from Oakland, CA, who is currently in his second semester at Lehigh University, with an intended major of mechanical engineering and minor in aerospace engineering. He was blessed with the opportunity to work with iSpace Inc. this summer in Denver, CO, and knows that his strong connection with God will be the source of strength that guides him through all his endeavors, this summer and beyond.

• Jalen Cauley, originally of Lawrenceville, GA, who is currently in his first year of studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Cauley will work this summer at L3Harris Technologies.

• Jarrett Davis, originally from Mobile, AL, who is currently a freshman at Alabama Agricultural & Mechanical University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Davis will work this summer at ABL Space Systems.

• Jonathan Hope, originally from Reading, PA, who is currently in his second year at Penn State University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Hope will work this summer at Blue Origin.  

• Jordan Martin, originally of Houston, TX, who is currently in his second year of studies at Rice University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Martin will work this summer at Hermeus.

• Juanitta Bekoe, originally of Queen Creek, AZ, who is currently in her second year of studies at Syracuse University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering and minoring in Physics. Ms. Bekoe will work this summer at Ball Aerospace.

• Justin Connors, originally of Alexandria, VA, who is a first year student at the Georgia Institute of Technology, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Connors will work this summer at Airbus.

• Justin Pemberton, originally of Parkland, FL, who is currently a first year student at Georgia Institute of Technology, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Pemberton will work this summer at Lynk Global, Inc.

• Kaleigh Ray, originally of Bakersfield, CA, who is currently in her first year of studies at the University of Southern California, majoring in Astronautical Engineering. Ms. Ray will work this summer at Venturi Astrolab.

• Kay Perkins, originally of Atlanta, GA, who is currently in her second year at Georgia Institute of Technology, dual-majoring in Public Policy and History, Technology, and Society. Ms. Perkins will work this summer at BryceTech. 

• Kendra Rivers, originally of Long Island, NY, who is currently in her second year of studies at Suffolk County Community College, majoring in Engineering Science. Ms. Rivers will work this summer at Draper.

• Liam (Johnson) Hunte, originally of Bowie, MD, who is currently in his second year of studies at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Hunte will work this summer at Hawkeye 360. 

• Madison Newbell, originally of Nashville, TN, who is currently a freshman at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Ms. Newbell will work this summer at Masten Space Systems.

• Malia Mitchell, originally of Carson, CA, who is currently a first year student at Howard University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Mitchell will work this summer at SpaceX. 

• Max Starr, originally of Cincinnati, OH, who completed his first year of studies at Ohio State University, with the intended major of Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Starr will work this summer at MIT Space Exploration Initiative.

• Maya Benson from Columbia, SC, who is currently a sophomore at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Ms. Benson will work at SpaceX this summer. 

• Miles Oglesby, originally from Palmyra, NJ, who is currently a sophomore at MIT, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Oglesby will work at Astranis this summer.

• Muyiwa Arowolo, originally from Bolingbrook, IL, who is currently a freshman at Purdue University, majoring in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Mr. Arowolo will work at Sierra Nevada Corporation this summer.

• Robert Boykin, originally from Mobile, AL and currently residing in Texas, is attending Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University majoring in Aviation Maintenance with a minor in Applied Meteorology. Mr. Boykin will work at Joby Aviation this summer. 

• Sala Ba, originally from Ashburn, VA, is currently a sophomore at Stanford University, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Ms. Ba will work at Blue Origin this summer. 

• Savyon Stokes, originally of Laurel, MD, who is currently a first year student at the University of Maryland, majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mr. Stokes will work this summer at HawkEye 360.

• Suraya John, originally of Virginia Beach, VA, who is currently in her first year of studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology, with an intended major of Aerospace Engineering.  Ms. John will work this summer at SpaceX.

• Talal Gbamgbola, originally from Rosharon, TX, is currently in his first year of studies at the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Mr. Gbamgbola will work this summer at Virgin Orbit.

• Trinity Taylor, originally of Greensboro, NC, who just completed her first year of studies at North Carolina State University, with an intended major of Physics. Ms. Taylor will work this summer at USNC-Tech.

• Vincent Redwine, originally from Temecula, CA, is currently in his second year of studies at the University of Chicago, majoring in Physics. Mr. Redwine will work this summer at USNC-Tech.

For more information about the Fellows, their employers, or the program itself, please visit pgsfellowship.org.