[{"id":1735,"date":"2026-09-09T16:49:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T16:49:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1735"},"modified":"2026-09-09T16:49:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T16:49:59","slug":"summer-internships-leah-jones-helps-increase-transformer-production-for-the-eaton-corporation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/09\/09\/summer-internships-leah-jones-helps-increase-transformer-production-for-the-eaton-corporation\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Internships: Leah Jones helps increase transformer production for the Eaton Corporation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Engineering is a natural fit for Leah Jones. Her passion for building with LEGOs and a love of the movie Hidden Figures<\/em> led to STEM summer camps and attending the Governor’s STEM Academy at Landstown High School. When it was time to select a college, Leah chose the VCU College of Engineering for its focus on hands-on experiential learning.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI decided on electrical and computer engineering because I love to learn how everything works internally, and most things that function need some source of power,\u201d Leah said. \u201cThanks to the experience gained through my major\u2019s coursework, I\u2019ve been able to complete two internships working at data centers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working as a quality engineer for Eaton, Leah sought to understand how cross-functional teams accomplish their goals by bringing together many areas of expertise. Her team of interns included engineers working in quality, testing, continuous improvement, manufacturing and strategic planning. Their goal was to increase the number of transformers Eaton could produce every day, explaining their discoveries and final recommendations to stakeholders at one of Eaton\u2019s rapid improvement events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy specific project was implementing a new quality inspection checklist across one of the static transfer switch production lines consisting of five subassembly lines,\u201d Leah said. \u201cI created five new checklists for the quality inspectors to use for every single unit they inspect. That included specific questions like details on what needs to be inspected, visual aids and standards, so customers are aware of our reasoning for checking these specific things. I learned how every static transfer switch was put together from beginning to end and spent a lot of time on the production floor. By the end of my internship, I knew the name for every piece of a static transfer switch and what a working unit looks like versus how a defective unit appears.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leah credits the College of Engineering\u2019s Circuits II class for preparing her for this internship. As Eaton mentors detailed transformer connections on the production floor, Leah had the knowledge to be an active participant in the work, confirming to her the value of the education she is receiving at VCU. The cross-disciplinary experience at Eaton made Leah curious, and she plans to look into a career in robotics and automation. The VCU College of Engineering recently launched a new Bachelor of Science in Robotics and Autonomous Systems<\/a> focused on the kind of cross-disciplinary education Leah received at Eaton. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFuture interns, make sure to take in all that information that comes your way, even if it doesn\u2019t pertain to what you\u2019re working on,\u201d Leah said. \u201cThe advice you get from coworkers can inform your future career decisions. While doing that, don\u2019t forget to speak up and share your own expertise and perspectives. You can teach them a few things too. I loved how open everyone in the company was and how willing they were to help me with my professional, academic and personal journey. The Eaton team made lasting impressions with me and I\u2019m thankful for the opportunity to work with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering provides undergraduate<\/a> and graduate<\/a> students with the opportunity to perform real-world research<\/a> as soon as they enroll. From delving into the intricacies of circuits to understanding computer programming, electromagnetics and more, students gain understanding of many important engineering topics. Browse videos and recent news from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering<\/a> to discover how the College of Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University prepares the next generation of scientists and engineers for the challenges of the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

During her Eaton Corporation internship, electrical and computer engineering student Leah Jones created new quality inspection checklists across subassembly lines to boost static transfer switch transformer production efficiency.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1829,"featured_media":1736,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,13,1127],"tags":[1190],"class_list":["post-1735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ece","category-students","category-ugrad","tag-internships"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1829"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1735"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1735\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1737,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1735\/revisions\/1737"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":1732,"date":"2026-09-09T16:44:18","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T16:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1732"},"modified":"2026-09-09T16:44:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T16:44:20","slug":"summer-internships-marcelle-jones-learns-from-nasa-engineers-at-the-langley-research-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/09\/09\/summer-internships-marcelle-jones-learns-from-nasa-engineers-at-the-langley-research-center\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Internships: Marcelle Jones learns from NASA engineers at the Langley Research Center"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Richmond local Marcelle Jones grew up in Chesterfield County and came to VCU for its affordable education and interesting research opportunities. As a senior mechanical and nuclear engineering student, Marcelle has been involved with undergraduate research and industry internships, including a recent summer internship at NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor a long time I thought I\u2019d end up in computer science, since I really enjoyed programming and building my own little websites, games and desktop applications,\u201d Marcelle said. \u201cEarly in high school, though, I discovered my interest in working with hardware and designing physical systems. I got into engineering through Arduino and woodworking projects I did after class, and I settled pretty quickly on mechanical engineering once I came to VCU. It allows me to design machines that can achieve goals I\u2019m interested in and keep me at the systems-level of thinking where I work best.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During her freshman year, Marcelle added a nuclear energy concentration to her degree path, allowing her to focus on how these power systems can be integrated with other fields, particularly aerospace, leading her to a passion for space nuclear propulsion. That excitement led Marcelle to NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center where she worked under the Structural and Thermal Systems branch to design the conceptual architecture for a lunar nuclear reactor capable of providing efficient and continuous power to a permanent human settlement on the moon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy initial task was to design and evaluate systems for a lunar base through finite element analyses and mathematical modeling,\u201d Marcelle said. \u201cMy mentor at NASA allowed us to pick whichever systems interested us the most, so I proposed a fission surface power system, which is a major priority for NASA\u2019s Moon Base initiative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The work Marcelle produced was meant to be showcased at a student conference, but other NASA team members believed it could be a good fit for publishing in an academic journal. She has been working with Lane Carasik, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>, associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, to revise and co-author the paper before submitting it for publication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy professional expectations for this internship were greatly exceeded with the possibility of my work being published,\u201d Marcelle said. \u201cBeyond those goals, I was able to talk with several engineers who have careers I\u2019m interested in mirroring. They shared lots of important advice about graduate school and my overall career path, and I left this internship with more certainty about my future direction and strong appreciation for space nuclear systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting to see large-scale design testing up close was another impactful experience Marcelle had at NASA, while touring the anechoic chamber, which is a room designed to dampen sound waves so almost none are reflected from the walls. In NASA\u2019s acoustics testing facility, Marcelle experienced the kind of environments equipment is assessed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere was almost no echo whatsoever in the room,\u201d Marcelle said. \u201cIf you stood in there long enough, you\u2019d start to hear your own blood flowing around your ears. Honestly, it was pretty relaxing. And it got me thinking about the lesser-considered effects that come into play when you\u2019re designing extremely precise and complex systems for aerospace. Considering only acoustic behaviors, I was amazed at the deeply-specialized knowledge of these engineers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During her time at VCU, Marcelle has explored several internship opportunities, including working at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, Phlow and the Virginia Microelectronics Center. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery position I\u2019ve held exposed me to a radically different professional environment. At NASA, I experienced a very unique workplace that emphasized producing good work and solving difficult problems over everything else. The attitude of engineers and scientists there was deeply influenced by this drive for knowledge and understanding. My internship experiences make me feel more prepared to enter a professional setting and navigate the unique challenges and culture that come with each workplace experience, and I\u2019m excited to see where I end up next!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2026, Marcelle applied to more than 200 summer internships, and the NASA offer was the only one she received. Applying early, often and extensively is the advice Marcelle recommends to any students looking for workplace experience before graduation. Eighty-one percent of mechanical and nuclear engineering students at the VCU College of Engineering are offered full-time employment as a result of their co-curricular experiences. An internship is required by the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear engineering to help students build their professional network and prepare them to join the workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe job market is hard to time or predict, so try and put your foot in every door you have available,\u201d Marcelle said. \u201cDon\u2019t be afraid to apply for positions you don\u2019t think you\u2019re the best fit for or that make use of knowledge you don\u2019t have yet. These are learning opportunities to grow at a much faster pace than a university can cram into you, so take full advantage of them. Once you get that internship, talk to as many people as you can, and set up individual meetings with people on career paths you want to pursue or avoid. Your internship experience is an inflection point in your education, so get as much advice, feedback and guidance as possible. Also, make good connections with people, as they can serve you well in the future through reference letters or job prospects. Keep track of every bit of contact information you\u2019re able to get, and don\u2019t be afraid to reach out after the internship.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After graduation, Marcelle plans on pursuing graduate school with either Ph.D. or Masters in space nuclear propulsion. Her ultimate goal is working full-time with NASA or a private contractor developing hardware designs for space exploration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering provides undergraduate<\/a> and graduate<\/a> students with the opportunity to perform real-world research<\/a> as soon as they enroll. From applying material science to additive manufacturing techniques to optimizing coolant systems for nuclear reactors and more, students gain understanding of many important engineering topics. Browse videos and recent news from the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/a> to discover how the College of Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University prepares the next generation of scientists and engineers for the challenges of the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VCU engineering student Marcelle Jones interned at NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center, designing conceptual architecture for a lunar nuclear reactor\u2014a project now being refined for publication in an academic journal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1829,"featured_media":1733,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,13,1127],"tags":[1190,112,1023],"class_list":["post-1732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mne","category-students","category-ugrad","tag-internships","tag-lane-carasik","tag-nasa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1829"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1732"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1732\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1734,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1732\/revisions\/1734"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":1728,"date":"2026-09-09T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1728"},"modified":"2026-09-08T15:07:55","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T15:07:55","slug":"engineered-to-last-how-robbie-and-sinoun-staples-went-from-students-to-engineers-to-a-quarter-century-of-marriage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/09\/09\/engineered-to-last-how-robbie-and-sinoun-staples-went-from-students-to-engineers-to-a-quarter-century-of-marriage\/","title":{"rendered":"Engineered to last: How Robbie and Sinoun Staples went from students to engineers to a quarter century of marriage"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sinoun Sot was lost. In August of 1996, the newly-formed School of Engineering invited students to an ice cream social before the start of fall semester, but she had never been to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Noticing two other students roaming aimlessly through campus just as disoriented as her, Sinoun joined them hoping they knew the location of VCU\u2019s engineering building. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of those two students was Robbie Staples from Hampton, Virginia. He was lost too, but the trio eventually found the event. At the time, neither Sinoun nor Robbie could have imagined the future in store for them, a life learning together, growing together, and a love and family born from a chance meeting in 1996 as students of the VCU School of Engineering. Now married for 25 years, they have two children and live in the Richmond area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robbie and Sinoun share their experiences in celebration of the VCU College of Engineering\u2019s 30th anniversary, giving us a look at how the college shaped their lives for years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAfter that ice cream social, we both went to the bathroom,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cWhen I came out, Robbie wasn\u2019t there, so I left. Eventually, he came out and realized I wasn\u2019t there so Robbie left too. I didn\u2019t hear from him for three weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt took a long time to find people back in those days,\u201d said Robbie. \u201cBut there were about 100 students in the college, and I eventually found an email address to message Sinoun at.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After meeting freshman year, Robbie and Sinoun formed a fast friendship. They built their curriculums together. Every class and activity became part of their shared plan to graduate, even forming a study group with other VCU engineers to work through the school\u2019s more difficult classes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose study sessions were important,\u201d said Robbie. \u201cIf I didn\u2019t understand something, someone in the group could always explain it. We would use the study room or the couches at the end of any hall, if we wanted to be comfortable. Those memories have always stayed with me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe studied all the time and even did something we shouldn\u2019t have in order to study more,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cAt 9 p.m., the building doors locked, but there was always more work to do! In those days, magnetic locks kept the door shut, but we discovered they were only magnetized at the top. If you pushed one door in, pulled the other out and stuck your finger in to touch the magnet, the door pops open. We reported the flaw, but no one fixed it, so we took that to mean it was ok to study in the engineering building 24\/7.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Robbie and Sinoun Staples share their graduation scrapbook.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Robbie and Sinoun were both honor students and members of Phi Sigma Pi, a national honor fraternity, and active in the student chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur first date was an IEEE event at the Dominion Energy building at Innsbrook,\u201d Sinoun said. \u201cI\u2019d end up working for Dominion Energy at Grayland Ave after graduation, but at that moment I couldn\u2019t have imagined it. After the presentation, we went to a restaurant for dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The restaurant no longer exists, but the memories and others like it from Robbie and Sinoun\u2019s time at VCU Engineering have persisted for 30 years. Majoring in electrical engineering, they received instruction and mentorship from founding faculty like Rosalyn Hobson-Hargraves, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a> and Robert Klenke, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>, who are both still at the college, as well as Robert J. Mattauch, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>, founding electrical engineering department chair and the second dean of VCU Engineering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYears later after we graduated, Dr. Mattauch bought some Girl Scout cookies from us,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cHe\u2019d had hip replacement surgery, so Robbie and I delivered his order. We got to talking and Dr. Mattauch told us the story of VCU Engineering\u2019s early years, the search for faculty, staff and students; finding donors who could support the construction of West Hall and donate to the school; and the need to get things in order for the accreditation process. At the end of that conversation, I thanked him because I needed the VCU School of Engineering to show up when it did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A refugee from Cambodia, Sinoun\u2019s family fled to the United States when she was seven years old to escape the Khmer Rouge. She grew up in Richmond and wanted to study engineering, but couldn\u2019t afford to go away to college.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday, my parents are glad I went to university, but they didn\u2019t understand its value in 1996,\u201d Sinoun said. \u201cThey wanted me to start working. I did work, but only to pay for college. If VCU hadn\u2019t opened up the School of Engineering in Richmond right when it did, I wouldn\u2019t be an engineer today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sinoun earned a dean\u2019s scholarship, which started the second semester of her first year and covered 50% of tuition, and Robbie was attending VCU on a full scholarship. Both were from working-class families, and VCU Engineering gave Robbie and Sinoun an opportunity to realize their full potential as engineers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe faculty looked out for us,\u201d said Robbie. \u201cDr. Hobson always believed in me and pushed me beyond my limits to become the kind of engineer she knew I could be. Then there was Dr. Klenke. He was demanding, but it was a good thing. I pushed myself to reach that much higher because Dr. Klenke expected more from me. The best thing Drs. Hobson and Klenke taught me, taught us, is how to think for ourselves and to always ask questions. That advice has served me well throughout my career.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Robbie and Sinoun graduated in 2000 after completing their senior project, the final requirement to earn their degree before the Capstone Design Expo came into being. The duo worked as part of a team building a robotic spider capable of navigating a maze.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u200aI made drawings for the chip that translated input into signals for the spider\u2019s legs,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cUnfortunately, we weren\u2019t able to manufacture the chip until summer, so we had to use an off-the-shelf chip instead. Students of the following year tested the manufactured chip.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSinoun took care of the hardware aspects and I did all the software coding,\u201d said Robbie. \u201cAt the time, I didn\u2019t connect the dots that software coding would become a passion of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After graduation, the clean room training Robbie received at VCU Engineering helped him land a job at Motorola. He and Sinoun got married and moved to Texas, starting the next chapter of their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe made an agreement after graduation,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cWhoever earned more, that person got to keep their job and the other person would move with them. At the time, I was with Virginia Power, and when Robbie got the Motorola job he\u2019d be making a few thousand dollars more than me, so I left my job and we moved to Texas. I got a job at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, where Robbie would eventually join me after leaving Motorola.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twelve years later, Robbie and Sinoun returned to Virginia from Texas to be closer to family. They are active College of Engineering alumni, with Robbie serving as volunteer judge on the Sternheimer Grant Committee for several years. Giving back to VCU and the College of Engineering that brought them together continues to be an important part of Robbie and Sinoun\u2019s life. They are regular donors to the College of Engineering, contributing to the Engineering Completion Grant, which helps students in need who are close to graduation. Having faced financial hardship as students, Robbie and Sinoun always support VCU engineers whenever possible, hoping to one day establish their own scholarship for College of Engineering students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe help wherever we can,\u201d said Sinoun. \u201cAnd one thing I\u2019d say to students is to get an internship. Robbie worked in VCU\u2019s cleanroom, which helped him get the Motorola job. And my internship at ABB led to working in the energy industry. Be selective about where you intern, if you can, because that\u2019s where you\u2019ll often end up after graduation. Though sometimes just getting any internship is a win\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWork with your professors or any faculty member who can help you get experience,\u201d said Robbie. \u201cWhether an internship or part-time job, the research you do will help inform your decision on what you\u2019ll want to do after graduation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The engineering world Robbie and Sinoun entered in 1996 has changed greatly in 30 years. Science and technology evolved, but the foundation they received from the VCU School of Engineering, now the College of Engineering, carried them forward. Robbie, Sinoun and the other members of VCU\u2019s first engineering class were the start of a legacy of practical, hands-on education that creates engineers ready to meet the real-world challenges of industry work. With almost 9,000 graduates to date, support from dedicated alumni like Robbie and Sinoun ensures VCU Engineers will continue making a positive impact in their communities for many years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The VCU College of Engineering offers innovative undergraduate<\/a> and graduate<\/a> degree programs tailored to meet the demands of the rapidly evolving engineering field. As part of a premier research university, students are given the opportunity to perform real-world research<\/a> in our state-of-the-art facilities as soon as they enroll. Browse videos and recent news to discover how the College of Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University<\/a> prepares the next generation of scientists and engineers for the challenges of the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After meeting as engineering students at Virginia Commonwealth University, Robbie and Sinoun built a life and successful careers together, reflecting on how VCU\u2019s program shaped their 25-year marriage and legacy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1829,"featured_media":1730,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,13],"tags":[175,1231,746],"class_list":["post-1728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-students","tag-robert-klenke","tag-robert-mattauch","tag-rosalyn-hobson-hargraves"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1829"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1728"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1728\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1731,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1728\/revisions\/1731"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1730"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":1725,"date":"2026-09-08T14:48:13","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T14:48:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1725"},"modified":"2026-09-08T14:48:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T14:48:14","slug":"summer-internships-henry-hertzler-learns-about-safety-and-compliance-with-dominion-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/09\/08\/summer-internships-henry-hertzler-learns-about-safety-and-compliance-with-dominion-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Internships: Henry Hertzler learns about safety and compliance with Dominion Energy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Henry Hertzler\u2019s family and friends knew he was destined to be an engineer, but he did not realize it until his passion for spacecraft and rocketry manifested in 2021. Majoring in mechanical and nuclear engineering, Henry chose the degree path because it presented him with many future career options. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile the idea of working on spacecraft got me into engineering, towards the end of my senior year in high school and around when I started at VCU, my interest in nuclear engineering grew as well,\u201d Henry said. \u201cI have always believed that nuclear energy is the future and this led me to my summer internship at Dominion Energy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Dominion Energy\u2019s Innsbrook office, Henry worked with the In-Service Inspection team. He learned details unique to the nuclear industry, like the importance of safety and regulatory compliance. One of Henry\u2019s most memorable experiences from the internship was standing next to a turbine at the Surry Power Station after a walkdown of the containment building. Being in close proximity to a mechanism responsible for generating roughly 7% of Virginia\u2019s electricity put things into perspective for Henry, reminding him of engineering\u2019s importance as a profession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne thing I learned this summer, especially within the nuclear industry, is that things take time. Because of the safety focus, there are a lot of approvals and checking things over before you can call something done,\u201d Henry said. \u201cMy tasks had me reaching out to people within other departments or even at different locations, so figuring out how to communicate well and ask the right questions was critical to getting things done. As a student, there are a lot of gaps in my knowledge, so I always ask questions. The people I worked with have been in the nuclear industry for decades, and they were all happy to answer my questions. I also had great mentors within my team to help me with summer projects.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The VCU College of Engineering\u2019s Department of Career Services helped Henry tailor his resume, highlighting skills he already possessed to help secure the internship with Dominion Energy. All mechanical and nuclear engineering students are required to complete an internship. This contributes to the department\u2019s 97% success rate of students either finding a job or continuing to post-graduate education. For students entering the workforce, it helps them achieve a median salary of $78,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor any first-year students who are looking for internships, you absolutely have a chance at getting one! I applied to lots of positions,\u201d Henry said. \u201cAnd when you get that internship, the most important advice I can give is to come in with an open mind. When I started with Dominion Energy, I knew almost nothing about nuclear engineering or working in a professional environment. But I was curious and learned how best to apply my skills with the assignments I was given. This not only allowed me to help wherever my skills were needed, but it also helped me learn as much as possible along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering provides undergraduate<\/a> and graduate<\/a> students with the opportunity to perform real-world research<\/a> as soon as they enroll. From applying material science to additive manufacturing techniques to optimizing coolant systems for nuclear reactors and more, students gain understanding of many important engineering topics. Browse videos and recent news from the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/a> to discover how the College of Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University prepares the next generation of scientists and engineers for the challenges of the future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

VCU engineering student Henry Hertzler gained hands-on experience during his Dominion Energy internship, learning the importance of safety, effective communication, and regulatory compliance within the nuclear energy industry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1829,"featured_media":1726,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,13,1127],"tags":[1180,1190],"class_list":["post-1725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mne","category-students","category-ugrad","tag-dominion-energy","tag-internships"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1829"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1725"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1727,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1725\/revisions\/1727"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":1717,"date":"2026-09-02T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1717"},"modified":"2026-09-03T14:01:56","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T14:01:56","slug":"fall-2026-vcu-college-of-engineering-faculty-promotions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/09\/02\/fall-2026-vcu-college-of-engineering-faculty-promotions\/","title":{"rendered":"Fall 2026 VCU College of Engineering faculty promotions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Congratulations to all of our promoted faculty! Join us as we celebrate the accomplishments of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vitaliy Avrutin, Ph.D. <\/strong><\/a>
Professor
Electrical and Computer Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radhika Barua, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor with Tenure
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Caroline Budwell, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Professor
Computer Science<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eyuphan Bulut, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Professor with Tenure
Computer Science<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lane Carasik, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor with Tenure
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

D. Joshua Cohen, M.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor
Biomedical Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ibrahim Guven, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Professor with Tenure
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ravi Hadimani, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Professor with Tenure
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ruixin Niu, Ph.D. <\/strong><\/a>
Professor with Tenure
Electrical and Computer Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thea Pepperl, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor
Biomedical Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Claire Sparks, M.S.<\/strong><\/a>
Assistant Professor
Computer Science<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Congratulations to the newly promoted and tenured faculty at the VCU College of Engineering! Join us in celebrating their remarkable achievements and dedication to academic excellence this Fall 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1829,"featured_media":1273,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,4,5,165,6],"tags":[26,1230,122,124,1164,112,1134,154,70,753,752,755],"class_list":["post-1717","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bme","category-cs","category-ece","category-faculty-awards","category-mne","tag-caroline-budwell","tag-claire-sparks","tag-eyuphan-bulut","tag-ibrahim-guven","tag-josh-cohen","tag-lane-carasik","tag-promotions-tenure","tag-radhika-barua","tag-ravi-hadimani","tag-ruixin-niu","tag-thea-pepperl","tag-vitaliy-avrutin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1717","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1829"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1717"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1717\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1723,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1717\/revisions\/1723"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1273"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1717"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1717"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1717"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":1714,"date":"2026-08-28T14:50:35","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T14:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/?p=1714"},"modified":"2026-08-28T14:50:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T14:50:36","slug":"summer-research-gives-students-valuable-hands-on-experience-through-reu-sites-at-the-vcu-college-of-engineering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/engineering\/2026\/08\/28\/summer-research-gives-students-valuable-hands-on-experience-through-reu-sites-at-the-vcu-college-of-engineering\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer research gives students valuable hands-on experience through REU sites at the VCU College of Engineering"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) provide opportunity for inquisitive minds looking to build an early foundation of technical experience and applied knowledge. Students who participate engage in hands-on lab work accompanied by classroom education, seminars and workshops that cover technical and soft skills. Research paper writing, research ethics and effective presentation techniques are some topics meant to develop undergraduates professionally and personally. This experiential learning is directed by the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) College of Engineering\u2019s experienced faculty and industry professionals. They also give undergraduates who are undecided about their educational path a first look at a career in research.

View photos from the end-of-summer poster session on the VCU College of Engineering Flickr.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Build Back Better Summer REU<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Funded by the Department of Commerce Build Back Better Regional Challenge award<\/a>, the collaborative VSU-VCU Pharmaceutical Engineering Pathways Project<\/a> REU program serves as a pathway towards the nation\u2019s only pharmaceutical engineering Ph.D. program<\/a>, offered by VCU, and related graduate programs in chemical and biomolecular engineering<\/a>. Participants in this fourth cohort gained experience in experimental and computational research, product innovation, poster development, technical writing and teamwork. In addition to mentorship from faculty and doctoral students, REU students participated in co-curricular activities including seminars, luncheons, How-To workshops and social activities.  Their experience culminated in a joint REU Symposium that featured research from both VCU and VSU while fostering exchange between students and faculty from both universities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Program Coordinators<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Nastassja A. Lewinski, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor,
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kathy Goodson, Ph.D.<\/strong><\/a>
Associate Professor, Applied Engineering Technology, Virginia State University<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Student Projects<\/h3>\n\n\n\n