Scholars

2004 - 2005

Eric Carlson
For the past year Eric has been doing research on circuit simulation under Professor Kai Strunz, with whom he has coauthored a paper. Eric writes simulation programs similar to SPICE and applies new, fl exible numerical integration methods to improve results. His current work applies fl exible integration techniques toward simulation of HVDC converters. He enrolled at the UW because it is one of the world�s best academic research institutions and offered an opportunity to contribute to important research as an undergraduate. He is in the Honors Program, is a Dean�s List student, and has won scholarships from organizations such as the National Science Foundation and Puget Sound Energy. Eric plans to attend graduate school to earn a masters degree and then pursue a doctorate or a career in power systems. He greatly appreciates the Grainger Scholarship, which has allowed him to �focus more on my studies and less on how how to pay the bills� and he promises that this support �will be put to good use.� Eric enjoys applying what he has learned in school to his hobbies, and has built boats, scooters, small solar-powered cars, and �various other contraptions.� Other interests are hiking, running, and biking.

Benjamin Long
Ben is planning to graduate in June 2005 with his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. He first became interested in power engineering while on a tour of the Chief Joseph dam in central Washington. Ben enjoys the challenge of engineering, and is particularly interested in the prevalence and importance of power systems in society. This quarter he is conducting research with the Systems, Electronics, Simulation, and Applied Mathematics for Energy (SESAME) laboratory, studying the capabilities, efficiency, and potential impact of wind energy converters. After graduating, he hopes to work in the design of renewable energy systems while spending his spare time running, weightlifting and playing soccer.

Nathan Chang
As a UWEE undergraduate, Nathan has consistently made the Dean�s List and is a member of Eta Kappa Nu Honor Society and Tau Beta Phi, the Engineering Honor Society. He also is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and won the Michael Anderson Memorial Scholarship in Electrical Engineering from ROTC. He is �grateful for the interest that others place on educating curious minds and future electrical engineers.� Nathan�s academic focus is energy systems and he wants to work in industry as a project manager. Longer-term plans include graduate school with the goal of becoming qualifi ed to teach engineering and mathematics at a higher-education institution. Nathan�s recreational interests center on sports, including volleyball, basketball, soccer, ultimate, tennis, pool, and bowling and he plays intramurals throughout the year. He also fi nds time to serve as the food chair for the Hawaii Club�s annual Lu�au, to be a leader in the campus Asian American Christian Fellowship, and to use his vocal and guitar talents to lead worship at his church.

Liyang (Leon) Chen
The excellent engineering program, accessibility to unlimited resources, and proximity to home drew Leon to the UW. Under Professor Kai Strunz he has done research on power system algorithms, renewable energy, and hydrogen energy infrastucture. He recently led his team to an honorable mention at annual design contest sponsored by the National Hydrogen Association. He says the Grainger Scholarship gave him great motivation to do research and he is extremely grateful that his hard work has been rewarded. After graduation, Leon will work at Sandia National Laboratories and later do graduate work in nuclear engineering at MIT. Along with engineering, music is Leon�s biggest passion. He plays violin in quartet ensembles and has released music singles in Japan and England. He also composes and is �slowly developing technical prowess in the fi lm/TV music genre.� In what spare time is left, he tries to weight-lift and run every single day to stay fi t, and he also enjoys reading science fi ction thrillers.

Justin Reed
Justin has been working for the past year with Professor Mohamed El-Sharkawi on the NEPTUNE project�s undersea observatory power system. He has been designing a digital controller to isolate power system faults. He also was a member of the team that received an honorable mention from the National Hydrogen Association�s 2005 H2U contest for their hydrogen power park design. Eric is on the Dean�s List, has received numerous undergraduate scholarships and research assistantships, and participated in the 2004 NASA Summer Undergraduate Research Program. Justin feels fortunate that the Grainger scholarship provided the opportunity �to make a worthy contribution to groundbreaking research� while completing his undergraduate degree. His goals are to earn MS and PhD degrees, potentially leading to an academic career. He wants to focus on power electronics and electric drives in a position requiring �creativity and thinking outside the box.� Justin�s interests include photography, traveling in Europe, and playing the saxophone.

Julian Shirland
Julian has concentrated his research in the area of power system economics, and specifi cally the analysis of markets, under the supervision of Professor Richard Christie. His academic pursuits began as a senior in high school through participation in Washington State�s Running Start Program, which allowed him to take college-level courses at Bellevue Community College before enrolling at the UW. Julian hopes to attend graduate school to purse a master�s degree and then would like to work for a power company such as Puget Sound Energy or Seattle City Light. He states that the Grainger Scholarship has helped a great deal with his education and he looks forward to �making a signifi cant contribution in the fi eld of power engineering.� In his free time Julian enjoys playing badminton and watching Japanese animation fi lms.

2003 - 2004

Katrina Lim
Katrina migrated to the United States from the Philippines three years ago. She has started in several different majors, but has found her niche in the electrical engineering department. She hopes to get her degree in electrical engineering in Fall 2005. Her first power class under Professor Richard Christie sparked her interest in power engineering and she hopes to gain exposure in this field through research. She enjoys her classes and finds happiness in the comfort of the EE labs. Outside of EE, she's involved with IEEE, Women in Science and Engineering and the Phi Sigma Rho sorority.

Stephanie Lu
Stephanie has been working at Seattle City Light fro the past two and a half years as a Student Engineer, where she has solidified her interest in power engineering as she sees the impact that power holds in everyone's daily lives. As an undergraduate, Stephanie has done research on different aspects of the Neptune Project since autumn 2003. After receiving her bachelor's degree, she hopes to conduct research in power markets or blackouts during graduate studies at the University of Washington. In addition, she is a leader in the University of Washington student branches of SWE and IEEE. Outside of school, she enjoys participating in a variety of sports.

Dillon Murphy
Dillon is planning to graduate June 2004 with his degree in electrical engineering. After moving from Spokane to Seattle, he has focused on power systems and power electronics in his studies and has worked as a UNIX scripter for the fisheries department. This quarter he will be doing research with the Systems, Electronics, Simulation, and Applied Mathematics for Energy (SESAME) laboratory, simulating the controls for a Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage system. After graduating, he hopes to work in the design of renewable energy systems power electronics while also continuing to enjoy the outdoors.

Jens Nedrud
Jens is an electrical engineering student from Bozeman, Montana. His interest in EE began in his hometown, where he worked with residential electrical home design. At the University of Washington, he focused his studies on power engineering. Recently, he has been conducting research on renewable power systems involving wind turbines and hydrogen fuel cells. After graduating with his bachelor's degree this spring, Jens will be pursuing his M.S./Ph.D. at the University of Washington. Last summer he interned with Bechtel National, Inc., working on designing high voltage power systems for a nuclear vitrification site in eastern Washington. His research interests include power electronics, circuit design and power system stability. Outside of school, Jens enjoys playing the trombone and is a member of the Husky Marching Band.

Rachel Shintaku
Rachel plans to graduate this June with a bachelor's in electrical engineering with a minor in Japanese. After enjoying a survey class in power systems, she pursued studies in energy and power electronics and research in energy simulations. This quarter, she is continuing research with the Systems, Electronics, Simulation, and Applied Mathematics for Energy (SESAME) laboratory, developing and evaluating new methods of numerical integration for use in energy simulations. After graduation, she hopes to work with simulations and renewable energy.

Matt Welch
Matt will be graduating in August 2004 with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. His specialty area is in power electronics. This year, Matt has conducted research on the modeling and simulation of fuel cell systems for wind farm energy back up with the Systems, Electronics, Simulation, and Applied Mathematics for Energy Systems (SESAME) laboratory under Professor Kai Strunz. He also plans to research the use of a complex algorithm to predict the energy output of a wind farm. Last summer, Matt worked on a ballistic missile tracking program for Dynetics in Washington, D.C. Because of his work experience and academic success, numerous defense contractors have extended him job offers. Away from school and work, Matt enjoys basketball, soccer, baseball, football, skiing, and surfing.

2002 - 2003

Nels Jewell-Larsen
Nels' interest in electrical engineering stems from his curiosity about how the world works, as well as wanting to gain the analytical thinking and problem solving that is learned through doing and creating. After graduating with his bachelor's degree this spring from the University of Washington, Nels will be continuing here at the UW as a graduate student in electrical engineering, where he will continue to develop a high efficiency corona pump for cooling of power and micro-electronics. Nels has been working on this research project for the past two years and over that time has accumulated a number of accolades including an NSF Graduate Fellowship Honorable Mention for 2003. He was also a 2002 Washington Space Grant recipient. At the conclusion of his graduate studies, he plans on heading to industry for several years before he initiates or joins a startup in the high tech/power sector.

Jeff Kensok
Jeff grew up in Spokane, Washington, where he decided during high school that he would like to study electrical engineering and that the University of Washington would give him the best education in this field. Before attending the University of Washington, Jeff attended Spokane Falls Community College. Currently, Jeff is particularly interested in power systems analysis and pursuing courses and research in this field. After graduation, he plans to apply for power engineering positions with companies and utilities in Washington State. After working in the industry for a few years, Jeff may go back to college and get a master's degree in electrical engineering. His interests outside of school include playing music and reading.

Sanjeevani King
Initially, Sanjeevani was attracted to power engineering because it represented an area of electrical engineering that offered him the opportunity to learn about large-scale systems that play such a crucial role in daily life across the globe. Over the course of this year, he has learned to recognize the tremendous diversity of opportunities that can be found in power engineering and has developed a desire to further pursue a graduate degree in the field. Outside of school, Sanjeevani is an active member in the South Asian Student Association as well as a part of the Vine and Branches College Fellowship. He enjoys playing basketball and reading.

John Li
John started his college education at South Seattle Community College and spent his first two years there before transferring to the UW in 2000. He first became interested in power engineering while taking a course about power transmission. Subsequently, John became involved in power economic research with Professor Chen-Ching Liu and joined the power economic group in Winter 2003. After graduation, John plans on seeking an entry-level position in power engineering to gain the necessary engineering skills to pass the PE exam. In the meantime, he would like to pursue a graduate degree in power engineering. Outside of school, John spends time playing badminton, swimming, and snowboarding.

Braden Miller
Braden is primarily interested in the development of upcoming energy sources in the field of power engineering. Braden and his wife have the ambition and desire to serve cross-culturally in a third world country where he would love to apply his knowledge of power engineering in order to help third world infrastructures develop. After graduation, he plans to attend dental school. Between Braden's engineering and dentistry training, he will be able to serve developing cultures and their people both on a societal and a personal level. Braden grew up in Lynden, Washington, and loves to water-ski and play soccer. He also plays the guitar and drums and is involved with his church's Sunday night worship team.

Kyle Pendergrass
Kyle became interested in power engineering due to the fact that it is a central component to our industrialized world providing the energy sources and the electronics that we require to maintain our lifestyles. This summer, following his graduation, Kyle will present his research, which was performed with the assistance of the Grainger Scholarships, at an international conference in Holland. In September, he will start full-time employment at PacifiCorp, a power company in Portland, Oregon. Kyle grew up in Puyallup, Washington, and loves to travel, having found that there is nothing better for grounding his perspective than meeting people of different lifestyles and cultures.

Romin Shahla
Romin graduated in March 2003 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, specializing in power systems. His interest in power systems was enhanced through a research project with Professor Mark Dambourg that was part of his Grainger Scholarship. Specifically, this power protection research project was designed to develop a learning aid to teach the user how to achieve coordination in a simulation tool based on an electrical distribution system. Romin's other interests include sports journalism and golf. His long-term goal is to obtain a position as an electrical power systems engineer, which he is currently pursuing.

Jedediah White
Jed has decided to pursue engineering because he realized that a degree in electrical engineering was a valuable and constructive degree. During his years as an undergraduate, Jed spent significant time searching for a career that would be personally meaningful to him. This search eventually led him to power engineering. In power engineering, Jed feels that he has an opportunity to use some of the important skills he has learned here to help others. In fact, after graduation, he hopes to go abroad for a while, possibly working with the Peace Corps. Ultimately, Jed sees himself using his skills in international relief work.

2001 - 2002

Ouail Albairat
Ouail is currently a senior at the University of Washington and is grateful for the Scholar Award as it will help him in the completion of his studies.

Matthew Durst
Matthew has recently graduated from the University of Washington and will not be able to attend the banquet tonight as he is pursuing a new job opportunity in the Tri-Cities area of Eastern Washington. He regrets not being able to attend, as he is extremely appreciative of the generosity The Grainger Foundation for his earlier Scholar award.

Andrew Farhat
Andrew was drawn to power systems due to his interest in the relationship between power engineering and economics. Particularly, he is interested in studying stability in the field and digital systems. After graduation, Andrew plans to travel to Europe and then come back and work at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton. He hopes to be a federal employee working on power systems on ships designed for the U.S. Navy. Andrew's hobbies include theology, basketball, snowboarding, baseball, football, and jogging.

Hans Isern
Hans has recently been involved in faculty research at the University of Washington. This research included helping to develop noninvasive sensor arrays to determine the energization status of underground cables as well as designing different filters to improve the signal and troubleshooting problems. He has interned at Boeing and has also been involved with the Associated Student body of the University of Washington (ASUW) and continues to be engaged in student activism.

Anders Lars Johnson
A recent Grainger Scholar, Anders is currently enrolled in his fourth year at the UW and is pursuing his MSEE. His academic and professional interests revolve around researching power system reliability and the related economic issues. This summer, Anders will be working for the Bonneville Power Administration?s System Protection Group and he hopes to find work with BPA or another utility when he completes his MSEE. When he isn't at school doing research and coursework, Anders enjoys participating in golf and tennis.

Sanjeevani King
Initially, Sanjeevani was attracted to power engineering because it represented an area of electrical engineering that offered the opportunity to learn about large-scale systems that play such a crucial role in daily life across the globe. Over the course of this year, he has learned to recognize the tremendous diversity of opportunities that can be found in power engineering as well as develop a desire to further pursue a graduate degree. Outside of school, Sanjeevani is an active member in the South Asian Student Association as well as a part of the Vine and Branches College Fellowship. He also enjoys playing basketball and reading.

Spencer Palmer
Spencer started his college education at Western Washington University and spent his first two years there before transferring to UW in 2000. He first became interested in power engineering while working at Arco Cherry Point oil refinery. After graduation, Spencer plans on seeking an entry-level position in power engineering to gain the necessary engineering skills to pass the PE exam. In the long run, he would like to own and operate an industrial electrical contractor. Spencer is an avid skier and he also enjoys golfing, rock climbing, and water sports.