MSU’s Berry, White join elite class of national Astronaut Scholars
Contact: Carl Smith
STARKVILLE, Miss.—Two Bulldog engineering majors have earned the prestigious title of Astronaut Scholar, a recognition reserved for the best and brightest science-focused undergraduates in the country.
Madelyn “Sloan” Berry of Brandon and India “Alex” White of Saltillo are Mississippi State’s latest recipients of the nationally renowned Astronaut Scholarship. They are among only 79 students nationwide receiving up to $15,000 and joining the national Astronaut Scholarship Foundation’s lifelong network of professional mentors and peer researchers.
Both Berry and White are members of MSU’s Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College, and White was named a national Barry Goldwater Scholar this spring.
Berry, a senior aerospace engineering major with a 4.0 GPA, is a Louis A. Hurst Jr. Presidential Endowed Scholarship recipient at MSU who plans to research composites and help build the next generation of high-speed aircraft after college. As an undergraduate, she served as a researcher at MSU’s Aerostructures for Hypersonic Flight Research Laboratory and the university’s Remote Sensing Payload Research and Development program. Berry will spend this summer with the U.S. Department of Defense as an engineering analyst intern. Her diverse list of extracurricular activities includes serving as president of the CubeSat at MSU satellite design team, treasurer of the MSU chapter of the Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering and leading the Famous Maroon Band piccolo section, among others.
White, a senior biomedical engineering major also with a 4.0 GPA, is an MSU Luckyday Scholar who plans to lead her own lab, spearheading research and teaching in a hospital setting, helping advance breast cancer treatment options. White boasts research experience with MSU’s Priddy Lab and Neural Engineering Research Division, the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Advanced Medical Imaging Research Division and the University of Mississippi’s A.R.I.S.E program. She was recently accepted into the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s summer research program, where she will work in the Department of Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis. White previously served as the secretary for MSU’s Unified Sports program and is a Tau Beta Pi member, Brickfire Project mentor, Luckyday Scholars Program mentor and Spring Preview Day panelist.
Juniors and seniors intending to pursue research or advance their field upon completion of their final degrees are eligible for the Astronaut Scholarship. They are selected for their initiative, creativity and excellence in their chosen field. In addition to receiving a financial award, they enjoy networking and mentoring opportunities with astronauts, alumni and industry leaders; participation in the Michael Collins Family Professional Development Program; and a paid trip to attend ASF’s Innovators Week and Gala in Houston, Texas, which provides an opportunity for the scholars to present their research at a technical conference.
MSU’s Office of Prestigious External Scholarships connects students to competitive scholarships and fellowships and assists with their applications. Visit www.honors.msstate.edu/initiatives/office-prestigious-external-scholarships for more information.
The Shackouls Honors College is online at www.honors.msstate.edu.
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