Commercial Spaceflight

USC Aiken alumnus is one of 30 chosen for highly selective fellowship program in the commercial spaceflight sector.

Aiken, SC (01/31/2022) — A University of South Carolina Aiken (USC Aiken) alumnus is one of 30 students recently chosen for the highly selective Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship Program which connects exceptional undergraduate and graduate students with internships, mentors, and an extensive network in the commercial spaceflight sector.

Daniel Nwachukwu, a 2021 graduate of the USC Aiken industrial engineering program, is a first-year graduate student at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) where he is studying aerospace engineering. During his time at USC Aiken, he served as president of the Engineering Student Association, as a Chancellor Ambassador, as a member of the Student Leadership Action Team, and interned with Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, Club Car, and Bridgestone Americas. He expressed his excitement at being chosen for the fellowship.

"I get to network and connect with many fellows that are passionate about the commercial space industry while getting hands-on experience at Nanoracks," Nwachukwu said. "I'm very appreciative of the professors, previous managers, and my time at USC Aiken, which enabled me to grow professionally and readily tackle any challenge that came my way."

Dr. Chad Leverette, dean of the College of Sciences and Engineering at USC Aiken attested to the caliber of undergraduate student Nwachukwu was and emphasized the importance of his undergraduate internships in his current successes.

"Daniel is an outstanding young man and excelled in our industrial process engineering program. In addition to his rigorous studies and his many student life leadership activities, he also interned for two separate industry partners. It was this industry experience that separated him from other candidates and allowed for his acceptance into Georgia Tech's aerospace engineering graduate program and this award/fellowship. I am sure we will continue to hear about great things that Daniel will accomplish."

Now in its fifth year, the Matthew Isakowtiz Fellowship Program awards exceptional college juniors, seniors, and graduate students pursuing aerospace careers with paid internships at cutting-edge commercial space companies. Fellows also receive one-on-one mentorship from accomplished members of the space community, including astronauts, engineers, entrepreneurs, executives, investors, and others. Additionally, the program features a memorable summit during which the Fellows learn about space start-ups, network with top industry leaders, and develop entrepreneurial skills.

For the 2022 class, the program received a tremendous response, with applications from more than 200 students from over 90 colleges. Applicants were rigorously screened for academic excellence, relevant experience, and, most importantly, a demonstrated passion for innovation, entrepreneurship, and commercial space. The enthusiasm about the fellowship comes at an especially exciting time in commercial space, as an unprecedented number of new companies are transforming the space program. This past year saw new rockets achieving orbit, astronauts being flown in new private vehicles, small spacecrafts launched in record numbers, and major increases in private investments. This has created a large increase in students inspired by these new opportunities to demonstrate novel technologies, protect the environment, connect the world, and explore the planets.

At the end of the summer, the fellows will remain among a group of alumni who can continue to network with this program, their mentors, and past and future fellows, on the path to becoming future space industry icons. The previous four classes of Matthew Isakowitz Fellows are continuing to excel in their academic and professional careers, with many taking on volunteer roles to contribute to the continued success of the Fellowship program.

The program has also added a number of new participants to its lists of host companies and executive mentors for Summer 2022. The new host companies include Astra, Lynk, and Redwire. The new executive mentors include X-Prize Foundation CEO and Private Astronaut, Anousheh Ansari; former NASA astronaut, Cady Coleman; Astranis Co-founder and CEO, John Gedmark; MIT Professor and Head of the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Dan Hastings; former NASA astronaut and NOAA Administrator, Kathy Sullivan; Impulse Space CEO and former VP Propulsion at SpaceX, Tom Mueller; and Principal Mars Development Engineer at SpaceX, Paul Wooster.

The Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship Program is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization honoring the memory of an engineer, entrepreneur, and extraordinary individual whose passion for commercial space exploration led to great strides in the industry and inspired all who knew him. The Program seeks to instill that same enthusiasm into the next generation of commercial spaceflight leaders by providing impactful career training to those who embody Matthew's drive for exploring our universe to help better humankind.

Learn more at matthewisakowitzfellowship.org.

For additional information on the engineering programs available at USC Aiken, visit https://www.usca.edu/cofse.

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