On April 2, Walker Career Center senior Samantha Elkins was 1 of 26 students in the nation to be awarded a $12,000 CMIC scholarships by the Architecture, Construction and Engineering (A.C.E.) Affiliate Board.
Samantha’s journey into the engineering field, according to Samantha, started as she watched the work her dad did as a plumbing engineer. Samantha was attracted to the detail-oriented work he did, and she appreciated the importance of that work in the construction of buildings.
Samantha started down her own path in engineering as a freshman by taking Introduction of Engineering Design. Samantha continued in Principles of Engineering before dedicating the past two years to Architecture Drafting and Design. Samantha is currently participating in the work-based learning program at WCC and works as an intern at Integrated Fire & Safety Solutions Inc. (IFSSI). Samantha proudly stated that through her course work and internship, she is not only able to have conversations with her dad about their common interest in engineering, she is also more confident in communicating with architects as part of her job.
After graduation, Samantha plans on studying fire protection engineering as an employee of IFFSI. In addition, Samantha will be putting her scholarship money to good use by working on her bachelor’s degree in Construction Management online through Indiana State University.