VASBA 2026 Scholarship Recipients
Kyli Hewett (Averett)
My name is Kyli Hewett, and I am a sophomore attending Averett University, doublemajoring in Aviation Flight Operations and Aviation Business. I graduated with honors from Eastern Shore Community College in 2024, earning a 3.91 GPA and an associate’s degree in general studies. Throughout my time, I became a member of the Alpha Phi Chi Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. I am a Private Pilot currently finishing up my Instrument Rating training. I am an Averett University cheerleader, Bonner leader, resident assistant, member of the Sister 4 Sister Club, Women in Aviation Averett University Chapter, and Alpha Chi Honor Society. I am actively involved in the Danville community through my service and time as a Bonner leader under the Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation. I completed 265 total volunteer hours in 2025 alone, serving at the Salvation Army, where I performed administrative, organizational, food distribution, and customer service tasks. I assist with preparing meals for daily lunch serving, organizing donated items for Angel Tree distribution, supporting after-school program tutoring and events, and completing weekly Cantine deliveries. I volunteer at events held by the Women in Aviation Averett University Chapter, such as Kids Fly Free and Girls in Aviation Day.
This scholarship will directly support the remainder of my instrument training and significantly reduce the financial strain that can slow progress. I’m deeply grateful for this investment in my future, and I’m committed to giving back and making a positive impact in return. Sharing aviation with others, especially young girls who may not yet see themselves represented in the field, reminds me of the importance of visibility and mentorship. These experiences motivate me to continue uplifting and supporting future aviators throughout my career. |
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Anthony Semak (Virginia Tech)Stars sprinkled the top of the burning sky like an orange cake; this cake was slowly being cut in half by a white trail dragging from the ground up. 3-year-old me was taken aback, I held my space shuttle toy in the backyard with my mom watching as this cut went up and up.
“That is going to space,” my mom told me, “That toy you have is what they are sending up” As I watched this shuttle piercing the sky to a place I thought was impossible to reach, I was immersed. What could be up there, what are they doing, could I do something like that, could I see it for myself one day? These questions ravaged my mind; I started to ask my mom to take me to the place these rockets went from. After a long, treacherous drive (for little ol’ me), we arrived at the Kennedy Space Center, and as I compared my small shuttle to the 39-story spanning Saturn V, I realized that these missions are no easy feat. That thing was bigger than my house, my toddler brain thought, and it spanned that whole air hangar. I wanted to be a part of this, I wanted to help with this, I want to be able to create such awe-inspiring engineering feats. My name is Anthony Semak, and I am now pursuing a Bachelor of Engineering in Aerospace Engineering at Virginia Tech in hopes to have something of my own in space one day. My expected graduation date is May 2028. |
Luke Coughenour (Virginia Tech)My name is Luke Coughenour, and I am studying Aerospace Engineering and Electrical Engineering at Virginia Tech. Ever since I was young, I have had a passion for understanding how things work and technology that allows us to do what was once impossible. I seek one day to contribute to the development of communications and control systems for deep space travel. I have a busy schedule as a student here at Virginia Tech, but everything stopped for me when I watched Artemis II takeoff with four humans bound to orbit the moon for the first time in over fifty years. In that moment I shed a few tears as I looked in awe at the culmination of unquantifiable amounts of engineering and effort that lead to a program such as Artemis. As we seek to build settlements on the moon and move towards Mars, more advanced technologies will be needed. I hope to bring a unique perspective to this development by combining depths of knowledge in both Aerospace Engineering and Electrical Engineering.
In addition to my classes at Virginia Tech, I participate in a design team and do research. I am the Avionics Hardware Lead for MachWorks, a one-of-a-kind undergraduate design team here developing a jet powered UAV, with hopes of one day making an autonomous supersonic jet powered UAV. I oversee all the electronic systems on our aircraft, lead the team members working on them, and work to ensure compatibility with other subteams working on our aircraft such our structures or afterburner teams. My research here has consisted so far of developing a one-degree freedom of motion model of a satellite to be used for educational and research purposes. While it is a simple model, it has many analogous sensors and actuators that a satellite would have, making it great for understanding satellite dynamics and controls. I greatly enjoy all the opportunities I have here at Virginia Tech to apply what I learn in the classroom from both disciplines I study. |
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Riley Young (TCC)
I am currently working toward my Associate of Science in Engineering at Tidewater Community College, where I have a 3.3 GPA. My coursework includes math, physics, and electrical circuits. My goal is to transfer to Virginia Tech in Fall 2026 and complete my bachelor’s degree in
engineering by 2028. I have always been curious about how things work and are built, which is what led me to engineering. One of my favorite projects was in my engineering design class, where my group and I built a robot that guided colored balls into goals. I designed and assembled the robot’s components, then tested it to ensure it worked. Some of the parts I designed were 3D-printed. In circuits lab, we use breadboards, multimeters, oscilloscopes, and power supplies to build working circuits. This has helped me learn to solve problems and pay attention to detail, since things rarely work perfectly on the first try. We also use programs like MATLAB, C++, and Autodesk Inventor, which I believe will be useful for real-world projects. Right now, my main goal is to pass Differential Equations this summer, since I need it to transfer to the engineering program at Virginia Tech. I will have to pay for this class myself because it is not covered by my financial aid. My long-term goal is to become an engineer and work on projects where I can see the results of my efforts. I hope to work in design, process improvement, or construction, building things that make a difference in society. |
Julia Conklin (ODU)
Ever since a young age, I have always enjoyed understanding how things worked. From Legos to the STEM Robotics Challenge in middle school, I was fascinated by how individual parts and components could come together to create something capable of accomplishing a larger task.
This interest progressed when I learned about the development of the James Webb Space Telescope. The work being done to create a piece of technology capable of revealing the universe in ways never before possible left me awestruck. Knowing that engineers and scientists could collaborate to design something that could push past humanity’s understanding of aerospace showed me the incredible impact that engineering has. These experiences pushed me to pursue the conjoined Bachelor’s to Master’s program offered by Old Dominion University. Throughout my undergraduate studies, I maintained a 3.77 GPA while balancing challenging coursework, a part-time job, and extracurricular commitments. Pursuing my Master’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering will allow me to deepen my knowledge and understanding of engineering, while focusing more on my aerospace interests. During this, I plan on focusing my research and thesis on aerospace control systems and autonomy. Upon completing my Master’s degree, I plan on pursuing a career in the region’s growing aerospace industry. It has always been a lifelong goal of mine to contribute and support the aerospace industry, whether that be NASA Langley, or another aerospace company. I hope to apply the skills and knowledge gained through my graduate studies and internship experiences to support and advance the field. As I progress through my career, a goal and a hope of mine is to encourage and inspire the next generation of students interested in aerospace and engineering. |
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