UA Engineering Students Selected for NASA Robotics Academy

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Justin Headly and Ramon Gramstad, both seniors in electrical and computer engineering at The University of Alabama, were recently selected from a nationally competitive field to participate in the 2009 NASA Robotics Academy at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville.

Headly and Gramstad will participate in a 10-week resident internship for students specifically interested in robotics.  Participants are assigned to a team project and will present the background of their projects and any results obtained at the end of the summer. Headly, a Cropwell native, will be working on surface mobility systems, and Gramstad, a Waxahachie, Texas native, will be assigned to a similar project.

In addition to group projects, Headly and Gramstad will participate in trips to NASA field centers and local aerospace industries, meetings with leaders in the robotics field, and seminar sessions covering subjects such as space science, earth science, robotics and specific Marshall Space Flight Center research.

The goal of the academy is to inspire and develop future robotics specialists and to cultivate interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields among students.  Headly and Gramstad were selected based on excellence in academic performance, demonstrated prior involvement in robotics, propensity for teamwork and leadership.

In 1837, The University of Alabama became one of the first five universities in the nation to offer engineering classes. Today, UA’s fully accredited College of Engineering has more than 2,300 students and more than 100 faculty. In the last seven years, students in the College have been named USA Today All-USA College Academic Team members, Goldwater scholars, Hollings scholars and Portz scholars.