Clarkson University Student Michael Lee of Oneonta, N.Y., Awarded NSF Fellowship

2016 May 4

Clarkson University student Michael Lee of Oneonta, N.Y., a senior majoring in aeronautical engineering, has been awarded the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship for 2016.

Lee is a member of the Honors Program and is a teaching assistant for the first-year honors courses in ethics. In the summer after his first year, Lee began researching nonplanar wing aerodynamics under the guidance of Assoc. Prof. Kenneth Visser. This research, which was also the subject of Lee's NSF proposal, has yielded results that suggest a new relationship between wing bending and efficiency. His research in nonplanar wing aerodynamics has culminated in his honors thesis, which will be presented at the spring 2016 Symposium on Undergraduate Research Experiences. He hopes that one day his research can help improve the efficiency of the aviation industry. Lee will begin his doctoral education in theoretical aerodynamics at Duke University next year and will pursue a research career in aerodynamics and plane design in industry and academia.

The NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) received close to 17,000 applications for the 2016 competition and made 2,000 award offers. NSF fellows are expected to contribute significantly to research, teaching, and innovations in science and engineering fields.

Benefits of the award include a three-year annual stipend of $34,000 along with a $12,000 cost of education allowance for tuition and fees (paid to the institution), opportunities for international research and professional development, and freedom to conduct their own research at any accredited U.S. graduate institution they choose.

Clarkson University educates the leaders of the global economy. One in five alumni already leads as an owner, CEO, VP or equivalent senior executive of a company. With its main campus located in Potsdam, New York, and additional graduate program and research facilities in the Capital Region and Beacon, N.Y., Clarkson is a nationally recognized research university with signature areas of academic excellence and research directed toward the world's pressing issues. Through more than 50 rigorous programs of study in engineering, business, arts, education, sciences and the health professions, the entire learning-living community spans boundaries across disciplines, nations and cultures to build powers of observation, challenge the status quo and connect discovery and innovation with enterprise.