In 2013 Kelby Bennett attended Columbus East High School. She held a love for math and science and her creativity, paired with curiosity, led her to explore and enjoy learning how things work.
Kelby shares, “I believe that all of these things led me to enroll in the STEM program in high-school where I developed an interest in engineering.”
Additionally, in 2013, Kelby won an award from the Community Education Coalition for a short essay discussing why you should attend school in Columbus. “In the article, I described how Columbus is a city of great opportunity and how IUPUC and all other surrounding institutions contribute to the success of the community,” explains Kelby.
Why Kelby selected IUPUC
IUPUC was a top contender for me during my college selection process. I visited several colleges, but when I visited IUPUC for the first time, the atmosphere and people made me feel like I belong. Everyone that I met and spoke with were inviting and genuine in wanting to know more about me and what I was looking for in my college experience. As I enrolled in the Mechanical Engineering Program at IUPUC, the staff and faculty encouraged me even more and proved very helpful in preparing me for the transition from high school to college.
When I began the second semester my sophomore year, I was offered a school-to-work position at Cummins, working in the Metrology Lab. The staff and faculty at IUPUC went over and above my expectations in helping me achieve this. They gave me several leads in available job opportunities in the engineering field, which is how I obtained my current school to work position. I feel that I was given this opportunity because of my good grades, which is due to the quality teaching staff employed at IUPUC.
I feel that choosing to attend IUPUC is going to have a positive impact on my future and I am excited to see what will happen in the final years of my education.
Today Kelby is a junior in the mechanical engineering program at IUPUC. On April 12, Kelby was recognized as the Outstanding Student in Advanced Math at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus for the 2016-17 academic year.
Dr. Joan Poulsen, representing the IUPUC Division of Science and vice chancellor and dean at IUPUC, Dr. Reinhold Hill presented the award.
Rodney N. Lynch is a lecturer in mathematics at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus and was Kelby’s professor. He shares, “Kelby has been one of the top students in every course that I have taught. She did extraordinarily well in Linear Algebra last year. She always solves problems in a very clear manner. She has a clear grasp of math beyond basic calculus and is very deserving of this award.”
For more information on the science program at IUPUC, visit www.iupuc.edu/academics/divisions-programs/science/.
For information on the IUPUC mechanical engineering program go to www.iupuc.edu/academics/divisions-programs/mechanical-engineering/.