Alexander Witthus

Alexander Witthus is a second-generation Arizona State University graduate inspired to explore engineering.

“I came to ASU to not only follow in the footsteps of my Sun Devil father, but to also be a part of a university whose mission is dedicated to continuous innovation,” Witthus says.

He says that family connection combined with eye-opening high school engineering classes made him excited to dive into the electrical engineering program in the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, one of the seven Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at ASU.

“After building foundational knowledge during the first two years, the degree program really becomes a sort of ‘choose your own adventure’ where you can pursue classes covering the concepts and areas that interest you the most,” Witthus says. “In my case, that was electronic and mixed-signal circuit design.”

In choosing his own adventure, Witthus did all he could to get involved, spending time as a student ambassador for the School of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering, participating in the Fulton Undergraduate Research Initiative and conducting research alongside his mentors, Professors Hillary Hartnett and David Allee. Harnett oversaw his work as part of the Barrett College Fellows Undergraduate Research Program and Allee his honors thesis.

“Dr. Allee has continuously challenged me to go above and beyond in my work, and for that reason, he has left a lasting impact on my undergraduate career and beyond,” Witthus says.

He was recognized for his educational achievements through several awards and scholarships, including the New American University Scholar — President’s Award; the New American University Scholar — National Merit Scholar; David Buchanan/Three-Five Systems National Merit Scholarship; the Charles Lemon Memorial Scholarship; the Boeing scholarship; Marilyn and James A. Schmidlin New American University Scholarship; the M.M. Lowry Memorial Scholarship; the St. Clair Technologies and; the MOOG Inc. Scholarship Program.

Witthus plans to continue his electrical engineering career first with a summer internship with Intel and then return to ASU in the fall to complete his master’s degree in electrical engineering. He says he hopes one day to return to academia to teach and inspire the next generation of STEM students.

“Engineering has changed my life by instilling within me the ability to think critically,” Witthus says. “I have been provided the necessary tools and confidence to tackle any challenge that may arise before me, whether it be in my work or in my life in general.”

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ Spring 2022 class here.