Grand Challenges Scholar, Spring 2024
Hailey Petsch
BSE in mechanical engineering
Denver, Colorado
Horizon High School in Thornton, Colorado
Favorites
- Performer
- Post Malone
- Movie
- Pulp Fiction
- Activity
- Yoga
- TV show
- Bridgerton
- Book
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Hailey Petsch chose to study mechanical engineering in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University due to her passion for math and the automotive industry.
“Engineering has helped my life become more structured and have a greater purpose,” Petsch says. “I love that it allows me to enjoy my passion while adding to the lives of others.”
During her time in the Fulton Schools, she served as vice president of the Sun Devil Motorsports Formula SAE team, which designs a race car for a collegiate competition each year, was a member of the Phi Sigma Rho sorority and helped build bonds among participants in the Grand Challenges Scholars Program as a student leader.
Petsch pursued educational experiences beyond the ASU campus by studying abroad at the University of Manchester in England and completing an Engineering Projects in Community Service, or EPICS, project in Vietnam.
With her EPICS team, Petsch worked to develop sustainable farming practices. During the trip, she and her fellow EPICS participants designed a sensor that detected the amount of rainfall per day, providing farmers data to use to adjust their watering schedules.
“This helped farmers in low-income areas save money, time and energy,” Petsch says. “It also gave them access to a way to make their farming practices easier. It was amazing to know I could impact the lives of others globally.”
She conducted research with T.-W. Lee, a Fulton Schools aerospace engineering associate professor.
“Lee took me on as a student research aide during my first year, and it really helped me become excited about engineering and all the future opportunities I had,” Petsch says. “He helped mold me through his advice as an engineer.”
Petsch will join the research and development team at Honda as a vehicle dynamics test engineer. She aspires to create new and exciting things for society while maintaining sustainable engineering practices.
“I would love to produce a valuable new product no one has ever seen before,” Petsch says.
Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ spring 2024 class here.
