Addison Daniel, from Moyock, North Carolina, wants to work on spacecraft propulsion systems or hypersonic propulsion systems.

“This scholarship alleviates a lot of financial burden I would’ve had and allows me to have more free time to explore other activities such as clubs and sports on campus.”

Max Langenbach, from Cary, North Carolina, plans to attend graduate school and work for an organization advancing space exploration.

“I’ve always been fascinated by ventures such as Voyager, Ingenuity, DART and Hubble, which take science off the surface of our planet to garner information about the universe around us. I want to contribute to the global collection of knowledge, and I want to do something that I will enjoy. Doesn’t making things fly sound like a blast?”

Ezra Maduskar, from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has a goal to start his own company to make commercial air travel more efficient.

“I’m looking forward to working with the supersonic wind tunnel and taking an interdisciplinary approach to research by combining my proficiency in musical instruments and knowledge of acoustics with engineering to develop surfaces that can minimize sonic booms.”

Christian Ramellini, from Clyde, North Carolina, aims to work for NASA or on commercial planes.

“Without the scholarship I probably would not have been able to go to NC State. This scholarship will allow me to complete my four years without any debt for myself or my parents, which was incredibly important to me. I get to do the major that I wanted most at the school I wanted most to be in.”

About the Pearces

Lane Pearce ’70 and his wife Donna were childhood neighbors who started dating during his senior year at NC State.

Just six miles from his home and with a strong aerospace engineering program, NC State was the obvious choice during a time when the United States was working toward landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to Earth.

After graduating, he was employed by Teledyne Brown Engineering in Huntsville, Alabama. As a young engineer, he successfully developed the preliminary design of the Space Shuttle’s Solid Rocket Booster’s recovery system, which slowed and oriented the 100-ton boosters for a tail-first impact at ~75 feet-per-second to assure they could be safely recovered and launched again.

“That project sort of ‘made my bones’ with management,” he said.
He worked on NASA space activities for 37 years and retired 18 years ago.

“We … recognized NC State was a primary factor in our prosperity and financial security,” he said. Lane and Donna decided to give back to the university, establishing a scholarship for aerospace engineering students to pursue their own contributions to the field.