GRADUATE STUDENT FELLOWSHIPS
Joan Schwartz Graduate Student Scholarship in Optical Sciences
Joan Schwartz served in the Optics Industry for 17 years . She earned a B . S . in Chemical Engineering ( 1984 ) and a M . S . in Optical Engineering ( 1989 ) from the University of Rochester , and later took graduate courses in Optics at the University of Arizona . Joan was originally from Long Island , New York but spent much of her career in Tucson , Arizona . She worked as a chemical engineer in IR glass fabrication and then as an optical metrology engineer at Perkin Elmer and Hughes Danbury Optical Systems ( now UTC ). At Hughes her work on the COSTAR corrective prescription for the Hubble Space Telescope received an Award of Recognition from NASA .
In 2006 , Joan joined 4D Technology Corporation ( now part of Nanometrics ), in Tucson , as a manufacturing engineer . She helped to create and test state-of-the interferometry systems used on programs such as the James Webb Space Telescope . Joan later became Senior Service Manager where she focused on developing the team ’ s capabilities and processes in order to provide superior technical service and resolve customer problems quickly and professionally . At 4D Technology , Joan was recognized for her inventiveness , technical insight , and thoroughness . She delighted in training engineers about optics and educated employees , distributors , and customers around the globe .
This scholarship endowment in her name was established by her family , coworkers and friends .
UTKAL PANDURANGI
Utkal is a master ’ s student from Chennai , India . He works with Dr . Dalziel Wilson in the Quantum Optomechanics Lab where his primary focus has been to design optomechanical resonators to detect dark matter . He sees the Joan Schwartz scholarship as an inspiration to work harder and make OSC proud !
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