John Brocato (john.brocato@uga.edu)

597 D.W. Brooks Drive Athens, GA 30602 September 30, 2022 To the Georgia Engineering Foundation: I am happy to write an enthusiastic reference letter supporting Ruhee Merchant’s application for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. I know Ruhee through her participation in the course ENGR 1920 Introduction to Engineering for Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering. Via her outstanding work in this course thus far, I can say that Ruhee is an excellent prospective recipient of your scholarship. Our Intro course endeavors to provide the broadest possible look at the field of bioengineering and many of the subfields within: biomanufacturing, biomaterials, bioenergy and sustainability, next-gen therapeutics, and so on. However, we also spend significant time on other issues just as critical, such as engineering communication; engineering ethics; teamwork, diversity, equity, and inclusion; global engineering and study abroad; co-ops and internships; and student professional societies. I mention all this to illustrate that Ruhee, while at the University of Georgia, is receiving a first-rate introduction to the broad field of bioengineering. Importantly, of course, Ruhee is doing excellent work while in my class. Each section has 60-80 students, so it’s easy for students to hide and disengage in such a setting. Ruhee, however, participates regularly, asking pertinent questions and responding to discussion prompts. She has also completed her work consistently and thoroughly (which can be rare in a large class of first-year students). The most significant assignment in my course is the Individual Professional Development Plan (IPDP), a culminating paper requiring students to plot out their college careers and beyond with an eye toward goals, self-assessment, engineering projects/research of interest, co-curricular activities, and more. Because this assignment comes later in the semester, Ruhee has not completed her IPDP yet. However, my discussions with her along with a look at her résumé tell me that she is well poised to construct a very solid IPDP and eventual career. Her exceptional high-school GPA and the plethora of AP courses she took leave no doubt that she excels academically, but it’s her wealth of work experience – as a first-year college student, she has already served as a Research Assistant at UGA, Yale, and Johns Hopkins – that I find most impressive and indicative of a person poised for success. She has also amassed numerous volunteer and service-oriented achievements, including the role of teacher to 20 2nd graders, along with a long list of awards and extracurricular activities. Finally, the fact that she can converse in five languages apart from English makes her incredibly valuable as a working engineer in an increasingly global industry. I have absolutely no doubt that any assistance we can provide for her budding career will pay guaranteed dividends to human society in the coming years. It is my pleasure to recommend Ruhee Merchant without reservation for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. If I can help further with her application process, please let me know. Thank you, John Brocato Technical Communication Lecturer School of Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering College of Engineering University of Georgia Fellow, American Society for Engineering Education 706.542.6619 john.brocato@uga.edu

John Brocato (john.brocato@uga.edu)

597 D.W. Brooks Drive Athens, GA 30602 September 30, 2022 To the Georgia Engineering Foundation: I am happy to write an enthusiastic reference letter supporting Ruhee Merchant’s application for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. I know Ruhee through her participation in the course ENGR 1920 Introduction to Engineering for Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering. Via her outstanding work in this course thus far, I can say that Ruhee is an excellent prospective recipient of your scholarship. Our Intro course endeavors to provide the broadest possible look at the field of bioengineering and many of the subfields within: biomanufacturing, biomaterials, bioenergy and sustainability, next-gen therapeutics, and so on. However, we also spend significant time on other issues just as critical, such as engineering communication; engineering ethics; teamwork, diversity, equity, and inclusion; global engineering and study abroad; co-ops and internships; and student professional societies. I mention all this to illustrate that Ruhee, while at the University of Georgia, is receiving a first-rate introduction to the broad field of bioengineering. Importantly, of course, Ruhee is doing excellent work while in my class. Each section has 60-80 students, so it’s easy for students to hide and disengage in such a setting. Ruhee, however, participates regularly, asking pertinent questions and responding to discussion prompts. She has also completed her work consistently and thoroughly (which can be rare in a large class of first-year students). The most significant assignment in my course is the Individual Professional Development Plan (IPDP), a culminating paper requiring students to plot out their college careers and beyond with an eye toward goals, self-assessment, engineering projects/research of interest, co-curricular activities, and more. Because this assignment comes later in the semester, Ruhee has not completed her IPDP yet. However, my discussions with her along with a look at her résumé tell me that she is well poised to construct a very solid IPDP and eventual career. Her exceptional high-school GPA and the plethora of AP courses she took leave no doubt that she excels academically, but it’s her wealth of work experience – as a first-year college student, she has already served as a Research Assistant at UGA, Yale, and Johns Hopkins – that I find most impressive and indicative of a person poised for success. She has also amassed numerous volunteer and service-oriented achievements, including the role of teacher to 20 2nd graders, along with a long list of awards and extracurricular activities. Finally, the fact that she can converse in five languages apart from English makes her incredibly valuable as a working engineer in an increasingly global industry. I have absolutely no doubt that any assistance we can provide for her budding career will pay guaranteed dividends to human society in the coming years. It is my pleasure to recommend Ruhee Merchant without reservation for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. If I can help further with her application process, please let me know. Thank you, John Brocato Technical Communication Lecturer School of Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering College of Engineering University of Georgia Fellow, American Society for Engineering Education 706.542.6619 john.brocato@uga.edu

John Brocato recommends

John Brocato (john.brocato@uga.edu)

597 D.W. Brooks Drive Athens, GA 30602 September 30, 2022 To the Georgia Engineering Foundation: I am happy to write an enthusiastic reference letter supporting Ruhee Merchant’s application for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. I know Ruhee through her participation in the course ENGR 1920 Introduction to Engineering for Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering. Via her outstanding work in this course thus far, I can say that Ruhee is an excellent prospective recipient of your scholarship. Our Intro course endeavors to provide the broadest possible look at the field of bioengineering and many of the subfields within: biomanufacturing, biomaterials, bioenergy and sustainability, next-gen therapeutics, and so on. However, we also spend significant time on other issues just as critical, such as engineering communication; engineering ethics; teamwork, diversity, equity, and inclusion; global engineering and study abroad; co-ops and internships; and student professional societies. I mention all this to illustrate that Ruhee, while at the University of Georgia, is receiving a first-rate introduction to the broad field of bioengineering. Importantly, of course, Ruhee is doing excellent work while in my class. Each section has 60-80 students, so it’s easy for students to hide and disengage in such a setting. Ruhee, however, participates regularly, asking pertinent questions and responding to discussion prompts. She has also completed her work consistently and thoroughly (which can be rare in a large class of first-year students). The most significant assignment in my course is the Individual Professional Development Plan (IPDP), a culminating paper requiring students to plot out their college careers and beyond with an eye toward goals, self-assessment, engineering projects/research of interest, co-curricular activities, and more. Because this assignment comes later in the semester, Ruhee has not completed her IPDP yet. However, my discussions with her along with a look at her résumé tell me that she is well poised to construct a very solid IPDP and eventual career. Her exceptional high-school GPA and the plethora of AP courses she took leave no doubt that she excels academically, but it’s her wealth of work experience – as a first-year college student, she has already served as a Research Assistant at UGA, Yale, and Johns Hopkins – that I find most impressive and indicative of a person poised for success. She has also amassed numerous volunteer and service-oriented achievements, including the role of teacher to 20 2nd graders, along with a long list of awards and extracurricular activities. Finally, the fact that she can converse in five languages apart from English makes her incredibly valuable as a working engineer in an increasingly global industry. I have absolutely no doubt that any assistance we can provide for her budding career will pay guaranteed dividends to human society in the coming years. It is my pleasure to recommend Ruhee Merchant without reservation for the Georgia Engineering Foundation Scholarship. If I can help further with her application process, please let me know. Thank you, John Brocato Technical Communication Lecturer School of Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering College of Engineering University of Georgia Fellow, American Society for Engineering Education 706.542.6619 john.brocato@uga.edu

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