Six outstanding seniors receive Zimmerman Family Award
Audrey DeKoninck (mechanical engineering), Avery Kimmel (chemical engineering), Ella Richardson (ME), Tanishaa Shah (computer engineering), Alison Steele (biomedical engineering) and Madeleine Yee (aeronautical and astronautical engineering) were recipients of the most prestigious award given by Purdue University’s Women in Engineering Program.
Six Purdue University seniors soon will join an impressive lineage.
Audrey DeKoninck (mechanical engineering), Avery Kimmel (chemical engineering), Ella Richardson (ME), Tanishaa Shah (computer engineering), Alison Steele (biomedical engineering) and Madeleine Yee (aeronautical and astronautical engineering) were chosen to receive the Zimmerman Family Award, the most prestigious award given by Purdue University’s Women in Engineering Program.
The award was established in 1967 and has continued through an endowment funded by the Zimmerman family, including Robert (BSCE ’32), wife Ann and daughter Mary Ann (BSCE ’66, MSCE ’68).
Among the past recipients are Janice Voss, Jennifer Sinclair Curtis and Julie Kramer White, all honored as Distinguished Engineering Alumni by the College of Engineering for incredible impact after graduation.
Voss (BSES ’75, DEA ’12) became a NASA astronaut and Purdue’s first woman in space — flying as a mission specialist aboard five missions, traveling more than 18.8 million miles and spending 49 days in space.
Sinclair Curtis (BSChE ’83, DEA ’19) was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2023, three years removed from serving as dean of engineering at UC Davis.
Kramer White (BSAAE ’90, DEA ’23) rose to become the director of engineering at NASA Johnson Space Center.
All share traits with the latest awardees.
“The Zimmerman Family Award is intended to recognize a graduating senior who not only has achieved academic excellence, but also excellence in leadership, service, research and more, essentially being an outstanding engineering student in all aspects,” said Beth Holloway, senior assistant dean for student access and success in the College of Engineering and Leah H. Jamieson Director of Women in Engineering. “Graduates who have been recognized with the Zimmerman Family Award are outstanding representatives of Purdue engineers, and this year’s group is no exception.”
A closer look the 2025 recipients:
Audrey DeKoninck
Since she was 10, DeKoninck knew she wanted to be an engineer. Her four years at Purdue confirmed she made the right choice, despite late nights and occasional “not so good exam score.” The experience, overall, was everything she hoped it’d be — community through WiE, undergrad research opportunities and internships, and leadership and professional experience through serving as the president of Purdue’s chapter of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and as a board member on the Purdue Engineering Presidents Council.
“Purdue Engineering set me up to become a great engineer,” DeKoninck said. “Through the classes and extracurricular opportunities I've been involved in, I know I will be successful in my graduate degree, my future career, and beyond.”
For WiE, DeKoninck participated in the Mentees & Mentors (M&M) Program where she learned from other women, calling the experience “instrumental to my success early in college.”
“Once I found confidence in my own abilities to mentor, I loved sharing my experiences and advice with younger students,” she said. “I always knew I had a community supporting me.”
DeKoninck is enrolled in Purdue’s 4+1 master’s program, so after obtaining her BS in May 2025, she will return to Purdue in the fall for graduate school, doing thesis research with ME professor Jitesh Panchal in the Design Engineering Lab at Purdue.
“It means so much to me to be recognized for my engineering leadership and service on campus. ... I am incredibly grateful for the support from the Zimmerman family. I hope to be able to give back and continue uplifting future women in engineering through mentorship and financial support in my future.”
Avery Kimmel
Kimmel diligently pursued academic and professional excellence during her time at Purdue.
Not only was Kimmel a mainstay for WiE — starting as an Operations Leadership Team member in 2021 — she also persistently pursued professional development through undergraduate research and internships. After sophomore year, Kimmel was a plant and utilizes engineering intern at Pfizer Global Supply in North Carolina. The next summer, she was a process engineering intern at Burns & McDonnell in Chicago. She’ll head back to the latter after graduating with a BS in chemical engineering, starting her career as an assistant chemical engineer in the Life Sciences & Technology group.
“Earning a Purdue Engineering degree has not only prepared me technically for this role, but I have also gained invaluable professional experiences and critical thinking skills which will greatly contribute to my success in this role,” Kimmel said.
She also found community at Purdue, saying WiE provided “countless” opportunities to grow professionally and personally.
“Over the past four years, the Women in Engineering Program has been a constant support system as I navigated Purdue Engineering,” Kimmel said.
“Receiving this award is an honor and a humbling recognition of the hard work and passion I’ve put into not only the Women in Engineering Program, but also into my own growth through the journey of Purdue Engineering. It is a reminder that effort and commitment truly do make an impact!”
Ella Richardson
Richardson always tells people she was drawn to Purdue Engineering by a strong sense of community and collaboration. That proved to be true over four years on campus.
WiE had plenty to do with that.
“Looking back, the Women in Engineering Program has been so important and influential throughout my college journey,” said Richardson, who was a member of the WE Link Leadership Team. “I will miss working for this program every week, but I know the community will follow me throughout the rest of my life. I am so grateful for all the ways it grew me as an engineer, leader and teammate.”
After graduating with a mechanical engineering degree in May, Richardson will start as a resource technical integration engineer at Barrios Technology in June, continuing to work consumables management for the International Space Station. Barrios was one of several internship and research opportunities Richardson had over her Purdue career, as she worked for the support contractor on site at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in the summer of 2024. She initially was introduced to the company at the national Society of Women Engineers Conference, as she was one of the students sponsored by Purdue’s SWE section to attend. She also had support through mentors with the Leading Women Toward Space Careers Program and an alum in Houston early in her career.
“Purdue Engineering has supported me along this path in so many ways,” Richardson said. “I am so incredibly thankful for the support and connection through the Boilermaker family!”
“I am incredibly excited and honored to receive the Zimmerman Family Scholarship award. The Women in Engineering Program at Purdue has been so instrumental in my shaping my experience here, so to be selected for this award means so much to me. … Awards like this are further evidence of this support and generosity in the Boilermaker family.”
Tanishaa Shah
Shah, who will graduate with a BS in computer engineering, has had a breadth of leadership and internship experience during her time at Purdue.
She was the president of the Women in ECE, an executive member of the ECE student society, a member of the ECE honor society Eta Kappa Nu, and an undergraduate teaching assistant in ECE 200007.
During the academic year, she also found community and support through WiE — the first program she joined at Purdue — through M&M as a mentee and a mentor. Shah credits WiE for helping her feel connected early in her Purdue journey and is "thankful for the role it played throughout my time here.”
Shah also stayed busy in the summers, landing internships with William Blair in Chicago after her sophomore year and Toyota Material Handling in Columbus, Indiana, before her senior year.
“Purdue Engineering has played a huge role in shaping me, both professionally and personally,” Shah said. “The challenging coursework, supportive faculty and all the opportunities to get involved really helped me grow. More than that, the people I met — classmates, colleagues and mentors —made the experience even more meaningful. I’ve learned a lot here, and I truly feel ready for whatever comes next.”
The immediate “next” for Shah is a summer internship at Eli Lilly & Company as a robotics engineering intern. In the fall, she’ll attend graduate school.
“Receiving this award is incredibly encouraging. It makes all the hard work feel seen and valued. It’s motivated me even more to keep working hard, stay involved and find ways to give back.”
Alison Steele
Steele’s Purdue career included real-world experience in a co-op at DePuy Synthes, through the Office of Professional Practice, and study abroad and internship through GEARE. Those helped Steeele discover a passion for the medical device and orthopedics industries, build global perspective and strengthen communication and leadership skills.
But Steele won’t only leave Purdue with all that technical knowledge and a degree in biomedical engineering.
“Purdue Engineering taught me to approach challenges with curiosity, resilience and collaboration — all of which I know will be essential as I move forward,” Steele said.
That collaboration piece certainly came through work experiences, but it also was rooted in a community developed and cherished on campus in West Lafayette.
Steele joined WiE’s Learning Community as a first-year student and met people who became her closest friends. She discovered the power of collaboration through study groups. She appreciated ongoing mentorship and support through WiE, calling it a “constant.”
“As a co-op student who spent semesters away from campus, it meant so much to know that WiE would always be there when I returned,” Steele said. “In a time that often felt like everything around me was changing, the Women in Engineering Program was a rock — a steady and welcoming community I could rely on, no matter where my path was taking me. I’m so grateful for the role it played in helping me grow into the engineer and person I am today.”
After graduation, Steele will pursue a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Galway in Ireland — where she studied abroad last fall through GEARE.
“Receiving the Zimmerman Family Award is such an incredible honor. It feels like a full-circle moment, recognizing all of the growth, hard work and community that shaped my time at Purdue. Honestly, my freshman-year self would be amazed to see how far I've come five years later, nearing graduation. I'm especially grateful to the Women in Engineering Program for being a steady source of encouragement and belonging throughout that journey.”
Madeleine Yee
Since first arriving on West Lafayette’s campus, Yee has found strength through WiE, a steadying source of support through all facets of her Purdue career.
Yee found deep connections with the program, whether it was being part of M&M — first as a mentee and later as a mentor — or the recruitment program committee or as a volunteer for Exploring Engineering.
“Through the program, I’ve been able to have a bigger involvement with my community and support others just like they supported me,” said Yee, who is enrolled in the 4+1 master’s degree program in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. “I’ve learned very useful advice and used the meetings to bond with my peers.”
Yee also had an opportunity to perform undergraduate research for a pair of professors (Jun Chen and Tom Shih), gain valuable work experience through summer internships (L3Harris Technologies and the Aerospace Corporation, twice) and stay active in student organizations and societies like Women in Aerospace, Sigma Gamma Tau, Society of Women Engineers and Leading Women Towards Space Careers.
“Purdue Engineering provided me a community of resources and friends I could rely on in my classes,” Yee said.
“This award reaffirms my dedication to supporting women in engineering. Based on my past experiences, encouraging girls to pursue engineering is one of my biggest passions, and I look forward to continuing my volunteer work to helps girls become the best engineers they can be.”