Two standout students—Owen Cornmesser and Luke Lovelace— have earned the prestigious Chancellor’s National Academy STEM Ph.D. Fellowship from the Hagler Institute for Advanced Study. This fall, they will pursue their doctoral studies in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Texas A&M University.
Cornmesser, a Colorado School of Mines student-athlete turned researcher, found academic inspiration on the greens of the university’s golf course. Through athletics, Cornmesser discovered a passion for engineering that paralleled the discipline and strategy he applied to his game. That mindset carried over to his research, where he dove into topics ranging from electric vehicle (EV) demand forecasting to the simulation of renewable energy integration into power systems.
“When I started school, I was thrown into the incredible realm of engineering and started falling in love with it. I started doing some undergraduate research with my current advisor, and I really enjoyed that, so I started working on my master’s degree,” Cornmesser said.
Cornmesser completed a combined bachelor’s and master’s degree at Mines, working on complex simulations of renewable energy systems. His master’s research focuses on creating efficient models that allow for detailed integration of distributed energy sources like solar into large-scale power systems, without overwhelming computational resources.
Now headed to the electrical and computer engineering department, Cornmesser will work with Dr. Thomas Overbye, a professor and director of the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station Smart Grid Center, and Dr. Adam Birchfield, a professor. Together, they’ll explore how to accelerate renewable energy adoption to be both economically viable and technically sound.
“There’s a lot of reasons why adding renewables to the grid can be challenging,” Cornmesser said. “My work is about how we can reduce those technical barriers.”
For Lovelace, a senior in Texas A&M’s own Engineering Honors Program, the path to a Ph.D. was a little closer to home but just as impactful. Having spent four years immersed in research and student leadership within the Honors Executive Committee, Lovelace will turn his focus to analog and mixed-signal circuit design. He plans to work under Dr. Jose Silva-Martinez, a professor in the department, for his doctorate.
“Functionally, I take a theoretical circuit and make it real,” Lovelace explained. “That means ensuring that a chip still performs as intended once it’s manufactured, despite the many non-idealities that occur in real-world physics.”
His passion for engineering stems from growing up around electronics from his father, also an electrical engineer. As he transitions from student to researcher, Luke is grateful for the guidance he’s received from professors and mentors like Department Head Dr. Narasimha Reddy, who played a key role in encouraging him to apply for the Chancellor’s Fellowship.
“Dr. Reddy saw my potential and told me, ‘You’re good. Apply to this fellowship.’ Without him, I wouldn’t be here,” Lovelace said.
Looking ahead, both Cornmesser and Lovelace see professorship as a potential goal, balancing their passion for research with a desire to give back to students who might follow in their footsteps.
"There were many times where I had to learn the deeper meanings of topics the hard way,” Cornmesser said. “Once I got to this point, I realized the beauty and sense of magic the subject offered, instilling curiosity and a passion for it. I want to give students this same feeling when learning the subject at first, hopefully enticing more people to fall in love with engineering in the same way I have."
Luke echoed the sentiment:
“Teaching is hard, but I think I’d be good at it. I’ve had amazing professors and TAs who went above and beyond for me, and I’d like to do the same for others.”
As the department prepares to welcome both scholars this fall, the Chancellor’s Fellowship continues to fulfill its mission: attracting top-tier talent to Texas A&M and enabling research that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in electrical and computer engineering.