UC Merced Grad Honored by Society of Women Engineers

Annaliza Perez Torres has already accomplished plenty.

A 2019 graduate of UC Merced, Perez was named the School of Engineering's Outstanding Student in Materials Science and Engineering and earned Research Excellence recognition from the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center.

Now Perez, an engineer with Lockheed Martin, has received a Rising Technical Contributor Award from the Society of Women Engineers.

According to the SWE, this award honors an individual who identifies as a woman and has been actively engaged for less than five years in the fields of engineering, engineering management, engineering education, engineering technology or science related to engineering as a professional or graduate student. The nominee must have demonstrated outstanding technical performance and/or leadership in a technical field, as well as leadership in professional organizations and the community.

Perez, who emigrated to the United States from the Philippines as a child with her family, said UC Merced provided her the chance to fulfill her potential and achieve success after financial concerns initially forced her to drop out of another college.

"UC Merced admitted me under scholarships and grants, offering me another chance at a college experience," she said. "I never took that for granted and made the most of every opportunity."

She said the inclusive environment at UC Merced made the campus feel like home and helped her uncover her passion for materials and science engineering.

"The MSE field resonated deeply with my curiosity about how the physical world works and how materials can be engineered to solve complex problems, guiding my academic and career path forward," she said.

And she hasn't left UC Merced behind. Perez will be back on campus in November to speak to a first-year chemical and materials engineering class. She also takes part in alumni panels with several campus organizations.

"One of the things I am passionate about outside of the materials science and engineering realm is education and outreach," she said. "These experiences have allowed me to connect with students, share my journey and give back to the community that supported me. I look forward to continuing this work and inspiring the next generation of engineers."

The SWE's annual awards program celebrates the trailblazers driving progress in the STEM community and championing the advancement of women in engineering. The 2024 SWE awards honorees include collegiates and professionals from leading companies, organizations and academic institutions around the world.

"I'm so excited to be able to celebrate these phenomenal award winners this October in Chicago at WE24 where the theme is 'Together We Rise,'" Karen Roth, SWE president, said in a news release. "We received well over 1,000 submissions, and this group of awardees showed us how they embody the mission of SWE and inspire others along the way across the global landscape. These truly are some of the best engineers and scientists in the world."

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