STEAM Sports Foundation Reveals Scholarship Recipients for 2026-27 Five Female STEAM-focused Engineers Envision Motorsports Careers

Alpharetta, GA (July 14) – Five aspiring motorsports engineers have been selected to receive a $5,000 STEAM Sports Foundation scholarship for the 2026-27 academic year.  The five include two former and three first-time recipients.

Jayda Jenkins is a junior mechanical engineering major at UT-San Antonio.  In addition to being active in UTSA’s Formula SAE (FSAE) program, she has done two co-ops with Toyota and is interning this summer at Martin Technologies in Michigan.  At Martin, she has been involved in engine calibration and tuning (including weather factoring), race data analysis, simulation, software/hardware applications, testing, compliance, AI development, and even product design. Jenkins is a three-time scholarship recipient.

Kyndal Newsome, a senior mechanical engineering major at Florida A&M University, is a member of the FAMU/Florida State FSAE program.  She has created detailed SolidWorks CAD models and engineering drawings, developing fabrication instructions to guide machining and assembly of heat-resistant alloy components, including refined assembly processes to ensure reliable thermal-to-mechanical performance.  Newsome is a three-time scholarship recipient.

London Parker is a sophomore at Kettering University, majoring in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Artificial Intelligence. Through Kettering University's co-op program, she works at General Motors, where she has gained experience in inbound logistics and HMI purchasing, building skills in supply chain management, procurement, and cross-functional collaboration. She hopes to leverage these experiences to improve operational efficiency, logistics, and strategic decision-making within the motorsports industry.

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Shuniti Taddese is a junior mechanical engineer major at the Colorado School of Mines where she has been involved with the university’s FSAE program. For 2026-2027, she is on the simulation side of the powertrain subsystem. She will work GT Suite to simulate and optimize powertrain performance. This summer she is working as an undergraduate research fellow in the XSTRM lab. The lab focuses on the extreme mechanics of materials, specifically those that are meant to be protective across defense, aerospace.

De’vyne Wills is a junior at Tennessee State University where she is studying architectural engineering. She has participated in the NXG Youth Motorsports program in Indianapolis and during the summer of 2025, interned with IndyCar’s technology group.  There she assisted with timing and scoring, supported race control, helped manage communications between officials, teams, and safety personnel, aided the setup and calibration of data acquisition systems, collected telemetry from vehicles, distributed performance data to engineers and race teams, and contributed to post-race data analysis and reporting.

“This is another outstanding scholarship class,” remarked Bob Dickinson, STEAM Sports Foundation’s founder and executive director. “Our mission to establish a strong group of pioneer engineers is coming to fruition.”

To date, STEAM Sports Foundation has provided 26 scholarships since 2022, ranging from $5,000-$10,000. The foundation’s mission is to establish a strong and inclusive career development pipeline for the motorsports and automotive industry by focusing on underrepresented students with STEAM-based backgrounds and to provide them with targeted training and opportunities.

In addition to scholarships, STEAM Sports Foundation provides its recipients with two Immersion Tours annually (one to a major race weekend and another to an OEM headquarters operation), internship assistance, and a soon-to-be-announced career summit for female college students aspiring to careers in the motorsports or automotive industry.

About STEAM Sports Foundation

Recognizing workforce and economic development as integral parts of corporate growth, STEAM Sports Foundation collaborates with companies, educators, and sports groups to develop initiatives around science, technology, engineering, arts, and math that impact the world of sports & entertainment. 

 The foundation’s primary focus is on scholarships and career summits to help create a career path for tomorrow’s vibrant workforce. Its scholarship program in automotive/motorsports engineering for under-represented communities provides opportunities in a transportation industry that is ever-changing via innovation and technology to individuals who traditionally did not consider these career paths simply because they saw few who looked like them in the industry.

Contact: info@steamsportsfoundation.org

Telephone: 770-815-0125