2021-08-30: 2021 SPEEA Aerospace Career Enhancement Scholarship Awarded to Elliott Khilfeh

PRESS RELEASE

“SPEEA Aerospace Career Enhancement Scholarship Awarded”

Scholarships Awarded for LGBTQ Undergraduate Students in Aerospace

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Aug. 30 2021

Out To Innovate Announces SPEEA Aerospace Career Enhancement Scholarship

The winner of the 2021 SPEAA ACE $5000 Scholarship is Elliott Khilfeh. Elliott is completing a bachelor’s degree in Physics at Western Washington University, where he has spent this summer working in an astronomy lab. These are some initial steps towards accomplishing his goal to work as an astrophysicist for NASA. “Being an openly queer and transgender Palestinian-American student has come with a lot of struggles. I am so grateful for Out to Innovate and the SPEEA ACE Scholarship, which recognizes my experiences and encourages me to become a proud queer astrophysicist. Growing up, I never saw scientists like me, and I want to change that. My time as an undergraduate has made it apparent that the physics community still has a long way to go with diversity. This scholarship gives me the opportunity to use my visibility and voice to foster a more inclusive environment in physics, and encourage other LGBTQ+ STEM students to keep chasing their dreams.”

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About Out To Innovate
Out To Innovate (formerly NOGLSTP) was established in 1980, incorporated in the state of California in 1991, and was granted IRS 501 (c) 3 nonprofit status in 1992. Out To Innovate is a professional society that educates and advocates for LGBTQ people in STEM. Out To Innovate presents educational symposia and workshops nationwide and fosters dialog with other professional societies, academia, and industry to facilitate diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Out To Innovate is an affiliate of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, is a sustaining member of the National Postdoctoral Association, a member of the Gay and Lesbian Leadership Institute Presidential Advisory Project’s Coalition, a partner with the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium, a partner of the Society for Women Engineers, and a founding member of the DiscoverE Diversity Council. For more information, visit the website at www.noglstp.org or contact scholarships@noglstp.org.