Contact: Aga Haupt
A May chemical engineering graduate of Mississippi State University is receiving a national scholarship to further her academic study.
Maxine J. Jones of Roxie is a 2002 selection for the Graduate Education for Minorities Fellowship that will support her doctoral study at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Administered by the nonprofit National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science, the fellowship covers tuition and fees, while providing a $14,000 annual stipend.
Jones is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Jones and a 1997 Franklin High School graduate. As a Wal-Mart Competitive Edge Scholar, she was featured in the retail chain's 1999 national television and print advertising campaigns.
A 26-year-old organization based in South Bend, Ind., the GEM fellowship consortium is dedicated to increasing the number of under-represented minorities in engineering and physical and natural science graduate programs. American corporations fund stipends and some tuition, while participating graduate schools provide the remaining financial support.
Shell Chemical Co. is Jones' sponsor and she is working this summer at its corporate offices in Houston, Texas. After completing her doctoral degree, Jones plans to join the petroleum industry for a time before pursuing a career teaching chemical engineering at the university level.
"I want to work in industry first to get hands-on experience to make my classes more exciting for the students," said Jones, who worked as an undergraduate research assistant at MSU with chemical engineering professor Clifford George.
Their collaborative investigations sought ways to more effectively and economically produce ethanol as an alternative fuel.