Discovery Park congratulates Purdue’s first Draper fellows

The Institute for Global Security and Defense Innovation (i-GSDI) at Discovery Park has secured Purdue as a participant in the prestigious Draper Fellow Program. Through the Draper Fellow Program support, Purdue graduate students will be immersed in Purdue’s research environment and also will take advantage of the Charles Stark Draper Laboratories’ facilities, collective knowledge and experience.

Draper fellows work closely with Draper technical staff to develop state-of-the-art technologies in world-class laboratories, and their scholarly outputs often go beyond top-tier journal papers and conference presentations to include prototypes, test beds and field implementations. Each Draper fellow conducts their research under the supervision of both a University faculty advisor and a Draper supervisor who is a member of Draper’s technical staff in an area of mutual interest. The laboratory specializes in the design, development and deployment of advanced technology solutions to problems in national security, space exploration, health care, and energy.

Dan DeLaurentis, director of i-GSDI, says, "The Draper Fellows Program is well-known and respected in the defense community. We are thrilled to be one of the very few universities to be a part of it."

Discovery Park welcomes Levi Davies of Purdue’s School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Averyonna Kimery of the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology as the inaugural Draper fellows for Fall 2019.

Davies is working to characterize radiation effects in 3D logic and memory devices using simulation tools available at Purdue, combined with future experiments at Draper’s advanced facilities with a goal of improving radiation tolerance of these new devices.

“This award is about far more than prestige for me,” Davies says.  “I’m being honored with the chance to work with some of the foremost experts in the world and use their remarkable facilities. I’m being given the tools I need to help surmount this looming technological barrier.”

Kimery will be attending Purdue in the fall to start a PhD program in materials engineering and plans to work on developing solutions to be used in the defense fields. Some current areas of interest are related to hypersonic flight, and possible areas of research include materials for leading edges and windows for hypersonic flight applications. 

Kimery says, “I am very excited to have the honor of being selected as a Draper fellow. It is truly a privilege to have the opportunity to work with Draper scientists and contribute to real-life, cutting-edge solutions. I look forward to all of the new experiences and knowledge I will gain working with Draper and Purdue University.” 

In this partnership, i-GSDI continues in its role within Discovery Park to be the lead technical agent for bringing talent to the Purdue ecosystem and facilitate the transition of Purdue students to defense/security partners. Draper fellow alumni are from both civilian and military backgrounds and excel worldwide in the technical, corporate, government, academic and entrepreneurship sectors.

Purdue’s participation in the Draper Fellow Program aligns with the 150th anniversary celebration by providing students novel opportunities to contribute to research and to tackle some of the most pressing world challenges.

About Discovery Park

Discovery Park is a place where Purdue researchers move beyond traditional boundaries, collaborating across disciplines and with policymakers and business leaders to create solutions for a better world. Grand challenges of global health, global conflict and security, and those that lie at the nexus of sustainable energy, world food supply, water and the environment are the focus of researchers in Discovery Park. The translation of discovery to impact is integrated into the fabric of Discovery Park through entrepreneurship programs and partnerships.