Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue Names Winners of its 2023 Freedom Scholarship

The Freedom Scholarship is Part of the Institute’s Next Generation Program,
Empowering Tomorrow’s Tech Diplomacy Leaders with Scholarships,
Mentorship, Internships, Fellowships, Sponsorships and Leadership Training

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. & WASHINGTON, D.C. December 7, 2023 — Today, the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue announced the winners of its 2023 Freedom Scholarship. This prestigious scholarship is designed to empower and nurture the next generation of Tech Diplomacy leaders, recognizing outstanding students at Purdue University who embody transformational leadership qualities and an unwavering commitment to advancing freedom.

As the leading global authority on Tech Diplomacy, the Institute’s next gen mission is to empower emerging leaders in this field by sharing real-world insights with aspiring leaders worldwide, democratizing the process of acquiring the essential skills for success in Tech Diplomacy. The Krach Institute’s Next Generation Tech Diplomacy Leaders Program seamlessly integrates an array of opportunities, including scholarships, mentorship, internships, fellowships, sponsorships, and leadership training, into a comprehensive platform.

Keith Krach, chairman and co-founder of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, commented, “The mission of the Krach Institute—ensuring that technology advances freedom—is a long-term endeavor that requires us to invest in the development of the next generation of Tech Diplomacy leaders. We are honored to contribute to the growth of this year’s scholarship recipients and are eager to help them continue to build the leadership skills that will ensure a more prosperous and free future for us all.”

2023 Krach Institute Freedom Scholarship Winners:

 Caitlin Clark serves as the president of Kappa Delta Sorority Theta Nu Chapter and has served as the vice president of inclusion for the chapter. She is majoring in political science with a concentration in international relations, with minors in French and naval science. Clark recently served as an honors intern with the FBI, where she gained valuable exposure to criminal cases, counterterrorism efforts and intelligence operations. She is currently the Company Commander for Bravo Company in the Purdue University Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps and will serve as a Surface Warfare Officer in the US Navy upon graduation.

Joshua Facello is the Vice President of the Purdue Engineering Student Council and a member of Mortar Board. He is also the president and founder of the Purdue Soli, which organizes performances for Purdue musicians to share their talents with the Greater Lafayette area and serves as the concertmaster for the Purdue Philharmonic Orchestra. Facello recently served as an intelligent manufacturing intern for the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, part of the first intern class at the company’s new Phoenix fab. He will graduate in May 2024 with a degree in industrial engineering.

MaKayla McCartan has held several leadership positions in University Residences, including serving as a resident assistant and on the executive board of University Residences Multicultural Connections. She currently serves as the mentorship program coordinator for the Purdue Foundation Student Board. McCartan recently served as a cybersecurity risk consulting intern with Grant Thornton and served as treasurer for the Purdue chapter of Women in Cybersecurity. She will graduate in May 2024 as a cybersecurity major with minors in sociology and organizational leadership.

Alyson Pickering serves as director of the Purdue Panhellenic Association’s Scholastic and Leadership Development program, where she oversees an experimental leadership program, Future Greek Leaders, for newer members of the community. She is contributing an understanding of how semiconductors function in electronic assemblies on a senior design project sponsored by the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Crane Division. Pickering serves as an undergraduate research assistant in the Manufacturing Design Laboratory and will graduate in May 2024 with a double major in materials engineering and French, and a minor in global engineering.

Parsia Bahrami serves as the vice president of recruitment and outreach for the Purdue Foundation Student Board. He has held leadership positions with Old Masters and Rising Professionals and serves as a peer educator with University Residences Multicultural Connections. He has held multiple cybersecurity internships, most recently with KPMG. A member of the John Martinson Honors College, Bahrami is majoring in cybersecurity with a minor in organizational leadership and will graduate in May 2024.

To be eligible for this prestigious award, honorees must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, hold a leadership position on campus, and demonstrate an interest in issues related to national security, civil societies, or the advancement of freedom. They should also possess skills in technological fields critical to national security, such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and semiconductors. The names of each recipient will be displayed on a plaque in the Krach Leadership Center.

The Krach Institute’s Next Generation Tech Diplomacy Leaders Program is a comprehensive and integrated initiative, offering a suite of opportunities that include:

Scholarships: The Tech Diplomacy Freedom Scholars Program awards scholarships to exceptional student leaders at Purdue, granting them access to Tech Diplomacy training and leadership development programs, including the Institute’s prestigious summer internship.

Mentorship: Through the institute’s recent acquisition of the Global Mentor Network (GMN), the world’s leading virtual mentor network, the program focuses on nurturing leaders dedicated to values-based leadership and diverse thought. Founded on the belief that transformational leadership is key to addressing global challenges, GMN enables its mentors to share their real-world insights widely and efficiently online, reaching thousands of aspiring leaders and making it possible to build leaders through mentorship at scale.

Internships: The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue’s internship program is designed to create a talent pipeline, enabling students from Purdue and other universities to gain hands-on experience in Tech Diplomacy. Interns have the opportunity to serve as ambassadors to renowned global leaders on the Institute’s advisory board. The goal is to prepare interns to contribute to the adoption of trusted technology across diverse career paths.

Fellowships: Our Next Gen Fellows Program provides internships to exceptional recent graduates from leading universities, offering mentorship and project opportunities to build skills, experience, and expertise in Tech Diplomacy. By investing in this next generation of leaders, the program aims to contribute to the global advancement of freedom through trusted technology.

Sponsorships: Scholars, fellows, and interns are eligible for government or corporate sponsorships as part of the program. These sponsorships further enrich the educational and experiential opportunities for our participants, reinforcing their commitment to Tech Diplomacy and the advancement of freedom.

Leadership Training: The Krach Institute’s Tech Diplomacy Academy offers self-paced online short courses on critical emerging technologies vital to U.S. foreign policy and national security interests. In addition, the Tech Diplomacy Academy motivates the next generation of transformational leaders to pursue careers in this critical field.

The Krach Institute Freedom Lecture Series: This series brings esteemed global speakers to Purdue’s campus in West Lafayette, Indiana, imparting the principles of Tech Diplomacy and the mission of advancing freedom through trusted technology to emerging leaders from various academic backgrounds.

The Krach Institute’s Next Generation Tech Diplomacy Leaders Program is a comprehensive and integrated initiative, uniting scholarships, mentorship, internships, fellowships, sponsorships, and leadership training into an integrated platform that paves the way for a brighter future of trusted technology and global freedom.

For media inquiries, please contact: Colette LaForce  CJLaforce@prf.org

About the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue

The Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue is the world’s preeminent nonprofit trusted technology accelerator. As the leader of a new category called Tech Diplomacy, the Institute is focused on driving outcomes three core areas: the creation of action-oriented strategies and solutions that will help advance principles of trusted tech at a global scale; the growth of the Global Trusted Tech Network of individuals and organizations who support the fight against techno-authoritarianism; the creation of education and training to increase the widespread practice of Tech Diplomacy.

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About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research institution with excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top 4 in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, with 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 12 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap, including its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the new Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business and Purdue Computes, at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.