Moo-Young Receives Prestigious Senior Scholarship

Joseph Moo-Young, a senior in the Textile Engineering and Chemical Engineering departments at North Carolina State University, has been awarded the College of Engineering Faculty Senior Scholarship.

The COE Faculty Senior Scholarship is awarded annually to a full-time student who exemplifies academic excellence, intellectual breadth, and depth of character. The recipient must be a full-time student with a projected graduation date in the following academic year.

In summer 2014, Moo-Young worked in process improvement at Eastman Chemical Company in Kingsport, Tenn. He has worked for Merck & Co.’s Merck Manufacturing Division and for Pasquinelli Research Group.

He hopes to attend graduate school for chemical engineering with concentrations in either biomedical sciences or sustainable energy.

His ultimate goal is to work in the areas of biocompatible polymers, antibiotics for multiple-drug resistant bacteria, photovoltaics or second generation biofuels.

“Whether my work will be in academia or industry, I have yet to decide, but I will let my experiences over the next few years better inform my ultimate decision,” he says.

When asked about his NC State experience Joseph says, “what I value the most about the Wilson College of Textiles are the people, from collegial and friendly peers, to supportive and empowering faculty and staff like Drs. Pasquinelli and Jasper, and I truly believe it has been the people that have enabled my education. I felt honored to be the Textile Engineering nominee, and I am very thankful for receiving the award,” he says.

Moo-Young is interested in social enterprise. Since 2013, he has held the position of director of metrics and impact assessment with organization called Pennies 4 Progress that seeks to improve local schools by supporting high-impact projects in classrooms.

He serves as the academics commissioner in Student Government, where he worked on the 3rd annual Undergraduate Research Speed Date, in which students meet professors from all disciplines to learn about research.

He is also involved with SATELLITE (Science and Technology Enriching Lifelong Leadership In Tomorrow’s Endeavors), a 5-day summer camp where rising high school juniors in underserved high schools across North Carolina interested in STEM fields are introduced to opportunities in the field.

Moo-Young participated in a summer seminar on American public and cultural diplomacy policies in the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. He also participated in the Triangle Global Health Consortium Case Study Competition, where his team’s mission was to develop a comprehensive system for vaccine and primary healthcare delivery in rural Pakistan.

These opportunities showed him how important it is to maintain a holistic worldview and thought process. “As an engineer, I hope to contribute these perspectives in whatever work I do,” he says.

Moo-Young has been the recipient of numerous scholarships, including the Caldwell Fellowship, NC Textile Foundation Erlanger Merit Scholarship, and Merck & Co. Engineering and Technology Fellowship.