Travel Support for Student and Postdoc Participation in the Society of Engineering Science Conference (SES2025); Atlanta, Georgia; 12-15 October 2025

This award provides travel and registration support to 90 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to attend the 62nd Society of Engineering Science (SES) Technical Meeting, which will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, from 12-15 October 2025. The SES conference is an esteemed annual event dedicated to fostering the development and strengthening of interdisciplinary connections across engineering, sciences, mathematics, and related fields. Recognized as a leading forum in the mechanics community, SES facilitates the exchange of ideas among researchers from various disciplines and promotes discussions on the latest advances through highly focused symposia. The primary goal of this award is to support 50 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to present their research at the SES conference, contributing to their professional growth and development. Additionally, this award will support the implementation of the 2nd Future Faculty Symposium (FFS) at SES2025, providing support for 40 senior PhD students and postdocs with outstanding research credentials to attend this symposium. The objective of the FFS is to equip prospective faculty with the knowledge and networks needed for a successful academic career. The symposium will feature a poster session for participants to showcase their research and education credentials, followed by a fishbowl conversation panel with faculty, department heads, and federal program managers, who will share advice on the academic application process, interview strategies, and transitioning into academia. This event will offer significant visibility to attendees, opportunities to network with mentors, and facilitate connections with potential employers. This awarded project aims to build, retain, and recruit the next generation of researcher/leaders in the mechanics of materials and structures community, providing them with the tools to thrive in their future academic and research careers. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.