• Brooke Owens Fellow, Class of 2021

• Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Aerospace Engineering, ‘22

• Host Institution: Lockheed Martin Advanced Programs

• Mentor: Jose Hernandez

• Brookie Mentor: Sanjana Tewathia

Marlene is a Junior at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and is actively pursuing a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering with an Astronautics concentration. Her goals involve Rocket Engineering, Materials Science, Engineering Design, and a hope to be involved in the development and deployment of the first crewed missions to Mars.

Having known she wanted to do STEM since she was 13, thanks, in large part, to the UCSB-hosted Tech Trek STEM Summer Program, Marlene worked hard to secure internships very young in life. Her first internship was secured at only 14 years old, with the California Institute of Technology, followed quickly by an internship at Lockheed Martin at 16. Her performances in these internships were exemplary, and she quickly earned the trust and respect of her colleagues in every team she worked with.

In the case of the Lockheed Martin internships, this resulted in repeat internship offerings, for various teams, providing a diverse and well-rounded supply of experiences and real-world job skills. Marlene plans to continue her Lockheed Martin internships with a 2021 Summer Internship at Lockheed Martin Space, based in Colorado, USA.

When Marlene isn’t prepping for her next exam, she enjoys time with family, her dog Max, and going to Disneyland. Other interests include road trips of any kind, hiking through nature, biking at high speeds, and learning new things from any available source (books, articles, websites, etc.).

Marlene is also involved in various outreach programs and has been instrumental in the development of new efforts; such as a programming workshop at her high school, a “Society of Women Engineers Express Engineering to Youngsters” summer program, Tech Trek Interviews, Intern Recruiting (both at the High School and College levels), and many others.

Marlene is also the recipient of multiple awards/scholarships. She was part of the inaugural cohort for the Lockheed Martin STEM Scholars Program, is a Cal Poly Scholar, Cal Poly Boeing Scholar, Young Member of the New York Academy of Sciences, and a member of the Society of Women Engineers.