AZLoop heads to SpaceX Hyperloop competition Sunday

Arizona State engineering grad student is role model for girls in STEM

Tempe, Arizona, Aug. 23, 2017 -- The second round of the SpaceX Hyperloop Competition is taking in place this weekend at SpaceX headquarters in California. 

Lynne Nethken, whose college career went through a couple of false starts, is now an engineering grad student at Arizona State University and will be there in Hawthone urging on the team she’s been leading for the past year.

Nethken traveled a circuitous route to becoming co-lead AZLoop, one of 24 collegiate teams selected to send pods down a vacuum-sealed tube as part of entrepreneur Elon Musk’s vision for a high-speed transportation system of the future.

After graduating from high school in 2002, Nethken enrolled in a business administration program at the University of Memphis.  Claiming she “did terrible in my classes because I was completely disinterested in them,” she left school and started working in retail.

Another business degree attempt in Colorado in 2005 was unsuccessful, and Nethken landed in healthcare administration-dental management until 2010, when she moved to Arizona to pursue an engineering degree.

“That was what I should have been doing all along,” said Nethken, who’s loved space exploration, rockets and astronomy since childhood. “It took me many years to realize that engineering was the path I should be on. “It just never occurred to me that STEM was not just some hobby. It wasn’t until my mid-20s that I realized it was my passion and something I desperately wanted to be a part of.”

After working on a wide range of engineering projects as an undergrad, Nethken was honored by ASU in May, 2016 as an outstanding graduate with a B.S.E. in Engineering, earning a GPA of 3.92.

As she began her master’s degree in mechanical engineering last year, Nethken’s undergraduate concentrations in robotics and electrical engineering, and her stint as student project manager for the EcoCAR3 team at ASU, prepared her to step up as the controls subteam leader for ASU’s SpaceX team. This year, the team expanded to include about 100 students from across Arizona – most of them men – and Nethken serves as president and co-lead for the team. 

Questions and Answers with Lynne Nethken

1.  What ultimately triggered your arrival at “engineering” as a career path while you were in the dental industry?

After spending years in the dental industry I realized that I was not being challenged. I really want to play a role in the development of technology that enables us to further explore the universe. Pursuing a career in engineering is the best way for me to do that. It’s challenging, it’s fun, and it keeps my inquisitive mind intrigued. So, one day I made up my mind to sell everything I own and move to Arizona so that I could earn an engineering degree at ASU.

2.  Once at ASU, was there a faculty member who encouraged you to stay on course?

Not really. Once I put my mind to something there is no stopping me, so I didn't really need encouragement to stay on course. Though looking back, I wish I had found a female faculty member that could have been a mentor. Not so much for encouragement purposes, just as an opportunity to really connect with more women in industry. I learned that by not having a mentor, I missed out on great opportunities with successful female role models who have paved the way for women in engineering.

3.  What in your background has helped you be a leader in a field that is so male dominated — including the AZLoop Team?

I have 5 brothers and no sisters, I was also one of the older siblings. As you can imagine, I had to learn to be tough to keep up with the boys. This built confidence and resilience in my character, and led me to not be afraid of leading a group of men. I think that is the key. As a women, you have to be confident in who you are as a person, and realize that you are just as qualified as the next guy to lead and collaborate with a team.    

4. What would you say is your strongest management skill?  

Effective communication skills. Communication can make or break a project and it starts at the top. You have to communicate the vision and goals of the project. What is it that keeps us going day after day, despite the hard work and late nights? If you can't communicate effectively with the team, then you aren't demonstrating effective leadership.

5.  Of all of your undergrad projects, which most inspired you?  

Hyperloop - it's inspired me to push my leadership and engineering skills to the limit.

6.  When you retire from a long career as an engineer, what’s the legacy you want to leave behind? What makes you most excited about your future in engineering?

The most exciting prospect about my future in engineering is opportunities for entrepreneurship. An engineering degree sets you up to build or develop just about anything you want. The only limit is your imagination and how hard you are willing to work to make your idea a reality and a thriving business venture. The legacy I hope to leave is two fold: I want to bring the Hyperloop to Arizona, and I want to build STEM-based schools for children in impoverished countries. I just want to know that I made an impact on people's lives.

7.  What message do you have for middle school girls to encourage them to investigate engineering, or STEM in general?  How would you advise them to do conduct those investigations?

Find a mentor! And a female mentor if you can! Ask parents, ask teachers, ask school counselors etc., if they know any women working in STEM. Keep asking until you find someone that you can connect with. No one is going to go out of their way to encourage you into STEM. Seek mentors who can help you investigate the field and connect with others.

8.  What do you say to K-12 teachers to get them to support girls to explore STEM careers?

Every single child, especially female, should be exposed to STEM at a young age. For those who show interest or an aptitude, encourage them! I think one of the biggest reasons it took me so long to find engineering is simply because no one ever really talked to me about what engineers do and the impact they can have on the world. It was all just “math” and not something that teachers (or anyone really) said, “Hey look at all the cool things female engineers have done!” Teachers just need to talk to their students about what engineers REALLY do, because it's far more than just “math”

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About Hyperloop

Hyperloop is a conceptual, high-speed mode of transportation originally introduced in 2012 by entrepreneur and SpaceX Founder Elon Musk with an original proposed route from Los Angeles to San Francisco.  Although pods floating through a partial vacuum in a continuous steel tube at 700 mph or more was initially envisioned as an aboveground transportation system, Musk is now developing plans to build an underground Hyperloop from New York City to Washington, D.C.

About AZLoop

The AZLoop team, led by Arizona State University, is comprised of about 100 students from four Arizona universities: ASU and its Thunderbird School of Global Management, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Northern Arizona University.  Team members come from a wide range of disciplines, including engineering, robotics, physics, astrobiology, marketing and business management.  

About Arizona State University
Arizona State University has developed a new model for the American Research University, creating an institution that is committed to access, excellence and impact. ASU measures itself by those it includes, not by those it excludes. As the prototype for a New American University, ASU pursues research that contributes to the public good, and ASU assumes major responsibility for the economic, social and cultural vitality of the communities that surround it.

High-resolution photos here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8dwohbg1q6ytpdo/AAAa4pvoox2geGjDOCE_xfn-a?dl=0

Downloadable Video: https://vimeo.com/230683281

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Terry Grant, Arizona State University
Theresa.Grant@asu.edu 

480-727-4058 (O) / 520-907-2248 (C)