Huntsville entrepreneur establishes new electrical engineering scholarship at UAH

Huntsville entrepreneur Jan Smith has made a sizable donation to the University of Alabama in Huntsville to establish a new scholarship for aspiring electical engineers.

Jan Smith gave $200,000 to UAH for the establishment of the Janice Hays Smith Endowed Scholarship in Electrical Engineering. Read more to find out about this generous donation:

About the scholarship

Each recipient of the newly established scholarship will be known as a Janice Hays Smith Electrical Engineering Scholar. Here are some more details about the scholarship:

• The new scholarship will be awarded to a full-time undergraduate student for their freshman, sophomore, junior or senior year, or to a full-time graduate student, pursuing a degree in electrical engineering.
• Scholarship recipients who are entering as freshmen must have a high school GPA of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and have achieved a minimum ACT score of 30.
• Scholarship recipients who have progressed beyond the freshman year must have maintained a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
• Preference will be given also to students who are members of the Society of Women Engineers, students who are residents of the State of Alabama and students who demonstrate not only merit but financial need in order to be able to pursue a degree.
• The scholarship will automatically renew for up to five additional years or until all relevant courses of study, including graduate school, are completed, as long as the recipient maintains full-time enrollment; continues to make satisfactory progress toward a degree; and meets all other mandatory scholarship selection criteria.

“To be a recipient of this scholarship means so much to me. The scholarship has helped me immensely during my academic journey and provided me the freedom to focus on my courses without financial burdens. Ms. Smith’s generosity enabled me to pursue internships, certifications and other opportunities alongside my degree. I am forever grateful for the impact it has made on my life. The award has allowed me to pursue my master’s degree in cybersecurity at UAH after recently graduating this past semester. I am thankful for the opportunity to continue my studies and hope to work in the cybersecurity field after graduation.”

Jasmine Le, a recent UAH computer science graduate

About Huntsville entrepreneur Jan Smith

Jan Smith is a Huntsville entrepreneur and the founder and CEO of S3, a defense contractor which operates in more than 25 states and provides professional services and solutions to the Department of Defense (Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines) and numerous commercial clients.

These services include engineering, acquisition support, training, simulation, C4ISR, logistics and security assistance.

“My company is S³, and we are a defense contractor, sorely in need of electrical engineers, as is all of Huntsville. So it’s not only for the recipient, it’s for the community. I am a member of the UAH Foundation board, so I have a vested interest in what we are doing. I view the scholarships as a matter of workforce investment that brings value to our city!”

Huntsville entrepreneur Jan Smith, CEO of S3

Smith is an Alabama native and began her career as an associate software engineer in support of Boeing for NASA space missions. She founded S3 in 1991.

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