Portsmouth resident Kevin Beck, an electrical engineering student at URI, was one of five recipients of a Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance (SENEDIA) scholarship, the group announced today.

In a statement, the group noted Beck's academic achievements — including being in the honors program and three semesters on the Dean's List — as well as his obvious commitment to the field: "He has been interested in computers and technology since he was a child, has a passion for video games, and wants “hand-on” challenges. He likes physics and quantum mechanics and wave-particle functions and wants to combine his knowledge of computers to further his work in these areas."

The Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance (SENEDIA) annually awards scholarships to deserving students who are matriculating in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) related field and expected to enter their 5th semester or later during the following academic year.

Other URI awardees were Bret Dion (Electrical Engineering and Mathematics) of Tiverton; Erica Duncanson (Biomedical Engineering and Mathematics) of Lunenburg, MA; and Megan Ferguson (Marine Biology) of Warwick. There was also a winner at UMass Dartmouth: student Ashley Whewell (Biology) of New Bedford.

The program is expected to continue next year and more information can be found at the SENEDIA Web site.

Editorial note: Yep, this one's from a press release.