Outstanding Junior

Leonard Aruj

Aruj Aiming for Stars with Physics

By Stephen Greenwell

It was the combination of motivated high school teachers and the affordability of the University of Houston's Cullen College of Engineering that first got Leonard Aruj interested in engineering, and the junior Mechanical Engineering student is now flourishing, earning the the Outstanding Junior award for the 2023–24 academic year.

Aruj graduated from Alvin ISD's Shadow Creek High School in Pearland. While he was a student there, he identified two teachers that inspired him and encouraged him in his studies.

“I loved physics in high school, and my first introduction to that was AP Physics I in my junior year with Chad Bishop,” Aruj said. “It was my first class of the day and my homeroom period, so it was also the longest class of my day, which I liked. He made it really fun. He didn't just give us notes. There were live demonstrations and we did labs as well.”

Aruj also enjoyed his AP Physics C course with Fernando Hinojosa, who is now the director of PreCollege Programs and Parent Outreach for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers.

“His class was basically like AP Physics I but calculus based,” Aruj said. “This was during the pandemic, so it it was online. I never was in his class face-to-face, but even then, I was very engaged in his class and like Mr. Bishop, he just made physics fun. Because of those two teachers I have always associated physics with fun.”

Given his proximity to UH, Aruj said it had always been on his radar. He grew up in the area with his father Leon, his mother Emelie, and his siblings Nicole and David.

A combination of the college being close to home, offering a good package of aid and scholarships, and the college climbing in the national rankings made him enroll.

“The biggest point for me was that the University of Houston was really close to home,” he said. “I actually commute here because it's only half an hour away. It's also very affordable and I got some scholarships coming in. I applied my senior year and I graduated 2021, and around that time, I saw that U of H was like jumping in rankings. I saw that as like the start of an upward trend, so it was just a no-brainer to me.”

Aruj started as a chemical engineering major, but changed to mechanical engineering after a semester.

“I switched into mechanical engineering, because I realized that after one semester that the problems I liked solving the most were like the mechanical engineering problems,” he said. “I've always liked solving problems. I was good at math in high school and I loved physics, so I was naturally just drawn to engineering.”

Aruj doesn't have the typical engineering origin story of tinkering with and tearing devices apart to figure out how they work — he was in the opposite camp. He enjoyed playing with Legos, and putting things together. In the future, he'd like to be involved with the aerospace engineering industry, before potentially going back for another degree.

“I find space as a whole just fascinating,” he said. “I think engineering is a good way to get into that because it's the final frontier. Space travel has so many interesting problems and puzzles I want to solve.”

At UH, Aruj identified two mechanical engineering professors — Karolos Grigoriadis and Matthew Franchek — as having a positive academic influence on him.

“Dr. Franchek taught dynamics, and the way he taught it reminded me of how high school physics was like. I was pretty engaged with every lecture he gave, and he's a very good lecturer overall.”

Aruj also took dynamics courses with Grigoriadis.

“He also just taught it very well,” Aruj said. “I thought it was going to be like the most complex and difficult course I've taken so far, but he made it seem so simple.”

Aruj expects to graduate in May 2025, and this summer, he will be looking for an internship in the aerospace industry. While he completed and enjoyed a structural engineering internship between his sophomore and junior years, he wants that hands-on experience with aerospace now.

“I want to see how aerospace will be, so that's the main industry I'm gunning for and I think it'll be my first job out of college,” he said.

 

Outstanding Senior

Hedda Grelz

Grelz Excels in Dives

By Stephen Greenwell

When Hedda Grelz was first touring colleges in the United States to continue her high level diving career, the native of Sweden said athletics wasn't the only thing she was concerned about. She also wanted a learning environment that would allow her to pursue her interest in engineering and physics.

Grelz found that and more as she's thrived in her four years at the University of Houston, both as a member of the swimming and diving team and as this year's recipient of the Outstanding Senior award.

Grelz said that she wasn't aware of UH until she was contacted by Bob Gunter, the diving coach for the Cougars.

“I did some research, and I saw that the engineering program was great, and the women's diving program was great too,” she said. “I came on a trip and it just felt like home right away. I loved the team, I loved the coaches, and I got to interact with some of the faculty from the engineering school and the Honors College, and I had very good conversations with everyone. It felt like it was a school where I could get the perfect mix of high level academics and also be on a really good team.”

There was an adjustment period for Grelz, as she got used to her new school and an entirely new country. She grew up in Lund, which she described as a city of about 100,000, mostly known for the university of the same name.

“There was a little bit of a cultural shock in many ways,” she said. “The city is huge and there's so many things to do. Sweden has great opportunities, but being in Houston, there's so much of everything. Not just in engineering, but in terms of food, culture, everything. It's definitely been a big difference but I like both city types.”

Grelz's parents, Marit and Henrik, are both doctors, so she grew up thinking she might pursue that as well. However, it was in high school that her mindset shifted, thanks to one of her professors, Per Brantmark.

“In high school, I found a passion for math and physics. I had a great physics professor that made me really interested in physics in general and mechanics more specifically,” she said, adding that she started out in civil and environmental engineering, before switching to mechanical after taking statics and dynamics courses at UH.

“I really, really liked those. I also realized how much more broad mechanical engineering was. I've really enjoyed most of the classes I've taken and so it ended up being a good choice.”

When it came to her engineering academic influences, Grelz said she's received great support from her peers and her professors.

“Dr. Fritz Claydon has been a great mentor for me since I've been here,” she said. “He recruited me to be the president of Tau Beta Pi [the engineering honor society] and has been a great resource as I have explored different career options.”

In her department, Tian “Tim” Chen — Kamel Salama Endowed Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering — allowed Grelz to get some of her first experience as an author and with writing an academic article.

“I wrote an article with him this summer and he's also been mentoring me and talking about careers and the future,” she said. “He's been a very, very good influence.”

Beyond engineering, Grelz has studied with Kevin Bassler, Moores Professor of Physics and Mathematics and Department Chair of Physics. His colleague, Royce Zia, also helped with her first research opportunity.

“I worked in statistical mechanics, so it was very much model-based, a lot of coding and nothing experimental, more physics than engineering, but it was still a very good first introduction to research,” she said. “I worked with them for about a year and did a poster presentation.”

Grelz said that Gunter and her teammates have been instrumental in her success, both in the pool and outside of it. She specifically brought up Elizabeth Richardson, a friend and a 2023 graduate who was also an Outstanding Senior.

The swimming and diving team has been incredibly successful during Grelz's time at UH, as she was part of three of the seven straight American Athletic Conference winning teams. The Cougars have been competitive this year as well, their first in the Big 12.

When it comes to her future, Grelz is applying for a master's program at UH. She also hopes to continue on the diving team, thanks to an extra year of eligibility granted to all athletes effected by the pandemic. Beyond that, she's keeping her options open for now, when it comes to her possible career and location.

“I want to take this next year to really deep dive into research and having my own project, and then after that decide if I want to go for a doctorate degree or not,” she said. “If I don't do that, then I've been thinking about working in a startup company. I think that kind of environment I would really enjoy working in. There's a lot of things that I find interesting, like renewable energy, robotics and biomedical. I also am not sure if I want to be in the U.S. or back home.”

As she finishes her senior year, Grelz said she is more focused on building strong connections with her fellow graduates.

“I just want to say 'thank you' to all the professors, my team and my coaches that supported me along the way. The four years here have been some of the best years of my life, and to get this award was like the cherry on top. There are people that haven't been mentioned by name, because there's just so many professors and people that I've met that have influenced my life and my academic career in such meaningful ways. I feel so honored to have received this award and I just get very nostalgic thinking about all my time at UH.”