Karen Devora-Cigarroa, a senior in civil engineering, and Linnea Dawley, a senior in chemical engineering, received the Alliant Energy/ Erroll B Davis Jr. Achievement Award.
This award honors the outstanding scholarship and community service of undergraduate students from traditionally underrepresented minority groups.
“To me, receiving this award is a reminder to myself that everything I have done in my college career including my academic studies and my involvement on campus has made an impact on myself, my school, and others. Being a recipient of this award has inspired and motivated me to continue to work towards my career goals and that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. This award also gives me hope for people of color in the engineering field. As a minority, having the support from Alliant Energy/Erroll B. Davis, Jr. means a lot to me. This award opens doors to a very supportive community that I am honored to now be a part of,” Dawley said.
“As a first-generation student and the oldest of five children, scholarships such as the Alliant Energy/ Erroll B. Davis Jr. Achievement Award makes pursuing my dreams a reality. Without financial assistance, I do not think it would be possible for me to attend a four-year institution while also taking advantage of the extracurricular opportunities Iowa State University offers. It is comforting to know that someone else out there believes in you and your potential and I hope to be able to do the same for someone else in my shoes one day,” Devora-Cigarroa said.
Alliant Energy established the award to recognize and honor Erroll B. Davis, Jr., former CEO of Alliant Energy. The two students will be honored April 21st at the 2021 Virtual Annual Diversity Catalyst Awards in conjunction with the University of Iowa’s Annual Diversity Catalyst Awards.