Kyle Reep

Kyle Reep grew up in a small town in North Carolina and he wanted to explore something new and unfamiliar when it came time to choose a college.

While ASU was vastly different from his hometown, he found a familiar passion in the environmental engineering degree program at his new school.

“Environmental engineering interested me because it applied the engineering concepts I wanted to learn to something I am passionate about,” says Reep. “Every aspect of environmental engineering impacts the lives of the public. Ensuring the public is healthy and safe is the core of what we do.”

Reep knew he was on the right path when he started an internship working on a Superfund site in Scottsdale, Arizona.

“I have always wanted to pursue a career that had a positive impact on people’s lives, and when I got to see firsthand how my degree can be used to do just that, I knew I was on the right path,” he says.

In addition to participating in the Engineering Projects in Community Service program and working as an undergraduate teaching assistant, Reep worked as an undergraduate researcher in two different labs (Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation and the Center for Bio-mediated & Bio-inspired Geotechnics). He also was part of a scholarship program called Next Generation Service Corps.

“Through NGSC I participated in close to 100 hours of community service,” says Reep. “NGSC is a leadership development scholarship program that is focused on preparing service-minded individuals to make an impact in whatever career path they choose. I chose to apply to this scholarship because I wanted an outlet to partake in community service while also having the opportunity to grow as a leader.”

The New American University Scholar – President’s Award recipient cites Assistant Professor Anca Delgado as being instrumental in helping him grow as a student.

“Not only has she challenged me to become an autonomous learner and thorough researcher, but she also has advocated for my best interests,” says Reep. “She encouraged and inspired me to pursue my PhD, and she has been a part of every step of the journey to get me to that point.”

Reep will be interning at a civil engineering consulting firm over the summer and then returning to ASU for graduate school in the fall.

“In the long term, I hope to finish my PhD, and become a professional engineer,” says Reep. “I hope to use my education and licenses to design creative solutions to environmental issues that our society faces.”

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ spring 2020 class here.