Angeline Masongsong is determined to honor her family by excelling in her chosen field of Engineering — a goal that is now closer than ever, thanks to being named one of 13 recipients of a new Garmin scholarship at Embry‑Riddle. The new scholarship program was announced Wednesday, July 24, 2024, at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, in Wisconsin.

“I plan to make my family proud by displaying the same perseverance, hard work and leadership that my grandmother did when she made the choice to move her family to America,” Masongsong (’26) said, explaining that her grandmother fled the Southeast Asian country of Laos in the 1980s, one of an estimated 50,000 lu-Mein refugees who settled in the United States after the Laotian Civil War.

A student majoring in Aerospace Engineering at Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University’s , Masongsong is thankful to Garmin and the Kao Family Foundation for its generous help in launching her aerospace career, assisting her with groceries, textbooks and decreasing her student debt.

“Being given a scholarship will allow me to spend less time working at my job in retail and focus more on my research project,” said Masongsong. She aspires to work in quality analysis and is currently a project manager on an undergraduate research group called Innovative Spaces, which examines how environment affects a person’s ability to innovate.

The Garmin Scholarship is an investment in students pursuing degrees in Aviation Maintenance, Engineering and Human Factors at the university’s , and Prescott, Arizona, campuses.

“It is my hope that this scholarship program will help attract the best and brightest students to commit to a career in engineering,” said Dr. Min Kao. “I am honored to be able to assist such talented students in achieving their dreams.” 

“Embry‑Riddle greatly appreciates Garmin’s partnership on these transformative scholarships, which will help to significantly reduce educational costs for this diverse and talented group of students, so they may go on to careers in engineering and science fields that are in high demand,” said Embry‑Riddle President P. Barry Butler, Ph.D.

Meet the Inaugural Garmin Scholars

The six scholarship recipients from the Prescott Campus are:

  • Sarah Barajas, Aerospace Engineering, of Miami, Arizona
  • Robert Bigando, Electrical Engineering, of Globe, Arizona
  • Sofia Bustamante-Guzman, Human Factors, of Los Angeles, California
  • Hailey Choi, Aerospace Engineering, of Littleton, Colorado
  • Angeline Masongsong, Aerospace Engineering, of Pleasant Hill, California
  • Fernando Martinez, Electrical Engineering, of Long Beach, California

The seven scholarship recipients from the Daytona Beach Campus are:

  • Leah Isaacs, Aviation Maintenance, of Louisville, Kentucky
  • Seth Miller, Aerospace Engineering, of Ashland, Virginia
  • Osasumwen Omobude, Aerospace Engineering, of Fayetteville, Georgia
  • Nichole Fajardo Orozco, Aerospace Engineering, of Hialeah, Florida
  • Sorayda Rios Perez, Computer Engineering, of Elkin, North Carolina
  • Aidan Phillips, Aerospace Engineering, of Palm Coast, Florida
  • Gretchen Wilson, Human Factors, of Ormond Beach, Florida

A Continuing Tradition

The Garmin Scholarship, established by the Kao Family Foundation, provides funding to high-achieving students pursuing degrees in one of six majors in the colleges of Aviation, Engineering and Arts & Sciences on the Daytona Beach and Prescott campuses.

These scholarships are made possible through the generosity of Dr. Min Kao, co-founder and executive chairman of Garmin and president of the board for the Kao Family Foundation, which supports STEM education among its priorities. Dr. Kao earned his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. in electrical engineering and developed the first GPS receiver certified by the FAA while at King Radio. He and co-founder Gary Burrell launched Garmin to integrate GPS into navigation devices for multiple markets from autos, aircraft and wearables.

Masongsong and her fellow scholars benefit from a long-standing and productive relationship between Embry‑Riddle and Garmin. The company is building on its investment in Eagle students following the creation of a scholarship at Embry‑Riddle in 2012 and current support for the Eagle Career Champions Program, which gives students internship and job opportunities, industry exposure and career guidance. Embry‑Riddle alumni have also gone on to work at Garmin, from serving as flight-test engineers, to aviation maintenance technicians, to managers. 

“I’m truly grateful to Garmin and the Kao family for their support,” Masongsong said. “The help that Garmin and the Kao family have provided is a much-needed financial relief that will allow me to focus on my studies.”