ACE Mentee Wins Scholarship

A South Carolina high school student mentored by STV employees recently received a prestigious scholarship from the ACE (Architecture Construction Engineering) Mentor Program.

Kaiasia Williams, a senior at Burke High School in Charleston, received the $20,000 Allen Berg Memorial Scholarship from ACE’s national organization, which she will put toward her undergraduate studies in architecture at Clemson University in the fall. Kaiasia has been a participant in ACE Mentor Program of Greater Charleston since her freshman year, when she met Riska Dees, E.I., an engineering specialist in our North Charleston office.

Riska is part of a dedicated ACE mentor team of North Charleston employees that also includes Jeffrey Becker, P.E and Kyle Marpe, P.E. Over the past few years, the group has mentored at different high schools in the area as part of the after-school program. The ACE mentor program has chapters across the United States.

Upon joining our mentor team in 2018, Riska immediately took notice of Kaiasia’s acumen and passion for the industry.

“After working with Kaiasia on several group activities, it was very clear she had a bright future ahead of her,” Riska said. “She possesses that sense of curiosity, out-of-the-box thinking, and enthusiasm to find solutions. These are all traits that will take her far in any STEM-related field.”

Kaiaia received the Allen Berg Memorial Scholarship, one of the highest-valued scholarships offered by ACE.  ACE will continue to be involved in Kaiasia’s academic career by checking in on her periodically and, when the time comes, matching her with an internship program with a supporting firm.