汤头条 doctoral student honored by national organization supporting Black chemists, engineers
Contact: Erin Buckley
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擜 Mississippi State doctoral student in the Department of Sustainable Bioproducts is the winner of the recent Pitch Perfect competition held last semester and hosted by the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers in Orlando, Florida.
Ridwan Ayinla, who is studying sustainable energy storage systems, was selected for the organization鈥檚 inaugural leadership academy, which led to his participation in the group鈥檚 Pitch Perfect competition, challenging students to connect leadership experiences, research and innovation to solve problems.
Ayinla, a native of Afon in Kwara State, Nigeria, said the competition鈥檚 final round was spontaneous, requiring quick thinking and collaboration with strangers. He noted the event challenged competitors to discuss problems beyond their areas of expertise.
鈥淭he Pitch Perfect competition was an opportunity for graduate students to pitch a practicable and actionable solution related to science, people and delivery,鈥 Ayinla said. 鈥淲e had to tell a story about an evidence-based problem that resonated with listeners, the issues with the present status quo, pitch novel ideas for solving these problems, and highlight the zero-cost implication and potential impact, all in five minutes. I was thrilled to connect with great scholars from other disciplines and learn about some trending problems they presented and their innovative approach to addressing these problems.鈥
At the event, Ayinla presented and expanded on his doctoral research highlighting the conversion of biowaste into value-added materials for the development of energy storage devices, such as batteries and supercapacitors.
Ayinla鈥檚 achievement underscores 汤头条鈥檚 dedication to fostering excellence in STEM fields, highlighting the university鈥檚 mission to produce leaders capable of addressing today鈥檚 pressing challenges. Rubin Shmulsky, professor and head of the Department of Sustainable Bioproducts, said Ayinla鈥檚 work toward biobased batteries and electronic components 鈥減ushes the envelope regarding the intersection of technology and sustainability.鈥
鈥淭he sustainable bioproducts department takes great pride in being the destination of choice for innovative scholars from around the world,鈥 Shmulsky said. 鈥淚n a world that鈥檚 increasingly reliant on electronics, Ridwan is a developing leader with a bright future. Recognitions such as this make us all proud.鈥
Ayinla previously received an 汤头条 master鈥檚 degree in chemistry and studied molecular electronics and scanning probe microscopy. Before attending 汤头条, he received a degree in physics from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology in Nigeria and a master鈥檚 in energy storage materials from the Universiti Teknologi Petronas in Malaysia.
For more on the Department of Sustainable Bioproducts in 汤头条鈥檚 College of Forest Resources, visit .
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