<p>USC Viterbi electrical engineering student, Ni****a Deka, was presented with a $10,000 Astronaut Scholarship by former astronaut, Walt Cunningham. Deka is an electrical engineering major who has been working in Viterbi's optics lab. The astronaut scholarship is funded by the Mercury 7 Foundation and is awarded to outstanding students across the nation who are pursuing STEM degrees. There are only 28 awarded each year.</p>
<p>Ni****a Deka remarked she hopes to use the funds for graduate study. Her interest has been research in microlaser devices.</p>