Chimezirim Ibe-Ekeocha

As a young alumna of Tennessee Tech University, Chimezirim Ibe-Ekeocha, ’16 Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering, understands the importance of receiving a quality education at an affordable four-year university.

Originally from Nigeria, Ibe-Ekeocha said she choose Tech because it allowed her to receive a good education, good financial assistance and the tuition was affordable.

“Tech gave me opportunities to learn through scholarship. The scholarships helped me afford the tuition,” Ibe-Ekeocha said. “At Tech, I was an excellent student, but I feared not being able to afford the tuition. Had Tech not offered scholarships, I may not have been able to complete my degree or be where I am now.”

Currently, Ibe-Ekeocha works as a product manager for Cummins Inc. in Columbus, Indiana.

“Being at Tech, allowed me to get acquainted with Cummins, and the knowledge I had learned in engineering helped me get my first job at Cummins. I have since been able to work my way up to become a product manager,” Ibe-Ekeocha said.

Ibe-Ekeocha credits Tech for enabling students to succeed and allowing them to learn in a supportive community. Because Tech provided her with scholarships and the ability to be successful in her career, now she funds two student scholarships in her name to give the same opportunity to engineering and underrepresented students.

“I want to give the opportunity to other students, like me, to receive a quality education with the help of scholarships,” she said.

These scholarships include the Chimezirim Ibe-Ekeocha African Student Scholarship. This student must be a regularly admitted or current African international undergraduate student in good standing. The Chimezirim Ibe-Ekeocha Engineering Scholarship helps fund a regularly admitted or current domestic student majoring in engineering.