Q&A with Ashley Ann Davis
Born and raised in Jamaica, Dr. Ashley Ann Davis, a three-time engineering management alumna of S&T and one of the first Kummer Innovation and Entrepreneurial (I&E) Doctoral Fellows, focused her doctoral research on energy resilience for small island nations.
You were part of the first cohort of the Kummer I&E Fellows. How did that shape your graduate experience at S&T?
Being a Kummer I&E Fellow provided additional resources that helped me navigate any challenges that arose while I was a graduate student. It provided a community to get to know other graduate students who were a part of the program.
Your research focused on energy resilience for small island nations. What inspired you to take this approach?
Growing up on a small island nation, I felt the effects of poor energy resilience, especially after natural disasters, such as hurricanes. Infrastructure would often take several weeks to get up and running again, which had a significant effect on all facets of society. I knew that going into my research I wanted to look at ways to address this issue since it had such a personal tie.
You studied abroad in South Africa and did a co-op with Disney. How did those experiences compliment your research?
Missouri S&T has always been big on experiential learning and that aligns well with my own personal beliefs. As a Ph.D student, I had seen many other researchers get caught up in the theoretical aspects of whatever issues they were studying. It was important to me to stay close to the problems that I wanted to solve in the real world. My research involved a lot of qualitative data that required me to get the input of actual people being impacted.
As you look to the future, do you hope to apply your passion for resilient systems?
My long-term goal is continuing to use my passion for resilient systems to apply to problems and create lasting and meaningful solutions. Being part of the Kummer I&E Fellows was integral to setting the foundation to building my expertise in this area, as it allowed me to complete my Ph.D and provided the resources for me to gain exposure and thrive.