Leadership Team | MASA - Taking Michigan to Space

Administrative Leads

DEI and Outreach Officer

Saakshi Sovani

Saakshi (she/her) is a junior studying Aerospace Engineering. As DEI and Outreach Officer, she is responsible for organizing outreach events for the local community and promoting and maintaining a positive DEI culture throughout MASA. Additionally, as a member of the Aerodynamics & Recovery subteam, Saakshi leads the development of the rocket's parachutes and tethers system. Outside of MASA, she enjoys hiking, drawing, and playing bass guitar.

Email Saakshi

Safety Officer

Michael Hintzen

Michael (he/him) is a junior studying Mechanical Engineering from Trenton, Michigan. His role as Safety Officer includes managing the safety practices for the team and serving as a point of contact for all safety related topics with University administrators. Previously on MASA, he was MASA's assembly, test, and launch operations director and project lead for our quick disconnects and fullstack test stand. Outside of MASA he is a member of the Michigan Backpacking club and loves to explore the outdoors!

Email Michael

Marketing Director

Margo Katz

Margo Katz (she/her) is a sophomore studying Aerospace Engineering from Branford, Connecticut. As Marketing Director, she is responsible for developing MASA’s public brand and sponsor relations. She is also an active member of the Assembly, Testing, and Launch Operations (ATLO) subteam. Outside of MASA, Margo is in the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority and enjoys baking and reading.

Email Margo

Funding Director

Nico Torres De Navarra

Nicolas (he/him) is a sophomore studying Aerospace Engineering from Miami, FL. As Funding Director, he is responsible for growing and managing MASA’s yearly budget as well as maintaining sponsor relations. Outside of MASA, Nicolas is a senator in Engineering Student Government and enjoys exploring new places and watching football on weekends.

Email Nico

Recruitment Officer

Yukino Sakai

Yukino (she/her) is a junior in Aerospace Engineering from Beijing and Nagoya! After joining MASA in Winter 2023, she has been working with ATLO in leading projects on GSE and testing operations. Yukino decided on Aerospace Engineering because Kerbal Space Program wouldn't run on her old laptop so she wanted another way to build rockets...

Email Yukino

Technical Leads

Build Engineer

Andy Acosta

Andy (he/him) is a Junior studying Aerospace Engineering. As Build Engineer he will make sure that the propellant tanks, airframes, and all other structural components are integrated with each other and are manufacturable. He also manages the assembly, sizing, and weight of the rocket. Previously, Andy was the Structures subteam director and led MASA's Additive Manufacturing R&D project. Outside of MASA, he enjoys mountain biking.

Email Andy

Systems Engineer

Ioan Assenov

Ioan (he/him) is a Junior in Mechanical Engineering from Sofia, Bulgaria. He is currently MASA's Systems Engineering Director and is responsible for overseeing project timelines and ensuring that the development of the rocket is in line with the target requirements. Formerly, he was a project lead on propulsion where he led the development of Limelight's Nozzle. MASA is one of the main reasons Ioan applied to UofM.

Email Ioan

Aerodynamics & Recovery Director

Eric Chen

Eric (he/him) is a junior in Aerospace Engineering from Boston, MA. He leads the A&R team in developing MASA's aerodynamic surfaces, composites, flight simulator, recovery systems, and Lonely Mission—MASA's solid testbed rocket. You'll also find him drumming with @umgroove, climbing at Planet Rock, and playing frisbee in the Diag.

Email Eric

ATLO Director

Annika Fuhrer

Annika (they/them) is a junior studying Mechanical Engineering from Naperville, Illinois. As ATLO Director, Annika is responsible for the assembly and testing of the rocket, as well as the design and operation of ground support equipment. On MASA, Annika designed the venturi flowmeters that were used for ME-5's hotfire and they also worked on the GSE system that launched Clementine!

Email Annika

Avionics Director

Jack Hammerberg

Jack (he/him) is a sophomore in Computer Engineering from Stockbridge, MI. As Avionics Director he primarily develops and tests the electrical systems both on and off the rocket, his responsibilities range from flight computers to radio systems and firmware development. Beyond MASA, he enjoys sci-fi and indie rock music.

Email Jack

Software Director

Evan Hekman

Evan (he/him) is a sophomore in Computer Science from the picturesque town of Holland, Michigan. He leads the software team in the creation of bulletproof autosequences and mission control upgrades. Evan is also an aspiring entrepreneur with a dream of seeing Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) become a reality in the next century. If you ever meet him for lunch, be prepared for some metaphysical questions about life, death, and cheese.

Email Evan

Structures Director

Pedro Vaz Baptista

Pedro (he/him) is a sophomore studying Aerospace Engineering from Lisbon, Portugal. As Structures Director, his job is to oversee the design of the structural components on and off the rocket, such as tanks, airframes and more. Previously, Pedro has led the rocket assembly device project and contributed to the Aluminum tank design.

Email Pedro

Propulsion Director

Noah Beveridge

Noah (he/him) is a junior studying mechanical engineering from Chicago. As Propulsion Director, he is in charge of overseeing the design, build, and testing of our next-generation propulsion system. Previously, Noah was the propulsion team's valves lead, designing two custom liquid oxygen valves for our newest engine. He loves mechanical design and hopes to continue designing engine components in industry.

Email Noah

Manufacturing Director

Cooper Ondersma

Cooper (he/him) is a sophomore studying mechanical engineering. As manufacturing director he is responsible for all of the rocket's manufacturing, and ensuring parts designed by the other subteams can be manufactured. He has previously worked with the structures subteam on the thrust transfer structure and engine stand.

Email Cooper

Past MASA Leads

President '24

Abbie Van Noord

Presently: MASA

Chief Engineer '24

Matthew Ejakov

Presently: MASA

DEI/Outreach '24

Karis Hu

Presently: MASA

Safety '24

Ichiro Ausin

Presently: MASA

Marketing '24

Aileen Dosev

Presently: MECC Consulting Group

Business '24

Olivia Chen

Presently: Treasury Analyst, Nomura

Recruitment '24, Structures '23

Andrew Zhao

Presently: MASA

Build Engineer '24

Spencer Miller

Presently: MASA

Systems Engineer '24

Matthew Ludlow

Presently: MASA

Aerodynamics & Recovery '24

Logan Thomsen

Presently: MASA

Avionics '24

Evan Eidt

Presently: MIT Lincoln Laboratory

Software '24

Emiliano Bonilla

Presently: Synnax

Funding '23

Hannah Cherry

Presently: Undergraduate Student, Aerospace; SPRL

Aerodynamics '23, Marketing '23

Santhosh Sankar

Presently: Human Powered Submarine

Systems '23

Adina Kestenbaum

Presently: MASA

VP '22, President '23

Rohun Athalye

Presently: MASA

Aerodynamics '22, Chief '23

Hunter Sagerer

Presently: Masters Student, Aerospace

VP '23

Tobi Farbstein

Presently: BLiSS

Safety '23

Joshua Thomas

Presently: MASA

Business '23

Julie Wu

Presently: MASA; Undergraduate Student, Computer Science

Treasurer '23

Gowrav Mangipudi

Presently: MASA

Social '23

Abhiram Kondur

Presently: MASA

Structures '23, Production '23, Build Engineer '23

Jay Stadtherr

Presently: ABL

Propulsion '23

Cian Mullen

Presently: SpaceX

Structures '22, Systems '23

Ethan Dupre

Presently: MASA

Avionics '22

Jose Luiz Vargas de Mendonca

Presently: MASA

Aerodynamics '22

Chris Van Dyke

Presently: MASA

Propulsion '22, Safety '23

Nate Campbell

Presently: MASA

Business '22

Eric Liu

Presently: Michigan Ross

Production '22

Andrew Lauterbach

Presently: SpaceX

Production '20 '22

Cade Wagner

Presently: SpaceX

Systems '22

Alexander Thuro

Presently: USSF

Avionics '22

Nathaniel Kalantar

Presently: MASA

ATLO '22, Social '21, Safety '20

Paige Adams

Presently: SpaceX

Social '22, Chief '20 '21

Jack Taliercio

Presently: SpaceX

Treasurer '22

Nathan Sanchez

Presently: MASA

Business '22

Hirsh Kabaria

Presently: MASA

Safety '22

Eric Reuter

Presently: MASA

Chief '22, Structures '21

Cameron Crandall

Presently: SpaceX

President '21 '22, Business '20

Theo Rulko

Presently: PhD Student in AeroAstro, MIT

Avionics '21

Arthur Zhang

Presently: PhD Student in CS, UT Austin

Structures '21

Sam Boling

Presently: Astra

ATLO '21, Safety '20

Minori Higashiyama

Presently: Zipline

Propulsion '21, Treasurer '20

Josh Miller

Presently: SpaceX

Aerodynamics '21

Edward Tang

Presently: MIT Lincoln Laboratory

Production '21

Kara Vanderwest

Presently: Blue Origin

ATLO '21

Eleonora Botta Lopez

Presently: Undergraduate Student, Aerospace

Avionics '21

Josh Azrin

Presently: SpaceX

VP '21

Julia Weiss

Presently: Northrop Grumman

Business '21

Tommy Woodbury

Presently: Northrop Grumman

Treasurer '21

Akhil Vinod

Presently: SpaceX

Aerodynamics '20

Erin Levesque

Presently: Rocket Lab

ATLO '20, President '19

Geoff Parkes

Presently: SpaceX

Avionics '20

Marion Anderson

Presently: PhD Candidate, Robotics

Software '20

Aidan Kingwell

Structures '20

Akashdeep Pawar

Presently: Boeing

Propulsion '20

John Letarte

Presently: SpaceX

VP '20

Israa Ali

Presently: AVL

President '20, Treasurer '19

Peyton Hooker

Presently: USAF

Structures '19

Aleister Lenhardt

Presently: Belcan

Aerodynamics '19

Dan Maguire

Presently: Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL)

President '19

Katherine Lerond

Presently: Boeing

ATLO '18, Avionics '19

Alex Davenport

Presently: SpaceX

Safety '19

Jared Chin

Presently: Lockheed Martin

Propulsion '19

Ethen Daniels

Presently: SpaceX

Business '19

Kat Shipers

Presently: Medical University of South Carolina, OTD Candidate

Chief '19, Propulsion '18

Cameron Buccellato

Presently: SpaceX

Aerodynamics '19

Dan Shafer

Presently: Lockheed Martin

Treasurer '19

Alex Philpott

Presently: SpaceX

Aerodynamics '18

Rachel Ticknor

Presently: NASA Ames Research Center