Michael Luu, a member of the 2020 Class of Matthew Isakowitz Fellows, has been selected as a 2020 Pat Tillman Scholar.
Tillman Scholars are military service members, veterans and spouses with a high potential for impact as demonstrated through a proven track record of leadership, the continued pursuit of education and the commitment of their resources to service beyond self.
Check out Michael’s feature on the Pat Tillman Foundation’s website and below.
2020 TILLMAN SCHOLAR
MICHAEL LUU
Army / Massachusetts Institute of Technology / M.S., Ph.D.
“WHEN I LOOK BACK ON MY LIFE’S WORK, I WANT TO BE ABLE TO SAY THAT I LEFT THE WORLD IN A BETTER PLACE THAN WHEN I CAME INTO IT.”
Michael is a first-generation American who was born to a family of Vietnamese refugees. Throughout his life, he has constantly sought opportunities to serve others. He served as a volunteer emergency medical service (EMS) first responder and firefighter for more than seven years. During the troop surge of 2009, he felt compelled to fulfill military service, joining the George Mason University Army ROTC program. Upon graduating from George Mason with a B.S. in physics, Michael was commissioned as an infantry officer and sent to Vincenza, Italy, where he served as a Ranger-qualified paratrooper and rifle platoon leader. He deployed once to the Middle East, and throughout Eastern Europe conducting counter-Russian aggression operations and NATO ally reassurance missions.
During his travel and deployments around the world, Michael saw how underdeveloped nations suffered from a lack of access to infrastructure and broadband internet. Recognizing this issue, he left the military to pursue a career in aerospace engineering to help change the world for the better. Space-based internet is currently being developed and tested, and Michael is interested in helping to enable that technology and make it accessible for all.
Michael is now a second-year graduate student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology pursuing his M.S./Ph.D. in aeronautical and astronautical engineering. His research is focused on providing robotic on-orbit servicing for mega-constellations, to achieve affordable space-based internet access to underserved communities throughout the world.