The Howard R. Hughes College of Engineering Student Ambassadors are dedicated to serving the UNLV College of Engineering. We engage all generations of learners – sharing the excitement of engineering through on-campus tours, presentations, and events within the community. Ambassadors strive to execute this through the effective communication of technical information to a wide variety of audiences while providing and developing valuable personal and professional relationships. If you’re interested in joining the team, please reach out to Rachel De Vera for an application.
Who We Are
Engineering Student Ambassadors are energetic and outgoing individuals. They are dedicated students with a passion to promote engineering and represent the college as primary liaisons between the college and current/prospective students, families, and visitors. Their primary functions are to help assist, attract, and recruit prospective students.
What We Do
- Community outreach and school visits
- Campus tours and presentations
- Advocate for STEM education
- Market engineering clubs
Why Join
- Personal and professional development
- Annual summer retreats
- $1,000 scholarship per year!
- Networking perks
Qualifications
- 3.0 GPA
- Full-time student
- College of Engineering major
Meet Our Team
Taylor Gauthier
Role: Lead Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Major(s): Computer Science & Mathematics
Taylor Gauthier grew up in Las Vegas, NV. She attended Clark High School and graduated from the AMSAT program, which lead her to loving STEM and math. Taylor is a second year Computer Science and math student and a Cross Country and Track and Field athlete for UNLV. She choose math and computer science because of her love for both fields. She loves to say where there are numbers there is beauty. Taylor loves the simplicity in knowing there is answers to problems and the process of solving it. Programming follows a similar thought process, which makes sense because programming came from mathematicians. She hopes to one day get her Ph.D. in math and help others who struggle with math and improve the education system for the subject of math to encourage more engineers and STEM fields. Taylor currently is the lead ambassador for ESA and helps her team with events and coordinating between the students and Rachel. Taylor is a part of the Pipe-Up program at UNLV that helps encourage undergraduates to go to graduate school and do research. Taylor enjoys running (especially long distance), reading fantasy books, watching tv shows (Abbott Elementary, The Rookie, etc.), and sleeping. :)
Kyle Abenojar
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Major(s): Electrical Engineering & Biology
Kyle Abenojar was born in Manila, Philippines and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. Originally a pre-med student, he finished a degree in Biology before switching to engineering. Now, Kyle is a fourth year Electrical Engineering student with a focus in Power and Electronics. He is an active member in the UNLV chapter of the American Society Civil Engineers. Through this organization, he had the opportunity to build and race a canoe made of conrete. Kyle's goal after graduating is to become a great engineer, travel the world and live a happy life. Outside of school, he enjoys playing video games, building mechanical keyboards and watching Youtube videos.
Makayla Atkins
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Wahiawa, Hawa'ii
Major(s): Mechanical Engerineering & Entertainment Engineering and Design
Makayla Atkins has had the unique experience of being raised across the United States, but predominantly in the beautiful state of Hawaii. She is currently a fourth year student, who is double majoring in Mechanical Engineering and Entertainment Engineering and Design. Makayla's goal is to breathe life into beloved childhood characters, allowing people to experience and fulfill their childhood dreams through hands-on and immersive experiences. Her favorite part of the University of Nevada Las Vegas outside of her studies, is the many trees that cover campus. The trees allow for the perfect spot to take a break and enjoy the sun. Apart from her academic pursuits, Makayla enjoys spending time on crocheting her temperature blanket, reading books that allow for an escape, and building her garden.
Mason Durham
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Major(s): Electrical Engineering
Born in Utah but raised in the vibrant city of Las Vegas, Mason embarked on a journey shaped by a dedication to learning and trying different things. From his early days, he cultivated his skills and curiosity, eventually pursuing a degree in Electrical Engineering at UNLV. Through hard work and determination, he achieved academic milestones such as securing scholarships and earning recognition on the Dean's Honors List, reflecting his commitment to his studies. His experiences as Project Manager for UNLV Rebel Racing and as an international research intern at Pohang University of Science and Technology provided valuable opportunities for growth and learning. Outside of academia, he finds fulfillment in giving back to his community through mentorship and volunteering efforts. On the rare chance that he has free time, Mason enjoys climbing, reading, and writing songs. He has been drumming for 14 years and has released an album as part of his band "Kangaroo Fight Club". Mason still isn't sure exactly what he wants to do in the future, but maybe he'll find out some day.
Josiah Llapitan
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Palm Springs, California
Major(s): Entertainment Technology & Design
Josiah Llapitan was born and raised in Palm Springs, California and is currently a 3rd year with an interest in Entertainment Technology & Design. His goal is to build a career of being an Imagineer and applying his technical skills & passion in building animatronics for all theme parks and attractions (Disneyland, Universal Studios, etc.). At UNLV, he is immersively involved in many clubs and organizations. He is not only an Engineering Student Ambassador, but he is also the H(x)torian for the Filipinx American Student Association. He is also associated with the UNLV Housing Department. He engages himself with volleyball and fencing. His favorite spot at UNLV is at the balcony of the Hospitality overseeing the strip, either studying or hanging with friends.
Brennan Lonnquist
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Major(s): Mechanical Engineering
Brennan Lonnquist grew up in Las Vegas AKA the entertainment capital of the world. He began studying engineering and design at Northwest Career and Technical Academy in 2016. During this time, he dove into the engineering design process as a whole, with a focus in Civil Engineering and Architecture. In his senior year of high school, he took the responsibility of making 3D printing more accessible to students at his school. This threw him into learning and dissecting the processes of additive manufacturing and troubleshooting equipment. Finding a curiosity in how these machines worked, he was intrigued with Mechanical Engineering and the disciplines of applying mathematics and physics to comprehend complex applications within the world around us. He pursued a degree in Mechanical Engineering at UNLV amidst a global pandemic, so it was a very interesting start to an undergraduate degree. At the end of his sophomore year, he was involved in assisting in teaching the freshman year "EGG 101" class which taught the engineering design process to young future engineers. He then became involved with the program that drove him to attend UNLV, the Engineering Student Ambassadors. In this program, he was able to participate in community outreach to teach what types of engineering are available at the college and assist incoming students in the transition from high school to college. When taking a break from studying, he loves building his film/TV catalog and watching his 2023 Stanley Cup Champion Vegas Golden Knights.
Kolby Tran
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Las Vegas, Nevada
Major(s): Electrical Engineering
Born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada, Kolby graduated from the Engineering program at Southwest Career and Technical Academy where he also competed in First Robotic Competition with Team 6519, The Vegas Vortechs. He is currently a senior electrical engineering student and the Systems Integration Engineer of UNLV’s Baja SAE team, Rebel Racing. Kolby practically lives at UNLV’s machine shop due to his dedication to Rebel Racing, continually improving their off-road race car. His passion for cars and aviation is what drew him to pursue engineering. Outside of school, Kolby has way too many hobbies and interests than what he actually has time for. One such project is building and restoring a 2000 Acura Integra GSR. You can say Kolby is a little bit stuck in the past as he has a fascination with obsolete media formats and enjoys collecting old tech. He is probably the only person you’ll meet who has a LaserDisc collection. He’s also an avid photographer who’s amassed a small collection of film cameras and still literally “tapes” video on an old Sony Handycam occasionally.
MaKayla Wilson
Role: Engineering Student Ambassador
Hometown: Rota, Spain
Major(s): Computer Science
MaKayla Wilson was born in a beautiful beach city in Spain but lived mainly in Texas. She is in her third year at UNLV studying Computer science and strives to work in the video game industry. MaKayla’s love for this field comes from when she played Space Invaders on the Atari as a kid and from an early age she wanted nothing more than to create amazing video game programs of her own. MaKayla hopes that the programs she will make in the field will create the same enjoyment and love that she had playing the Atari. MaKayla is a transfer student at UNLV who has finally found her home of programming and hopes to inspire more individuals to find careers in STEM.
