UW-Stout mechanical engineering senior Heidi Benningfield received more than tuition and an internship through the U.S. military’s SMART Scholarship program: After graduation, she’s guaranteed a job with the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Alabama.
The Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship-for-Service Program through the Department of War, previously known as the Department of Defense, covers Benningfield’s full tuition and provides her with an annual stipend for room and board. She recently completed a three-month paid internship as a SMART Scholar Engineer with the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command.
“I have a great respect for our military. To protect our country is an honor,” Benningfield said. “I knew I didn’t want to serve in the military, but I can serve in a different way as a federal DoW employee. Our mission is to support the war-fighter. In that way, I can make an impact to help protect our country.”
Benningfield, of Mokane, Missouri, will graduate in May 2026 and is guaranteed employment with the DoW. Her job will be at the Army’s Redstone Arsenal Space and Missile Defense Technology Center in Huntsville. She hopes to earn her master’s degree and carry out a career in defense systems.
The SMART scholarship program is a combined educational and workforce development opportunity for STEM students. The program’s mission is to attract, recruit, develop, and retain top STEM talent for impactful civilian careers in the DoW, advancing national security and technical superiority through merit-based scholarships for service.
Supporting Space and Missile Defense Command divisions
What interests Benningfield most about engineering is how broad a field it is. “From design to 3D modeling, manufacturing and automation, to system design or sales, the positions are very broad – mechanical engineers do all of that. You can do and be so many things,” she said.
“I’m the type of person who likes to have her hands in every cookie jar. It’s challenging. Nothing is easy or straightforward. But seeing something go from an idea to an actual implemented system is rewarding,” she added.
Defense systems also require all types of engineers, she said, from knowing the parameters of a project to understanding missile geometry for speed and velocity, or target accuracy and radar detection.
At the Space and Missile Defense Command, Benningfield interned in the Concepts and Analysis Lab, with a cohort of eight SMART scholarship recipients and full-time engineers.
She supported the Test Division and the Weapons & Protective Technologies Division. Her projects included building and integrating the systems and working on a test asset – the Finite Element Analysis, or FEA.
She also supported work on a two-stage light gas gun, testing scale models of missiles. “Much of my skills with the different tools we used came from different lab experiences at Stout,” she said.
With her full-time employment upon graduation, Benningfield will support those divisions for two years. After that, if she chooses to remain at the DoW, she may stay with her preferred division.
In summer 2024, Benningfield was a science undergraduate laboratory intern with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado. She also worked on a project with Sierra Space in Madison, an aerospace and space technology company, machining a combustion chamber component.
Benningfield is a mechanical engineering tutor and has served as a lab assistant at UW-Stout’s Machine Shop, assisting her peers with projects. “I like the hands-on work in the Machine Shop. Most engineers don’t know how to operate machines. The professors and lab assistants are always willing to help and take their own time to help. The professors want you to succeed,” she said.
She chose UW-Stout because it is the only NCAA Division III university that has both a mechanical engineering degree and a gymnastics team. She was on the team for two years and served as a student assistant coach for a year.
“I chose Stout because it felt like home. I felt like I could fit in here,” Benningfield said. “I like the small class sizes and the fact that you can meet one-on-one with professors. I’m grateful for my mentors here and the opportunities and polytechnic experiences Stout gave me.”
UW-Stout’s Robert F. Cervenka School of Engineering is home to five ABET-accredited programs that also include computer and electrical engineering, engineering technology and plastics engineering, as well as a sixth bachelor’s program in packaging. A master’s in manufacturing engineering is available on campus or online.
