Transportation Systems Engineering Student Receives Overly Memorial Scholarship

Mahdieh Allahviranloo received scholarship from Women’s Transportation Seminar

Mahdieh Allahviranloo, a third-year Ph.D. student in transportation systems engineering at The Henry Samueli School of Engineering, was awarded the Helene H. Overly Graduate Memorial Scholarship at the May 2011 Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Annual Conference in San Francisco. Allahviranloo earned both her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and master’s degree in transportation engineering from Sharif University of Technology in her native Iran.  Her research interests are network modeling and optimization.

At UC Irvine, Allahviranloo is working with household activity patterns and applying them to evaluate the potential energy/emissions impacts of alternative fuel vehicles, under the guidance of Professor Wilfred Recker, Ph.D., Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The model is one of optimization that considers a household’s out-of-home activities and determines the usage pattern of alternative vehicles by households. The energy demand and emission profiles for alternative vehicles can then be estimated with the results.

The Helene M. Overly Graduate Memorial Scholarship, a scholarship awarded by the WTS, was established in 1981 to encourage women to pursue career paths in transportation. Each year this scholarship is awarded to a female student pursuing graduate studies in transportation or a related field across the nation. In memory of Helene M. Overly, the first executive secretary of WTS, the Board of Directors voted to name the annual WTS graduate scholarship to honor her dedicated service to WTS.

Founded in 1977, WTS is an international organization dedicated to the professional advancement of women in transportation. Boasting roughly 4,100 members, both men and women, WTS is assisting women find opportunity and recognition in the transportation industry. Through its professional activities, networking opportunities and unparalleled access to industry and government leaders, WTS is converting the glass ceiling into a career portal.