Ruoyun (Sarah) Huang has been awarded the Sharon D. Banks Memorial Undergraduate Scholarship by the Greater Chicago Chapter of the Women's Transportation Seminar (WTS) for her interest in advancing transportation innovation in the international arena. Sarah is an undergraduate in the Lyles School of Civil Engineering with an emphasis on transportation engineering, and is an undergraduate research assistant for Nadia Gkritza, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering and Agricultural and Biological Engineering.

WTS fosters the development of women in the transportation field by encouraging bright new professionals to undertake careers in the area of transportation. One way it does this is by awarding the Sharon D. Banks Memorial Scholarship to women pursuing undergraduate studies in transportation or a related field.

The scholarship honors Sharon D. Banks, chief executive officer of AC Transit in Alameda-Contra Costa County, California. As CEO of most of the 1990’s, Sharon led the agency in a pioneering effort to introduce cultural and organizational changes aimed at motivating the public transit work force. She was a member of the WTS Advisory Board and received the WTS San Francisco Chapter Women and Employer of the Year awards.