Perimeter College Alumna Named Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Scholarship Recipient

CLARKSTON, Ga. — Paloma Hodje wants to be a changemaker. That’s why the recent graduate of Georgia State University’s Perimeter College has spent the last two years studying engineering and immersing herself in research.

Hodje, who is originally from Paris, learned in May that she has been awarded the Jack Kent Cooke (JKC) Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship. The award, which offers last dollar funding after all institutional aid is applied, can provide Hodje with as much as $55,000 a year to complete her bachelor’s degree.

“Finding out I was selected as a Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship recipient was such a relief. I feel beyond grateful, blessed, and so thrilled it all worked out,” said Hodje.

This year, there were 1,600 applicants for the JKC Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship from community colleges across the nation. Of those applicants, 467 were selected to be semifinalists. Ninety students were selected nationwide to receive the scholarship, and only two, Hodje and fellow Perimeter College student Rakeb Tesfassellasie, were selected from Georgia.

While at Perimeter, Paloma was an Honors College student and a standout in research, participating in multiple projects. Her first research experience at Perimeter came through the popular Peach State Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) program. To support polio eradication efforts, Hodje and LSAMP students worked on a vaccine carrier prototype.

Hodje was enrolled in the Regents Engineering Pathway (REP) program during her last semester at Perimeter. She also is part of a three-person team selected as finalists in the 2025 Community College Innovation Challenge (CCIC), hosted by the American Association of Community Colleges in partnership with the National Science Foundation.

Hodje’s CCIC team has designed a device using passive cooling methods and temperature regulation materials to address the problem of birth asphyxia in low-resource countries. The team, one of only 12 in the country, will attend an Innovation Boot Camp this summer in Washington, D.C. that culminates in a Student Innovation Poster Session on Capitol Hill. There, the teams will pitch their designs to STEM leaders and congressional stakeholders.

During the remainder of the summer, Hodje will work with the Brains in Silicon group at Stanford University on a neuromorphic engineering project that explores how the brain processes information to inspire new kinds of computing. The goal is to replicate how the human eye processes visual changes to improve image sensor chip design, the next generation of “silicon” artificial retinas.

In the fall, Hodje will begin the next phase of her education at Stanford University. She plans to major in Electrical Engineering and/or Bioengineering.

“For me, engineering is the best way to be a changemaker,” said Hodje. “It teaches rigor and problem-solving while also encouraging innovation. The technical knowledge of engineering gives us the ability to better understand the world and its challenges and what it takes to tackle them.”

“I would like to be an actor of innovation, especially in areas directly affecting human lives,” Hodje said. “That’s why I see engineering as one of the best tools I can use to help others.”

In announcing Hodje’s selection for the Jack Kent Cooke scholarship, Perimeter College Dean Barbara J. Johnson presented her with a certificate during a gathering at Perimeter’s Clarkston Campus. Dr. Kari Miller, an Honors College professor who worked with Hodje through the process of applying for the scholarship, was also on hand to offer congratulations.

Hodje expressed her appreciation for her experience at the college.

“Perimeter was a great fit for me because it gave me the chance to explore my interests beyond the classroom,” she said. “I got involved in many projects that helped me grow and confirmed my decision to pursue engineering.”

Dr. Barbara J. Johnson, dean of Perimeter College, said, “we are just so proud of Paloma and all that she’s achieved during her time here at Perimeter. As she embarks on the next chapter of her academic journey we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she will continue to excel and inspire others.”

In recent years, the Honors College at Perimeter has provided focused assistance to students wanting to apply for the Jack Kent Cooke award. This year, six Honors College students from Perimeter were named semifinalists for the scholarship and two— Hodje and Tesfassellasie—won, bringing the total of Perimeter students to be awarded the Cooke scholarship since 2002 to 30. Previous winners have transferred to institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Yale University and Georgia State University's Atlanta Campus.

— Story by Christy Petterson
— Photo by Bill Roa