Mechanical Engineering Undergrad Becomes Voting Member of Board of Regents

Vowing to help ensure that the basic needs of all students are met, mechanical engineering major Katelyn Rees begins the last year of her student regent appointment.

It is like “drinking from a firehose.”

That’s what one former student regent told Katelyn Rees when she was appointed to the Arizona Board of Regents a year ago.

“That was a very apt description,” said the senior double majoring in mechanical engineering and computer science.

Rees has spent much of the last year devouring details about the three ABOR-governed public universities: the University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University and Arizona State University. ABOR steers policy on student and academic affairs, student tuition, fees and financial aid; capital development and human resources; strategic plans and legal affairs, and public outreach.

The board has 12 members, including ex officio the governor and superintendent of public instruction as well as two governor-appointed students, who serve overlapping two-year terms and are granted voting rights for the second year. Otherwise, regents serving eight-year terms are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate.

Understanding how just one university operates is enough to make a person’s head spin. Rees learned about three, all while transitioning to her senior year.

“Katelyn is the epitome of student leadership and an inspiration for women in STEM, not to mention a brilliant engineer to be. The profession, the state, the university and the college are very fortunate to have her, and I'm really proud of her service to ABOR on behalf of her fellow students,” said David W. Hahn, Craig M. Berge Dean of the College of Engineering.