18 Under 31 Young Alumni Awards – Class of 2024

An ambitious trailblazer in the realms of leadership and business, John Daniel, at the age of 25, is already leaving a mark on Louisville, Kentucky’s professional landscape. A double graduate of The University of Alabama, Daniel earned both his bachelor’s and master’s in civil engineering with a focus on structural engineering in an impressive four years. His academic prowess was consistently evident receiving a Presidential Scholarship, achieving a perfect 4.0 GPA every semester and being honored among the top 16 high-achieving senior civil engineering students. Daniel serves as the director of operations at Cornerstone Engineering, Inc., where he has nearly tripled the team’s size from 19 to 45 employees in less than a year. His strategic ingenuity led to the acquisition of a local geotechnical engineering firm and securing $5.8 million in federal contracts. An entrepreneur at heart, Daniel co-founded two real estate ventures and has spearheaded acquisitions surpassing $14.7 million in both commercial and residential real estate. His compassion mirrors his professional drive. He sponsors education for orphans in India, serves providing meals to Louisville’s less fortunate and co-founded Droplet Water Project, which provides clean water to over 2,000 students in India and Colombia. Beyond the office, Daniel is a fitness enthusiast, enjoying everything from pickleball and weightlifting to golf. His ambition knows no bounds; his two-year vision is to grow Cornerstone Engineering to a 100-employee strong firm. Despite being the youngest executive in most rooms, Daniel’s influence is deeply felt, embodying a blend of leadership, compassion and ambition. 

Robert Grady is an accomplished professional and dedicated community leader currently living in Charlotte, North Carolina, who has made significant contributions in various fields. With expertise in construction and project management, he is a preconstruction estimator at Birmingham-based Robins & Morton, overseeing impressive healthcare construction projects in the Carolinas with a total value exceeding $350M. As president of BamaCharlotte, the local chapter of The University of Alabama National Alumni Association, Grady leads the chapter’s development and fosters connections among alumni. He also serves as a board member and director of member experience and retention for the Charlotte Young Professionals Group, promoting professional growth and collaboration among career-minded individuals in the Charlotte metro area. Grady’s commitment to mentorship is evident through his active involvement with the ACE Mentor Program of Charlotte, inspiring high school students to pursue careers in the architecture, construction, and engineering industries. He actively collaborates with Charlotte-Mecklenburg public school leaders to expand program opportunities for students, creating lasting impacts on their education and prospects. In addition to his community involvement, Grady contributes to the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity as a Board of Trustees member for the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity at the University of North Carolina Charlotte. He acts as the health and safety liaison and fosters meaningful connections with fraternity leadership and undergraduate members. Grady’s exceptional leadership, dedication, and impact make him a remarkable young alumnus deserving of recognition. His commitment to professional excellence, mentorship and community service sets an inspiring example for others. 

Carrie West Harris is a native of Dallas, Georgia and earned a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Georgia Southern University. Following in the footsteps of her mentors, Logan Franks Adams and Dr. Kymberly Harris, she then earned a master’s degree in higher education administration from The University of Alabama in 2018. Harris worked at the University of North Carolina Wilmington for three years before returning to the Capstone in a newly formed role in the Office of First Year Experience. As the program manager, Harris developed the Crimson Scholars program to support in-state, Pell eligible students at UA. As a first-generation college student who received the Pell grant herself, she understands the fears, struggles and anxieties that many incoming first-year students face when attending college. With both personal and professional knowledge on how to best support students, Harris coordinates the program to meet students’ personal, academic and financial needs. Harris is also a current doctoral candidate in the higher education administration EdD program at UA. In addition to her professional work, she is married to Samuel Harris III who also works at UA in the Office of Institutional Technology and is a member of the Alabama Army National Guard. They live in Northport, Alabama with their two dogs, Georgia and Pup Pup. The Harris’ are active members of Capstone Church where Carrie serves in the children’s ministry. With their families in several states, the couple loves to travel and explore new places, discover restaurants, and play disc golf together. 

Ashley Jeter is from Alpharetta, Georgia. Jeter received a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from The University of Alabama in 2019. During her undergraduate studies, Ashley was very involved, as she was The National Society of Collegiate Scholars President, Academic Honor Council Chief Justice for the school of Engineering, a Black Student Union Officer, National Society of Black Engineers Officer, Louis Stokes Alliance Minority Participation (LSAMP) Mentor, Residential Advisor, and UA Peer Leader. Additionally, Jeter was a state representative at the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) Conference in 2018. Other honors include being a NASA Space Grant Consortium Scholar, LSAMP Award recipient and an inductee of the Order of Omega Greek Honor Society. In addition to her leadership roles, Jeter was involved in Society of Women Engineers, Materials Advantage, National Society of Leadership and Success, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, UA Red Cross Club, Phi Eta Sigma, and The Million Dollar Band Colorguard. During her summers, Jeter had the opportunity to intern at Deloitte and NASA. Currently at Lockheed Martin, Jeter is in the Engineering Leadership Development Program (ELDP). She is a project engineer within the Advanced Development Program (ADP) department and has previously served as a materials and process engineer for air mobility and maritime missions, and as an F-35 manufacturing specialist. Within Lockheed, she is the site lead for the Black Excellence Council and has served in leadership roles with the Lockheed Martin Leadership Association. Recently, she received her master’s degree in engineering management from Vanderbilt University.   

Martha Milner is from San Antonio, Texas, and a fourth-generation graduate of UA. In 2019 she graduated from the Culverhouse College of Business with a dual major in finance and Spanish with an international finance specialization. During her four years at the Capstone, Milner was involved in many student organizations: Culverhouse Spanish LIFT, Panhellenic Judicial Board, and multiple committees within Kappa Kappa Gamma. Following graduation, Milner moved to Dallas to kickstart her career in sales and began working for AT&T. After completing the AT&T B2B Sales program, she relocated to Austin to work in the local AT&T business office. 

As many Austinites do, she made the switch from working in corporate to a startup. In April 2021, Milner joined the sales team at Qualia, a leading digital real estate closing program. She was quickly promoted from the Lender, Core platform, and Enterprise sales development teams and was a core account executive. Milner wanted to combine her sales experience and strengths from outside of work into her career and started as a Field Marketing Manager in January 2024.  

Milner also brought her Bama roots and boots home to Texas and served as the Austin alumni chapter president. Through her leadership, she revamped the ATX chapter by hosting events, increasing its social media presence and engaging with local alumni. The National Alumni Association awarded the chapter the Emerging Chapter of the Year award in 2022 and the Event of the Year award in 2023. Milner is proud to have helped raise funds for Austin’s first-ever NAA local scholarship. 

Dr. Kathryn (Katie) O’Harra is an assistant professor in the College of Engineering and Honors College, and affiliated faculty of Chemical and Biological Engineering. O’Harra possesses a distinctively creative and technical background, with educational and experiential investment in the arts and engineering. O’Harra is thrilled to contribute and merge her skills in the Honors College, where she works to develop STEAM-themed transdisciplinary courses and innovative programs. O’Harra completed a bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degree in chemical engineering, alongside a bachelor’s in dance with a mathematics minor, from The University of Alabama. O’Harra has published over thirty peer-reviewed journal articles, presented her research at numerous national and international conferences, contributed as an inventor on several US patent applications, and gained disciplinary teaching experience to support her pursuits in academia. Her research contributions have led to a variety of new ideas, inventions, and projects, including collaborations and new proposals, including a recently awarded $350,000 grant (as co-PI) from the NSF.  O’Harra is passionate about international education and enjoys directing and teaching undergraduate scholars in two faculty-led study abroad programs (ChBE, Honors) in Ireland, The Netherlands, and Denmark. She is also a current Collaborative Arts Research Initiative faculty fellow and joint pilot for Arts Research awardee, remaining strongly tied to arts-integrated education research. Her research background focused on the design of high-performance ionic materials for membrane-based gas separations and additive manufacturing applications. Her interest in materials science and polymers has influenced her transdisciplinary course offerings including The Chemistry of Baking and Art and Science seminars. Katie leads the development of the Engineering Positive and Intentional Change Scholars partner program. This unique program provides cohorts of engineering and computer science undergraduates with the resources to be active agents of positive social change in their future workplaces, with an understanding of how engineering disciplines and collaborative problem solving are intertwined with environmental responsibility, social structures, access, policy, empathy and humanity.  

Malik Seals graduated from The University of Alabama in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences. Subsequently he completed a master’s in biomedical sciences at The University of Alabama at Birmingham and a master’s in Bioethics at Emory University in 2022 and 2023, respectively. While at The University of Alabama, Malik served as president of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, an assistant team leader within the Center for Service and Leadership and spearheaded several youth mentoring programs. He was inducted into several honor societies, including Omicron Delta Kappa, The Anderson Society and Jason’s Senior Honorary. He is also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. During his senior year at the Capstone, he received the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Premier Award. In 2021, Malik received a U.S. Fulbright Scholarship to conduct neuroimmunology research under the guidance of Stefan M. Gold at the Charité Universitätsmedizin–Berlin to study the modulatory effect that pregnancy has on disease activity in patients living with multiple sclerosis. During this time, he also served as a Germanistic Society of America Fellow, and an Albert Schweizer Fellow, examining the effectiveness of technological literacy as a mitigation strategy to combat social isolation and loneliness in older adults. Most recently, Malik began his first year of the MD/PhD [MSTP] program at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Oregon. He enjoys trying new coffee shops, traveling with his wife, exploring new cultures and visiting art galleries in his free time.   

Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Kyle Van Frank is a nonprofit leader and creative storyteller committed to leaving the world better than he found it. A product of Catholic K-12 education, Van Frank attended The University of Alabama and received a B.A. in theatre with a concentration in musical theatre, as well as double minors in Spanish and political science. After graduation, Van Frank’s work as a professional actor, director and teaching artist took him around the country to venues in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York and Tennessee. For two years, his work with Florida Studio Theatre’s WRITE A PLAY program provided opportunities to teach playwriting to students in grades K-12 across the country, as well as a virtual residency to students in Israel. Following his time in Florida, Van Frank spent two years working as the director of alumni for his alma mater, St. Benedict at Auburndale High School. There, Van Frank increased alumni giving by 300% and served as the Assistant Director for the school’s development, admissions, communications and special events efforts. Van Frank is a Sullivan Scholar, a Blackburn Fellow and a recent graduate of University of Denver’s Master of Science in Nonprofit Leadership program where he studied mission-driven operations and management and philanthropy and resource development. Van Frank recently relocated to Denver, Colorado where he serves as executive director of FIRE Foundation of Denver, providing grants to Catholic schools to support the education of children with disabilities.   

Yardena Wolf serves as the Chief of Staff to Congressman Eric Swalwell (CA-14). She lives and works in Washington, D.C. as the Congressman’s chief advisor on political and legislative matters, overseeing the DC and CA-14 district offices. Prior to this position, she was the vice president of the New York office of Berger Hirschberg Strategies, a political fundraising firm. In this role, she managed the fundraising for more than a hundred campaigns, PACs and non-profits at the local, state and national levels. 

As one of the youngest Chiefs of Staff on Capitol Hill, Wolf’s accomplishments include helping the Homicide Victims’ Families’ Rights Act of 2021 to be signed into law, raising more than $5M for campaigns across the country, and assisting to secure over $26 million in earmarked funding for Congressman Swalwell’s constituents. 

Wolf has served her community since moving to Washington in 2021. After learning that only 31% of students in the city’s schools were able to read at grade level, Wolf became a “Reading Partner” tutor, spending weekday mornings before work tutoring elementary school students in reading. 

Wolf graduated from The University of Alabama with her bachelor’s degree in political science. She remains active in the Alabama community through the XXXI Women’s Honor Society and as an advisory board member of the Blackburn Institute. She is a member of the Washington, D.C. alumni chapter. Wolf also comes to campus to speak to the Political Science department, classes and students about her role in D.C.