Class of 2023: Hayley Wisman seeks to help others through robotics

Niki Hazuda

12 Dec 2023

Smiling photo of electrical and computer engineering graduate, Hayley Wisman, in the Moss Arts Center. — Graduating senior Hayley Wisman may be finished with her undergraduate degree, but she's not finished with Virginia Tech. She'll be joining a master's program in computer engineering this spring. Photo by Ben Murphy for Virginia Tech.

Name: Hayley Wisman

Major: Computer engineering in controls, robotics, and autonomy

Hometown: Edinburg, Virginia

Plans after graduation: Wisman plans to earn her master’s degree in computer engineering from Virginia Tech and will work in the Assistive Robotics Lab.

Favorite Hokie memory: “I’ve definitely enjoyed the social events that I’ve done, like with my design team. We went canoeing, which was a lot of fun – five hours on the river, burning my triceps. I love getting outdoors here. I’ve also loved the ECE [electrical and computer engineering] tailgates. I enjoy the connections I make. It’s really fun talking to professors out of an academic setting.”

Finding a home

As a transfer student from Laurel Ridge Community College, Wisman looked for two things when joining the Virginia Tech community: a quality computer engineering program and a strong support system.

She found both in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Wisman benefitted from the mentorship and guidance of faculty and staff such as Arthur Ball, William Baumann, Scot Ransbottom, Creed Jones, and her personal favorite, Susan Broniak, undergraduate academic and career advisor and industry liaison.

“Susan’s absolutely great, and I don’t think I’ve ever met somebody who doesn’t adore her,” Wisman said. “I feel like every time I’ve had a meeting with her, she’s answered every one of my questions and then answered ones I didn’t even know I had.”

In addition to the personal support, Wisman received several computer engineering scholarships, including the Zora & Gilmer Warfield scholarship, the Donnie M. King memorial scholarship, and the Sarah Minton Award, among others.

Through the financial support provided by alumni and university donors, Wisman has been inspired to set up her own scholarship in the future. She's invested in helping other students keep their college debt low and providing opportunities when other financial aid doesn't meet their needs.

Research, clubs, and internships, oh my

Computer engineering and robotics have been a part of every aspect of Wisman’s life at Virginia Tech, from student organizations to research to internships.

“I worked on a bat-inspired robot with Dr. Rolf Mueller, which was pretty cool,” Wisman said. “It utilized sonar to kind of emulate echolocation that bats use for object detection in really crowded environments.”

Wisman also completed undergraduate research with several centers on campus, including

The Terrestrial Robotics Engineering and Controls (TREC) Lab, where she worked on humanoid robots
The MITRE workforce development program in the Hume Center for National Security and Technology, where she worked on multi-agent systems, also called drone swarms
The Virginia Tech Center for Bioinspired Science and Technology

This summer, Wisman began an electrical firmware internship at aerospace startup, Ibeos, where she designed embedded systems code for satellites. And in her “extensive” free time, Wisman served as one of the controls leads for the Astrobotics team and participated in the Mixed Martial Arts Club.

Her future impact

For Wisman, choosing to major in computer engineering was a childhood dream come true.

“I’ve always been really into computers since middle school, when I got into programming,” Wisman said. “It was just an interest that never went away.”

Wisman focuses on robotics systems controls – making the robot “smart” – and building human prosthetics. She plans to use her research experience to build a fulfilling career in assistive technology, embodying the Ut Prosim (That I May Serve) spirit.

“In a split second, your life can change,” Wisman said, “either from a stroke or an accident or just something that causes you to lose limb functionality. It can happen to anyone at any time, and it’s a completely unfair bit of life. So I think working on technology to restore some bodily autonomy – it’s really important to me, to make that impact.”