Rhodes Scholar Sierra Sparks is pursuing PhD in Engineering Science at Oxford University
February 19, 2021
Role models can influence many things, including behaviour and education.
Sierra Sparks counts herself fortunate to have a cousin who is in engineering which is a profession where there is a paucity of Black women.
In 2009, the Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation named Kaitlyn Smith one of the top five engineering students in Canada. She graduated with a Chemical Engineering degree the following year.
“She was at Dalhousie while I was in junior high and I was able to see her progress through her degree,” said the Rhodes scholar-elect who is off to Oxford later this year to pursue a Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering Science.
“I love the Math and equations involved, but what I really enjoy about it is there’s so much flexibility to be creative in what you are doing and the opportunity to make an impact in the community you are serving. It’s humbling to be able to design something that will help communities. You have power when you are designing systems and responsibility to ensure you are being inclusive in who you are designing for.”
With Engineering students becoming more interested in social justice issues, Sparks is excited about that movement.
“That part makes me love the field of study even more,” the Electrical Engineer-in-Training at Daxsonics Ultrasound Inc. said. “I love being able to work directly with communities and clients.”
Sparks completed a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering degree at Dalhousie last year.
At Oxford, her focus will be on Bio-Medical Engineering and exploring how artificial intelligence can be used to improve the diagnostic quality of medical images while making it more accessible to remote areas.
Making the transition from Electrical to Bio-Medical Engineering is easy for Sparks who served as President of the Dalhousie Diploma of Engineering Society in 2017-18.
“When you look at medical imaging like ultrasound systems or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or even x-rays, the theories behind the operations of those systems are all in electrical engineering and electrical signal analysis,” the 2016 Dalhousie University Chancellor scholarship winner said. “That was the angle I wanted to take which is the part of bio-medical engineering that’s the most interesting to me. I wanted to do my research in medical imaging and then apply artificial intelligence to improve the image quality.
“One of the really great things about Oxford’s Faculty of Engineering Science is that they have an approach where there’s a lot of interdisciplinary work happening. So a lot of the researchers who are in the biomedical image analysis group will have Electrical Engineering or even Computer Science backgrounds and things like that.”
With a strong background in tutoring and mentoring, Sparks aspires to be a university professor.
She was a teaching assistant throughout her four years of undergraduate studies.
“I enjoyed it, particularly when it came to explaining concepts and things I am interested in,” she said. “I would love to get a professor position where I can continue with my research while also being able to teach.”
Dr. John Newhook, the Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at Dalhousie, is confident that Sparks will have career options and be attractive to many potential employers.
“Sierra is an impressive person, a complete student and a role model for many to follow,” he said. “As Dean, I would love a future where she is back in our Faculty at Dalhousie as a Faculty Member. I believe she will be tremendously successful as a researcher and be an outstanding educator. She will be a mentor for many students and, equally important, would challenge us as a faculty and institution to be better, current and socially responsible. That career path would inevitably lead to leadership in research and administration. What an exciting prospect to think of her as Dean someday.”
Among the top echelon of engineering students academically in her undergraduate years didn’t prevent Sparks from having a finger in every pie.
On campus, she helped organize social events at Shirreff Hall Residence, served as Vice-President Logistics, External Affairs and Communications/Outreach of the Dalhousie Women in Engineering Society, Outreach Volunteer with the Faculty of Engineering, Treasurer of the Dalhousie Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers Student Branch and Student Senator.
Sparks won several academic awards, including the Walter P. Coop Memorial Prize presented to the student with the highest average entering their third year in the Faculty of Engineering and the Kenneth Marginson Prize awarded to the engineering student with the highest first-year mark.
Dr. Pemberton Cyrus, the head of the Department of Industrial Engineering, presented the Marginson Award to Sparks at the Faculty of Engineering banquet in 2018.
“I met Sierra when she spent a summer with my research group when she in Grade 10,” he noted. “She is a brilliant student and an outstanding leader. This was obvious from the time I first met her and she has continued to be at the top of her game.”
Sierra Sparks is off to Oxford University later this year to pursue a PhD in Engineering Science (Photos by Danny Abriel)
Sparks also chaired the Sexton Engineering Equipment Fund Committee, served in several capacities with the Atlantic Council of Engineering Students and volunteered with Tetra Society of North America and the Halifax Jazz Festival.
For the last six years, the Royal Conservatory of Music Grade 10 piano graduate has produced CDs, ‘Christmas for A Cause’, and donated the money raised to the Canadian Cancer Society.
The guest pianist at the Cherry Brook Church also composed and performed a song, ‘Always Moving’, to support the Black Lives Matter Movement.
In addition, Sparks is a player/coach with the Cole Harbour Women’s Softball League and a former member of the Dalhousie Women’s Rugby Club.
Joining the rugby team didn’t immediately get her parents approval.
“They weren’t so keen on me becoming part of the team because of the aggressiveness of the sport,” said Sparks who started playing the piano at age three. “But they have always supported me to do whatever I wanted, whether they agreed with me or not.”
Richard Sparks plays the guitar and sings in his church choir while his wife, Susan Sparks, is the Government of Nova Scotia Director of Information Technology.
The young scholar also has a younger brother, Maxwell Sparks.
“I have never seen him angry and he’s such a sweet kid,” the high school peer tutor pointed out. “I definitely won the lottery with my family.”
Sparks was with her parents last November when the call came that she was a Rhodes scholarship winner.
A total of 11 scholarships are available annually for Canadians with two allotted to Maritime region students.
To be able to enjoy the moment with her parents was special for Sparks who spent a weekend at a downtown Halifax hotel with the other seven finalists attending a dinner and interview conducted by seven panelists.
“Even though there was the Atlantic bubble at the time, everything was conducted in a safe manner with a lot of social distancing,” she said. “I feel very fortunate to have had that in-person experience. There’s nothing like getting to meet and know people personally.”
Sparks, who enjoys listening to music and is a baseball fan, is optimistic she will be able to travel to England for the start of her graduate program in October 2021.
