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Every year, the Alumni Night of Excellence draws Oakland University graduates back for a celebration of bold ideas and ordinary heroics, connecting lessons from past classrooms with the reality of present-day achievement. These awards honor alumni who shape their fields and give back, growing from a single distinguished service award in 1976 to a lively banquet with categories that highlight lifetime accomplishments and a fresh vision of recent graduates. On May 17, 2025, two engineering alumni found themselves at the heart of it all.

Ashok Prajapati, Ph.D., SECS ’11, had crossed continents and disciplines since earning his doctorate at Oakland University. Now he stands on the edge of the future at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. As his story swirled in the banquet hall, it still couldn’t capture the thrill behind his work — designing flight software for missions bound to Mars, the moon and beyond. As the first SECS recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, given to those whose work pushes the community and their profession forward,  Dr. Prajapati’s story is one of relentless innovation, technical leadership and service.

Dr. Ashok Prajapati receives the Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, given to those whose work pushes the community and their profession forward.

His story began at OU, where he earned his Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering, focused on artificial intelligence and machine learning.  “Everything I learned at Oakland gave me the foundation not just to solve problems, but to approach them with resilience and creativity,” he recalls.

For more than 20 years, throughout a career spanning NASA, General Dynamics and global automotive giants, Dr. Prajapati has driven major advancements in technology, including pioneering flight software frameworks for NASA and spearheading multi-million-dollar cybersecurity initiatives. He has received numerous accolades, including NASA’s Center Director’s Award, Robert H, Goddard Award of Merit, Craig R. Tooley Award for Collaborative Excellence, Product Development Leadership Award and many others.

Yet, in the midst of patents earned and research published, one aspect has always held a special place in his heart –– mentorship.“Guiding students and young engineers keeps me grounded; it reminds me that every new mission starts with curiosity and collaboration,” he shares.

Across the room, Aurora White, SECS ’20, just five years after earning a mechanical engineering degree, already makes a significant impact in both engineering and advocacy. White accepted the “10 Within 10” Young Alumni Award for bringing together cultures, identities and engineering solutions at Stellantis where she works on vehicle safety and performance as a torque security calibration engineer. Her contributions to diagnostics, control systems and calibration have earned her eight company’s awards.

Aurora White accepted the “10 Within 10” Young Alumni Award for bringing together cultures, identities and engineering solutions at Stellantis.

As the president of the Indigenous Cultural Opportunity Network of Stellantis and the Great Lakes Professional Chapter of AISES, White goes far beyond technical specs. Her leadership has helped Stellantis earn recognition as a “Top 50 Workplace for Indigenous STEM Professionals” for six consecutive years. She also secured scholarships for Indigenous students pursuing careers as automotive technicians. As a member of the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, White champions Indigenous representation in STEM through leadership and outreach. “When we connect our heritage to innovation, we truly change the future — both for ourselves and our communities,” she says.

As different as they might be, Dr. Prajapati’s and White’s achievements have the common current that runs beneath OU’s years of tradition: innovation and service always travel together.  Innovation means nothing without service. And service is what sets an Oakland engineer apart.