05/29/2026
🌟 Emerging Leaders Program Alumni Spotlight 🌟
We are proud to highlight Taylor Roach, a Penn Hills Senior High School graduate and rising senior at the University of Pittsburgh majoring in Bioengineering with a minor in Industrial Engineering.
Taylor shared that transitioning from high school to college was difficult at first, but opportunities like Pitt’s Summer Engineering Academy helped ease that adjustment. She credits our Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) for helping her prepare for both college and life beyond high school. “The most helpful thing I remember about my experience in ELP with Ms. Brooke was having designated time everyday to plan my future! Once I had the tools and decided what my path forward would be, they assisted in helping me build connections with professionals in my field of interest.”
Taylor has become heavily involved on Pitt's campus. She has been an active member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), serving as Publications Chair and Senator, while helping her chapter earn “Chapter of the Year” at the National Convention this year! She also competed at the 2024 Cheer Nationals in Daytona with Pitt Club Cheer and recently joined Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
A special moment this year was having Taylor return as a member of our ELP Engineering Panel - the very same panel she attended while enrolled in the program herself. A true full-circle moment and a reminder of the impact these experiences can have on our students.
This summer, Taylor will be conducting research at the UPMC Eye & Ear Institute, helping develop drug delivery models for medical research, while also mentoring incoming minority engineering students through Pitt’s Summer Engineering Academy. Taylor hopes to one day develop medical devices or pursue a Master’s degree in Medical Product Engineering, and we know she has an incredibly bright future ahead!
