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Electrical and computer engineering alumnus named Alabama’s outstanding co-op student

By Chris Anthony

Published: Jul 31, 2018 9:27:00 AM

Daylon Hester closes a gang switch to tie two substations together during his co-op with Georgia Power Co. Daylon Hester closes a gang switch to tie two substations together during his co-op with Georgia Power Co.

Daylon Hester, ’18 electrical and computer engineering, was recently selected as the state of Alabama’s Outstanding Co-op Student of the Year.

Daylon Hester headshot
Hester

The award was presented by the Alabama Association of Colleges and Employers at its annual conference in Huntsville earlier this month. Hester completed three full-time co-op work semesters with Georgia Power Co. in Athens, Georgia, before graduating summa cum laude from Auburn University in May. He will begin his doctoral coursework in electrical engineering at Auburn this fall.

“My time spent at the power company was one of the most transformative times of my life,” Hester said. “Without my co-op experience, I would have never considered pursuing a Ph.D. in electrical engineering. Choosing to co-op for Georgia Power was one of the best decisions of my life, and I will forever be grateful for the opportunities and experience resulting from my time in the co-op program.”

During his tenure with Georgia Power, Hester worked his way up to positions of increasing responsibility, eventually managing projects exceeding $100,000. His accomplishments during his co-op include diagnosing a chronic high-voltage issue in a power system, overseeing the extension of a pole-line through a heavily wooded area next to a major road and serving on a first-response team following a tornado outbreak in January 2017.

Offered since 1937, Auburn University’s cooperative education program allows students to alternate semesters of full-time coursework with semesters of full-time paid work in their field. This is the ninth consecutive year that an Auburn Engineering student has won the statewide award. 

Media Contact: Chris Anthony, chris.anthony@auburn.edu, 334.844.3447

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