WHO WE ARE
Alumni
Vertex Aerospace was co-founded in 2010 by University of Maryland alumni Nick Teti (B.S. Mechanical Engineering ’85) and Rommel Zara (B.S. Aerospace Engineering ’00) to provide excellence in engineering services to the space industry. The company specializes in thermal engineering design, analysis, and test support, with customers such as NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Johns Hopkins University-Applied Physics Laboratory and Southwest Research Institute. Today, the company consists of 19 employees, 14 of which hold either Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering degrees from the University of Maryland.
Vertex Aerospace has developed a company culture of sharing its knowledge and experience with the next generation of engineers. With their combined 60 years in the field, Nick and Rommel personally mentor each staff member in developing their technical skills, professional writing abilities, customer service persona, and more. Vertex Aerospace recognizes that it is an honored achievement to be admitted to the University of Maryland at College Park, and it seeks to celebrate that achievement with students through this merit-based scholarship.
Contributions
The University of Maryland, College Park acknowledges the generous commitment of Vertex Aerospace to establish the Vertex Aerospace Current-Use Scholarship in Engineering through the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, Inc. This fund will provide merit-based scholarships for first year students majoring in aerospace or mechanical engineering in the A. James Clark School of Engineering.
Vertex Aerospace will establish this fund with an annual philanthropic contribution. Any other individual or organization may add to the fund, and additions will follow terms of this agreement.
Fund Administration
The Vertex Aerospace Current-Use Scholarship will provide a one-time merit-based scholarship of $2,500 for two Maryland high school seniors admitted to the University of Maryland to study aerospace or mechanical engineering in the A. James Clark School of Engineering. Students must hold a cumulative high school GPA of at least 3.0 unweighted. Two scholarships will be awarded per year, one to a student who finished high school on the western shore of the state of Maryland (Garrett, Allegany, Washington, Frederick, Montgomery, Carroll, Howard, Baltimore, Harford, Anne Arundel, Prince George's, Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties) and one to a student who finished high school on the eastern shore of the state of Maryland (Worcester, Somerset, Wicomico, Dorchester, Talbot, Caroline, Queen Anne's, Kent and Cecil counties).
First-year students who are graduating from a Maryland high school, apply to the University of Maryland by the Early Action deadline, and are admitted to study aerospace or mechanical engineering in the A. James Clark School of Engineering are automatically considered for the scholarship. Scholarship recipients are typically notified by April.
Recent Recipients
2025-26 Eastern Shore Recipient: B. Gill
Major: Aerospace Engineering
2024-25 Eastern Shore Recipient: E. Bierly
Major: Mechanical Engineering
2025-26 Western Shore Recipient: J. Diaz
Major: Mechanical Engineering
2024-25 Western Shore Recipient: A. Roy
Major: Mechanical Engineering