Tribal member is a rising star

Sarah A. Lewis, Pullman, WA , was one of three outstanding Washington State University alumnae to receive the Women's History Recognition Rising Star Award on April 16, 2008, in Pullman.

Lewis received a bachelor's of science degree in biological systems engineering in 1999 and a masters of science degree in the same department in 2003. She works for the US Forest Service as a civil engineer. In the short time since graduation, she has risen to positions of leadership and assembled an impressive record of peer-reviewed work, in addition to serving as an outstanding role model for women.

Her supervisor, Dr, Peter Robichaud, said of her, "Sarah has a prepossessing personality and a wide range of skills which make her a highly valued and versatile member of our team. Her innovative research is changing the approach used by federal agencies to map post fire burn severity. She pioneered the use of hyperspectral remote sensing imagery for post fire assessment.".

Although still early in her career, Lewis has studied post fire burn severity all the way from Alaska to Southern California. Her research work with the Forest Service requires Sarah to spend many weeks each summer and fall in the field, validating remotely sensed post fire images, including the much publicized Hayman fire in Colorado in 2002.

Lewis was born and raised in the Northwest. She referees high school girls volleyball, and enjoys running, cycling, and supporting WSU athletics in her free time. She is a proud member of the Salish and Kootenai Tribes of Montana. Her parents are Robert and Zilia Matt Lewis, Kamiah, Idaho, and her maternal grandparents, are the late Louis "Sonny" and Armenia Plouffe Matt, St. Ignatius.

Lewis was married to Robert Scholes in Pullman, WA, on Oct.10, 2008.