Reef resiliency project awarded SOM Foundation’s 2025 Structural Engineering Fellowship

The SOM Foundation has named Rebecca Henig as the recipient of its 2025 Structural Engineering Fellowship. A recent graduate of the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Henig will receive a $20,000 grant to pursue research on coastal resilience.

Henig’s project, “Reef Resilience: Designing Modular Solutions for Coastal Protection,” will involve fieldwork at seven reef sites around the world. The research aims to develop structural strategies to strengthen coastal protection while supporting marine ecosystems, in line with the Foundation’s 2024–2025 research theme, “Advancing Toward a Water-Secure Future.”

Henig's experience includes leadership roles in USC’s Earthquake Engineering Research Institute chapter, professional work in BIM, construction management, and sea level rise research.

“Driven by a lifelong fascination with the ocean, sustainable design, and engineering, I see the Structural Engineering Fellowship as an opportunity to synthesize these passions by experiencing firsthand the complexity of coastal resilience and degradation,” said Henig. “I am eager to contribute to the ongoing movement toward design solutions that address the growing impacts of climate change on vulnerable marine ecosystems and coastal communities.”