Electrical engineer and joint college, Florida A&M University alumnus Lance Ellerbe was awarded the 2024 BEYA Trailblazer Award at the annual national conference. (Courtesy Ellerbe)
FAMU-FSU College of Engineering alum Lance Ellerbe was honored with the prestigious Science Spectrum Trailblazer award at the 38th Black Engineer Award (BEYA) STEM DTX Conference held earlier this year.
Ellerbe is an engineering & technology manager for Lockheed Martin.
The Science Spectrum Trailblazer Award recognizes individuals who significantly impact science, technology, engineering or mathematics. Professionals are celebrated for their innovative contributions and pavement of new paths in the field, reflecting their dedication and excellence.
“I know without all the people who have supported me, I would not have had the opportunity to receive this award,” Ellerbe said. “You don’t always realize the impact you might have on others. I am grateful for everyone who has helped along the way.”
The electrical engineer received his bachelor’s from Florida A&M University and the joint college in 2012 and his master’s from Florida State University in 2014, specializing in digital communications.
Ellerbe started his career at Harris (now L3 Harris), after attending an engineering career fair. After doggedly showing up at the recruiter’s booth over the years, his persistence paid off, and he got an internship in field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA) design.
“Once I completed my internship at Harris, I was brought in to implement signal processing algorithms,” Ellerbe said. “After almost five years, I transitioned to Lockheed Martin and became the lead FPGA designer for Weapons Systems. It was a pivotal moment in my career because I was the only FPGA designer in my area and that gave me visibility and opportunities that helped push my career forward.”
Ellerbe’s fondest memories at the college centered around late-night studying sessions with his peers and building relationships.
“I still stay connected to some of my classmates to this day,” Ellerbe said. “I also remember studying late at night by myself at the E-school. When most people went home it seemed like I had the whole engineering school by myself. It was always calming.”
Ellerbe pushes the envelope and investigates the latest technology innovations for Lockheed Martin, from the next generation of FPGA Chips to signal and image processing implementations.
His advice is to put the hours in. Learn the technology, and don’t be deterred if you don’t initially understand something.
“Nothing is really hard—it just has more steps with it,” Ellerbe explained. “The understanding will reveal itself in time and you will never feel you are overwhelmed by new material.”
Even after all these years, the soft-spoken alumnus is thankful for the environment at the joint institution.
“Attending FAMU was an amazing experience and has made me who I am today. The environment at the joint college gave me the opportunities to have classmates from both FAMU and FSU,” Ellerbe said. “That mix of classroom experiences from the two schools broadened my horizon and gave me the chance to interact with people who had a different background than me. I will forever be grateful for that.”
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