Farragut High School graduate Langalibalele “Langa” Lunga is the recipient of the 2025 UT-Battelle scholarship.
The competitive scholarship is awarded annually to a graduating senior planning to study science, mathematics or engineering at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and who has a parent employed by UT-Battelle. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years and is worth a total of $20,000.
Lunga is the son of Wadzanai “Dalton” and Makhosazana “Khosi” Lunga. Lunga’s father leads the GeoAI group in ORNL’s National Security Sciences Directorate.
The scholarship encourages careers in the STEM fields. Lunga excelled in STEM courses in high school, including college-level math and programming courses, as well as advanced placement physics and calculus classes.
Lunga said, “The courses that really motivated me to look into STEM more were my calculus and physics classes.” He added, “They challenged me to think about how math and physics interact with the real world.”
His first internship at ORNL is where his passion for STEM grew, during which he worked with fooling AI models. Also involved in STEM activities at school as the founder and president of the Farragut High School Computer Science and AI Club, Lunga has the determination to make a difference in the STEM community.
Lunga’s father said, “whether it was staying focused in school or seeking out extra opportunities, Langa was eager and willing to push through challenges.” These included conducting scientific research, research internships and founding a club at his school.
Lunga’s father added, “Seeing his efforts recognized reminded us that all those late nights, early mornings and summer internships really were worth it. We are also thankful of the role his teachers and mentors have played in shaping the young man that he is becoming.”
Lunga’s application essay focused on how his interests as a child led him to wonder how engineering, physics and AI could solve real-world problems. He explained how the demand for energy is rising, along with the urgent need for sustainable solutions, and how the creation of nuclear fusion could solve these problems. He plans to pursue projects that are revolutionizing AI and can improve nuclear energy research.
Lunga will attend the University of Tennessee in the fall to pursue degrees in computer engineering and physics. – Hailey Blair, CCED summer intern
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for DOE’s Office of Science, the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States. DOE’s Office of Science is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit https://energy.gov/science.