Rebecca Ong

Rebecca Ong (Garlock) graduated Summa Cum Laude from Michigan Tech in 2005 with her BS in Chemical Engineering and Biological Sciences. She continued her education at Michigan State University and completed her PhD in Chemical Engineering in 2011.

As a student at Michigan Tech, Ong received the MTU Board of Control Scholarship, the National Merit Scholarship, and the Michigan Merit Scholarship. Earning her place on the Dean’s List each semester, Ong was a member of both the Omega Chi Epsilon (OXE) Chemical Engineering Honor Society and the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. She also worked as a costumer for the fine arts department.

“I would not be where I am today without the solid education I received at Michigan Tech and the opportunity to major in two very different disciplines, engage in the arts, and form lifelong friendships,” Ong said.

Noting the significant impact that her female faculty members had on her, Ong credits Janice Glime, Sue Bagley, Faith Morrison, M.C. Friedrich, and Marianne Beckwith as inspirations.

“They showed the positive influence a professor could have on the ability of their students to learn and enjoy learning,” she said. “This experience, combined with serving as a teaching assistant in botany and being a learning center coach for OXE, instilled in me a love of teaching and led me to my current career as faculty.”

In August 2015, Ong joined Michigan Tech’s faculty as an instructor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, where she remains today as an associate professor. Before returning to Michigan Tech, she served in a multitude of roles at the Biomass Conversion Research Laboratory and Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center.

In her professorship at Tech, Ong has been conducting research and mentoring students in bioenergy, bio-based products, waste plastic utilization, and the sustainability of energy systems. She has been awarded more than $3.3 million in research funding from the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. She was recognized for the Dean’s Teaching Showcase in 2020.

Ong has been passionate about mentoring both graduate and undergraduate students, with many under her mentorship earning awards for their research efforts and continuing on to receive PhDs from other universities. She has previously served as an advisor for the OXE Chemical Engineering Honor Society and co-chair of the MTU Advocates Allies Advisory Board. 

Outside of Tech, Ong has been an active member of the communities she has lived in. From 2007 through 2014, she served as director of English conversation classes at University Reformed Church in Lansing, where she managed a team of volunteers and organized weekly curriculum and transportation. Additionally, she co-led a project—funded by the Michigan Space Grant Consortium—to provide STEM training opportunities for pre-K and kindergarten teachers in the western Upper Peninsula and hosted five workshops in different locations. 

Ong will be inducted into Michigan Tech’s Presidential Council of Alumnae in November 2025.