One to Watch Award

Déja A. Robinson '16

2023 One-to-Watch Recipient

Déja grew up in Elmira, NY. Her parents, Alexander and Lawanda Robinson supported Déja’s creativity and
passion for problem solving throughout her youth. She participated in volunteering programs, Youth Court,
track & field, theater, and choir prior to accepting a full tuition Presidential Scholarship to SUNY Corning Community College for graduating in the top 10% of her Southside high school class in 2014.
Déja studied Engineering Science at Corning before transferring to Clarkson University to earn a Bachelor of
Science degree in Engineering and Management in 2016.

At this time, she fully discovered her desire to be in the medical device industry and then pursued graduate education at Carnegie Mellon University. She earned two Masters degrees, one in Biomedical Engineering and one in Engineering Technology and Innovation Management in 2020.

Nykole Parks who nominated Ms. Robinson proudly explained, "Déja is a bright, hardworking, kind, compassionate, and humble young woman. She is highly creative and freely shares her knowledge. One of the most impressive things about her young career is that she and four other engineering students participated in a 2018 competition and were awarded an Intellectual Property License for an orthopedic device they developed."

Déja has been working at the Food and Drug Administration as a Lead Medical Device Reviewer since her
graduation from Carnegie and has specialized in reviews of novel kidney dialysis products. She has an
additional role as a Medical Device Report Analyst, where she is responsible for reviewing incidences of
medical device failure to determine appropriate next steps to ensure patient safety. Her dream future role is
to work with small business owners and inventors of novel medical devices and assist them in developing
their technology.

Outside of work, Déja remains creative and loves to collect hobbies. She is an artist, enjoys listening to and
making music, and participates in a local youth educational program focused on inspiring the next
generation of STEM professionals. Déja continues to strive to be a mentor in her community and support
diversity and inclusion in STEM careers.