By Adrienne Sylver
Paula Martinez Decola grew up surrounded by textures, colors and blueprints. With a mother who became a fashion designer and a father who was an architect, she always imagined finding a career that blended creative artistry with a love of science. What she didn’t expect was that a fascination with concrete — of all materials — would be the medium that would unite those two worlds.
Martinez, who earned her master’s degree in civil engineering with a concentration in structural engineering from FIU’s College of Engineering & Computing in April, was recently named a prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Fellow.
The fellowship is highly competitive, drawing nearly 14,000 applicants each year, with only about one in six receiving the award. Many former fellows have gone on to become Nobel laureates and members of the National Academy of Sciences.
“Being a scientist is really a dream come true,” Martinez says.
“The fellowship, and the financial support that comes with it, is giving me the opportunity to pursue my Ph.D. at FIU. I’m very excited that I’ll be able to continue my research.”
Martinez is focused on developing stronger, more resilient building materials that could one day transform everything from the structural safety of bridges and high-rises to national defense.
“The idea is to make concrete in a different way, so that it resists lateral loads such as those that occur in seismic event,” she explains.
“We are also looking to improve impact resistance, maintaining structural integrity and limiting severe damage from a sudden, forceful shock like those that might happen when a truck hits a building.”
While her path to the laboratory was challenging, Martinez says the rewards have made the effort worthwhile.
Born and raised in Colombia, she came to the U.S. after high school in search of greater opportunity. She tutored students privately to save tuition money and awaited immigration approvals before enrolling at a local college, where she received an associate’s degree in architectural engineering.
It was when she first set foot on the FIU campus that she realized she’d found her place.
“I was very eager to be at a larger university. It was very welcoming and I just felt it was the place for me to discover my own path,” she says.
Martinez quickly immersed herself in extracurriculars and research labs on campus, a move she credits with helping her sharpen her career focus and land competitive internships.
During her time at FIU, she worked as a site civil engineer intern for EXP, a global engineering and architecture firm; was a structural engineer intern for Bliss & Nyitray; served as a project controls intern for The Walsh Group on the Miami Signature Bridge Project; and completed a water resources internship with RS&H. She received her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from FIU in 2025.
Her leadership on campus proved equally impressive. As captain and project manager of FIU’s Southeast Design-Build Challenge team, she united engineering and architecture students in designing a Miami-themed pavilion for Bayfront Park — a project that earned first place at the 2025 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Southeast Student Symposium.
She also took the helm of FIU’s ASCE Concrete Canoe Competition team for the annual national event that pits universities in the design, building and racing of canoes constructed entirely out of concrete. When Martinez joined the team, it had a history of modest results. She felt they could do better.
“FIU had competed in the past and while we were making small strides, we had not excelled,” she admits. “So we really overhauled our approach.”
She assembled a committed team and established structured schedules, guiding members through every aspect of the project, from the concrete mix and structural design to the aesthetics of the final product.
The judges noted marked improvement over previous years and expressed confidence that FIU could place in the top three next year.
Martinez is equally proud of her role in founding the American Association of Colombian Engineers at FIU, a student organization she established to build community and open doors for fellow students. In its first two years, the group, in partnership with a professional organization, generated 10 scholarships of $1,000 each to help ease the financial pressure she navigated herself.
The instinct that pushed Martinez to build something better, whether a concrete canoe or a network of support for fellow students, was the same one fine-tuning her career aspirations. It was that hands-on work with concrete, as well as courses with Anil Misra, chair, and Linfei Li, Ph.D., assistant professor, in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering that deepened Martinez’s curiosity about newer construction materials.
Li first became acquainted with Martinez when she served as leader for the concrete canoe competition. When she took his course in Construction and Building Materials and later came by his office to express an interest in conducting materials research and pursing a Ph.D., he saw her potential.
“I was immediately impressed by her leadership, initiative and maturity,” Li says.
“Receiving the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship is a significant achievement, and I have no doubt that Paula will become an impactful leader in civil engineering. By combining fundamental materials research with bio-inspired design concepts, her work has the potential to advance next-generation construction materials and can better absorb energy and withstand extreme loading conditions. This research could ultimately contribute to more resilient infrastructure and protective construction systems for both civilian and defense-related applications.”
Martinez has started her doctoral courses and is also working as a structural engineer with Thornton Tomasetti, a global science and engineering consulting firm. Her research as an NSF Fellow will begin in the Fall of 2027.