Meet the Notre Dame and Cornell-educated entrepreneur who attributes his success to growing up in a loving family on Huntington’s Southside.
By Jean Hardiman
HQ 115 | AUTUMN 2021
There are a number of achievements that have made Austin Hickman the electrical engineer and entrepreneur that he is today. For starters, the 27-year-old earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Notre Dame in 2016 and a Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering from Cornell University in 2021. He also has a list of honors that range from being one of the Notre Dame Alumni Association’s Domer Dozen this year — a recognition that goes to 12 outstanding alumni per year — to being chosen for Cornell’s Engineering and Commercialization Fellowship program and more.
He’s studied and worked alongside remarkable mentors and colleagues. But ask him about home — about his family and growing up in Huntington — and he’ll tell you that’s what makes him a lucky man.
“I wouldn’t have wanted to grow up anywhere else,” said Hickman. “Huntington is a place that holds community and family in the highest regard. I’ve met students from many places where this wasn’t the case, and priority was given to academic achievement. Those environments seem to create such a restlessness and strain on these young people that they can’t seem to shake. I never felt that in Huntington. Of course, we wanted to succeed and were passionate about what we did growing up. But it wasn’t at the expense of everything else. There’s an easiness I feel when I’m on the Southside that I haven’t found elsewhere, and it’s attributable to the people of Huntington and the positive environment they create for young people.”
In 2020, while finishing his studies at Cornell, he co-founded a startup named Soctera. Located in Ithaca, New York, his business is developing aluminum nitride (AlN)-based power amplifiers that could yield potential breakthroughs in the communications field. In fact, his work could play a role in the global race to establish 6G wireless networks as well as satellite communications and radar systems for the defense industry.
Hickman credits his parents Sandra and Todd Hickman and his siblings for being where he is today. Sandra Hickman said that as she was raising Austin, his older sister Taylor and his younger brother Ridge, she mostly just wanted them to know they were loved and have time to just be kids.
“As a child, Austin enjoyed learning, was naturally curious and was always asking questions,” Sandra recalled. “He did what a lot of kids do on Huntington’s Southside — played outside, rode bikes, had lemonade stands, even played his fair share of video games. Todd and I spent lots of time with our kids. We made it a priority. We sat down as a family for dinner as much as possible.”
Throw in lots of love and laughter, and discipline when necessary, and they had the makings of a good childhood foundation. Hickman attended Cammack Elementary and Middle School, then Huntington High, graduating in 2012.
“I remember running around the Southside with my friends, playing games with my family in the yard and spending time with all four of my grandparents. It sounds pretty generic, but I really value all of those experiences.”
Showing up at Notre Dame was an intimidating experience, he admitted.
“I had been placed on their waitlist and finally got accepted a few months later, and so I wasn’t sure I could measure up to the other students,” Hickman confessed. “Fortunately, I had several amazing teachers at Huntington High who had prepared me rather well. Just looking at senior year, Mrs. Amy McElroy (literature) and Mrs. Bethany Carr (calculus) nurtured my analytical skills that were applicable in nearly all the classes I took. Mr. Jason Smith (world history) and Mrs. Lillian Sergent (U.S. history) also played significant roles in my preparedness for college, as did many others.”
A combination of things that he was vaguely interested in at the time — physics, computer science and hands-on learning — attracted him to the field of electrical engineering. His path has revealed itself one step at a time.
“It may sound weird coming from someone who went to school for a Ph.D., but I’ve rarely had a clear vision for where I wanted to go long term,” Hickman admitted. “Instead, I surrounded myself with good people; and through my interactions and learning from them, I was able to determine a path forward that was best for me.”
This was especially true for undergrad school. There he met the man who would become his mentor and adviser — Debdeep Jena.
“He was a professor in electrical engineering at Notre Dame, and I wanted to get some research experience,” Hickman said. “In my time working with him, I noticed how excited I was each time we discussed topics I knew little about, and how he inspired others around him. Later, he moved his lab and became a professor at Cornell; and when it came time for me to decide what to do after graduating, I applied to Cornell for my Ph.D. and went to work for him. I followed the person I was inspired by, and it led me down a very fulfilling path.”
Hickman co-founded Soctera with a Cornell classmate, Reet Chaudhuri. Hickman is now running the company, while also designing, measuring and fabricating his power amplifiers.
“Rapid communication has never been more critical than today, as the demand for data transmission continues to increase exponentially,” Hickman explained. “While we tend to think of data in terms of streaming and smartphones, the ability to transmit data at high rates affects a number of industries. I hope Soctera can further improve society’s ability to communicate and make smarter, more informed decisions.”
The company was aided early on when it received Cornell Engineering’s annual Scale Up and Prototyping Award, which provides funding for academics whose technology may otherwise be overlooked by angel investors and capital venture firms.
“My entrepreneurship experience prior to Soctera was essentially zero,” Hickman said. “But once you start, it’s a rapid acceleration — like a rocket ship — and you just hold on.”
Meanwhile, Hickman is enjoying Ithaca.
“Ithaca is part of the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York,” he said. “It’s an exciting place to be, with a unique mix of agrarian roots and high-tech research taking place in cutting-edge facilities. It’s surrounded by hundreds of waterfalls and beautiful wine country.”
In early 2020, his family suffered a devastating loss when Todd Hickman passed away suddenly and unexpectedly.
“We miss him every day,” said Hickman, adding how supportive his father had always been. “He was so excited when Soctera was going through its initial concept and formation stages. I carry his unwavering support and enthusiasm in my efforts at the startup, but more importantly in the way I interact with people each day.”
Sandra Hickman couldn’t be more proud of all her children, including her daughter Taylor, who has her Master of Sports Administration and is director of events and the M Club director for the Big Green Scholarship Foundation at Marshall. Her younger son Ridge earned an economics degree at the University of Kentucky and is working on his Master of Business Administration at Marshall.
“I absolutely love watching all three of them thrive in their respective areas,” she said. “Their positive impacts are made by their love for family, strong work ethics, being humble and keeping God and prayer in their lives.”
Hickman said he owes everything he has achieved to his family.
“My family will always be the most important thing in my life,” he said. “Growing up, I only knew stability and love from my parents and siblings. I was never pressured to do too much or to be something I wasn’t. My family let me decide what was important to me and what I wanted to do with my future. I am where I am today thanks to Mom, Dad, Taylor and Ridge.”
