If four Missouri S&T alumni with degrees in chemical engineering, computer engineering and computer science want to call themselves stars in their industry, they now have a new benchmark to make their case. 
 
The S&T graduates are the founders of Athion, an interactive visualization platform for designing chemical processing facilities that was selected for the Techstars Anywhere Spring 2025 accelerator program. 
 
“The idea for Athion came to me during a flight to visit my brother, Michael,” says Marsha Wisely, a 2014 chemical engineering alumna and Athion’s CEO. “It was born out of the pain I had personally experienced in my time working as an engineer. When I landed, I shared the basic concept with Michael and asked if it was possible. He said not only was it possible, but it was exactly in his wheelhouse. It felt serendipitous.” 
 
About a year after that high-altitude lightbulb moment, Wisely’s idea has grown into a startup backed by Techstars — a partnership that provides access to mentors, investors and industry experts. 
 
In addition to virtual programming, the eight companies selected for the Spring 2025 Techstars Anywhere cohort met in San Diego in March and in San Francisco in April, with the program wrapping in June during Tech Week in New York. 
 
Wisely, who has over a decade of experience in chemical engineering and industrial automation, says facility expansions often face unexpected issues that can cause costly downtime and safety risks. 
 
“We are focused on helping liquid manufacturers — from oil and gas to pharma to pulp and paper — design safer, smarter chemical processing facilities and gain a much clearer idea of what to expect when everything goes live,” she says. “Thanks to Michael’s background in computer science and engineering, we’re able to merge our expertise in a powerful way.” 
 
Michael Wisely, Marsha’s brother and the company’s chief technology officer, has worked in software and web application development positions since earning bachelor’s degrees in computer science and in computer engineering at S&T in 2012. In 2021, he earned a master’s degree in computer science from S&T as well. 
 
He says the knowledge he gained at S&T, coupled with his work experiences, has helped him acquire the expertise necessary to bring something like Athion’s platform to life. 
 
“Something I really enjoy in my role is collaborating with people across the liquid manufacturing lifecycle — automation engineers, process engineers, safety specialists, packaging teams and construction leads,” he says. “Everyone we’ve spoken to has pointed out how hard it can be to communicate across disciplines and how the technology we are developing will make a huge difference and reduce a lot of stress for a lot of people.” 
 
Ben Blackson, a 2016 S&T computer engineering alumnus, is the company’s technology director and works closely with Michael.  
 
His background over the past eight years has been in commercial controls software and multi-modal human interfaces, and he says attending S&T is what helped shape him into the professional he is today and made him ready to tackle real-world challenges. 
 
“My time at Missouri S&T was incredibly formative,” he says. “I wasn’t mentally prepared when I first arrived. It was tough, but by the time I graduated, I was ready to handle anything.  
 
“S&T teaches you how to be a lifelong learner. That’s what makes it possible to bring so many different engineering disciplines together to solve complex problems,” he says. 
 
Kristen Rasdall, Athion’s engineering director, is a 2012 S&T chemical engineering alumna with 13 years of industrial automation experience and a professional engineer license. While a student at S&T, she says she learned why properly launching processes and facilities is paramount. Her experiences in the field have only reinforced that lesson. 
 
“I’m passionate about Athion because of my background in chemical engineering and understanding of how critical facility design is to getting things right,” she says. “Designing these facilities is high-stakes, and a mistake can mean a very bad day. Delaying construction can cost millions.” 
 
Now that the team of S&T alumni has been selected for the Techstars program and is fine-tuning their product, Rasdall says they are all eager to get their product into the hands of industry professionals in the near future.  
 
“We’re excited because this is something that can really make a difference,” she says. “This isn’t just about software — it’s about helping engineers do their jobs better, safer and faster. That’s what drives us.” 

About Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to the Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit  www.mst.edu.