Student Leadership Award Serves A Cause(s)
by Josh Stroka, senior in aviation technology and recipient of the college's first Student Leadership Award
 Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it." My name is Josh Stroka and I am a senior in the professional flight program. This past year I served as president of the Aviation Technology Student Council as well as the facilitator for our Aviation Student Organization Roundtable.
Last year, I was lucky enough to be selected to receive the College of Technology's inaugural Student Leadership Award. Along with the recognition, the student council also received a monetary donation to be used towards one or more service projects.
The student council has chosen to use this money in a few ways. First, we decided to adopt a family through the Salvation Army this past holiday season. We were able to provide dinner and gifts for a family in need for Christmas. The student council also used some of the money towards our Relay for Life team. And finally, we will be preparing and serving dinner at a local homeless shelter before the semester is over.
Being able to give back to the community is what this award is all about. I feel very fortunate to be a student in the College of Technology and I would like to thank them for their continued support of all student organizations.
About the Award: The Student Leadership award annually recognizes excellent student leadership in the College of Technology. Students must be technology majors who are nominated in the early spring semester by a College of Technology recognized student organization. A committee created by the associate dean for undergraduate education reviews and selects the award recipient(s). The student(s) are recognized at a spring banquet with a plaque and monetary award to support a service project of the award recipient's student organization.
The 2008 award recipients are:
Kye Adams, senior in EET and president of the ECET Technology Student Council
Vivianette Ocasio, senior in CGT and treasurer of Minority Technology Association (MTA)
For more information on the College of Technology Student Leadership Award, visit the student activities section of the CoT Web site.
CGT faculty travel to China
Faculty from the Department of Computer Graphics Technology traveled to Beijing, China, from March 10-21 in an effort to establish an industrial exchange program as part of a SAIL grant sponsored by the Office of International Programs.
 CGT department head Marvin Sarapin and assistant professor Kellen Maicher visited with several representatives and administrators from more than 20 Chinese schools and corporations as part of a fact-finding mission to establish industrial partnerships and explore the possibility of a student intern exchange.
Corporations visited included Boeing, IBM and Caterpillar. Several schools such as Tsinghua University, the Institute of Digital Design and the Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication also participated in the visitation.
One of the primary goals of the visit was to determine the specific needs Chinese institutions seek to fill in placing international interns and forming global partnerships with entities such as Purdue. Although discussions with Chinese representatives revealed several key barriers to placing student interns, such as language differences and low pay for students, there were many encouraging highlights to suggest that future partnerships with the College of Technology would be beneficial for Purdue and the participating institutions.
While the cultural barriers are a formidable obstacle in an endeavor such as this, Maicher said, an organization called Our Chinese Daughters Foundation was willing to help. OCDF, founded by Purdue alumna and 2008 distinguished technology alumna Jane Liedke, agreed to serve as a liaison to guide visiting interns and ease the cultural shock and language barrier so students can focus on their work. By utilizing a stepping-stone organization such as OCDF, the CGT department hopes that this would make College of Technology students more attractive to potential companies seeking to participate in the program.
Along with co-principal investigator and CGT professor Patrick Connolly, Maicher and Sarapin will be presenting their findings as both a report and a presentation that will be delivered to the 2008 National Association of Industrial Technology conference in Nashville, Tenn., in November. Prior to this presentation, the official report will be released this summer and will detail the findings of the trip and the needs expressed by the participating Chinese institutions.
Faculty News
Edem Tetteh, a continuing lecturer in IT at the Richmond location, recently was selected for a 2008-09 Scholarship of Engagement Faculty Grant by Indiana Campus Compact. The $2,250 in funding is for his proposed project "Disability Services Safety Improvement Evaluation." The Lilly Endowment provides funding for the program.
Chad Laux, a visiting professor of IT at the Anderson location, has been appointed a voting member of the International Standards Organization Technical Advisory Group 22006 for the United States. The 22006 group makes recommendations on quality-management systems in crop production. Laux also is a member of the 22005 technical advisory group, which makes recommendations on food safety management systems and applying traceability of agents in the food chain, both in human and animal food. Both groups are administered by International Standards Organization Technical Committee 34.
Thomas Hacker, assistant professor of CIT, served as part of the Purdue supercomputer installation team last week. It is the largest supercomputer on a Big Ten campus and was installed in a single-day, electronic "barn-raising." More than 200 employees gathered to help build the massive machine, which will be about the size of a semitrailer when installed. It will be the largest Big Ten supercomputer that is not part of a national center. More Info.
Rick Mislan, assistant professor of CIT, directed the first World Cyberforensics conference May 8-10 in Chicago. More Info.
CoT News Submissions
Report your CoT news through the online reporting form.
Feel free to use this form to notify the College of Technology communications team of your professional news and achievements. This information will be distributed to the team for potential use in news releases, the dean's e-newsletter, Innovation magazine and updating information on the college's Web site.
The next e-newsletter is scheduled for distribution on Monday, June 9.
Keeping students connected
During Day on Campus, remind any incoming freshmen that you come in contact with to stay in touch with the college this summer and throughout their studies at Purdue through the student mail list subscription and our RSS feed that are both available on the front page of the college Web site.
Sponsored Research Update
For an updated look at sponsored research activities within the College of Technology, visit the applied research section of the CoT Web site.
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Student News
 Brina Splingaire, a senior in MET, placed first in the Super Gas class of the National Hot Rod Association O'Reilly NHRA Midwest nationals held May 3 in St. Louis. Splingaire, driving her 1963 Corvette roadster, ran the race in 9.912 seconds at 156.86 mph. She has been in drag racing since the age of 8, but this was her first win at a national event. Next, she will compete in two other national races, the Torco Racing Fuels Route 66 NHRA Nationals held June 5-8 in Joliet, Ill., and the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals held June 26-29 in Norwalk, Ohio. After graduating from Purdue, Splingaire plans to pursue a career as a professional stock car driver.
Three College of Technology students are members of the Purdue Bass Fishing Club that recently won the Big Ten championship during a tournament at Lake Maxinkuckee, near Culver, Ind.
The win on April 13 marks the fourth Big Ten title for the Purdue club that also won in 1996, 2000 and 2002. Teams from Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin rounded out the top three.
CoT students on the team are Chad Dunham, a junior in the industrial technology from Poland, Ind.; Alex Lowe, a junior in mechanical engineering technology from Indianapolis; and Josh Strakis, a senior in computer and information technology from West Lafayette.
OLS students at the New Albany location participated in a variety of philanthropy activities throughout the spring semester. These activities were completely student-selected and student-driven. Instructor Andrew McCart said he encouraged the students to make a difference in the lives of others in a way that is manageable for their schedules as students.
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Students this semester chose to use their leadership skills to raise money and generate donations in the following ways:
- Helping sponsor a local, terminally ill, 8-year-old through the Make a Wish Foundation.The child's wish is to meet Mickey Mouse on a Disney Cruise.
- Buying an SUV-load of canned goods (at a discount from one of their employers) to donate to a local food pantry.
- Individually donating time to the Home of the Innocents, the Harrison County Humane Society, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the Franciscan (Homeless) Shelter House and the American Diabetes Association.
- Becoming involved in a campus beautification project (picking up trash around the OLS building).
- Sponsoring a book drive and raising more than 100 books for needy elementary school children in New Albany.
- Donating care packages to local National Guard soldiers on their second tour in Iraq.
- Donating time to spread landscaping mulch for disabled and elderly inhabitants of a mobile home community near the campus.
McCart said these projects have a variety of academic purposes: requiring that students work in groups to develop ideas; implementing their projects and seeing them through to completion; helping get the word out about the OLS program in the New Albany area; helping students learn that charitable work can be easily incorporated into the broader context of organizational activities; and helping students learn the feeling of helping those in need.
Outstanding graduate student teachers were commended for their accomplishments at the 10th annual Celebration of Graduate Student Teaching on April 17.
The University recognized graduate student teaching assistants from across campus for their dedication to Purdue undergraduate students and their exceptional teaching contributions. The annual celebration is sponsored by the Committee for the Education of Teaching Assistants, the Teaching Academy, and the Office of the Provost.
2008 CETA Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistants from the College of Technology included:
Jessica Anderson, BCM
Jui Shyang Liu, MET
Alister Mcleod, IT
Anthony J. Morell, AT
Grant P. Richards, ECET
Shanna Schmelter, CGT
Imonitie O. Uduehi, OLS
New CoT Web sites
The college's Engagement office recently launched its Web site. which can be accessed under the "about" drop-down on the front page of the CoT site and through the following audience paths: K-12 Students/Camps, K-12 Educators, Business and Industry.
The college's camps have also been centralized into one access point -- K-12 Students/Camps
CoT and TCN News available by RSS Feed
Subscribe to the college's RSS feeds on the Technology home page and TCN's site.
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In the News
New director named at College of Technology at South Bend
 Michael D. Sanders was recently selected as director of the Purdue University College of Technology location at South Bend.
Sanders started as director on April 14. His duties include overseeing degree programs, increasing internship programs for students, strengthening partnerships with area industries and using students to help solve problems in industry.
"I'm a College of Technology alumnus, and I've worked for the college for 13 of the 18 years I worked at Purdue, so this is a homecoming for me," Sanders said. "I'm a strong believer in the College of Technology and of Purdue's Statewide Technology system, and I'm eager to be in a leadership role and will work to grow the South Bend location so it can continue to meet the needs of both students and the community."
Sanders served as director of Indiana Careers at Saint Mary's College from 2004-07, and from 2002-07 was assistant professor in the department of business administration and economics.
Sanders previously worked at Purdue from 1984-2002, where he was director of undergraduate programs at the Krannert School of Management, assistant director of undergraduate programs at Krannert and head academic adviser in the Department of Electrical Engineering Technology.
"Michael's long relationship with Purdue and the College of Technology, both as a student and as an employee, makes him especially right for this position," said Duane Dunlap, Purdue's associate dean for Statewide Technology. "He has a real passion for Statewide Technology, and I'm confident his knowledge and enthusiasm will result in great things for the South Bend location."
Previously, Sanders held positions with Oxford Development Corp. in Indianapolis and Logansport Community School Corp.
Sanders received an associate degree in architectural technology from Purdue University-Hammond in 1972, a bachelor's degree in industrial education from Purdue in 1975 and a master's degree in industrial education from Purdue in 1980.
Auto safety advocate receives Lifetime Achievement award
James S. Remick, a longtime supporter of Purdue University whose career has focused on automotive safety and technology, received the College of Technology's first Lifetime Achievement Award.
The award was presented at a ceremony May 2 at Ross-Ade Pavilion's Buchanan Club.
"Jim Remick has been a tremendous supporter of Purdue and the College of Technology for many years, and his contributions have benefited many students and have helped shape courses and research in the college," said Dennis R. Depew, dean of the College of Technology. "I have very much enjoyed working with Jim on the Dean's Executive Council and am proud to be giving this award to such a strong industry leader and partner with the college."
Remick, of Carmel, Ind., is president and CEO of Brittany Stamping and owns a consulting business, J.S. Remick Consulting, where he is a strategic adviser on lean manufacturing practices, supply chains and operational excellence.
"It has been an honor and my privilege to serve the College of Technology at Purdue University," Remick wrote in an acceptance letter to the dean. "I sincerely thank Purdue University for recognizing my contributions in promoting technology leadership, nationally and globally, for safety and excellence in all that we do.
"Having been richly blessed in my life convicts me to stay true to those fundamental 'real values' and inspires me to 'give back,' in some small way, to others who follow."
Remick began his career at TRW Automotive in 1961 as a research engineer at the valve division plant in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1971, he became plant manager for TRW's steering and suspension division in Sterling Heights, Mich., and in 1974 became director of manufacturing planning for the Lebanon, Ind., and Greeneville, Tenn., plants of the commercial steering division. In 1980, he became vice president and general manager of that division's operations worldwide.
He later served as deputy general manager of TRW Steering Systems Group and was vice president and general manager of TRW Steering and Suspensions Systems for North and South America from 1991-95. Remick was named executive vice president and general manager of the TRW Steering, Suspension and Engine Group in 1995, and the following year became executive vice president and general manger of the TRW Occupant Restraint Systems Group.
In 1995, Remick was named vice president and deputy general manager of Project ELITE (Excellent Leadership in Tomorrow's Environment), TRW's effort to improve the operating effectiveness of its international automotive businesses.
Remick also served as chairman of the Automotive Occupant Restraint Council, which encourages use of seat belts and the installation of life-saving products in vehicles. In this role, he helped to educate Congress about the importance of enacting regulations to protect populations such as children and small females. He received the council's Leadership Award in 2000 and its highest honor, the Pathfinder Award, in 2001.
Under Remick's leadership, TRW became the first supplier in industry to develop, design and integrate a complete occupant restraint system, and he was also instrumental in the production of the industry's first dual-stage airbag inflator.
He has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, and served on the executive committee and as president of the board of directors of United Way.
At Purdue, he has served on various College of Technology departmental advisory committees, served as a member of the university's capital campaign steering committee and received the Boilermaker Award. Remick also developed a strategy for a major capital campaign for Intercollegiate Athletics, the College of Technology and the College of Liberal Arts. In 2004, he funded the Jim and Sheli Remick Endowment in the College of Technology.
Remick received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Youngstown State University in 1961 and an MBA from Michigan State University in 1968.
Remick was nominated for the award by Matthew Stephens, professor of industrial technology.
Grads create balance for education
Dressed in caps and gowns, graduates of Purdue University's College of Technology at Lafayette walked across the stage May 3 at Fowler Hall in Stewart Center to accept their diplomas.
All of the 58 graduates honored Saturday were adults with jobs, families and other things that competed for their time
Located at the Subaru of Indiana Automotive facility, the College of Technology at Lafayette offers classes there, as well as at Wabash National Corp., Fairfield Manufacturing Co. Inc., Caterpillar Inc. and in Frankfort.
Lafayette Journal & Courier
Learning how to harness the sun
The Purdue Solar Racing Club's new vehicle looks more like a spaceship than a car to fifth-grader Breana Blackburn.
The black car has a flat top covered in dozens of solar panels. Even with the small bubble on top where the driver sits, the vehicle was shorter than most of the Mintonye Elementary School students who got to inspect it up close when the solar racing club visited their school last week.
The students were introduced to the car less than a month after the Purdue team took it to its first competition. The team won the Shell Eco-marathon in California. The team's adviser is Heather Cooper, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering technology.
Lafayette Journal & Courier
Over easy and out: Eggs take flight
Area teenagers have been dabbling in biological warfare after school, and on Friday they unveiled their secret weapons. But the machines aren’t set to kill. They just need to send an egg flying safely through the air about 25 meters.
It took some science skills for high school students to participate in the fifth annual Iron Egg Launch Design Competition sponsored by the Purdue College of Technology and Anderson/Muncie and held at the Anderson University Flagship Center on April 25.
Anderson Herald Bulletin
Earth still the focus as class from Purdue returns to Happy Hollow
Even a "Baggie Monster" couldn't deter West Lafayette fifth-graders from learning about climate change and protecting the environment.
Purdue professor Cindy Tomovic's students conducted interactive workshops recently at Happy Hollow Elementary School. They are students in the Organizational Leadership and Supervision 581 class, "Communicating Climate Change."
Lafayette Journal & Courier
Columbus awards its first bachelor's degree in MET
The College of Technology at Columbus awarded its first bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering technology at its graduation ceremony May 6.
Keith R. Balzer of Columbus, a quality systems manager at Cummins Inc., was the first recipient of the bachelor's degree.
Balzer, who had previously attended Jamestown Community College in New York, has been attending Purdue at Columbus while working full-time at Cummins the past seven years. He said he started taking courses because of a tuition-assistance program that Cummins offered.
"People recognize Purdue and respect that you received a degree from there," he said. "Purdue has a great engineering school, but I liked the fact that the engineering technology program is less theoretical and takes a hands-on approach that is very beneficial in my industry."
Balzer recently received a promotion to his current position at Cummins and plans to stay in the job.
University News Service
OLS alum selected as first president of the Columbus-area Purdue Alumni Advisory Council
 The Purdue College of Technology at Columbus has selected its first president of the area's Purdue Alumni Advisory Council.
Holly Kuznicki, who received a bachelor's degree in organizational leadership and supervision from the location in 2005 and earned her professional human resources certification in December 2005, was elected at the council's March meeting.
The council meets monthly to discuss and offer suggestions to the administration, as well as direct efforts to develop student scholarships, encourage alumni to support the Columbus location's programs and promote the College of Technology at Columbus's mission and identity in the southeastern Indiana area.
Kuznicki works at Cummins Inc. as a human resources generalist supporting the technical organization at the company. Some of her duties include employee/labor relations, planning of organizational development and facilitating new-hire orientations.
College of Technology open house to feature mechatronics demonstration
A cutting-edge lean manufacturing system will be the centerpiece of an open house for Purdue University's College of Technology at Columbus on May 19.
The open house, which will be 3:30-5 p.m. at the Columbus location at 4601 Central Ave., Room 101, will feature a demonstration of the equipment known as a mechatronics system. It is open to the public, and refreshments will be served.
Mechatronics, a blend of mechanics and electronics, is a field of study that focuses on the integration of mechanical engineering, industrial and computer technologies to control machine movements.
Typical applications include automated manufacturing operations that contain various types of electrical sensors to monitor machine operations and programmable controllers for decision making to control machine movements. All the operations are typically networked to provide communication between stations and track the process.
Joe Fuehne, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering technology, said the demonstration will include seven machines, each of which are connected, that will work together to produce a directional control valve used in hydraulic systems to direct oil to the correct location in vehicles such as dump trucks.
"This is a great tool for students because it teaches them about a modern, lean-manufacturing system," he said. "The students will learn not just the mechanical parts of the system, such as pneumatic systems and robotics, but they also will have to develop the computer software that links the machines together and tracks the progress of the process."
Purdue-supported teams headed to national toy design contest
Two teams of Lafayette sixth-graders, coached and advised by Purdue faculty, students and an area teacher, will compete in the TOYchallenge national contest May 17 in Alexandria, Va.
TOYchallenge is a toy design competition for fifth- through eighth-graders in which students create a game or toy and learn about science, engineering and the design process at the same time. The contest is open to all students in those grades, but at least half of each team's members must be girls.
"This is a great opportunity for kids this age, especially girls, to get a taste of what engineering is about," said Nancy Denton, professor and associate head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering Technology. "They are able to see that designing a product and getting it through the manufacturing process requires an ability to brainstorm, communicate well, work together toward a common goal, figure out materials and construction methods, perform market research and test a product."
University News Service
Enrollment hits all-time high for Lafayette location
A record number of students have enrolled in classes the past two semesters at the Purdue University College of Technology's location at Lafayette, officials have reported.
Jon Aull, location director for the College of Technology at Indianapolis and Lafayette, said enrollments reached all-time highs in both the fall 2007 and spring 2008 semesters. In the fall, 268 students were enrolled, up 23 percent from fall 2006. This spring, 244 students were enrolled, up 14 percent from spring 2007.
University News Service
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