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DAVE C. SWALM SCHOOL OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING E-NEWSLETTER
Volume 1, Number 5
May/June, 2002
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FROM THE DEPARTMENT HEAD…
Well, it is summer time in Mississippi! While I enjoy being outside in warm weather, it is going to take me a while to get used to noonday 100-degree temperatures.
Our family recently joined the Starkville Country Club (SCC), which has an 18-hole golf course and a nice outdoor pool. Our kids love to swim, and although I am not a particularly good golfer, I enjoy going out and whacking away at golf balls. Noel and I decided to give the SCC golf course a try this past week, so I worked a half-day, and set out after lunch for 9 holes of golf. Just to put things in perspective, the SCC has a rather casual atmosphere about golf – you don’t have to signup for a tee time, but rather just show up to play. The heat index was about 105, and unless you haven’t guessed, there were only 6 people on the entire golf course playing that day. The good news was that you could take your time, and if you like to get in as many swings of the golf club on a round of golf that I do (you get more for your money that way), the relaxed atmosphere was nice. As was normal, Noel beat me by 1 stroke, and we have a rematch scheduled for next week!
This is an interesting time to be at Mississippi State. We are in a transition state in regards to leadership, with our search for a new President in full swing. If you are interested in keeping up with what is happening in the search process, the university has set-up a WWW site with the most current information at: http://library.msstate.edu/presidentialsearch/. I would encourage you as alumni to be involved as much as possible in the search process. There will be an email address to send comments to, and I would urge you to make your voice heard. We are very fortunate to have a group of individuals who have stepped in at a critical time for the university and have done a great job of filling in as Interim President and Interim Provost.
Many of you may have known Dr. Robert Altenkirch, who was
Dean of Engineering several years ago and most recently served as MSU Vice
President for Research. This past week,
Dr. Altenkirch was named President at New Jersey Institute for Technology, and
will be leaving MSU in July to assume his new position.
If you haven’t done so already, I would invite you to check out the Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering WWW page (http://www.che.msstate.edu/index.html). We are constantly updating the School WWW pages, so be sure and check back once every couple of weeks to see new pictures and stories. We are working hard to update the School web pages, and I would encourage you to visit the site often and see what we are doing. I would especially direct you to visit the alumni page (http://www.che.msstate.edu/Alumni/alumni.html). Past issues of the Electronic newsletter will be posed to this site following distribution to the electronic email list.
I would also encourage you to send in Alumni Updates. I will put them in the newsletter (at the end) so that your former classmates can see what you are doing. If you would like to contribute an update, just send it to me (schulz@che.msstate.edu).
Sit back, relax, and enjoy the newsletter. Go Dawgs!
MICHAEL BARRETT TAKES SECOND PLACE IN DESIGN COMPETITION
The Dave C. Swalm School of
Chemical Engineering would like to congratulate Michael Barrett on his second
place finish in the AIChE Student Paper Competition for the Memphis Section.
The competition was between Ole Miss, Christian Brothers, and Mississippi State
senior chemical engineering students. The dinner/competition was held in
Oxford. Dr. Rogers selected Michael to compete and represent Mississippi State.
Each competitor was to present a 20 minute presentation. Michael presented his
group's plant design report from the fall semester, which focused on the design
of a natural gas fired power plant.
Hats off to Michael and his
design team for a job well done! (http://www.che.msstate.edu/News/AIChE_Student_Paper_Competition/AIChE_Student_Paper_Competition.htm)
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34 GRADUATES RECEIVE CHE DEGREES AT MAY COMMENCEMENT
The School of Chemical Engineering is pleased to have added 34 new names to our alumni roles! For the first time this spring, the School arranged to have graduation pictures taken and arranged in a composite picture, which will be displayed on the first floor of the Swalm Building. Make sure to check out the composite picture of the spring, 2002 class the next time you are in the Swalm Building. The newest ChE alumni include:
Michael Barrett, Stacey Battaya, Kerry Bentley, Timothy Brewer, Dean Camper, Jennifer Clark, John Cole, Carla Cutrer, Melissa Cyr, Lauren Donohoe, Desirae Drummond, Bill Geer, Amy Guth, John Hardin, Al Holliday, Jennifer Hosman, Maxine Jones, Scott Junkin, Veronica Lockett, Jessica Lollar, Jeff Page, Jacob Palmer, Katrina Parker, Phillip Parker, Marcus Peacock, Robert Porter, Andy Queen, Ashley Slaton, Virginia Smith, Adam Taylor, Kenneth Thomas, Rachel Thomas, Michael Wilemon, and Chuck Woods.
These graduates are going to work for one of 10 different companies or 6 different graduate schools. The companies which hired graduates from this year’s class include Citgo, Dow, Eastman Chemical, GE, Holcim, Mississippi DOT, Motiva, Southern Company, US Army Corps of Engineers, and Wise Alloys. The schools where students pursuing advanced degrees are enrolled include Auburn, Clemson, MIT, Mississippi State, Texas A&M, and Colorado.
Congratulations to the graduates, and best of luck in your careers!
SCHULZ SELECTED AS OUTSTANDING CHE PROFESSOR; THOMAS SELECTED AS OUTSTANDING CHE SENIOR
As part of tradition in recent years, the faculty members select an “Outstanding Senior” and the senior class selects an “Outstanding Faculty Member”. These awards were presented at the first annual Graduation Reception (held for graduating students and their families on the fourth floor of the Swalm Building on the Friday prior to graduation). For this year, Dr. Kirk H. Schulz, Director of the Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering, was selected as Outstanding Faculty Member and Mr. Kenneth Thomas was selected as the Outstanding Graduating Senior. Pictures of the reception (http://www.che.msstate.edu/News/Graduating_Seniors_Spring_2002/Graduation_Seniors_Spring_2002.htm) and of the awardees (http://www.che.msstate.edu/News/2002_Prof_of_Year_Outstanding_Student/2002_Professor_of_the_Year_Outstanding_Student.htm) are available on the School WWW site.
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UNIVERSITY BUDGET UPDATE
As many of you may be aware, the State of Mississippi continues to have revenue problems, and as a matter of course, this directly affects higher education. This is the third consecutive year that we have taken budget cuts, and it is started to have profound effects on the education that we offer Mississippians at the state supported institutions. What can you do as alumni to help? There are several things. First, you can financially support the university, the College of Engineering, and the Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering. If you choose to give money to MSU, please remember to designate your funds toward the Chemical Engineering program to ensure that we receive this money to help maintain excellence in our educational program. If you have any questions about making a financial contribution to MSU, please feel free to send me an email (schulz@che.msstate.edu) and I will put you in contact with the right person. Second, let your local political leaders know how important excellence in higher education is to you and your business. Third, if you or your employer needs engineering help, remember to think of MSU graduates when hiring. If you need a cooperative education student, a summer intern, or a full time employee, please let us know to see if we can help fill those needs. I have never met a more supportive group of alumni than graduates of Mississippi State, and it is especially important for you to be proactive at this critical time as an alumnus of Mississippi State.
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CHE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETS ON CAMPUS
In April, the College of Engineering and the Dave C. Swalm School of Chemical Engineering were pleased to host the spring meeting of the Chemical Engineering Advisory Committee. In addition to an extended briefing by Dean Bennett, and some welcoming comments by Interim President Charles Lee, the ChE Advisory Board spent several hours reviewing and critiquing the School strategic plan for the future. A list of the Chemical Engineering Advisory Committee is on the School WWW site at: http://www.che.msstate.edu/Assessment/Advisory_Committee/Advisory_Committee.htm
In general, the ChE Advisory Committee thought that the plan was comprehensive and well put together. However, they suggested that an annual implementation plan be adopted which set specific, attainable goals for the upcoming academic year. The School Director is currently putting this plan together, and will put it up on the WWW site for comment later in the summer.
A copy of our strategic plan, entitled “ChE at MSU in 2007 – A Plan for the Future” is available on the School WWW site at: http://www.che.msstate.edu/Alumni/alumni.htm . Please send me your comments, suggestions, and criticisms of the plan. Without alumni and corporate support, reaching many of the goals and objectives set out in the plan will not be possible. Send any comments to me at: schulz@che.msstate.edu.