College of Engineering | ||||
Service Anniversaries | ||||
Nov/Dec 2019 | ||||
November 2019 | ||||
Home Department | Name | Work Department | Service Date | Job Title |
30 Years | ||||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Barnes,Christopher F | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1989/11/27 | Associate Professor |
25 Years | ||||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Balkcom,Debra A | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1994/11/28 | Financial Admin III |
20 Years | ||||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Kenney,James Stevenson | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1999/11/01 | Professor |
Materials Science & Engr | Moon,Kyoung-Sik Jack | Materials Science & Engr | 1999/11/19 | Research Engineer II |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Ponder,Rachel Melton | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1999/11/29 | Web Developer Mgr |
15 Years | ||||
Engineering, College of | Lee,Terri Talley | Engineering, College of | 2004/11/01 | Senior Academic Professional |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Rhodes,Ella Denise | Civil & Environmental Engr | 2004/11/08 | Financial Admin III |
Materials Science & Engr | Moss,Frank Linder | Materials Science & Engr | 2004/11/15 | Facilities Mgr Sr |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Ford,Amanda Shae | Industrial & Systems Engr | 2004/11/29 | Graduate Progs Mgr |
10 Years | ||||
Mechanical Engineering | Turano,Stephan Parker | Mechanical Engineering | 2009/11/01 | Senior Research Engineer |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Dagon,David S | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2009/11/18 | Senior Research Scientist |
5 Years | ||||
Mechanical Engineering | Fu,Katherine Kai-Se | Mechanical Engineering | 2014/11/03 | Assistant Professor |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Buford,Blake Clifford | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2014/11/24 | Marketing & Event Coord I |
1 Year | ||||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Lomsadze,Alexandre | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2018/11/01 | Sr Research Scientist |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Alagapan,Sankaraleengam | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2018/11/01 | Research Engineer II |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Yoon,Jonghyeok | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2018/11/01 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Zia,Muneeb | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2018/11/01 | Research Engineer II |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Fioretto,Ferdinando | Industrial & Systems Engr | 2018/11/01 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Materials Science & Engr | Kim,Seongmin | Materials Science & Engr | 2018/11/01 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Aerospace Engineering | Tavares,Shari | Aerospace Engineering | 2018/11/12 | Admin Professional III |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Sangodoyin,Oluwaseun | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2018/11/12 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Mechanical Engineering | Leslie,Kadian Natalia | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/11/12 | Grants Administrator |
Aerospace Systems Design Lab | Cinar,Gokcin | Aerospace Systems Design Lab | 2018/11/15 | Research Engineer II |
Mechanical Engineering | Erisman,Lucinda | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/11/15 | Program & Ops Mgr |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Zhao,Kun | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2018/11/26 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | He,Yubin | Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | 2018/11/26 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Innocenti,Giada | Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | 2018/11/29 | Research Scientist I |
Mechanical Engineering | Shi,Jingjing | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/11/29 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
December 2019 | ||||
55 Years | ||||
Materials Science & Engr | Cagle,James R | Materials Science & Engr | 1964/12/14 | Research Scientist II |
35 Years | ||||
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Whatley-Nwanze,Janice | Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | 1984/12/17 | Academic Advisor II |
20 Years | ||||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Ayazi,Farrokh | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1999/12/01 | Professor |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Crowder,Marion | Electrical & Computer Engr | 1999/12/02 | Instr’l Media Producer |
15 Years | ||||
Civil & Environmental Engr | Burns,Susan Elizabeth | Civil & Environmental Engr | 2004/12/01 | Assoc Chair-Academic |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Huynh,Peter L | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2004/12/13 | IT Support Prof Mgr |
10 Years | ||||
Industrial & Systems Engr | Buser,Frances Dillon | Industrial & Systems Engr | 2009/12/01 | Academic Advisor II |
5 Years | ||||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Dorsey,Julian Lamar | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2014/12/01 | Building Coord I |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Beck,Brian Michael | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2014/12/15 | Academic Professional |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Andino,Rafael Victor | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2014/12/17 | Lecturer |
1 Year | ||||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Loughrey,David A | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2018/12/01 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Neumeister,Amelia B | Civil & Environmental Engr | 2018/12/01 | Communications Officer I |
Materials Science & Engr | Tran,Huan Doan | Materials Science & Engr | 2018/12/01 | Research Scientist II |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Ito,Mitsuko | Electrical & Computer Engr | 2018/12/05 | Admin Professional III |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Caldeira Botelho,Raquel | Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | 2018/12/10 | Research Scientist I |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Liu,Zhongyun | Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | 2018/12/10 | Postdoctoral Fellow |
Mechanical Engineering | Shipp,Patricia H | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/12/13 | Admin Professional Sr |
Aerospace Engineering | Harrison,Evan David | Aerospace Systems Design Lab | 2018/12/17 | Research Engineer II |
Mechanical Engineering | MCCOY,Richard Anthony | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/12/17 | IT Support Prof I |
Mechanical Engineering | Thomas,Nicole | Mechanical Engineering | 2018/12/17 | Admin Professional Sr |
Category: Uncategorized
Raheem Beyah on Inclusivity
Motorola Foundation Professor, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering | Executive Director for Online Masters and Cybersecurity Program | Vice President for Interdisciplinary Research
Do you feel the College of Engineering is an inclusive place for faculty and staff? Why or why not.
I think it is a good place…it has made a lot of progress. We’ve had diverse leadership of the College at the dean and associate dean levels, and we’ve done a decent job with diversity inside of the Schools. With that being said, I think we still have a long way to go. We need to make sure we are a place where everybody feels comfortable and welcome. I love the analogy about diversity and inclusion that goes: “It’s like being invited to the party AND being asked to dance.” For me, I have always felt very welcome and included and part of that comes from me going to school [at Georgia Tech]. But I don’t think my experience necessarily reflects every experience of a minority individual. However, overall, there are really good intentions and corresponding actions by the COE’s leadership, and we’ve made a lot of progress.
How are you involved in inclusivity efforts around campus with students and/or faculty?
I do lot of formal and informal mentoring and activities. I think the most impactful part is the weekly piece. I probably meet with under-represented students and faculty members weekly from all over. I also ran the SURE program, Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering/Sciences, for about seven years, which brought on average 35 to 40 under-represented students to campus per year. I have also, along with two of my colleagues, Baratunde Cola and Samuel Graham, founded an organization for doctoral-level researchers called the Academic and Research Leadership Network (ARLN). It has grown to about 400 individuals across the country, and we have used that to improve diversity and inclusivity across the country and campus.
Where do you think there are opportunities to be more inclusive across our eight schools?
I think we need to make sure that our actions follow our intentions and make sure that our budget follows our ideas. I would love to see a Georgia Tech ‘We Can Do That’ campaign about diversity and inclusion.
Why do you feel diversity and inclusion are important in higher education and beyond?
Data shows the more diverse the group, the better the decision that is made. At a place like Tech, that is very analytical and data-driven, we want to make sure that we are practicing what we preach from the fundamental research areas and also in areas like diversity/inclusion. I was watching a documentary about Warren Buffett, where he said, “We’ve done so well with half of our people: just imagine what we could do when we bring everyone to the table.” In this example, he was talking about the contributions of women finally being recognized. If we could give everybody an equal opportunity to contribute, we could do so much more. Diversity makes Georgia Tech much stronger, the College of Engineering much stronger, and the country much stronger. It makes sure that everyone is at the table contributing and feeling comfortable because when individuals do not feel comfortable, they waste brainpower and energy on fitting in, when that brainpower could go towards curing cancer or cybersecurity.
What do you believe makes Georgia Tech unique in terms of inclusion efforts?
Seventy years ago, we didn’t admit women, and now our freshman class last year was approximately 40% female. Over this seventy-year period, our rankings steadily increased, and we now have some of the best rankings in history. We have made tremendous progress. However, even though the numbers are increasing, we should always aspire to do better in all areas of diversity and to achieve excellence.
Do you have final thoughts on this topic?
I was overwhelmed by the statues that were just built on campus of the first African American students to be enrolled and the first to graduate. That meant a tremendous amount to me and made me even more proud to be an alum. It’s a huge deal and stands for what we want to be, so I am optimistic and excited. I think this is a really good time for Georgia Tech, and I think we are going to do even better than we have done in the past.
Chloé Arson on Inclusivity
Associate Professor, School of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CEE)
Do you feel the College is an inclusive place for faculty and staff? Why or why not?
What I’ve seen so far is that the College is an inclusive place. There’s definitely a lot of effort being put into faculty searches in order to include a diverse pool of candidates, especially women and people from underrepresented minorities. The LGBTQIA Center was created about five years ago and has been very proactive about reaching out to faculty, staff and students in order to educate and celebrate. Some trainings have been newly offered such as the QPR training to raise awareness about mental health and to better equip the faculty and students to give them tools to aid those in distress. I think these initiatives promote diversity and inclusion.
How are you involved in inclusivity efforts around campus with students and/or faculty?
My biggest involvement is through the LGBTQIA Center; I am currently serving as the liaison between that center and CEE. Whenever there are questions concerning LGBTQIA issues, I am here to be a spokesperson. I am also working to organize focus groups with the center to engage more faculty and increase the visibility of these communities within the College of Engineering. I have been a part of multiple panels where STEM students had questions regarding the working environment and how to prepare for interviews. I mentor two graduate students who identify as LGBTQIA, and we talk about research and LGBTQIA issues. I am also part of the College of Engineering committee for diversity and inclusion, and I am trying to create a specific committee of diversity and inclusion within the school [of CEE] together with Robert Simon, one of my colleagues, to develop more pragmatic ideas to implement the more general ideas at the College level.
Where do you think there are opportunities to be more inclusive across our eight schools?
One thing that I see missing is the link between the testing center for students with learning disabilities and our instructors. There is a disconnect between the incoming students in a class and how classrooms are attributed and how students with disabilities are dispatched between classes. One year, one of my students was in a wheelchair, and he could only attend the class from the very back because there were stairs throughout the classroom. This year, out of the 116 students I am teaching, six of them have learning disabilities, which are all very different. It is a lot to handle for one instructor, especially because the Office of Disability Services did not know the needs of the students. This leads to a lot of fatigue and miscommunication for both the faculty and students. I think there is more training and extra support needed. Right now, it’s just not available.
Why do you feel diversity and inclusion are important in higher education and beyond?
There is a lot of literature around how diversity is beneficial to innovation. Working with a diverse set of scholars can lead to more innovative ideas. It is not necessarily always the easiest path because sometimes you face communication barriers, but the simple exercise of overcoming those issues is often very beneficial. Valuing that and trying to better understand how different people from different backgrounds think and operate in a research environment can bring new ideas and lead to growth for both professors and students.
Q&A with Tamecia Wright – Continued
So what have you liked about working here so far?
I love supporting employees in general. It’s been interesting to see the different types of employees. You have faculty employees, staff employees, research employees, student employees. All of them have different needs at different times, so it’s been interesting to serve in that capacity.
On the professional development side of things, what kind of activities have you done since you’ve been here?
I’ve taken a variety of classes. Most recently, I was invited to join the Professional Circles program, which is out of the Workplace Learning and Professional Development Department. It was a great networking opportunity to meet other people who were looking to get into management. We’ve continued to meet and support each other even after that program has ended. I met some great people.
I recently got accepted to the ASPIRE Program. It’s a new program as well. The program, again, is building leaders. It’s for people that don’t currently manage other people but are looking to begin to manage other people, and what does it look like to become a leader at Tech. That program is going to for the next three or four months.
Can you tell us more about the ASPIRE Program?
There were 140 applicants, and 68 of us were chosen. We had the kickoff a couple of weeks ago, and just this past Monday we had our first official in-person meeting. It’s a combination of in-person meetings, online modules of homework, reading and networking in between. It’s a 4-module program that teaches us how to collaborate, be creative, control and compete as leaders. It helps develop your leadership style as well as other leadership styles that may be weaker to you to help you become a whole leader going forward.
The goal is to reinforce that leadership mindset to prepare you to become a leader title-wise. It’s an interesting program, and I was drawn to it specifically because I’ve always considered myself a leader – title or no title. Even as a young child I’ve always been kind of a stand-out-front, get things done, think outside of the box type of person. I’ve served in several leadership positions in my life, and even in my HR career I’ve always been spearheading things. This program was right up my alley, to kind of put the education, experience and knowledge of how to become a better leader under my belt before taking on a title.
Is your goal to be more of a leader at Tech?
I do want to take on a leadership role. I think it’s time. I’ve kind of shied away from it, but I think it’s time to move in that direction.
Is there anything in particular you hope to learn from this ASPIRE program?
I want it to be a firming up of my qualities. I think I possess the qualities to become a great leader, but I want to really reinforce those things in some areas where I am weak. I want to enhance and improve upon areas that might be weaknesses of mine. We’re all human, and we all can grow.
Are there any reasons you think other people should get involved in professional development?
I think that everybody can benefit from professional development. It’s called professional development, but it often bleeds into your personal life. That’s why I encourage everyone to get involved in some form or fashion. You’re bound to learn something about yourself or someone else. That just makes for a better workplace all around.
It’s good to get out and network and learn. We don’t know everybody at Tech, and I just like to meet people, especially being in HR you meet a lot of people and serve a lot of people. I think everybody could use some professional development at some point in time.
In terms of it bleeding into your personal life, do you have any examples of that for you?
Oh my gosh, yes. My personal and my professional life are separate, but not really, because I think of myself as a whole individual. The way I am outside of work I bring here to work, and vice versa. I think that anybody is able to blend the two. With ASPIRE, we talked about a leadership mindset. I’m a mom, so I have to be a leader for my daughter. I’m a business owner, so I have to be a leader in that respect. I’m well-versed in community relations, non-profits and community service, so I’m a leader there. Some of the mindset and qualities a leader has, you exhibit those outside of just your 9 to 5. It’s kind of full circle. They definitely cross over. Even in real life, you’re still dealing with people.
Can you tell us a little about what you do outside of work? You’re a business owner?
I am. I own a small soap company that makes natural soaps and natural body products. I am a mom. My daughter is almost 2, so she is running our lives right now.
I was thinking through ways that I am a leader outside the class and outside of Georgia Tech. I also founded a nonprofit for community service goals. I am a sign language interpreter, so I serve in that way. I’ve got a lot going on outside of Tech! But my most important job is being a mom.
July/August Service Anniversaries
College of Engineering | ||
July/August 2019 service anniversaries | ||
JULY | ||
Home Department | Name | Service Date |
20 Years | ||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Arnold,Rachel D | 1999/07/15 |
15 Years | ||
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Fuller,Thomas F | 2004/07/01 |
Physics | Elliott,Scott L | 2004/07/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Mehaffey,Kristi Landis | 2004/07/07 |
Materials Science & Engr | Milam,Valeria Tohver | 2004/07/19 |
Mechanical Engineering | Kottke,Peter Arthur | 2004/07/31 |
10 Years | ||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Bloch,Matthieu Ratoslav | 2009/07/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Grijalva,Santiago Carlos | 2009/07/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | del Valle,Yamille Ellend | 2009/07/01 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Dey,Santanu Subhas | 2009/07/01 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Simon,Robert Benjamin | 2009/07/13 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Goldenburg,Joseph | 2009/07/20 |
Aerospace Engineering | Lundy,William Christopher | 2009/07/27 |
5 years | ||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Toy,Randall N | 2014/07/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Ranjan,Devesh | 2014/07/01 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Tien,Iris | 2014/07/15 |
Aerospace Engineering | Pritchett,Benjamin Ray | 2014/07/28 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Savelsbergh,Mathieu W | 2014/07/31 |
1 Year | ||
Aerospace Engineering | Bershadsky,Dmitry | 2018/07/01 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Gupta,Swati | 2018/07/01 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Fernandez,Todd M | 2018/07/01 |
Aerospace Engineering | Walters,Robert A | 2018/07/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Barber,Graham Forrest | 2018/07/01 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Otsuki,Alan Jake | 2018/07/05 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | van Montfrans,Veronica | 2018/07/30 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Bell-Huff,Cristi | 2018/07/30 |
AUGUST | ||
30 Years | ||
Aerospace Engineering | Simpson,Howard L | 1989/08/21 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Kohl,Paul A | 1989/08/21 |
20 Years | ||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Babensee,Julia Elizabeth | 1999/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Yezzi,Anthony Joseph | 1999/08/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Lowe,Joyce A | 1999/08/02 |
Mechanical Engineering | Nowell,Darren T | 1999/08/12 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Le Doux,Joseph M | 1999/08/17 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Amekudzi-Kennedy,Adjo Akpene | 1999/08/17 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Anderson,David V | 1999/08/17 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Blough,Douglas M | 1999/08/17 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Davis,Jeffrey A | 1999/08/17 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Frazier,Albert B | 1999/08/17 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Deng,Shijie | 1999/08/17 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Keskinocak,Pinar | 1999/08/17 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Lu,Jye-Chyi | 1999/08/17 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Sokol,Joel S | 1999/08/17 |
Materials Science & Engr | Srinivasarao,Mohan | 1999/08/17 |
15 Years | ||
Electrical & Computer Engr | Upadhyaya,Vijaykumar D | 2004/08/09 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Divan,Deepakraj M | 2004/08/16 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Moore II,Elliot | 2004/08/16 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Sonnenberg-Klein,Julia M | 2004/08/16 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Hutchison,Garry Allen | 2004/08/16 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Chen,Ruizhen Rachel | 2004/08/17 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Garrow,Laurie Anne | 2004/08/17 |
Materials Science & Engr | Yao,Donggang | 2004/08/17 |
10 Years | ||
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Champion,Julie Anne | 2009/08/01 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Walton,Krista S | 2009/08/01 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Jimenez,Jorge Hernan | 2009/08/04 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | OK,Young Woo | 2009/08/04 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Styczynski,Mark Philip-Walter | 2009/08/15 |
Mechanical Engineering | Dixon,James Brandon | 2009/08/17 |
Mechanical Engineering | Sonenblum,Sharon Eve | 2009/08/17 |
Mechanical Engineering | Wang,Yan | 2009/08/17 |
Materials Science & Engr | Green,Kevin | 2009/08/27 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Speights,Stacie Lynn | 2009/08/31 |
5 years | ||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Kwong,Gabriel A | 2014/08/01 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | McNerney,Monica P | 2014/08/01 |
Materials Science & Engr | Losego,Mark D | 2014/08/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Barnes,Jason Louis | 2014/08/11 |
Mechanical Engineering | Saldana,Christopher J | 2014/08/11 |
Aerospace Engineering | Gupta,Mohit | 2014/08/18 |
1 Year | ||
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Jia,Shu | 2018/08/01 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Kaiser,Jennifer | 2018/08/01 |
Mechanical Engineering | Shi,Chengzhi | 2018/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Kiyavash,Negar | 2018/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Yu,Shimeng | 2018/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Moss,Rosaland | 2018/08/01 |
Biomedical Engr, GT/Emory | Mantalaris,Athanasios | 2018/08/01 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Peeta,Srinivas | 2018/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Keromytis,Angelos | 2018/08/01 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Van Hentenryck,Pascal | 2018/08/01 |
Chemical and Biomolecular Engr | Sun,Jifeng | 2018/08/01 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Ribeiro Pinto,Pedro Henrique | 2018/08/02 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Wang,Christine Sun | 2018/08/13 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Ayer,Tugba | 2018/08/15 |
Aerospace Engineering | Vamvoudakis,Kyriakos | 2018/08/15 |
Civil & Environmental Engr | Macedo Escudero,Jorge Luis | 2018/08/15 |
Industrial & Systems Engr | Lee,I-Hsiang | 2018/08/15 |
Mechanical Engineering | Hu,Yuhang | 2018/08/16 |
Mechanical Engineering | Henry,Kimberley | 2018/08/20 |
Mechanical Engineering | Binz,Kristen | 2018/08/20 |
Materials Science & Engr | Foye,Loretta Patrice | 2018/08/21 |
Electrical & Computer Engr | Ai,Ha H | 2018/08/23 |
Aerospace Engineering | Patel,Srujal Anantkumar | 2018/08/24 |
Staff Spotlight: Walter Rich
CoE communicator Walter Rich works in the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering. In addition to writing about all things biomedical, he spends a lot of his free time fostering cats in need with his wife – at one point in time they’ve had 13! Read about his path to Tech and passion for cats in this month’s staff spotlight.
Where did you grow up, and where did you go to college?
My father was in the Air Force and we lived in England, California, Philippines, Florida and Georgia.
I have a computer information systems (CIS) undergraduate degree and an MBA degree—both from Georgia State University (GSU). My first professional job offer was working as a programmer, but I took a software QA and technical support job instead because of better pay and benefits.
What did you do before you worked at Tech and what brought you here?
I worked at Georgia State University doing communications and marketing for the CIS Department at the Robinson College of Business for nearly seven years. So, I ended up returning to GSU as a staff member after working for 20 years in industry. A communication manager’s position was posted in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University, and I thought that it would be an interesting opportunity which kept me in the University System of Georgia and shortened my commute to work.
What do you enjoy about working in the College of Engineering? What have some of the highlights been?
Frankly, I’ve found Tech to harbor a very cordial and professional culture with smart, thoughtful leadership. The faculty at Tech and the research work they do, particularly in biomedical engineering, is significant, interesting and impactful. I seem to run into President Bud Peterson and Buzz (the mascot) at a few events each year, and I always enjoy our brief and warm greetings. It may sound silly, but president Peterson and CoE Dean Steve McLaughlin always say hello to me—I really appreciate that.
Do you have any causes that you are passionate about, on or off campus? If so, what are they?
My wife has enlisted me in cat rescue. We’ve had up to 13 cats in the house being fostered until they can be adopted and/or nursed back to good health. My cat knowledge has skyrocketed over the past year. We work with Half The Way Home cat rescue, and they do terrific work for such a small, local non-profit organization. They find homes for more than 70 cats and kittens a month, which is much more than some of the larger, national organizations helping cats in Atlanta.
Tell us about your experience with cat fostering. Why is this a cause close to your heart?
We’ve had six cats and all of them were very sweet and loving animals that would follow you around the house. Another perk: bugs were eradicated pretty quickly in our home. I’ve learned that treating a cat with love and care creates a trusting furry companion, but that it can take a year for that to happen with some cats. I enjoy helping cats and helping people to live properly with cats as part of their family.
What are some of your favorite restaurants and/or coffee shops close to campus?
4 Rivers BBQ, Fellini’s, Jersey Mike’s, and Taqueria Del Sol. You can get to OK Café very fast using interstate 75. I miss Piccadilly cafeteria.