Michael M. Wood, who is originally from Flint and is the former U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, will offer the Commencement address when Kettering University hosts graduation ceremonies at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 13.  The event is open to the public in the Connie and Jim John Recreation Center.

Kettering will graduate 198 undergraduate and 97 master’s candidates during graduation services.  About 180 undergraduates and 55 graduate students are expected to march at the ceremonies.  University President Stan Liberty will preside and Dr. Henry Kowalski, professor of Mechanical Engineering, will be the grand marshal.  Undergraduate student speaker will be Tyler Finnegan of Elyria, Ohio, who will earn a bachelor’s degree in Management. 

Here are the highlights of the upcoming ceremony:

Saturday, June 13, 2009, 11 a.m.
Connie and Jim John Recreation Center 
No tickets required to attend Commencement 
The event is free and open to the public
Allow 1 1/2 hours for the ceremony 
Presiding: Kettering University President Stan Liberty
Parking is free and available in all campus parking lots 
Information center will be located on the 1st floor of the CC (outside BJ's Lounge, behind the elevators) from 8:30 - 10:45 a.m.
There is no graduation rehearsal
Total graduates: 198 undergraduates, 97 master’s candidates 
Graduates expecting to march: 180 undergraduates, 55 graduate 
Expected number of guests: 1,600 
Faculty will host a light breakfast in the International Room, Fifth Floor of the Campus Center, 8:30-10 a.m. 
Recreation Center doors open at 9 a.m. for visitors to arrive and be seated 
Faculty and staff members assemble for the Processional between 10-10:55 a.m. in the Third Floor, Recreation Center 
Graduates assemble on the first floor of the Campus Center (just outside BJ's Lounge) between 10:30-10:55 a.m.  
Formal processional begins at 11 a.m.

HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENT: 1
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
Michael M. Wood
Former U.S. Ambassador to Sweden
Chair, Redwood Investments, LLC 

Michael M. Wood is a son of Flint.  He grew up in the area and attended Flint’s Whittier Middle School.  After graduating from Yale University, he helped found the leading media company for the housing and construction industry.  His national service included organizing a housing industry round table in 1984 for U.S. President Ronald Reagan and representing the United States during the presidential inauguration in Ecuador in 2003.  In 2006, Mr. Wood was sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to Sweden.  

Ambassador Wood was very helpful in developing the international collaboration between Kettering, Linkoping University in Sweden and others that is currently creating a waste-to-energy bio-methane center at Flint's wastewater treatment facility. Mr. Wood was also instrumental in hosting the royal visit of His Majesty Carl XVI Gustaf, King of Sweden, to campus on Sept. 26 last year.  Kettering will award Mr. Wood an honorary doctor of Humane Letters.  Read his bio (http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2882) and more about the “Crowning event” that brought a king to Kettering’s campus (http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2805). 

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT SPEAKER: 1

Tyler Finnegan of Elyria, Ohio, is the undergraduate student speaker and will offer comments on “Resilience and Revolution” to his graduating class.  He will receive a bachelor’s degree in Management.  His co-op was at Delphi Corporation.  He is a 2005 graduate of Elyria Catholic High School in Ohio.     

A student leader and outspoken advocate for cooperative education, he has often represented Kettering in the media, including being interviewed by the New York Times for a national news story on the University.  At Kettering, Finnegan has been involved in Robot Leadership Honor Society, he was president of the Professional Leadership Honor Society, director of KSG Academic Council, a team leader for Student Ambassadors, an RA in Thompson Hall, an active employee at the Recreation Center, a regular contributor to the SuccessZone incoming student portal as the StickMan, College DECA, and a volunteer in the Flint community as part of Junior Achievement and Michigan High School DECA.  He also has served on numerous committees including the Friends of the Library and Archives, Commencement Committee and the WAG-GPA Task Force.   

He has accepted a full-time job at Guardian Industries and will join its leadership development program in Geneva, N.Y. 

OUTSTANDING THESIS AWARD: 1
The Outstanding Thesis Award winner for Spring 2009 goes to Brian L. Dorney of Holly, Mich. He is an Applied Physics major, whose co-op was at Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Ill.  His thesis is "Hydrogen Storage by Adsorption in Polymer Materials.” His faculty adviser is Dr. Yuri Sikorski of Physics.  Dorney will be among those feted during the Commencement Honors Breakfast on June 13. 

PRESIDENT'S MEDAL WINNERS: 4
Willy Joseph, Freeport, Bahamas
Kelly Lynn Okapal, Sylvania, Ohio
Scott Michael Skelton, Belleville, Mich.
Abdrahamane Traore, Bamako, Mali, Africa

SOBEY SCHOLARS: 6
Willy Joseph, Freeport, Bahamas
Kelly Lynn Okapal, Sylvania, Ohio
Jarrad Pouncil, Flint, Mich.
Tracy Schmitz, Shelby Township, Mich.
Abdrahamane Traore, Bamako, Mali, Africa
Angela Tremble, Detroit, Mich. 

ACADEMIC HONORS:
Summa Cum Laude (97.0-100): 9
Magna Cum Laude (94.5-96.9):  18
Cum Laude (92-94.4): 28 

TOTAL GRADUATES, BY DEGREE:
Bachelor's Degrees
Applied Mathematics: 1
Applied Physics: 1
Biochemistry: 1
Business Administration: 4
Chemistry: 2
Computer Engineering:11
Computer Science: 2
Electrical Engineering: 31
Industrial Engineering: 20
Management: 4
Mechanical Engineering: 115
Dual Electrical Engineering and Applied Mathematics: 1
Dual Mechanical Engineering and Applied Physics: 2
Dual Mechanical Engineering and Electrical Engineering: 2
Dual Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Engineering: 1
BACHELOR'S TOTAL = 198

Master's Degrees
Engineering: 23
Engineering Management: 6
Information Technology: 5
Manufacturing Management: 8
Manufacturing Operations: 38
MBA: 9
Operations Management: 6
Dual Engineering Management and MBA: 1
Dual Operations Management and Manufacturing Management: 1
MASTER'S TOTAL = 97

FOR MORE ON COMMENCEMENT, visit:
http://www.kettering.edu/registrar/commencement_information.jsp  

HOTELS/RESTAURANTS: Contact the Flint Area Convention and Visitors Bureau: 1-800-24-FLINT or (810) 232-2211.

CAN WE HELP? 1-800-955-4464, ext. 9585, or 810-762-9585. 

Written by Patricia Mroczek
810.762.9533
pmroczek@kettering.edu

Commencement is June 14

Innovation and technology will be the theme for Kettering University’s Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, June 14, in the Connie and Jim John Recreation Center.

Kettering President Stan Liberty will preside at the 11 a.m. graduation services for 315 graduates (238 undergrads and 77 master’s candidates).  The grand marshal will once again be Dr. Henry Kowalski, professor of Mechanical Engineering. 

Two technology innovators, who helped propel their industries to new heights, will receive honorary degrees.  They are: Dr. Curtis R. Carlson, president and chief executive officer of SRI International, and the late David W. Hermance, a 1970 graduate of Kettering/GMI, who has been called “the ambassador for green cars” and “a giant in advanced vehicle technologies.”

Two graduates of Kettering’s Academically Interested Minorities program (AIM) are the undergraduate student speakers.  They are Gadryn Higgs and Stephanie Thach.  Higgs is from Freeport, Bahamas, and will receive a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.  Thach is from Flint and will receive a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering. 

James Bendert of San Diego, Calif., will receive the Outstanding Thesis Award and a bachelor’s degree in Applied Physics.  His co-op was at Argonne National Labs in Argonne, Ill.  Bendert's thesis title is: "Diagnostics of PEM Fuel Cell Electrolytes by Raman Spectroscopy and AC Impedance Spectroscopy". It covers diagnostic study of cation impurities in PEM fuel cell electrolytes by Raman spectroscopy and AC impedance spectroscopy both in the pure membrane form and within the electrode. He was nominated by his faculty adviser Dr. Bahram Roughani, interim department head of Physics.

Here are the highlights of the upcoming ceremony:

Saturday, June 14, 2008, 11 a.m. 

• Connie and Jim John Recreation Center 
• No tickets required to attend Commencement 
• Allow 1 1/2 hours for the ceremony 
• Presiding: Kettering University President Stan Liberty
• Grand Marshal: Dr. Henry Kowalski of Mechanical Engineering
• Parking is free and available in all campus parking lots 
• Information center will be on the first floor of the Campus Center (behind the elevators), outside BJ's Lounge, from 8:30 - 11 a.m. 
• There is no graduation rehearsal
• Total graduates: 238 undergraduates, 77 master’s candidates 
• Graduates expecting to march: 144 undergraduates, 30 graduate 
• Expected number of guests: 1,600 
• Faculty will host a light breakfast in the International Room, Fifth Floor of the Campus Center, 8:30-10 a.m. 
• Recreation Center doors open at 9 a.m. for visitors to arrive and be seated 
• Faculty and staff members assemble for the Processional between 10-10:55 a.m. in the Third Floor, Recreation Center 
• Graduates assemble on the first floor of the Campus Center (just outside BJ's Lounge) between 10:30-10:55 a.m.  
• Formal processional begins at 11 a.m.

HONORARY DEGREE RECIPIENTS: 2
Dr. Curtis R. Carlson

HONORARY DOCTOR OF SCIENCE
President and Chief Executive Officer
SRI International
Menlo Park, California 

Carlson will present the Commencement address.  He helped start and lead the high-definition television (HDTV) program that became the U.S. standard and won an Emmy Award for outstanding technical achievement.  Another team started and led by Carlson won an Emmy in 2000 for a system that measures broadcast image quality.  See his entire bio at: http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2765

David W. Hermance ’70

HONORARY DOCTOR OF ENGINEERING (Posthumous Award)
Executive Engineer for Advanced Technology Vehicles
Toyota Technical Center, USA
Gardena, California

Hermance has been called “the point man for an entire technology – the gasoline-electric hybrid.”  He died in November 2006 when his single-engine stunt plane crashed into the ocean near Los Angeles.  Hermance’s wife, Mary, and family members will accept a posthumous award.  See his entire bio at: http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2766.

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT SPEAKERS:  2
Gadryn Higgs of Freeport, Bahamas (AIM graduate), Mechanical Engineering
Stephanie Thach of Flint (AIM graduate), Industrial Engineering

ACADEMIC HONORS:
Summa Cum Laude (97.0-100) - 6
Magna Cum Laude (94.5-96.9) - 12
Cum Laude (92-94.4) - 29

PRESIDENT’S MEDALISTS: 5
Gadryn Higgs, Freeport, Bahamas;
Ken Luiten, Tucson, Ariz.;
Kristin Rice, Albany, N.Y.;
Robert Riggs, Spring, Texas; and
Ryan Sullivan, Ada, Mich.

SOBEY SCHOLARS: 4
Gadryn Higgs of Freeport, Bahamas;
Kristin Rice of Albany, N.Y.;
Ryan Sullivan, Ada, Mich.; and Stephanie Welch of Clio, Mich. 

OUTSTANDING THESIS AWARD:  1
James Bendert of San Diego, Calif.  

TOTAL GRADUATES, BY DEGREE: 315
Undergraduate Degrees:
1          Applied Mathematics
4          Applied Physics
1          Biochemistry
2          Chemistry
5          Computer Engineering
4          Computer Science
35        Electrical Engineering
0          Engineering Physics
14        Industrial Engineering
14        Management
150      Mechanical Engineering
4          Dual (Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering)
2          Dual (Computer Science and Computer Engineering)
1          Dual (Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mathematics)
1          Dual (Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering)
238     TOTAL

Master’s Degrees:
9          MBA
5          Engineering Management
9          Engineering
1          Information Technology
5          Manufacturing Management
33        Manufacturing Operations
12        Operations Management
2          Dual (Operations Management and MBA)
1          Dual (Engineering Management and MBA)
77        TOTAL  

FOR MORE ON COMMENCEMENT, visit: http://www.kettering.edu/registrar/commencement_information.jsp

HOTELS/RESTAURANTS: Contact the Flint Area Convention and Visitors Bureau: 1-800-24-FLINT or (810) 232-2211.

CAN WE HELP? 1-800-955-4464, ext. 9585, or 810-762-9585.

Written by Patricia Mroczek
810.762.9533
pmroczek@kettering.edu

Kettering President James E.A. John has signed an Academic Cooperative Agreement between Kettering University and Jilin University in the People's Republic of China. This agreement establishes a framework to begin negotiating the development of undergraduate programs in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering and Environmental Chemistry, and graduate programs in Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Design, Manufacturing Systems Engineering and Manufacturing Management, in addition to continuing education courses for professionals.

Jilin University, formerly Jilin University of Technology (JUT), is the premiere automotive educational institution in China. A handful of JUT graduates have earned master's degrees in Automotive Engineering from Kettering.

Jilin is one of the major universities in China and has already begun exchange programs with universities in Canada, Japan, Germany and Australia. Kettering would be the first American university to develop this type of program with Jilin.

The agreement would allow undergraduate students proficient in English to complete two years of study at Jilin University, and then transfer to Kettering University where they would complete their degrees alternating 15 months of coursework with 15months of cooperative work experience.

Graduate students proficient in English would come directly to Kettering University for 1.5 years, then finish their degrees at Jilin University with one year of coursework. Students not yet proficient in English would complete their degree in the reverse order. Professionals working in the Peoples Republic of China would enroll in continuing education courses, which may be offered at either location.

Written by Dawn Hibbard
(810) 762-9865
dhibbard@kettering.edu

This website provides PDF copies of conference proceedings published by faculty on recent research efforts, as well as science journalism that has appeared in national media outlets on research activities undertaken by Kettering faculty members. The goal behind this website is to help the University connect in deeper ways with visitors and alumni by posting original research, science journalism and links to interesting websites and books that may be of interest. The Kettering University Technical Publications Website Committee will play a crucial role in ensuring that materials posted on the website provide appropriate citations to copyrighted work and receive permissions to reprint work.

For Bob Werenski, a 1961 graduate of Kettering/GMI and member of the University's Alumni Association Board of Directors, and one of the champions of the new website, this resource would serve as a point of reconnection for many alumni who have not visited the institution since their graduation. "It would help readers experience in a direct way the role our University is playing in their continuing interest in science, math, engineering and business," he said.

The benefits to faculty would include an additional outlet to promote their research efforts, receive additional recognition by their peers, stimulate learning and communication between readers and other researchers, and finally demonstrate the practical aspects of science, engineering, math and business, which are at the root of the Kettering brand of education.

To learn more about this website, contact Judy Howald, associate vice president of Individual Giving, at (810) 762-9759.

Written by Gary J. Erwin
(810) 762-9538
gerwin@kettering.edu

"One of the things that helps me in competition is that I tend to end up with high tech toys other teams don't have, enabling me to determine what is going on with the wind," said Nels, a two-time World Hot Air Balloon Championship winner. "You are essentially trying to steer a totally un-steerable aircraft. The art is to find different winds at different altitudes and get to point A from point B efficiently," he said.

To make even better use of the "high tech toys," Nels is currently trying to develop an application combining communication technology and management science with help from students and faculty at Kettering. "It involves hardware that will allow me to detect wind information, communicate that information to a computer that will help us make decisions on how best to fly," he said. "A lot of preparing for competition is coming up with how to apply the available technology and use it to your benefit."

He manages to remain competitive and still work his day job with Square D (a division of Schneider Electric), raise four children, serve on the local school system's financial oversight committee, be involved with youth athletics and earn a master's degree. It was a class in the master of Manufacturing Management program at Kettering, that gave him an idea for more high tech toys.

"I took a course from Dr. David Poock, head of the Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering and Business department, that gave me some interesting ideas that may have application in the ballooning world," Nels said. He is currently expecting to graduate with his master's degree in December of 2005.

Showing signs of an engineering mind-set early on,Nels was building hot air balloons out of birthday candles and dry cleaning bags at 13. "I was always interested in flight," he said. "My dad worked at Wright Patterson Air Force Base and my older brother, who was also a GMI graduate, class of '65, had his pilot's license for planes."

Ironically, it wasn't until Nels was a student at Kettering/GMI that he had an opportunity to move from dry cleaning bags to the real thing. "GMI had a program that brought in outside speakers," he said, "one time the topic was hot air ballooning." After hearing the speech Nels volunteered to help crew on hot air balloons in the Flint area.

His first balloon ride was at an air show at Bishop Airport. "It was exactly what I dreamed it would be, the ability to float, to levitate above the tree line at end of the field. I thought 'this is what I want to do,' he said."

"I started training a week later with Tom Allen in Fenton and had my commercial license within a month," he said. But putting himself through Kettering/GMI and working at Chevrolet Manufacturing as a co-op student, didn't allow enough money for flying lessons. "So I called my brother to get a loan so I could learn how to fly," said Nels, "and that's how I got started."

He started racing competitively after many years organizing ballooning events and working as a balloon competition official in the Pinckney and Howell areas. "I started thinking 'I'm on the ground watching everyone else having fun," said Nels, "I wanted to have the fun, so I started flying competitions myself."

His first competition year he didn't do well, taking 35th place in the U.S. National Balloon Championship. "That didn't sit well with me. I wanted to be in the top 10, and my parents said if I made it to the top 10 they would come to the awards banquet. The next year I was number 10," Nels said. Mom and Dad made the trip from Beavercreek to Indianola, Iowa for the ceremony.

Next he made it to 7th place, then 5th the following year. "Then I shot for the top. I went to the 1984 U.S. Nationals with the attitude to win first place, and I did," he said. "At that point I had to ask myself 'What are you going to do next?' so I won again in 1985."

The next logical step was to win a Hot Air Balloon World Championship. The "Worlds" are held every other year in locations all over the globe. The 2004 Worlds were in Mildura, Australia. The 2006 Worlds are scheduled for Motegi, Japan.

Nels qualified for the Worlds in 1987 in Shielleiten, Austria. "I went into the Worlds determined to win, despite the fact I was a flatlander pilot," he said. And although the Austrians were favored to win because of their experience in mountain ballooning, Nels won the World Championship that year, beating 70 other pilots.

The next Worlds were held in Saga City, Japan, in 1989. "I was determined to win again," said Nels, "but I got beat by a German pilot and finished in 2nd. place. I really wanted a second World Championship under my belt, so I went to the Worlds again in 1991 in St. Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, Canada, and ended up winning a second time." This time he beat out 100 other pilots.

"It is a great honor to win the Worlds and a great cultural experience to meet other pilots and share in their customs," he said. To compete at the Hot Air Balloon World Championship, a pilot must qualify and receive a nomination from their aero club. Nels has flown in seven or eight World Championships.

"We are currently getting the U.S. team ready for the Worlds in Motegi, Japan. I don't know if I will be on the team in 2006," said Nels, "but I'm anxious to see the U.S. team win. The quality of U.S. pilots has grown significantly since I started competing."

Generally, three to five U.S. pilots will qualify for Worlds and despite competing against one another for the title, they will pull together as team, shipping equipment, sharing weather information and measuring equipment, according to Nels. "It's better to work together," he said, "a cooperative effort helps everybody have a better chance during the race. It is worth the strategic effort to have someone from the team win and really improves the odds of a U.S. pilot winning."

"If it were the last flight of the World Championship and all five Americans were tied, then everyone would be on their own," he said. "But that's never happened, usually one or two pull ahead and the other members will sacrifice their results to sample winds and feed information to help the pilots with a lead."

In Worlds, a cumulative score is based on multiple flights. Each flight has a task to be completed for which a pilot can earn up to 1000 points. So, a pilot with a low score will act as scout for a higher scored pilot to help them win the World Championship.

Ballooning has become more than a personal hobby for Nels, of Beavercreek, Ohio, it has developed into a family affair with all four of his children serving as balloon crew along the way. Oldest daughter Rebecca, 27, is anxious to learn how to fly, but the successful entrepreneur is "too busy to do much flying right now," said Nels. Daughter Melissa, 25, loves to balloon but she is not interested in learning how to pilot. Andrew, 16, solo-ed the balloon on his 14th birthday and 14-year-old Ashley just earned her student pilot's license. "My wife Lorene is involved on occasion," Nels said, "but she says I take it too seriously and it's not as much fun as should be."

But for Nels, the "fun" is still in the levitating, floating above the tree line, and trying out the latest high tech toys.

Currently working on a master's degree in Manufacturing Management at Kettering, Nels did some graduate study at Central Michigan University and the University of Dayton working toward an MBA, but decided not to finish either program. "Your lifestyle starts to change and you think 'what do I need that degree for?'" he said. "But when I turned 50 my wife said 'you really ought to finish.' Kettering looked like it had a good graduate program, and since GMI had prepared me so well in my undergraduate education, I though it would be a good choice for my master's degree." "I didn't know what to expect of a distance learning program," Nels said, "anyone who thinks distance learning is going to be easy is dead wrong in regard to Kettering. The program has awesome teachers and a lot of homework. I can't say enough good about it."

After Nels won Worlds in 1987, he returned to the "real world" to find hundreds of messages and voicemails - mostly solicitations, "so I got good at throwing most of them away." One day he received a voicemail that said 'please call so-and-so at Forbes.' "Thinking they were trying to sell me a magazine subscription I disregarded it. A week or two later I got another message "please call so-and-so from Mr. Forbes' Office." I figured they were really anxious to sell me a subscription, but I called back anyway. The secretary answered 'Mr. Forbes' Office,' and when I told her who I was she said Mr. Forbes wanted to invite me to his chateau in France as his guest and would I bring the balloon. I thought she was joking, but she was serious. So, my wife and I and two guests shipped my equipment to Malcom Forbes' chateau in France. There were 20 people with balloons there and some of Forbes' friends. The head of our company was there and he introduced me to Walter and Betsy Cronkite. Walter wanted a ride in my balloon the following morning so we made arrangements to fly early. "Later that afternoon Cronkite introduced me to Casper Weinberger. I have always wanted to ride in a jet fighter and Weinberger had just left being the Secretary of Defense, so I thought 'here's my chance, if I'm ever going to know the right person to tell I want to ride in the backseat of fast mover, this is it.' Casper asked me what he needed to do to get a balloon ride in the morning. Now, I fly a small balloon, strictly for competition, it's rare we can get two people AND me in there, but I was trying to figure out how to do this when Cronkite stepped forward and said 'Cap, Al and I are going to be flying the entire weekend. It's a small balloon and it isn't going to work to take two people up.' He told Weinberger he'd have to fly with someone else. "I never would have believed I would be in the situation were Walter Cronkite was telling Casper Weinberger he couldn't fly with me."

Written by Dawn Hibbard
(810) 762-9865
dhibbard@kettering.edu