Kettering University News - Category: Alumni http://www.kettering.edu Kettering University news from the "Alumni" category en-us pmroczek@kettering.edu webmaster@kettering.edu Kettering Seal http://www.kettering.edu/images/seal_bw.gif http://www.kettering.edu The longest mission http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2945 2945 November 17, 2009 When Bruce L. Lowe joined the Air Force during World War II, he didn't know the interruption to his education at then GMI, now Kettering University, would be a 10-month hiatus in a prisoner of war camp. Here is his story, one of several on alumni WWII veterans published this year.


June 26, 1944—The training was complete. Everything they’d learned was now essential to survival in the bombing campaign against Germany. But this was their first mission, one that Bruce L. Lowe ‘48 of Flint had never anticipating lasting almost a year.

Lowe—a B-24 co-pilot assigned to the Fifteenth Air Force Division, 459th Bomb Group based in Cerginola, Italy—took off with his crew on his first mission that June 26 with 36 other bombers to attack the oil refineries in Vienna that supplied Hitler’s army. But as soon as the bomber became air born, one engine started acting up. Shortly thereafter, a second engine on the left wing developed a run-away prop, which meant the pilot and Lowe had to shut it down and feather both props.

Unfortunately, they were unable to maintain flight and received orders from their base to abandon the bomber. Twenty minutes before reaching the target, the crew bailed out over enemy territory at more than 16,000 feet at 9:30 am. Lowe landed in a field in western Hungary and no one was within the vicinity. Around the time that he landed, a dog fight between an American P-38 and German ME-109 took place. The ME was shot down, which distracted the local towns people from searching for Lowe and his crew.

“I ducked and could envision the horrible sight of one of the .50 caliber shells hitting me,” Lowe said. “About 100 yards from me, the ME’s nose was buried in the ground, which was a lucky break because I was able to hide out in the wheat field,” he added.

Lowe would learn later that of the 36 bombers that approached the target that day, 10 were lost.


During that first night, he hid and tried to determine his next move. But the next morning the townsmen were up early searching for his crew and they caught Lowe at 6:30 am. After taking him to a small town and feeding him coffee and bread, they handcuffed the tall American and marched him to the Hungarian Army Headquarters in another town.

After a month in a Budapest jail, he was placed on a train with other prisoners and transported to Stalag Luft III 100 miles southeast of Berlin in Sagan, Germany. There were more than 10,000 officers in the camp and four months earlier, 76 POWs attempted a massive escape through a 287-foot tunnel they dug out over a seven-month period. This became the subject of the movie The Great Escape; Hitler was enraged at this mass escape attempt that when the German Army captured 50 of these prisoners, he immediately ordered their execution.

Lowe’s time in Stalag Luft III comprised working to eat, staying warm and planning for evacuation. He also kept a chronology of important dates and events written on wrapper papers from the inside of Lucky Strike cigarette packages. To protect his chronology, Lowe fashioned an outer cover from a flattened Spam can.

Like other prisoners, life in camp was difficult for Lowe, but he found ways to survive. He ate off Spam cans that had been cleaned out and flattened as plates. He and other prisoners used powdered milk cans to dig out tree stumps, which they used for fire kindling. And upon his first day of arrival in camp, officers told him to be ready to leave immediately on foot, since Hitler often used the prisoners as pawns to prevent the Allies from certain attacks when prisoners were in transit.


In January of 1945 as the Russians advanced toward Sagan, the German Army feared that the highly trained airmen would be freed and thus forced the 10,000 prisoners in Stalag Luft III to march some 62 miles in five days to Spremberg. The prisoners were then put aboard a train and transferred to Stalag Luft XIII in Moosburg in mid April, 1945, which was just outside of Nuremberg

Life at this camp was even worse: the food was inedible and more than 30,000 POWs crowded the grounds. Outside the prison fence, bombs dropped from Allie planes. Eventually, the prisoners were forced to march again to another prison—Stalag Luft VII-A, some 100 miles from Nuremburg, a small camp designed to house only 10,000 prisoners.

But when Lowe and his group arrived, the prison swelled to more than 130,000 prisoners from all over the world, most of which slept on the ground or in make-shift tents.  Soon, word spread that liberation was approaching—Patton’s troops were on their way to Munich, which was close to the camp.

The morning of April 29, 1945, the German Army continued to fight in an attempt to defend Moosburg against Patton’s approaching troops. Bullets whizzed through the camp and the prisoners hugged the ground. Suddenly, the camp grew quiet. The German soldiers disappeared. Minutes later General Patton came through the camp gates in a jeep and his 14th Armored Division liberated the prisoners.


Within a month, Lowe was home in Flint, greeted at the train station by his mother and fiancée, Betty Jane. His first and only mission during WWII lasted 10 months.

“I was SO happy to be home,” Lowe said.

Bruce and Betty Jane married. He returned to GMI and graduated in 1948, then went on to a successful GM career at Buick, retiring in 1980. Today, he and Betty Jane are 86. They have three married children and live in Jacksonville, Fla., near their grandchildren.

Written by Gary J. Erwin
810.762.9538
gerwin@kettering.edu

Grateful acknowledgement is made to Peggy L. Shippen, daughter of Bruce Lowe, and to Bruce Lowe for material provided for this story. ]]> Financial Summit http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2932 2932 October 07, 2009

Harry Lange, the portfolio manager of Fidelity’s Magellan Fund in Boston, is among the national talent who will be featured Saturday, Oct. 10, when Kettering University hosts a Financial Summit in Flint.

The four-hour workshop is open to the public and will focus on topics pertinent to the current Michigan economy, ranging from job hunting in today’s environment to financial survival during a career transition.

Lange’s keynote address, “My Outlook on the Markets and the Economy,” opens the morning workshop.  Lange, who is a graduate of Kettering University, is a vice president for Fidelity Investments, the largest mutual fund company in the United States, the No. 1 provider of workplace retirement savings plans and a leading online brokerage firm.

Registration opens at 8:30 a.m.  Cost for the half-day workshop is $15.  Experts and topics featured during the break-out sessions are:

Job Hunting in Today’s Environment: Kathy Harris is a technical account executive of Adecco Technical, a premier provider of integrated Human Capital Solutions (direct, contractual, and payroll).

Financial Survival During a Career Transition: Eudora Adolph, financial growth engineer, AverTrust Advisors, LLC, helps clients by providing solutions focused on long-term, financial retention for individuals, families and businesses.  A 1991 graduate of Kettering, her background as a global engineering manager, professor, executive and entrepreneur provides strategic and financial experience to assist clients.

Today’s Real Estate Market: Al Beahn, agent, at Advantage Realty, Inc., is a full-time, full-service real estate agent serving Michigan’s Macomb and Oakland counties. He specializes in short sales and residential leases.

Estate Planning: Attorney Paul Salyers is the founder and principal of Salyers, Hugo & Associates, PC, a Troy, Mich., law firm focused on estate planning.

Mortgage Issues and Options: Jeff Marsack is a mortgage loan professional with Great Lakes Mortgage Funding specializing in residential mortgage financing for more than 15 years in Southeast Michigan.

Registration is available at registration form.

For more information, contact: Bonnie McArthur, Kettering Senior Advancement Officer, (810) 762-9519, or bmcarthu@kettering.edu.

Kettering University is the home of the country’s most advanced professional cooperative education program.  For more on Kettering, visit: www.kettering.edu

Written by Patricia Mroczek
810.762.9533
pmroczek@kettering.edu

]]> Medical Physics comes to Kettering http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2931 2931 October 05, 2009 In 2005 Kettering alumnus Victor D. Hosfeld didn’t know he would be walking the halls of Kettering’s Academic Building carrying textbooks again within four years of graduating. But this time, instead of turning in homework and taking tests, he’ll be correcting the homework and giving the tests.

Hosfeld is returning to campus to teach a new course for the Physics Department – Medical Physics. Currently a medical physicist at the Mid-Michigan Medical Center in Midland, Mich., Hosfeld agreed to teach the first Medical Physics course to jump-start an effort to establish a minor in Medical Physics, according to Dr. Bahram Roughani, chair of the Physics Department.

Hosfeld was pretty far along in his academic career when Roughani, lecturing on the scope of careers for Physicists, mentioned Medical Physics.  What attracted Hosfeld to this field of Physics was “it is a much more applied area of Physics. On a day-to-day basis I get to work with people in clinical environments, for example, in treating cancer patients,” he said.

In his role as lead physicist for stereotactic body radiosurgery, Hosfeld works with physicians to develop treatment plans for patients undergoing radiation therapy. Specifically, he develops strategies for treatment delivery including how many radiation beams to use and in what geometry to place them to ensure the cancer is irradiated and that critical organs surrounding, and adjacent to the cancer, are preserved.

“In the past 10 years this field has evolved very quickly,” said Hosfeld, “today we are able to deliver increased therapeutic doses of radiation, with accuracy and precision that was previously unimaginable.”

Hosfeld’s involvement with his alma mater started when he joined the industrial advisory board for the Physics Department. “I had stayed in touch with Dr. Roughani since graduating,” he said, “and as a member of the advisory board I knew the Physics Department was trying to diversify the curriculum. Medical Physics is an area of high demand with the technology evolving daily, but it is not an area that is as well known in Physics. Dr. Roughani and I thought this would be a good opportunity for Kettering to expand its Physics curriculum,” he added.

Hosfeld is concerned that some students may think the new course will be very abstract and include “complicated math or be hard to handle.” He said nothing could be farther from the truth, saying that it will simply offer a new way to apply the physics and mathematics they are already familiar with.

No stranger to teaching, Hosfeld, who earned a dual bachelor’s degree at Kettering in Applied Physics and Mechanical Engineering and his master’s degree in Medical Physics from Duke University, lectures on radiation oncology to nursing students, at the Mid-Michigan Medical Center. “It is the first time I’ve taught a course from start to finish, however,” he said. “I like being in an academic environment, there is a certain kind of energy on a college campus that I enjoy.”

According to the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM), Medical Physics is an applied branch of physics concerned with the application of the concepts and methods of physics to the diagnosis and treatment of human disease. It is allied with medical electronics, bioengineering, and health physics.

Medical physicists contribute to the effectiveness of radiological imaging procedures by assuring radiation safety and helping to develop improved imaging techniques (e.g., mammography CT, MR, ultrasound). They contribute to development of therapeutic techniques (e.g., prostate implants, stereotactic radiosurgery), collaborate with radiation oncologists to design treatment plans, and monitor equipment and procedures to ensure that cancer patients receive the prescribed dose of radiation to the correct location.

For more information about the Medical Physics course at Kettering or the plans for a minor in Medical Phhysics, contact Dr. Bahram Roughani at broughan@kettering.edu. For more information about the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, visit their web site at www.aapm.org. ]]> New Trustee chair http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2926 2926 September 16, 2009
Gary Cowger ‘ 70, group vice president at General Motors, was elected chair of the Kettering University Board of Trustees during the board’s annual meeting Sept. 11.  Cowger will lead the board for a two-year term.  

He replaces Bruce Coventry ’75, president of Dresser Waukesha of Wisconsin, who completed his two-year term as chair.  Coventry will remain on the board as a trustee.

Charles Kettering III, president of the Kettering Family Foundation of Denver, was elected vice chair for a two-year term.  He replaces Cowger, who previously served as vice chair.

Jackie Dedo ’84, vice president of strategy and business development at the Dana Holding Corp. in Toledo, Ohio, was elected secretary for a two-year term.  Completing the slate of officers are Susan Bolt, Kettering’s vice president of Administration and Finance, as treasurer, and Susan Fleckenstein, assistant to Kettering President Stan Liberty, as the assistant secretary to the board.

Kettering’s Board of Trustees currently has 34 members.

Written by Patricia Mroczek
810.762.9533
pmroczek@kettering.edu ]]> Bulldog roundup http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2925 2925 September 15, 2009

The mood was high and the laughter loud at the 2009 Bulldog Alumni Reunion weekend Sept. 10 through 13. The class of 1959 might have been known as the year of the singing engineer – they sang at lunch and at dinner at Warwick Hills Country Club. They sang at dinner TWICE! Younger alumni in attendance were heard asking for the words so they could sing the racy little GMI song at their 50th reunion.

Nine outstanding alumni were recognized by the Kettering University Alumni Association. They shared the stories of their success and represented the diversity of careers that Kettering/GMI alumni have in Engineering, Science, Math, Business and Technology. The nine honorees were recognized for professional excellence and civic engagement.

The awardees for 2009 were:

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS James A. McCaslin ‘74 President, Chief Operating Officer for Harley-Davidson Motor Company

OUTSTANDING ALUMNUS David Kenny ‘84 Managing Partner of VivaKi, Publicis Groupe

MANAGEMENT ACHIEVEMENT Gregory Scott Deveson ‘84 Senior Vice President, Driveline and Chassis Control Systems, Magna Powertrain

ENGINEERING ACHIEVEMENT Lori J. Queen ‘79 Vehicle Line Executive for General Motors Midsize Trucks

CIVIC ACHIEVEMENT Phillip C. Dutcher ‘73 Chief Operations Officer, Naples Community Healthcare System ALUMNI SERVICE Robert Evangelista ’89 President of The Business of Winning, LLC

ENTREPRENEURIAL ACHIEVEMENT Daniel R. Joseph ‘84 President and owner of D. R. Joseph, Inc., in Grand Prairie, Texas

HUMAN RELATIONS Aqua Y. Porter ‘84 Vice-President, Strategic Projects & Business Results and Corporate Lean Six Sigma Operations for Xerox Corporation

YOUNG ALUMNUS Sheri Hickok ‘99 Executive Technical Assistant to the Group Vice President of Global Engineering, General Motors





For more photos from Alumni Reunion Weekend 2009, visit the Kettering University facebook group at KettNet on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?page=1&aid=155423&id=64693586146#/pages/Flint-MI/KettNet-The-Kettering-University-Network/64693586146 ]]> Tribute to alumnus Richard Sanders '74 http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2923 2923 September 10, 2009 Missing from this year’s Bulldog Days Alumni reunion is Kettering/GMI alumnus Richard Sanders ’74, who died Aug. 3 at age 57 of an inoperable brain tumor. A memorial service was held Saturday, Aug. 29.

Sanders is well-known as a national forensic pioneer and University of Colorado Denver Professor, whose work in audio/video forensics has been instrumental in helping national and international investigations in well-known cases including the JonBenet Ramsey and Kobe Bryant investigations, as well as the Columbine High School shootings and the Oklahoma City bombing trial.
 
An Electrical Engineering major at GMI, Sanders also earned a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Colorado University. He was tenured and promoted to associate professor of music at the University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver) in 1998, and promoted to full professor in 2004.  In 2008, he became director of the National Center for Media Forensics (NCMF). Sanders single-handedly established an audio forensics graduate program at UC Denver and served as a mentor to new faculty in Recording Arts.
 
In addition to teaching, Sanders was a musician and an entrepreneur. He founded and served as president of Salt Pro Audio LLC in Denver from 1980 to the present.
 
“All of us in the College of Arts & Media are deeply saddened by the loss of Rich Sanders,” said David Dynak, PhD, dean of the UC Denver College of Arts & Media. “He was a leader in his field, recognized internationally for his seminal research in media forensics.  But, he was also a wonderful composer, a caring mentor to undergraduates, graduates, and new faculty, with a vibrant personality that left its mark on all who were touched by him.  He was quite simply a complete citizen of the academy.”
 
In 2008, Sanders and the University of Colorado Denver’s College of Arts & Media received two Federal Earmark Grants for the purpose of establishing a new National Center for Audio/Video Forensics. The grant totaling $709,700 was handled through the U.S. Department of Justice. Sanders had recently received a third Federal Earmark Grant of $500,000 for the newly renamed National Center for Media Forensics established in 2007. The monies will fund the center through its startup period and enable increased knowledge while fostering a new generation of experts in the field of media forensics – the study of audio and video ‘fingerprinting.’”
 
Sanders was born in Flint, Mich., in 1951 to Etta May and Wayne Sanders. He married Ann Marie Powers in 1997. In addition to his wife, Ann, who serves as the assistant to the associate deans for the School of Education and Human Development at UC Denver, Sanders is survived by his daughter Sarah, son Jeffery, step-son Andrew, and seven grandchildren.

For more about Richard Sanders visit the memorial tribute on the UC Denver web site at http://ucdenver.edu/about/newsroom/newsreleases/tribute/Pages/Tribute-RichardSanders.aspx

Information courtesy of the University of Colorado Denver Office of Media and Public Relations. ]]> Physical therapy for co-op http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2922 2922 September 09, 2009 Luck. A good word. Some might say that luck is the residue of skill. Others suggest that luck is something individuals simply stumble into blindly.

Sam Perlmutter doesn’t dwell on the sort of luck he’s had in his young engineering career. He appreciates it, but knows there’s a great deal of important work ahead of him, work that will one day help those who require rigorous physical therapy to overcome the issues that plague them.

But from an objective point of view, the luck Perlmutter has had in his career is the sort that one might never anticipate and must readily accept without hesitation.

In 2004, Perlmutter, feeling a bit unchallenged working as a student engineer at an automotive company, interviewed for a cooperative education position at Northwestern’s Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC, http://www.ric.org/). Founded in 1954, RIC has earned a worldwide reputation as a leader in patient care, advocacy, research and the education of health professionals in physical medicine and rehabilitation. But as luck would have it, the person he was scheduled to meet that day was called away unexpectedly. As a result, Perlmutter interviewed with Dr. Mohsen Makhsous, an assistant professor in the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s Dept. of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences, who was with the RIC at that time. As Perlmutter recalls, he didn’t know one thing about what RIC’s work comprised and was completely unsure how an ME student might contribute to this organization.

“Originally, I was to meet with Alicia Starr at RIC, who really pushed to bring in a co-op to help with the Center’s work,” he said, adding that the engineering background he brought to RIC, “was something she was interested in working into the organization’s research. Much of what we do here relies greatly on many engineering principles and theories. If it wasn’t for Alicia’s support and guidance to give biomedical research a chance, who knows what I might be doing today.”

Fast forward five years: Today, Perlmutter is engaged in a PhD program at Northwestern and believes he found his career calling. One of his primary projects is an effort that better understands the neurophysiology of trunk control in both healthy subjects, as well as individuals who have survived a stroke. These experiments involve subjects using real-time visual feedback from a six degree of freedom load cell to generate isometric force with an individual’s trunk in all directions while muscle activity is recorded using electromyographic (EMG) electrodes.

“In short, the trunk is biomechanically the most important ‘link’ in movement generation and stabilization. Thus, the trunk dysfunction as viewed post-stroke needs to be better understood using engineering methodology to improve rehabilitation practices,” Perlmutter explained. Most importantly, as an engineer, he feels the education and engineering approach is critical to rehabilitative research, since much of what an engineer does applies well to the study of movement science, particularly as it relates to the human body.

From March until June of this year, Perlmutter was pleased to have a second group of Kettering co-op students engaged in his research at Northwestern. One student—Junior Briana Reprogle of Noblesville, Ind., who majors in Applied Physics and Mechanical Engineering at Kettering University—worked on developing algorithms to analyze kinetics and kinematics of children riding tricycles to gain an understanding into how kids develop the skills necessary to properly stabilize and pedal efficiently. “This will help provide insight into enhancements for the trike that can help assimilate this learning process,” Perlmutter said.

Under the supervision of Perlmutter’s advisor, Mohsen Makhsous, Ph.D., Reprogle also helped work on a study that simulates pressure ulcers on both normal and spinal cord injury animal models.

“Since pressure ulcers are one of the main causes of death in people who suffer a spinal cord injury, our main objective is to prevent the development of pressure ulcers both internally and externally. Briana worked on a study that used an ultrasound probe and force sensor to help clinicians predict the occurrence of ulcers before they evolve to the skin surface. Once you see them on the skin, it’s too late,” Perlmutter said.

Kettering Junior Mike Bajema, an Electrical Engineering major from Zeeland, Mich., fabricated and designed electromechanical components for all of the department labs and worked extensively with Perlmutter and other researchers. He observed experiments in a lab related to movement generation in individuals with Parkinson’s disease. The research involved impairments in the basal ganglia and required a good understanding of neuronal biophysics for calculating conduction times of the nervous system as well as extremely advanced signal processing, which, according to Perlmutter, is the backbone of Electrical Engineering. 

Overall, Perlmutter is very pleased with Reprogle’s and Bajema’s work. “When we established our co-op program, we knew that the students who would join us must be the very brightest we could find and have a passion for this sort of work. They are very competent and dedicated, and have shown much more than we expected. When you have that kind of passion and dedication, it doesn’t feel like work,” he said.

Bajema and Reprogle agree.  

“It’s been just a great experience,” Bajema said, adding that he engaged in “a lot of projects and now I’m considering graduate studies because of this experience.”
“I always had a feeling that I wanted to study for my Ph.D. one day and now I’m even more interested in the biomedical field because of this co-op,” Reprogle said. “The diversity of projects is huge and the experience I’ve received in experimental design is excellent,” she added.

Dr. Julius Dewald, associate professor and chair of the Department of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences and an internationally recognized scholar in the field, is also pleased with the work of Kettering co-ops. After Perlmutter arrived and began research projects for the department, Dewald was impressed. So when Perlmutter approached Dewald with a well-thought out proposal to bring Kettering co-ops to the department, it still took considerable persuasion to make the program a reality.

“Initially, I didn’t have much knowledge about the Kettering program. Based on Sam’s experience within the department and his achievement at that point, I had confidence it would work,” Dewald said.

The department is considered one of the best in the country and is one of the few of its kind. Over the past three years, it has trained and graduated 70-76 therapists and utilizes an interdisciplinary approach. For example, many of the PhD candidates are engineers who receive exceptional exposure to clinical research opportunities, which helps synthesize engineering, technology and research. In addition, it is the first program of its kind to offer a dual doctoral degree in Physical Therapy and doctoral degree in Engineering. This, according to Perlmutter, is why Kettering students make exceptional candidates for the department.

Thus the reason why during recent cooperative education employment fairs at Kettering so many students lined up to meet and interview with Perlmutter. Many even said they would work for free just to have the experience gained through Northwestern.

“I interviewed a great many talented students,” Perlmutter said, noting that current funding supports two students at a time. “Everyone at Northwestern has just been great in working with the Kettering students. When their work terms ends, they don’t want to leave,” he added.

For now, Perlmutter and his colleagues at Northwestern continue to provide Kettering students an exceptional co-op experience. In the future, Perlmutter hopes to seek grant support to perhaps one day expand the program and continue building the relationship between the two schools.

To learn more about Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s Dept. of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences, visit http://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/nupthms/index.html. To learn more about Kettering University’s cooperative education program, visit www.kettering.edu.

Written by Gary Erwin
810.762.9538
gerwin@ketteirng.edu ]]> Running with the Bulldogs http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2917 2917 September 02, 2009
Bulldog Days Reunion Weekend at Kettering University is Sept. 10 through 13 this year, giving Kettering/GMI alumni a chance to renew old friendships and honor the achievements of their peers. This year the Kettering University Alumni Association honors nine alumni for professional excellence and civic engagement while celebrating the Bulldog classes of 1999, 1994, 1989, 1984, 1979, 1974, 1969, 1964, 1959 and earlier.
 
This is a special time to reminisce and reconnect with the campus and Flint through tours of new buildings and old, golf outings and a visit to Flint’s Cultural Center. There is even a student soap box derby competition to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital rounding off weekend festivities.
 
The highlight of the weekend is the Alumni Awards Dinner featuring recipients of the highest awards presented by the Alumni Association each year. Awardees are nominated by other alumni for professional excellence and outstanding service.
 
The awardees for 2009 are:
 
DISTINGUISHED ALUMNUS
James A. McCaslin ‘74
President, Chief Operating Officer for Harley-Davidson Motor Company
 
James McCaslin ’74, President and Chief Operating Officer of Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Milwaukee, Wis., will be honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award recognizing specific and exceptional career achievement, traditionally given to people at the highest level in the corporate structure. McCaslin joined Harley-Davidson in 1992 as Vice President and General Manager - York Operations. He was subsequently appointed Vice President, Continuous Improvement and Vice President, Dealer Services, until accepting his current position in 2001. 
 
Before joining Harley-Davidson, McCaslin held a number of senior management positions with J. I. Case Company, Chrysler, Volkswagen and General Motors Corporation’s Chevrolet Division.
 
He earned a Bachelors of Science in Industrial Engineering from the General Motors Institute and a Masters of Science in Industrial Engineering from Virginia Tech.  He also attended the Advanced Management program at Harvard University.
 
McCaslin serves as board chairman of the Manufacturing Skill Standards Council, a non-profit industry coalition, is a board member of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Milwaukee, and is on the board of trustees of Kettering University of Flint, Michigan.
 
Jim has been a motorcycle enthusiast for the past 16 years and rides a Heritage Softail Classic and a Street Glide.
 
OUTSTANDING ALUMNUS
David Kenny ‘84
Managing Partner of VivaKi, Publicis Groupe

David Kenny ’84, Managing Partner of VivaKi, Publicis Groupe, will be honored with the Outstanding Achievement Award recognizing specific, exceptional career achievement. Kenny is currently responsible for VivaKi, Publicis Groupe’s new entity that leverages the digital and media assets of independent agencies Digitas, Starcom MediaVest Group and ZenithOptimedia.  He leads Publicis Groupe’s overall digital and interactive strategy and is member of the Publicis Groupe Management Board (the Directoire), and the “P12” Board, Executive Committee.  Prior to the launch of VivaKi, David was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Digitas.   
 
As CEO of Digitas, Kenny led the digital agency through a decade of evolution and growth to an industry-leading position in digital and direct marketing services. Previously, Kenny was a partner and senior partner, of the global strategy consulting firm Bain & Company.  Prior to his consulting career, Kenny held marketing and strategy positions with General Motors Corporation.   
 
He earned a Bachelors of Science from the General Motors Institute/Kettering University, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.  Kenny is a member of the boards of directors of Akamai Technologies, Inc., the Ad Council, The Corporate Executive Board and Teach For America.
 
MANAGEMENT ACHIEVEMENT
Gregory Scott Deveson ‘84
Senior Vice President, Driveline and Chassis Control Systems, Magna Powertrain
 
Greg Deveson ’84, Senior Vice President, Driveline and Chassis Control Systems
Magna Powertrain, will be honored with the Management Achievement Award recognizing a specific contribution with a positive and lasting effect in the field of Management. He is currently responsible for the Driveline and Chassis Control Systems Division of Magna Powertrain. He also served as President for North and South American operations for Magna Powertrain. Prior to Magna, Deveson was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Fiat-GM Powertrain JV. Following the liquidation of the JV he was named Vice President of GM Powertrain Europe. After beginning his career with General Motors in 1979, Deveson held positions in Vehicle Manufacturing, Saginaw Metal Casting Operations, Car Assembly in Oshawa, Ontario, GM Powertrain and Saab Automobile AB.
 
He earned his Bachelor’s of Science in Industrial Engineering from General Motors Institute in 1984, and a Masters of Business Administration from Indiana University in 1988. Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Deveson is married and has two children.
 
ENGINEERING ACHIEVEMENT
Lori J. Queen ‘79
Vehicle Line Executive for General Motors Midsize Trucks
 
Lori J. Queen ’79, Vehicle Line Executive for General Motors Midsize Trucks, will be honored with the Engineering Achievement Award recognizing a specific contribution with a positive and lasting effect in the field of Engineering. She is currently responsible for General Motor’s crossover midsize trucks including the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Chevrolet Traverse. Previously Queen led design, development and launch of the highly acclaimed Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky vehicle programs for General Motors. In addition, she has provided leadership for the Chevrolet HHRprogram, Chevrolet Cobalt program and was selected as a Vehicle Line Executive and as General Motors’ first female Vehicle Chief Engineer.
 
Queen was recognized by Fortune Magazine in October 2004 as one of the “Women to Watch” 2005 and by Automotive News as one of the “Top 100 Women”
 
She earned a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from Kettering University in 1979, and attended the GM/Harvard Business School Executive Development Program in 2002.
 
CIVIC ACHIEVEMENT
Phillip C. Dutcher ‘73
Chief Operations Officer, Naples Community Healthcare System
 
Phillip C. Dutcher ’73, Chief Operations Officer, Naples Community Healthcare System, will be honored with the Civic Achievement Award recognizing significant and unselfish contributions of time and effort that benefit the community. He is currently responsible for Operations for the Naples, Fla., Community Healthcare System where he has worked since 2007. He previously served as Senior Vice President for Business Development at Rendina Companies, a medical real estate development company based in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. He has also served as CEO of the combined Good Samaritan and St. Mary’s Medical Centers (Intracoastal Health System). Prior to relocating to Florida, Dutcher spent 20 years at Hurley Medical Center, in Flint, where he served as CEO from 1981 to 1995.
 
Dutcher is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives, a member of the Kettering Board of Trustees, a member emeritus of the Hurley Medical Center Foundation Board of Directors, past President of the Tall Pine Council of the Boys Scouts of America, past President of the University of Michigan Alumni Club of Flint, former member of the Flint Rotary Club, and former member of both the Michigan and Florida Hospital Association’s Board of Trustees.
 
Dutcher earned his Bachelors of Science in Industrial Administration from Kettering University/GMI in 1974. He qualified for the Bachelor/Masters Program and earned a Masters in Business Administration in 1974 from the University of Michigan. He also earned a Masters in Healthcare Services Administration in 1980 at the University of Michigan.
 
He and wife Suzanne have two daughters at home, and Dutcher has three adult children: son Brent, a graduate of Kettering University, daughter Lindsay, a graduate of Florida State University, and daughter Lauren, currently enrolled in the Law School at Michigan State University.
 
ALUMNI SERVICE
Robert Evangelista ’89
President of The Business of Winning, LLC
 
Robert Evangelista ’89, is President of The Business of Winning, LLC, will be honored with the Alumni Service Award recognizing outstanding volunteer service to Kettering University. The Business of Winning, LLC, is a company that publishes and produces high caliber programs in Leadership Development, Team Performance, Executive Coaching, Strategic Alignment and Workforce Motivation for Fortune 50 companies and small businesses alike.  Headquartered in Detroit, the company has offices in Canada and the U.S., as well as a variety of strategic partnerships including a long-standing association with the Singapore Institute of Management.
 
Evangelista was named one of Michigan’s Top 100 Emerging Business Leaders by the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce , and was previously awarded the GMI/Kettering Alumni Association award for Entrepreneurial Achievement.  His book, The Business of Winning: A Manager’s Guide to Building a Championship at Work was runner-up for the 2001 Business Book of the Year designation from Independent Publisher magazine and was given the Award of Excellence by the International Society for Performance Improvement.
 
He is Past President of the GMI/Kettering Alumni Association, and has served on the Alumni Board of Directors for seven years. He was founding Co-Chair of Kettering’s President’s Ambassador Council and the Kettering’s Robot Society recently honored Evangelista with its Distinguished Robot honorarium.
 
Originally from St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, he, wife Susan and stepdaughter Sarah, currently reside in Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.
 
ENTREPRENEURIAL ACHIEVEMENT
Daniel R. Joseph ‘84
President and owner of D. R. Joseph, Inc., in Grand Prairie, Texas
 
Daniel R. Joseph ’84, President and owner of D. R. Joseph, Inc., developer of control products targeted for the blown film extrusion industry, will be honored with the Entrepreneurial Achievement Award recognizing a specific contribution in organizing, managing and assuming the risk of business or enterprise. He designed his company’s first product, an internal bubble cooling (IBC) control system for the blown film industry, and is directly responsible for research and development of width measurement and control products. Joseph holds eight patents for technology developed for IBC systems and is the author of several papers and articles discussing successful implementation of internal bubble cooling systems. Previously, he worked as an Industrial Engineer for General Motors Service Parts Operations in Flint, Mich.
 
Joseph earned a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering, with a concentration in microprocessor hardware designs from Kettering University in 1984.  He is a Licensed Professional Engineer (Industrial Engineering) in Texas, and a member of the Society of Plastics Industry, Inc.
 
A native of the Flint, Mich., he and wife Denise live in Weatherford, Texas, and have three children, David 23, Jennifer, 21, and Maria 15.
 
HUMAN RELATIONS
Aqua Y. Porter ‘84
Vice-President, Strategic Projects & Business Results and Corporate Lean Six Sigma Operations for Xerox Corporation
 
Aqua Y. Porter ’84, Vice-President, Strategic Projects & Business Results and Corporate Lean Six Sigma Operations for Xerox Corporation, will be honored with the Human Relations Award recognizing a graduate who has rendered significant contributions inspiring unity at Kettering University. Her current position as a senior manager gives her responsibility for all phases of product development and delivery. Prior to her current position, Porter served Xerox in Engineering, Marketing, Product Development, Purchasing, and Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management.
 
A member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. and the Rochester Chapter of Jack & Jill Inc., Porter is also the Board Chair for the Susan B. Anthony House, Inc., and sits on the Keuka College Board of Trustees and the Eltrex Inc. Board. In addition, she has served as an advisor to organizations including Xerox’s Black Women’s Leadership Council and The Women’s Alliance. In 1994, she was nominated for the Athena Award and was a 2009 Rochester Women’s Network “W” Award nominee.
 
Porter earned a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering  from Kettering University in 1984  and graduated with honors in from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Executive MBA program in 1996.
 
Originally from Dayton, she currently resides in Rochester, New York, with her son, Jordan.
 
YOUNG ALUMNUS
Sheri Hickok ‘99
Executive Technical Assistant to the Group Vice President of Global Engineering, General Motors
 
Sheri Hickok ’99, Executive Technical Assistant to the Group Vice President of Global Engineering at General Motors, will be honored with the Young Alumni award recognizing a graduate (of the previous 10 years) who has rendered significant contributions, exhibited outstanding character, or has achieved marked success in such areas as Alumni Service, Human Relations, Civic, Engineering, Entrepreneurial, Management or Outstanding Achievement. Hickok most recently held the position of Engineering Group Manager for Suspension and Structures in the GM North America Engineering Chassis Group. In 2006-07 she led the “A World In Motion” Program for General Motors. She previously served as a Designing Engineer for both Powertrain Mounts and Fuel Systems and Integration Engineer in Noise & Vibration and Vehicle Dynamics at GM.
 
Hickok earned a Bachelors of Mechanical Engineering from Kettering University in 1999 and a Masters in Engineering from Purdue University in addition to a Masters in Business Administration  from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business.
 
She, husband Loren and daughter Ellena reside in Commerce Township, Mich.
 
 
]]> Breaking records http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2913 2913 August 28, 2009

ElectroJet broke four land speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats using the company’s electronic fuel injection system in two Chinese motorcycles during Speed Week Aug. 8 through 14.

Kyle Schwulst '02, owner and CEO of ElectroJet and a 2002 graduate of Kettering University, and his team undertook setting speed records to prove that motorcycles “can be clean, green and still have high performance,” said Schwulst. They were able to take their product to the Bonneville Speedway with the help of two sponsors, Freescale Semiconductor and Standard Motor Products. 

Bonneville Speedway is an area of the Bonneville Salt Flats near Wendover, Utah, that is marked out for motor sports. It is particularly noted as the venue for numerous land speed records, typically set during Speed Week.

ElectroJet designs and manufactures low-cost electronic engine controls for applications including motorcycles, lawn mowers, and generators.  The firm based in Brighton, Mich., and consists of primarily Kettering alumni and co-op students.

They took Chinese-made Moto-chu motorcycles with 150cc engines to Bonneville, competed in the 175cc engine displacement class, and still managed to earn speed records. “We had a top speed of 63 mph,” said Schwulst.

“These motorcycles are some of the cleanest of their kind, and setting speed records proves that environmental friendliness does not have to negate vehicle performance,” said Schwulst.  In testing, the ElectroJet system has been shown to reduce pollution by about 90 percent from the carbureted versions of the same motorcycles.

“Our products definitely improved the performance of the vehicles,” he said. “The ElectroJet system makes these small engines more efficient.  That means the engines use less fuel but run better in just about all aspects of mechanical performance.”

“These records were set using exhaust catalysts and ElectroJet EFI in purely stock vehicle trim,” explained Schwulst. “You could literally purchase one of these motorcycles from a dealership showroom in China, and with all the pollution reduction technology on the vehicle, I believe it is fair to say that these motorcycles were by far the least polluting vehicles out on the salt,” he said, of the Bonneville competition.

Each of the four classes in which ElectroJet competed were in the “Pushrod” category, and judged for the fastest speed achieved within five miles, according to Alex Lucido ‘05, Software Tools engineer for ElectroJet, who traveled to Bonneville with Schwulst and Jesse Beeker, a Field Application engineer from Freescale. Beeker served as ElectroJet’s driver for the speed competitions.

The four classes included:

  • Production – Production Pushrod (P-PP), involving a completely stock bike with the ElectroJet electronic fuel injection system;
  • Modified – Pushrod Gas (M-PG) involving a cycle with body modifications Bonneville Nationals, Inc. (BNI)-approved special gas;
  • Modified – Pushrod Fuel (M-PF) involving the modified body and the use of  any type of fuel (the ElectroJet team chose to use regular gasoline); and finally
  • Modified – Pushrod Blown Fuel (M-PBF), involving the body modifications in addition to a turbo charger and a fuel of their choosing. 

“Blown-Fuel” indicates air is being forced (blown) induction, according to Lucido. The ElectroJet turbocharged motorcycle set a 48 mph record in the M-PBF category. “It was lower than the naturally aspirated motorcycle because of an electrical issue on the bike that limited how high the engine would rev,” explained Luicdo.

According to Schwulst, earning your stripes at Bonneville is intense. “We spent a LOT of time in tech inspection, and a lot of time waiting in line to race,” he said. Vehicle inspectors for Bonneville Nationals Inc. (BNI) are exacting when it comes to clearing a vehicle for salt racing and safety, he said. 

Vehicles have to make two qualifying runs to obtain a record, Schwulst explained.  When it makes one qualifying run, the vehicle is impounded until the next morning at 6 a.m. when it makes the second confirmation run to “back up” the record.  The two speeds are averaged and the vehicle is painstakingly inspected to conform to vehicle class and engine displacement.  In this process, the engine is torn down for physical bore & stroke measurements and a quick check to see the pushrods before a speed record is fully confirmed. “Needless to say, we became good friends with the guys in the inspection area!” joked Schwulst. 

“The BNI experience was incredible,” he said.  “Stepping on the salt flats is like stepping onto the moon. Standing on hard packed salt is a very interesting.  It almost looks like fresh fallen snow when you get out there, but the heat tells you differently,” he said.

The cars Schwulst saw at Bonneville were as unique as the natural environment. “As a car guy, it was exciting to see all the old iron being run on the salt.  There were a lot of vehicles from the 30s and 40s, a number of T-buckets, 32 Fords, rat rods, and custom built streamliners spread across the pits,” he said, adding that “the atmosphere of pure testosterone, race fuel, and deafening high speed passes of vintage race cars is something that will be hard to forget.” 

Schwulst barely has time to savor the memories and celebrate the speed records before heading back to China to watch his record-setting electronic fuel injection systems roll off the production line. But then again, he enjoys racing from one thing to the next.

 
Written by Dawn Hibbard
810.762.9865
dhibbard@kettering.edu
]]> Gearhead heaven http://www.kettering.edu/visitors/storydetail.jsp?storynum=2910 2910 August 17, 2009 In true gearhead fashion, Kettering alumni, students and staff headed “Back to the Bricks” to cruise the classic cars and meet up with kindred spirits Friday, Aug. 14 in downtown Flint. Kettering hosted a reception at the Back to the Bricks Cruise at the 501 Bar and Grill on Saginaw Street, to give members of the extended Kettering family a break and a chance to mingle before hitting the bricks again.

 

Here are some photos of the Kettering Back to the Bricks party.

 


 


 


 


 


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