The Herff College - University of Memphis

Fall 2008 

The Magazine for the Herff College of Engineering at the University of Memphis 

The Herff College 

helping students along 

diverse career pathways.

Theresa Russomanno 

Editor/Writer 

Kathy Garrott 

Managing Editor 

Nicky Hitching 

Writer 

Will Marshall 

Designer 

Lindsey Lissau 

Photographer 

Debi Scott 

Class Notes/PR Buzz 

Carolyn Oldenburg 

Development 

Department News 

Eugene Eckstein 

Biomedical Engineering 

Shahram Pezeshk 

Civil Engineering 

David Russomanno 

Electrical & Computer 

Deborah Hochstein 

Engineering Technology 

Vol. 13, No. 1 

John Hochstein 

Mechanical Engineering 

Your comments and suggestions 

are welcome. Please e-mail to 

dascott@memphis.edu 

fax to (901) 678-4180 

or send to 

Herff College of Engineering 

The University of Memphis 

Editor, Herff Highlights 

201 Engineering Admin. Bldg. 

Memphis, TN 38152-3170 

Herff Highlights is published 

using private donations. 

© 2008 Herff College of Engineering

College 

Administration 

Richard Warder 

Dean 

Charles Bray 

Associate Dean 

Steven Slack 

Associate Dean 

Paul Palazolo 

Assistant Dean 

Carolyn Oldenburg 

Director of Development 

Kathy Atkinson 

Academic Advisor 

Kathy Garrott 

Marketing Manager 

Ed Lin 

Director of Engineering 

Technical Services 

David Greganti 

Business Officer 

Department 

Chairpersons 

Eugene Eckstein 


Deborah Hochstein 


John Hochstein 


Shahram Pezeshk 


David Russomanno 

Electrical & Computer Engineering 

Herff College 

of Engineering 

Advisory Council 

Mark Askew (BSCE ’76) 

Askew, Hargraves, Harcourt 

and Associates, Inc. 

Donald O. Barber (MS ’83) 

FedEx (retired) 

Steven J. Bares 

Memphis Bioworks Foundation 

George D. Barnes 

Buchart-Horn Inc. (retired) 

Jerry Collins (BSCE '75: MS '76) 

Memphis Light, Gas & Water 

Mark Darty 

Luminetx 

Ted Fox 

Shelby County 

William O. Hagerman (BSCE ’74) 

Dunavant Enterprises 

Theopolis Holeman (BSET '71) 

Duke Energy Corporation 

Dennis W. Koerner 

RING Industrial Group 

Stephen Liberto (BSET ’81) 

FedEx 

James Liles (BSEE ’71) 

Liles Engineering Design 

Consultants, LLC 

Daniel B. McKee 

Allen & Hoshall 

John Pafford (BSET ’87) 

SpineWave, Inc. 

Robert M. Pap 

Accurate Automation Corporation 

Jack E. Parr 

Medical Technology Development Inc. 

James M. Phillips 

Pinnacle Investment 

Michael Pohlman 

Pickering, Inc. 

Harry B. Rike III 

SSR Ellers, Inc. 

Jon C. Serbousek 

Biomet, Inc. 

James N. Speakman 

EnSafe, Inc. 

Bobby Wharton (BSET ’75) 

G&W Diesel 

Laura Whitsitt (BSME ’87; MS ’88) 

Smith & Nephew, Inc. 

Edward F. Williams III 

E. T. C. of the Americas, Inc. 

Engineering Alumni 

Association Officers 

Lindsey Gardner Waugh (BSME ’04) 

President 

James Simpson (BSCE ’99) 

Secretary 

The Herff College of Engineering 

welcomes new members 

Jerry Collins, Theopolis Holeman, 

and Daniel McKee to the Advisory 

Council. Collins is president and 

CEO of Memphis Light, Gas 

and Water. Holeman is senior 

vice president of Duke Energy 

Corporation. McKee is senior vice 

president of Allen & Hoshall.

CONTENTS 

2 Dean’s Perspective 

3 Herff Headlines 

12 Cover Story 

Engineering A Brighter Future: 

One Student at a Time 

16 PR Buzz 

17 New Faces 

18 Departmental News 

23 Other News 

24 Giving Back 

27 Class Notes 

28 In Memoriam 

BC Upcoming Events 

ON ThE COvEr 

Outstanding students from all engineering disciplines talk about their 

dreams for the future and how the College is helping them along their 

career pathways. Photos by Lindsey Lissau. Design by Will Marshall.

DEAN’S PErSPECTIvE 

During the past several months, 

most of us have been saturated 

with messages from the 

presidential candidates of each 

major political party calling for 

change in one form or another. 

Reflecting on those messages, I 

realized that the University and 

the Herff College of Engineering 

have undergone and continue to 

experience numerous changes. 

The University even changed its 

name! 

CrEATING ExCLuSIvE PrOGrAMS 

Over the past nearly 15 years, the College has redefined itself, its 

faculty, its academic programs, and its research and scholarship 

activities. These changes have been driven, to a very large extent, 

by our vision to be the College of choice for engineering students 

in this region, not just the best engineering college on Central 

Avenue. 

New degree programs have been added to increase career options 

and opportunities. In 1999, the Tennessee higher Education 

Commission (ThEC) formally approved the College’s proposal 

for a B.S. in Computer Engineering. This is the only such program 

within 200 miles of Memphis in any direction. Shortly after the 

first group of students graduated in 2003, the program underwent 

a successful accreditation visit by the Engineering Accreditation 

Commission of ABET, Inc. (formerly the Accreditation Board for 

Engineering and Technology). The 2003 re-accreditation visits for 

the civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering programs and the 

three engineering technology concentrations also were successful. 

In July 2005, ThEC approved our proposal for a B.S. in Biomedical 

Engineering (BME), and 17 new students entered in August. 

This was another exclusive for the College, offering the only BME 

program within 200 miles of Memphis. The BME undergraduate 

program will produce its first graduates in spring 2009 and will 

undergo its initial accreditation visit in fall 2009. 

PrEPArING FOr ACCrEDITATION 

Simultaneous with the BME visit, the four engineering and three 

engineering technology concentrations will be reviewed for reaccreditation 

by teams of ABET evaluators. Since 2003, the criteria 

used for accrediting engineering and engineering technology 

programs have undergone major changes. These changes have 

required programs to move from requiring courses in certain 

areas to demonstrating or ‘proving’ that their graduates have 

certain knowledge and abilities. For example, requiring a speech 

or writing course in the curriculum does not ‘prove’ a graduate can 

communicate effectively. These new criteria have required that 

the faculty devote a great deal of time to acquiring data to assess 

student performance and evaluating that data to ensure we can 

demonstrate that our graduates have the required knowledge and 

abilities. 

In preparation for the fall 2009 accreditation visits, the College 

underwent mock accreditation visits in May by teams of 

experienced engineering and engineering technology program 

evaluators for the Engineering and Technology Accreditation 

Commissions of ABET. The two teams critiqued drafts of 

departmental self-study reports that were prepared for each of 

the five engineering programs and each of the three technology 

concentrations. Those critiques provided numerous suggestions for 

additional materials and approaches. 

Our College is fortunate that many of our faculty serve as the 

evaluators for engineering and engineering technology programs 

at other institutions, and thus are able to observe ‘good practices’ 

developed elsewhere. Nevertheless, even given this knowledge 

base, our faculty and staff will have to devote a great deal of time 

this academic year preparing for the formal ABET visits next fall. 

We realize that our requests for feedback from you as a part of our 

periodic alumni surveys can become burdensome; however, we 

hope you realize that these requests are an important component 

of our efforts to prepare for successful accreditation visits and that 

you will take time from your busy schedules to respond to our 

requests. 

INvESTING IN PEOPLE 

In every dynamic college of engineering, personnel changes are 

continual. Senior faculty members retire, new faculty members 

arrive, and adjunct faculty members come and go. Our College has 

had and continues to undergo many such changes. Since 1994, 

over 50 faculty and staff have departed, and many new faculty 

and staff have joined the College. The changes in staffing came 

from existing open positions, new faculty positions provided by the 

central administration, and openings due to deaths, retirements, 

and resignations. Additional faculty members have indicated their 

intention to retire, and we project that by 2010, five to 10 new 

faculty will join the College. 

INvESTING IN FACILITIES 

If you’ve been on campus during the past several years, you’ve 

seen the almost continual construction of new facilities and 

renovations of buildings and classrooms. Some of the major 

projects include the openings of the new Michael D. rose Theatre 

2 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

and Lecture hall in 2001, the 138,000 sq. ft. holiday Inn that 

opened in 2002, just down from Engineering, the 93,000 sq. 

ft. FedEx Institute of Technology that opened in 2003 and the 

dedication of the 100,000 sq. ft. renovated John Wilder Tower 

facility that consolidated all student services in 2004. Construction 

is scheduled for completion in fall 2009 of a 170,000 sq. ft. 

university Center. 

The College of Engineering opened in 1964. Over 40 years later, as 

most of the units that heat and cool the buildings have exceeded 

their projected lives, we were fortunate to receive funding for the 

renovation of the hvAC systems. The ~$2.1M Phase I renovation of 

the Engineering Technology wing was completed September 1 and 

the ~$2.4M renovation of the Engineering Science wing is planned 

to begin around January 1, 2009. Although the just-completed 

renovation required multiple moves of departmental faculty and 

laboratory equipment, the much-improved environmental control is 

quite apparent. 

INNOvATING ThrOuGh rESEArCh 

An academic stool really has three legs: teaching, research/ 

scholarship, and service. Our faculty and staff members continue 

to be recognized throughout the campus for their high quality 

teaching and their outstanding advising of our students. These 

recognitions include numerous teaching and advising awards. For 

the past several years the faculty have been aggressively working to 

strengthen the third ‘leg’ of the stool by attracting external funding 

to the College and university. Last year I speculated that our faculty 

would again be as productive in attracting new external funding 

as they were in calendar 2005 and 2006 when they averaged 

nearly $110,000 and $130,000 per engineering faculty member. In 

calendar 2007, they were even more productive, averaging nearly 

$150,000 per faculty member. This level of productivity leads to 

new challenges in terms of developing the appropriate support 

infrastructure and locating suitable space for research laboratories. 

I hope to report next year that we’ve been able to address these 

challenges. 

BuILDING rELATIONShIPS AND SuPPOrT 

During the past several years we have made great progress reconnecting 

with our alumni, and they, along with friends of the 

College, have responded magnificently with sustained support of 

the many programs that benefit our students. Thank you for your 

generous support. It not only makes a difference in the quality of 

our programs, it helps us to continue to make changes that benefit 

our community and society. 

Theopolis holeman 

hErFF hEADLINES 

OuTSTANDING ALuMNuS AWArD 

The herff College of Engineering named energy executive 

Theopolis holeman as its Outstanding Alumnus at the annual 

awards program held on March 11. 

holeman is the senior vice-president of power delivery for Duke 

Energy, one of the largest electrical power companies in the 

united States. his division of the company comprises the electric 

distribution and the electrical transmission systems for more than 

3.9 million customers in Duke’s service territories of North Carolina, 

South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. 

holeman received a bachelor’s degree in construction technology 

from then-Memphis State in 1971 and later earned an MBA at 

the university of houston. he has also completed the Stanford 

Executive program. Black Enterprise magazine recognized him as one 

of the “Top 75 Most Powerful Black Executives in the united States.” 

FALL 2008 3


Dean richard C. Warder and Carl ring Dean richard C. Warder and Mark Askew 

DISTINGuIShED SErvICE 

IN ENGINEErING AWArDS 

Two local business leaders were 

recognized for their distinguished service 

in the engineering profession. Mark W. 

Askew (BSCE ‘76) is president of Askew 

hargraves harcourt and Associates Inc., 

one of Memphis’ largest engineering, 

architecture, surveying, and landscape 

architecture firms. With over 30 years of 

engineering experience, Askew’s notable 

projects include the Federal Express 

International Module, the International 

Paper Data Center, and the Brentwood 

Originals Distribution Center in DeSoto 

County. Askew serves on the herff College 

Advisory Committee and the Thomas 

Fry Memorial Fund Committee. he is 

the national director of the American 

Council of Engineering Companies of 

Tennessee. Carl D. ring is chairman and 

CEO of ring Companies, one of the 

largest plastics manufacturing companies 

in North America. Beginning as ring Can 

Corporation in 1968, ring Companies 

has grown to include three subsidiaries: 

ring Container Technologies, ring 

Industrial Group, and rapac, all of which 

manufacture a variety of plastic products in 

more than 30 factories throughout the u.S., 

England, and Canada. The ring companies 

hold numerous patents relating to plastics 

machinery and product design. 

Outstanding alumnus Theopolis holeman (third from right) is flanked by recipients of 

outstanding faculty and staff awards. (left to right) Stephanie Ivey, Debi Scott, Gary Qi, Melanie 

James and rick voyles. 

OuTSTANDING FACuLTY AND STAFF AWArDS 

herff faculty and staff members were also recognized for their contributions to the College. 

Stephanie Ivey, assistant professor of civil engineering, received the Outstanding Faculty 

Teaching Award, and Gary Qi, associate professor of mechanical engineering, received 

the Outstanding Faculty research Award. Outstanding Staff Awards went to administrative 

associates, Melanie James and Debi Scott, and research equipment technician, rick voyles. 

4 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

Marty Lipinski led the team that created the 

award-winning recruitment toolbox. 

LIPINSKI rECEIvES 

TrANSPOrTATION ENGINEErS’ 

AWArD 

Marty Lipinski, EnSafe professor and 

director of the university of Memphis 

Intermodal Freight Transportation Institute 

in the herff College of Engineering, 

received the 2007 Coordinating Council 

Award from the Institute of Transportation 

Engineers. Lipinski was recognized for 

his education council project entitled, 

“recruitment Toolbox for Transportation 

Professionals.” 

The goal of the recruitment toolbox 

initiative is to expose K-12 students to the 

transportation profession by providing an 

easy-to-use electronic database with 92 

activities searchable by age/grade levels 

or by specific topics. The database can be 

used by schools and companies during 

recruitment events to create interest in 

transportation-related careers, in areas such 

as environment and energy, planning and 

urban development, and traffic safety. 

Lipinski led the project team that included 

Stephanie Ivey, assistant professor in the 

civil engineering department at the u of 

M, and Jodi Carson, associate research 

engineer in the Texas Transportation 

Institute at Texas A&M university. 

hErFF COLLEGE hOSTS ASEE 

CONFErENCE 

The herff College of Engineering hosted 

the American Society for Engineering 

Education (ASEE), Southeast (SE) Section 

Annual Conference held April 6-8. Sarah 

rajala, president-elect of the ASEE was 

the guest speaker. rajala was recently 

appointed the dean of engineering at 

Mississippi State university, where she 

holds the James W. Bagley endowed chair. 

ASEE SE president Cecelia Wigal 

welcomed 175 conference attendees, 

which included engineering faculty, staff, 

and students from 60 universities across 

the Southeast. Business entrepreneur Jim 

Phillips, now managing director of Pinnacle 

Investments, was the keynote speaker, 

focusing on the theme “Building Bridges: 

Making the Connections that Facilitate 

Engineering Education.” 

More than 100 engineering education 

experts presented technical sessions, and 

25 student teams participated in three 

poster competitions. Navid Jafari, a student 

in herff’s civil engineering department, won 

both the undergraduate research division 

and best overall category. 

“This is the first time that the herff College 

has hosted this event, and attendees 

focused on the communities with which 

engineering educators interact, including 

the K-12, student, professional, and 

academic communities,” said Dean 

richard Warder. he attributes the success 

of the conference to the many people 

who worked over many months to plan 

and organize the conference, including 

conference chair Paul Palazolo, assistant 

dean of the College and a faculty member 

in civil engineering. 

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR 

E N G I N E E R I N G E D U C AT I O N 

The ASEE is a non-profit organization of 

12,000+ members and over 500 academic 

institutions, corporations, and professional 

associations committed to furthering 

education in engineering and engineering 

technology. 

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR 

E N G I N E E R I N G E D U C AT I O N 

Stephanie Ivey, Paul Palazolo, 

and Charles Camp’s paper 

“GIS Integration in a Civil 

Engineering Curriculum” has 

been awarded the 2008 

ASEE SE Section Conference 

Best Paper. The paper is the 

first stemming from a project 

underway in the Department 

of Civil Engineering to 

include practical GIS-based 

projects throughout all 

levels of the undergraduate 

curriculum in order to 

improve the student- learning 

experience. The project was 

supported through a TAF 

Innovation to Excellence in 

Learning (IEL) grant funded 

through the university of 

Memphis. This achievement 

will be recognized during 

the Awards Ceremony at the 

2009 conference. 

FALL 2008 5


Preparing for hands-on experience, Tiara Steward (left) and Parish 

White proudly pose in their welding helmets, welding gloves, and 

leather-welding aprons. 

SuMMEr PrOGrAMS YIELD 

rETurN ON INvESTMENT 

A middle-school student checks out her solar-powered 

car before the team competition. 

The herff College of Engineering established its first summer program for pre-college women in 2004. Since then, it has continued to expand 

its offerings for females to cultivate their interest in science, math, engineering, and technology. 

Girls Experiencing Engineering (GEE) offered three sessions this summer, enrolling 130 middle- and high-school students from Memphis City 

and Shelby County Schools, as well as their math and science teachers. Through hands-on projects, participants discovered what engineers 

do and how skills such as creative thinking, problem solving, and communications can lead to a rewarding career. 

The highly successful GEE program is supported by the Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis. Stephanie Ivey, assistant professor of 

civil engineering, and Paul Palazolo, assistant dean of recruiting and retention, are co-directors of GEE. 

Introduced last year and returning this summer with expanded sessions offered over three weeks is the Girls in Manufacturing (GiM) 

program for high-school students from Memphis City and Shelby County Schools. highlights included a robotics competition, a field trip to a 

manufacturing plant, daily guest speakers, and the popular design-and-take-home-your-own-manufactured-product. 

GiM is supported by Carrier, a united Technologies Company, and Cargill. Deborah hochstein, associate professor and chair of engineering 

technology, robert hewitt, assistant professor of engineering technology, and Tom Banning, assistant professor of engineering technology, are 

co-directors of GiM. 

6 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

BME AND EECE STuDENTS rECEIvE AWArDS AT STuDENT rESEArCh FOruM 

herff College biomedical (BME) and electrical and computer 

engineering (EECE) students received first- and second-place 

awards at the 20th Annual Student research Forum held April 1 at 

the Michael D. rose Theatre on the u of M campus. 

The forum, co-sponsored by the Graduate School and the university 

honors Program, featured the students’ research projects and 

scholarly activities. Students were also recognized by Sigma xi, the 

National research Society. 

PEZEShK ELECTED 

AN ASCE FELLOW 

Shahram Pezeshk, chair and Emison 

professor in the civil engineering 

department, was named a Fellow of 

the American Society of Civil Engineers 

(ASCE). Fellows are practitioners, 

educators, mentors, and, most of all, 

leaders, with distinguished careers who 

have contributed significantly to the civil 

engineering profession. 

Pezeshk received the ASCE State-ofthe-Art 

of Civil Engineering Award and 

he has been actively involved in ASCE’s 

Structural Division, serving on multiple 

technical committees. he is a pastpresident 

of the Earthquake Engineering 

research Institute. In 2007, Pezeshk 

was appointed by Tennessee Governor 

Phil Bredesen to serve on the West 

Tennessee Seismic Safety Commission. 

PALAZOLO NAMED AS 

OuTSTANDING ENGINEErING 

EDuCATOr 

Paul Palazolo recently received the Peter G. 

hoadley Award for Outstanding Engineering 

Educator from the Tennessee section of 

the American Society of Civil Engineers 

(ASCE). 

Given annually, the hoadley Award 

recognizes an engineering educator who 

has made contributions to the ASCE society 

at the national, section, or branch levels. 

Palazolo is a member of the board of 

directors and past president of ASCE-West 

Tennessee. 

Palazolo is an associate professor in 

the civil engineering department and 

the assistant dean for retention and 

recruitment for the College. 

YEASIN rECEIvES 

NSF CArEEr AWArD 

Mohammed Yeasin, assistant professor in 

the electrical and computer engineering 

department, recently received the 

Justin Zook, a Ph.D. candidate in BME, received the first-place 

award in graduate-level engineering and Lisa Rightmire, EECE, 

was the first-place award winner in undergraduate-level engineering. 

Both Zook and rightmire were chosen by Sigma xi for first-place 

awards. 

Dwight Bordelon, a Ph.D. candidate in BME, took the secondplace 

award in graduate-level engineering. Brandon Shepard, 

BME, and Eddie White and Yong Ren, EECE, tied for second-place 

awards in undergraduate-level engineering. 

prestigious National Science Foundation 

(NSF) Faculty Early Career Development 

Award (CArEEr). he was awarded 

$494,919 for his research entitled, 

“Co-Analysis of Signal and Sense for 

understanding Non-verbal Communications 

and their Applications.” The Career Award 

is the most prestigious award junior faculty 

members can receive from the NSF. The 

grant will be used to advance his research 

and educational programs. 

A u of M faculty member since 2005, 

Yeasin leads the Computer vision, Pattern, 

and Image Analysis (CvPIA) Laboratory 

and works in the areas of computer vision, 

data mining, bio-informatics/computational 

biology, pattern recognition, and human 

computer interfaces. 

The NSF Program is a foundation-wide 

activity that offers the NSF’s most prestigious 

awards in support of the early careerdevelopment 

activities of those teacherscholars 

who most effectively integrate 

research and education within the context of 

the mission of their organization. This award 

is the fourth that faculty in the herff College 

have received in the past 10 years. 

FALL 2008 7


NSF AWArDS $2 MILLION TO 

INCrEASE STEM GrADuATES 

The National Science Foundation (NSF) 

has awarded the university of Memphis 

a $2,000,000, five-year grant as part of 

its Science, Technology, Engineering, and 

Mathematics Talent Expansion Program 

(STEP). The overall goal of the STEP is to 

increase the number of u.S. citizens and 

permanent residents with undergraduate 

degrees in science, technology, 

engineering, and mathematics (STEM). 

The MemphiSTEP project focuses on 

recruitment, retention, and persistence 

to graduation to increase the number of 

majors and graduates across the STEM 

programs at the university of Memphis. 

The project concentrates on all stages 

of a STEM student’s undergraduate 

experience, beginning with recruitment 

to the institution, combines the strengths 

of the university’s support infrastructure 

with efforts and expertise of faculty, 

staff, students, administrators, and the 

professional community, and builds on 

research, best practices, and the local 

knowledge base. Major strengths of the 

project are its comprehensive nature, 

with numerous coordinated components, 

and its encompassing approach to focus 

on all STEM students. 

Stephanie Ivey, assistant professor of civil 

engineering, and David russomanno, 

r. Eugene Smith professor and chair of 

electrical and computer engineering, are 

serving as Co-Principal Investigators for 

the project, along with John haddock, 

professor of mathematical sciences. 

Don Franceschetti, Dunavant university 

Professor of physics and chemistry, 

serves as the Principal Investigator. 

u OF M ANNOuNCES CENTEr 

FOr BIOFuEL ENErGY AND 

SuSTAINABLE TEChNOLOGY 

(BEST) 

The u of M recently announced the 

formation of the Center for Biofuel Energy 

and Sustainable Technology (BEST). The 

center is funded by a $100,000 grant 

from the Tennessee Department of 

Environment and Conservation (TDEC), 

and John hochstein, professor and chair of 

mechanical engineering, will be the director. 

The Greening of Campus Includes Turning Grease from u of M Kitchens Into Biofuel. 

under the direction of designer Srikant 

Gir, assistant professor of mechanical 

engineering, undergraduate and graduate 

students, including Danny Fisher, 

constructed a prototype of a mobile 

Biodiesel Processing unit (BPu). The BPu 

will convert all of the excess cooking oil 

produced by on-campus kitchens, such as 

the Tiger Den and Blue Zone cafeterias, 

into viable biodiesel fuel. To produce one 

gallon of biodiesel fuel, 7.5 pounds of 

cooking oil is needed. The converted fuel 

will then be used in the u of M’s oncampus 

pick-up trucks that use pure diesel 

fuel; however, the vehicles will not have 

a total conversion. The state-of-the-art 

BPu, to be constructed by a contractor, is 

expected to be completed this year. 

The TDEC grant also provides for a public 

awareness outreach program, such as 

displaying the BPu at environmental 

events like Earth Day, and the creation of 

a quality assurance laboratory, which will 

test biofuel for efficiency. hochstein points 

out that while anyone can make their own 

fuel, testing is a different issue. The u of 

M will have the only lab in Tennessee that 

can test fuels for usability. The primary goal 

of the center is to implement better use 

of energy both on the u of M campus, as 

well as in the community. 

“It starts with one can. To feed the hungry. 

To lift the spirit. To change the world.” 

Canstruction © 

CANSTruCTION ® 2008 

On March 28, the College hosted its second 

annual Canstruction® competition through 

the local chapter of the ASCE Younger 

Member Group. Eleven teams from 10 

Shelby County high schools competed and 

collected 11,041 pounds of canned goods 

and $1,000 for a total of 20,030 meals 

donated to the Memphis Food Bank. 

8 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

ENGINEErING rESEArCh 

WADES INTO uNPrECEDENTED 

WATErS 

Those who deal with the Mississippi river 

on a daily basis—river pilots, engineers, 

scientists, and others—are intimately 

familiar with the surface of the Mississippi 

and the land that surrounds it. But what 

secrets lie beneath the river’s surface? 

This past summer, with the help of 

the u. S. Corps of Engineers, researchers 

from the university of Memphis and the 

university of Texas at Austin sought to lift 

the veil of mystery that lies underneath a 

stretch of the Mississippi river between 

helena, Ark., and Caruthersville, Mo., by 

answering these questions: 

• Do as-yet undiscovered, active fault lines 

run under the Mississippi river? 

• Water seeks the lowest point. Does the 

Mississippi river flow the way that it does 

because fault lines running the length of 

the river have shaped where those lowest 

points are? 

• How do the Mississippi River and the 

ground water interact with each other? 

Brian Waldron, associate director of the 

herff College of Engineering’s Ground 

Water Institute, was a co-principal 

investigator, along with M. Beatrice 

Magnani of the u of M’s Center for 

Earthquake research and Information and 

Kirk McIntosh and Steffen Saustrup of the 

university of Texas at Austin’s Institute for 

Geophysics. 

Waldron says “This research is 

unprecedented. Our utilization of marine 

seismic techniques in a river environment 

at the scale of our study has just not been 

done anywhere else in the world. The 

results from this investigation will further 

our understanding of seismicity in the 

region, greatly impacting earthquake 

hazard planning for the region. Additionally, 

for the first time we will get a picture of 

the physical connection between the 

Mississippi river and ground water system, 

enhancing our ability in assessing the 

long-term sustainability of the region’s sole 

drinking water source.” 

Your up-close-and-personal 

account of river research 

Few people are aware that the threat imposed by a large earthquake in the New Madrid 

Seismic Zone (NMSZ), which trends along the Mississippi river between Marked Tree, Ark., 

and Cairo, Ill., is far greater in scale than those occurring in California. Also unknown is the 

anticipated destruction that would affect the area, which includes Memphis, Tenn., an area 

which is heavily populated and industrialized. You are invited to follow a diverse group 

of scientists on their historic expedition to read the past to better understand what may 

happen in the NMSZ in the future. At http://www.memphis.edu/riverproject you can view 

photographs and read personal commentaries from the researchers along their 200 mile, 21day 

journey on the Mississippi river. And once the data is analyzed (mid-2009), the results, 

which will be of great interest to residents in the Mid-South and beyond, will be made public. 

Funding for this research came from the u.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake hazard research Program, 

National Science Foundation, and Memphis Light, Gas and Water with in-kind support from the u.S. Army Corps 

of Engineers Memphis District, u.S. Coast Guard, and FedEx. 

FALL 2008 9


PICKErING ESTABLIShES 

COLLEGE’S FIrST ENDOWED 

FACuLTY AWArD 

Pickering, Inc., a Memphis-based 

architecture, engineering, and 

environmental consulting firm, is 

establishing the College’s first endowed 

faculty award. To be known as The 

Pickering Faculty Award for Excellence, the 

award will provide an annual stipend to an 

outstanding civil, electrical, or mechanical 

engineering professor in recognition of 

their exemplary scholarship and classroom 

instruction. 

“Pickering wants to support the 

engineering faculty who are molding and 

encouraging their students to become the 

best in their fields,” said Linda vance, chief 

financial officer. “When I reflect on my own 

college experience, I remember all the 

professors who supplied me with the core 

education, as well as the support I needed 

to become successful. They were an 

instrumental part of my college experience, 

and Pickering wants to ensure students in 

the herff College of Engineering benefit 

from great professors as well.” 

“I am delighted Pickering is endowing a 

faculty award,” said Dean Dick Warder. 

“Faculty support, whether it is faculty 

awards, professorships, or chairs of 

excellence, provide the College with that 

additional financial support it needs to 

recruit and retain the very best faculty.” 

Outstanding faculty are the foundation 

all universities and colleges need to build 

and maintain solid academic programs 

that attract good students and produce 

knowledgeable, prepared alumni. Faculty 

support is critical to attracting such faculty. 

A 2006 faculty survey conducted by the 

American Society for Engineering Education 

revealed that salary averages in the herff 

College of Engineering ranked in the 

bottom 20th percentile compared to salary 

averages at our peer institutions. Thanks 

to privately funded faculty awards and 

professorships, like the Pickering Faculty 

Award, the College has been able to retain 

100% of faculty award recipients in recent 

years despite salary constraints. 

According to Warder, “The Pickering Faculty 

Award for Excellence will not only provide 

additional support for an outstanding 

faculty member’s teaching and research 

programs; it will also demonstrate to faculty 

that their efforts are valued and recognized 

by the engineering community as well.” 

(Left to right) Brittany Carney, mechanical engineering freshman, Michael racer, Thomas 

Morano, mechanical engineering senior, John hochstein, Sirisha Govindaraju, mechanical 

engineering graduate student, Kevin Funderburk, mechanical engineering sophmore, 

President Shirley C. raines, Bradford Beach, mechanical engineering freshman, and 

Kenneth Perkins, mechanical engineering freshman. 

TIGEr BLuE TurNS GrEEN 

The university of Memphis celebrated its 

first Sustainable Technologies Awareness 

Day (STAD) Oct. 7, 2008. The campuswide 

event, which was open to the public, 

encouraged environmental awareness, 

inquiry, and activism among students, 

faculty, and staff. The event featured 

numerous eco-friendly initiatives that have 

been developed by the university and its 

community partners. 

STAD was organized by the Center for 

Biofuel Energy & Sustainable Technologies 

(BEST) in cooperation with the u of M’s 

Environmental Action Club. BEST is an 

interdisciplinary center housed in the herff 

College and co-directed by John hochstein 

and Srikant Gir. It brings together students, 

faculty, and staff from across the campus 

and beyond to work on research and 

projects that promote sustainable energy 

systems and practices. Key partners in 

BEST include the Master in Public health 

Program, Marketing and Supply Chain 

Management, and the Ecological research 

Center. BEST’s Associate Director for Public 

health and Outreach Marian Levy and 

Co-Director John hochstein, along with 

Michael racer, Associate Director, Biofuel 

Supply Chain, organized the STAD event. 

hErFF INITIATIvE TO IMPrOvE 

QuALITY OF LIFE FOr LOCAL 

rESIDENTS 

Stephanie Ivey, assistant professor 

of civil engineering, received a grant 

through the Strengthening Communities 

Initiative, funded through a collaboration 

between the Community Foundation 

of Greater Memphis, the united Way 

of the MidSouth, and the university of 

Memphis. The proposed project will 

involve a comprehensive inventory of traffic 

patterns and transportation networks in 

the rozelle-Annesdale neighborhood to 

identify problems related to safety and 

efficiency of existing systems. The final 

product of the project will be a report 

defining existing conditions, identifying 

areas of need, and recommending changes 

to existing transportation networks that will 

improve the quality of life of neighborhood 

residents. Two undergraduate students and 

one graduate student in the Department of 

Civil Engineering will work on this project. 

Stoy Bailey, Managing Director of the 

Pigeon roost Development Corporation, is 

the lead community partner in this project. 

10 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

Conference Presented 

Timely Topic: Disaster Recovery 

in Freight Transportation 

The university of Memphis Intermodal Freight Transportation Institute, housed within the 

university’s herff College of Engineering, brought together individuals with an interest 

in disaster recovery and contingency plans for transportation and logistics at a seminar, 

“Disaster recovery in Freight Transportation – Moving Beyond First response,” Sept. 29, 

2008. The conference was sponsored by CN (Canadian National railway) and The Dehart 

Group. 

Attendees learned about the current state of disaster recovery preparedness and identified 

long-term issues that should be addressed should a disaster strike the area and disrupt 

supply chain systems. These issues included prioritization of rebuilding the infrastructure 

and partnerships between the public and private sectors. 

Conference speakers included State Senator Mark Norris, robert D. Jamison (BSEE ’87), 

under Secretary for National Protection and Programs with the Department of homeland 

Security, and Joe Waldo, senior consultant on global trade and transportation with Global 

Insight Inc. Other speakers presented a local perspective on business recovery and 

contingency planning, including issues facing air, rail, water and trucking. 

“This is a timely and important topic for the Memphis region,” said Martin Lipinski, director 

of the Intermodal Freight Transportation Institute. “Memphis is one of the nation’s leading 

freight transportation and logistics centers and is home to the largest cargo airport in the 

world, five Class I railroads, one of the country’s largest inland river ports, and two major 

interstate highways. Any long-term disruption to the transportation network in the region, 

such as the collapse of the railroad bridges or the closure of the airport, would have a 

devastating impact on the economy of the united States.” 

Pay to the 

Order Of: 

Amount 

Memo 

The University of Memphis $ 

One Million and 00/100 

0110401970 2012 000000000 

At the conference, Danny Simpson of CN railway presented 

a $1 million gift to President Shirley C. raines to establish 

the CN – E. hunter harrison Center for Intermodal Safety 

and Emergency Preparedness. 

September 29, 2008 

FALL 2008 11 

Date 

2012 

1,000,000. 00 

Dollars 

Canadian National Railway Company 

The Center for Intermodal 

Freight Transportation 

Studies (CIFTS) is 

a u.S. Department 

of Transportation- 

designated university 

Transportation Center 

housed at the university 

of Memphis and operated 

in partnership with the 

vanderbilt Center for 

Transportation research 

(vECTOr). As part of 

the Memphis Intermodal 

Freight Transportation 

Institute, CIFTS addresses 

critical issues affecting 

the planning, design, 

and operation of the 

nation’s intermodal freight 

transportation system, 

with an emphasis on 

the water, rail, air, and 

highway freight network 

of the lower Mississippi 

river delta region.

COvEr STOrY 

ENGINEErING 

A BrIGhTEr FuTurE: 

One Student at a Time 

12 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

herff College of Engineering has always been recognized as a place 

where students get a first-rate education, but it’s also a place where 

students bring their intellect, talent and dreams and leave with a 

roadmap to reaching those dreams. What’s even more exciting is 

students often find themselves well along that pathway – even before 

they finish their degrees. 

Katye Graves (ME ‘09) 

rACING TOWArD A CArEEr 

Consider the experience of Katye Graves (ME ’09), who arrived at 

herff with a passion for NASCAr racing, one that she shares with 

her family. Graves says that watching races together has always 

been a family affair, and when she was growing up in Arlington, 

Tenn., her father fueled her interest in racing by taking her to the 

Memphis Motorsports Park. Graves worked there for four years 

gaining experience in ticketing, hospitality, and other areas. 

Now as an engineering student, with the help of Jeff Marchetta, 

assistant professor of mechanical engineering, Graves has begun 

to parlay her dreams of racing into a career in the automotive field. 

This summer she interned with Parker Chelsea Products Division in 

Olive Branch, Miss., where she worked with power take-off devices. 

These gear boxes power the secondary functions of heavy-duty work 

trucks, such as the unloading function of a dump truck. The job, she 

says, has given her a chance to apply some of the engineering skills 

she has learned, such as using 3-D modeling and working in teams. 

Graves points out that Marchetta has been the most influential of 

her engineering professors, encouraging her to pursue an honors 

program and to attend an American Institute of Aeronautics and 

Astronautics (AIAA) conference where friendship and Tigers 

basketball came into play. “Marchetta is like a friend. Students can 

laugh and joke with him,” she says. “When the Tigers played the 

Texas Longhorns in the NCAA tournament while we were all at AIAA, 

he watched the game with us.” 

She still enjoys watching NASCAr, and at a time when Indy racer 

Danica Patrick is making headlines, Graves hasn’t given up on her 

dream of doing more than just watching on the sidelines. “I’d love 

to be the race engineer for a NASCAr team,” she says. “It would be 

even better to drive in a race!” 

Demetric Woods (BSET‘08) 

LANDING A LuCrATIvE JOB–IMMEDIATELY 

Demetric Woods (BSET ‘08) had the good fortune of completing 

his degree before gas prices neared $4. That’s because Woods, a 

transfer student from Jackson State Community College, drove two 

hours each way from his hometown of Bolivar, Tenn., to the u of M 

campus. Woods impressed his professors by never missing a class 

and never complaining about the commute. After he graduated, 

FALL 2008 13

COvEr STOrY 

Woods impressed them even more with the generous starting salary 

he received when hired by Goodyear Tire & rubber Company in 

union City, Tenn., a plant where he had interned. Plus, he landed 

this position with only a bachelor’s degree. 

ryan Pickett (CE ‘08) 

POrTING ThE DISCIPLINE OF SPOrTS TO 

rESEArCh 

ryan Pickett’s (CE ‘08) application to herff didn’t read like most. 

he had played football at the university of the South, then at 

Georgetown College in Kentucky where his team came within reach 

of a national championship. he had also been accepted to West 

Point and had worked in construction before arriving here. 

Pickett credits his professors with helping him to find a better sense 

of direction. With the encouragement of Stephanie Ivey, assistant 

professor in civil engineering, Pickett found his way to the university 

of Memphis storm water project and then to the Ground Water 

Institute (GWI), where he has worked closely with GWI director Jerry 

Anderson, associate professor of civil engineering, and associate 

GWI director Brian Waldron, assistant professor of civil engineering. 

Pickett’s independent project there is focused on determining 

stream bed permeabilities, or how ground water and surface water 

interact. he has also worked as a lab instructor under Charles Camp, 

robert G. Wharton professor of civil engineering. 

In addition, Pickett has shared the media spotlight as a member of 

a team that went on a data-gathering boat trip this summer on the 

Mississippi river to learn more about what’s going on underneath 

the great river. This research was part of a larger joint project 

between the university of Memphis and the university of Texas 

at Austin. (visit www.memphis.edu/riverproject to experience this 

exciting trip first-hand through photos, journals, and newspaper 

articles). The team sought to learn more about earthquakes in the 

region by exploring whether fault lines lie under the river. More 

germane to Pickett’s interest, the team also studied how the river 

interacts with the Memphis Aquifer, the primary water source of 

Shelby County and surrounding areas of the region. 

The accessibility of faculty and the camaraderie of the College are 

among the things Pickett likes best. “I feel comfortable going to any 

one of them and asking for help,” says the Clarksville, Tenn., native. 

“They are always willing to take the time to sit down and help with 

any problems you have.” Pursuing graduate work at herff, Pickett 

plans to continue the research he began as an undergraduate. 

After that, one career option is to work in the field of environmental 

engineering, to return contaminated areas to their natural state. But 

he isn’t ruling anything out, as long as his job does not entail sitting 

in front of a computer all day. For that reason, working as a project 

manager is an attractive option, too, since ideally Pickett would be 

able to be out in the field a few days a week. 

Eddie White (CPE ‘09) 

DOuBLING uP ON DEGrEES TO MAxIMIZE 

FuTurE OPTIONS 

Pickett isn’t the only student whose research is taking him to 

interesting places. This summer, Eddie White (CpE/EE ’09) traveled 

to Australia with Khan Iftekharuddin, associate professor of electrical 

and computer engineering, to collaborate with other researchers 

14 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

on perfecting face-recognition systems, specifically, how to get a 

computer to recognize a face when it’s turned at different angles. 

White’s work on this National Science Foundation-funded project in 

the Intelligent Systems and Image Processing (ISIP) lab won him 

second place in the undergraduate engineering category of the 

annual u of M Student research Forum. 

In addition to a double degree in computer and electrical 

engineering, White is working on adding a major in physics. For that 

reason, he is embarking on a second senior year during which he 

will complete the requirements for those areas, as well as study 

chemistry. he also joined a fraternity to branch out socially and to 

help develop the “soft” skills needed to work effectively with others. 

White believes his broad education will provide many options, 

whether it’s working with line voltage at Memphis Light, Gas & 

Water, programming, or designing a circuit board. A graduate of 

White Station high School, he grew up in Memphis and became 

interested in engineering at an early age. “As a kid, when one of my 

toys broke, I would break it all the way so I could see how it works,” 

he recalls. “When I discovered howstuffworks.com on the Internet, I 

spent all my time there.” 

Brandon Shepherd (BME ‘09) 

SYNThESIZING ENGINEErING AND MEDICINE 

Brandon Shepherd (BME ‘09) also grew up near Memphis in 

Arlington, Tenn., and like Eddie White, found his calling early on. 

Long before college, Shepherd considered himself a pre-med guy 

bound for a chemistry or biology major. he was also interested in 

engineering but he didn’t know how to combine the two. Then his 

research led him to information about the biomedical engineering 

degree being developed at that time at the herff College. “It was 

the perfect fit for me,” Brandon recalls. “The new biomedical 

engineering program could provide all I needed to qualify for 

medical school and offer courses in subjects I’d always loved 

learning about.” Shepherd’s plan is to finish his degree in the spring 

and concentrate on getting into medical school. he has worked 

closely with Joel Bumgardner, associate professor of biomedical 

engineering and undergraduate coordinator, on research that 

focuses on Chitosan Scaffolding (CS). CS is an area of research in 

bone regeneration, in which an effective foundation is needed that 

will support bone growth, yet dissolve in time, allowing new bone 

to integrate successfully with existing bone. Like other students, 

Shepherd appreciates the friendliness and accessibility of herff 

faculty, as well as their commitment to help students reach their 

goals. “Faculty members stop you in the hall to ask how you’re 

doing and to talk. And they’re always sending e-mails to students 

about internship opportunities,” he says. Shepherd’s career goals 

include giving back. his mentor at his church is a successful 

entrepreneur who uses his income and vacation time to help 

people in honduras. Shepherd accompanied him there twice and 

was profoundly touched with the impact of simply introducing 

dental hygiene to children in a third-world country. Like his mentor, 

he wants to be successful so he can use his income and talents 

to help people in the same way. “I feel as if I am being led down 

a similar path,” says Shepherd. “I might have a practice to pay 

for helping people or teach in a medical school in a country like 

honduras. There are a wide variety of options.” 

MuLTIPLYING SuCCESS BY ThOuSANDS 

Since 1964, over 7,500 students have graduated from the herff 

College of Engineering. Many of their success stories appear in this 

publication, as well as those about current students. The College 

encourages alumni to stay connected and help support the next 

generation of engineers, like the students featured in this article, 

who, despite their diverse interests and career ambitions, all credit 

herff faculty and staff for providing direction, advice, availability, 

and friendship. Shepherd sums up their feelings. “Our professors 

have all been great,” he says. “But what really impresses us is their 

commitment to students. They’re not here just to build up their own 

research projects; they’re here to build engineers, graduates who 

will join the thousands before them to make significant contributions 

to society.” 

FALL 2008 15

Pr BuZZ 

Hanson Professional Services, Inc. News 

Release, September 13, 2007 

Ron Coles, P.E. (BSCE ’72) was appointed 

the alternate u.S. representative for the 

Permanent International Association of 

Navigation Congress’ Inland Navigation 

Commission (PIANC). PIANC is a worldwide 

non-political and non-profit organization 

whose mission is to promote inland and 

maritime navigation for corporations, private 

individuals, and national governments. As 

the alternative u.S. representative, Coles will 

work with the principal u.S. representative, 

John Clarkson, P.E., of the u.S. Army 

Corps of Engineers, huntington District. In 

Clarkson’s absence, Coles will represent 

the u.S. in PIANC Inland Navigation 

Commission matters. Coles is a vice 

president at hanson Professional Services 

Inc., directing the firm’s ports and harbor 

services nationwide. 

The Commercial Appeal, December 24, 2007 

Jeffrey G. Roberts (BSME ’81), president 

and CEO of OsteoLign Inc., opened an 

office in Memphis. The company received 

nearly $14 million in venture capital funding 

Dear Alumni, 

to enter into the orthopedic medical device 

market. OsteoLign is currently developing 

a new trauma surgery product for repairing 

badly broken bones. 

Memphis Business Journal, July 4, 2008 

Thara Burana (BSCE ’78; MS ’83) 

and his wife, Dottie, are the owners of 

Bangkok Alley, a Thai restaurant chain in 

the Memphis area. They opened their first 

restaurant in 2002 in Cordova. Following 

the success of this restaurant, they opened 

another restaurant in 2005 in Collierville, 

and expanded into Mississippi in 2007 with 

a restaurant in Southaven. Burana brought 

in Thai chef and cookbook author victor 

Sodsook from Los Angeles to work in the 

Southaven restaurant, providing authentic 

Thai cooking to their customers. 

Memphis Business Journal, July 11, 2008 

David LaGasse (BSET ’71) is president 

of Linkous Construction Company, Inc., a 

Memphis-based general contractor of steel 

fabricating and marine construction. Linkous 

Construction is licensed in 13 states 

throughout the Southeast. The company 

recently won a $16.3 million contract to 

construct a 1,512-foot-long, 20-foot wide 

pier in Gulf Shores, Ala, that was damaged 

from hurricanes Ivan and Katrina. 

Are you True Blue? 

You are if you support your 

College and the University by 

becoming a member of the 

University of Memphis Alumni 

Association. 

Share your Tiger pride today by 

joining today! 

You can go online at www.memphis.edu/alumni 

or call 

(901) 678-ALUM. 

Go Tigers! 

In addition to the exciting activities described in this magazine, the faculty and students are preparing for the next accreditation 

visits by teams from the Engineering Accreditation Commission and the Technology Accreditation Commission 

of ABET, Inc. These visits will occur during the fall 2009 semester, and we need your help in preparing for the visits. 

Accreditation is important for a number of reasons, such as the requirement in Tennessee and many other states of 

graduation from an ABET-accredited program for licensure as a professional engineer. Also, prospective students often 

inquire about the accreditation status of a particular program. The criteria for accrediting engineering and technology 

programs have undergone significant changes in the past 10 years. Expectations have been placed on programs to 

ensure that graduates have certain skills and abilities, such as the ability to work on multidisciplinary teams, to communicate 

well, and demonstrate an understanding of ethical and professional responsibility. These skills are in addition to the 

technical skills our graduates have always been expected to have. 

All of our programs have developed educational objectives, which are broad statements that describe the career and professional 

accomplishments that the program is preparing graduates to achieve. All programs are expected to periodically 

evaluate the achievement of their objectives, and it’s this feedback we need from you. 

As a part of this process, we’ve selected three groups of graduates from whom we want to obtain feedback. If you 

graduated from the herff College of Engineering any semester during calendar year 1999, 2002, or 2004, we would 

appreciate it if you would go to http://www.ce.memphis.edu/surveys and select the department and program from 

which you received your degree and complete the questionnaire. Thank you in advance for your assistance. 

16 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

Sean Ellis joined the College in October of 2007, as the associate 

director for the university Transportation Center. A native of 

Memphis, Sean received his B.S. in Finance from Auburn university 

(1995) and is currently enrolled in the university’s M.B.A. program. 

he returned to the city of Memphis after graduation and began work 

at First Tennessee Bank. Sean has spent the last 10 years working at 

varsity Spirit Corporation as the Financial Analyst. 

Sean’s responsibilities include the day-to-day administration of the 

two federal grants the university of Memphis has received to study 

intermodal transportation. Both grants require matching dollars from 

the private sector. To learn more about how you or your company 

can become a partner in the university Transportation Center, please 

contact Sean at (901) 678-2837 or scellis1@memphis.edu. 

Daniel Kohn joins the engineering technology department as 

an assistant professor. Daniel has a B.S. in Computer Engineering 

Technology and a M.S. in Engineering Technology both from the 

university of Southern Mississippi. he also has over 13 years of 

computer control experience in the pulp and paper industry, as 

well as 6 years teaching technology. his areas of interest include: 

embedded systems, microcontrollers, mobile robotics, and 

industrial control systems. he is also a member of Tau Alpha Pi 

(engineering technology’s national honors society) and is active 

in both the American Society of Engineering Education and the 

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. 

NEW FACES 

Sean Ellis Daniel Kohn John Williams 

John Leicester Williams has joined the Department of 

Biomedical Engineering as a professor. he adds to the core 

of faculty in the herff College who specialize in orthopedic 

biomechanics. In particular, he serves as Director of the 

Biomechanics Laboratory at the InMotion Musculoskeletal Institute 

and thus provides a bridge from the College to that newly formed 

Institute. he earned his B.S. in Biology (1976) from the university 

of hawaii, and M.S. (1979) and Ph.D. (1981) in Theoretical 

& Applied Mechanics from Northwestern university. his past 

appointments include service as faculty member in Mechanical 

Engineering at Northeastern university and Syracuse university 

and in Orthopaedic Surgery at the university of Pennsylvania 

and the university of Missouri-Kansas City. he was Director of 

Orthopaedic Surgery research at Truman Medical Center in Kansas 

City from 1995-2005. Before joining the university of Memphis 

he worked as a staff engineer at DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., a 

Johnson & Johnson company in Warsaw, Ind. he is a co-inventor 

on five patent applications for total knee implants and has coauthored 

over 100 papers and reports in the areas of bone, joint 

and spine biomechanics, medical physics, orthopaedics and 

prosthodontics. his areas of interest include dynamical modeling of 

the human body and of joint replacements, orthopaedic and dental 

(oral) implants, computer-assisted orthopaedic surgery, physical 

properties of bone and growth plate cartilage, and methods for 

stimulating cells and tissues in culture. he is a member of the 

American Society of Mechanical Engineering, American Society of 

Biomechanics, and Orthopaedic research Society. 

FALL 2008 17

DEPArTMENTAL NEWS 

Eugene Eckstein, Chair 


www.be.memphis.edu 

Biomedical Engineering is growing and 

maturing. We’re teaching a full spectrum 

of engineering students now that all four 

years of the undergraduate program are in 

operation. This year is a push to assemble 

documents needed for accreditation 

of the undergraduate program. Our 

graduate program continues as a joint 

effort with the university of Tennessee 

health Science Center. A special feature 

of graduate education continues to be 

close work with one or more faculty 

members. Our newest faculty member 

is John Williams, who also serves as 

Director of Biomechanics at the InMotion 

Musculoskeletal research Institute. his 

previous position was at DePuy, a J & 

J company, where he specialized in 

operational principles and designs of knee 

prostheses. Our faculty numbers nine: Joel 

Bumgardner, Amy DeJongh Curry, Eugene 

Eckstein, Warren haggard,, Erno Lindner, 

Steven Slack, John L. Williams, Esra roan 

and Michael Yen. roan has a shared 

appointment with BIOM and MECh. Our 

staff numbers one and a half, headed by 

the very able Melanie James, abetted by 

hope Clippinger. The learning/training 

crew is composed of 80 undergraduates, 

40 graduate students, and three post- 

doctoral fellows. Major externally funded 

research occurs in grants won by Amy 

DeJongh Curry, Warren haggard, and Erno 

Lindner. These grants typically involve coinvestigators, 

often outside the department. 

Such interactions are reciprocal because 

our faculty members commonly are coinvestigators 

on grants with PIs elsewhere. 

More students now complete industrial 

internships, sometimes in companies at a 

distance. Can you provide an internship for 

a biomedical or other engineering student? 

Internships are a university-wide emphasis, 

and it offers organizations such as yours a 

chance to help the next generation up the 

ladder. Many people are doing much that is 

worth noting. Please visit us on the Web to 

learn more! 

Shahram Pezeshk, Chair and Emison 

Professor of Civil Engineering 


www.ce.memphis.edu 

The Department of Civil Engineering has 

quite a lot to brag about. I am particularly 

proud of the 88 percent pass rate for our 

senior-level students who took the FE 

licensing examination in the spring 2008 

semester. In addition, we are seeing a 

steady increase in the number of firsttime 

freshman entering our engineering 

program. Finally, I’m happy to share news 

that our department’s sponsored-research 

funding has increased significantly. 

Sponsored Research Awards 

Externally funded research is the engine 

that drives the nation’s top engineering 

programs. In 2007, our faculty received 

$2,875,000 in new awards for major 

research studies in several areas of civil 

engineering. This high level of research 

awards, distributed among multiple areas, 

makes our program look very good on a 

national level. As a result, we have attracted 

a diverse and talented group of students, 

representing multiple nationalities, as 

applicants to our graduate programs. 

These students will have opportunities to 

participate in these funded research studies 

while being mentored by members of our 

faculty. 

Community Service and Outreach 

Programs 

I am also pleased to share news of our 

department’s ongoing participation in 

multiple local and regional community 

programs in an effort to increase 

awareness of career and educational 

opportunities in the disciplines of science, 

math, technology, and engineering (STEM). 

The Girls Experiencing Engineering Program 

(GEE) expanded its summer 2008 

sessions to include special focus areas, 

including transportation engineering and 

leadership. In addition, our faculty teamed 

with local sponsors from the West TN 

ASCE Younger Members Section to host 

Canstruction ® , a design/build competition 

involving teams of high school students 

working with engineering students and 

local professional engineers and architects. 

In Summary 

As many of you may know, Dr. Wheeler 

retired and relocated to Texas, where his 

daughter and grandchildren live. We miss 

him and wish him the best. I believe we 

would all agree that Dr. Wheeler is oneof-a-kind, 

and he leaves quite a legacy 

18 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

with faculty, administrators, alumni, and 

students. Currently, we are in the process 

of hiring a new faculty member in the 

transportation area, and we expect to have 

this position filled for the spring 2009 

semester. 

I would like to conclude this message by 

stating that I am encouraged and excited 

about the Department of Civil Engineering. 

We offer a premier program, which is both 

affordable and outstanding. 

David russomanno, Chair and r. Eugene 

Smith Professor 

Electrical & 

Computer Engineering 

www.eece.memphis.edu 

One of the most satisfying experiences 

serving as Chair of the Department of 

Electrical and Computer Engineering 

(EECE) is the opportunity to hear from our 

alumni about their career and professional 

accomplishments. In many instances, 

these accomplishments are in their roles 

as electrical or computer engineers, but it 

is not unusual to find our alumni having 

great success as physicians, attorneys, 

and business leaders. A recurring theme 

of their feedback is that the abilities, 

knowledge, and experience that they 

gained while students in the EECE program 

well prepared them for future success. 

Besides the achievements of our alumni, I 

often hear from industrial and government 

leaders about the challenges they are facing 

in filling electrical and computer engineering 

positions. It has been well documented that 

our nation is facing a crisis in producing 

enough electrical and computer engineers 

who are u.S. citizens. As a department, we 

are continuously striving to improve our 

educational programs and environment and 

seeking out ways to involve undergraduates, 

as well as graduate students, in research 

activities. It is critical that our students 

develop an appreciation for the challenges 

of the globalization of technology, while 

also being prepared to take advantage of 

the resulting opportunities. For example, 

Khan Iftekharuddin, as part of a National 

Science Foundation (NSF) grant, included 

both an undergraduate and a graduate 

student in his summer research conducted 

in Australia this past summer. We will 

continue to submit proposals to nationally 

competitive funding agencies, such as 

the NSF, to seek out financial support 

for our students to encourage them to 

pursue electrical or computer engineering 

careers and to continue to provide them 

the very best educational experiences. 

Our participation in the MemphiSTEP 

program is just one example of our ongoing 

commitment to the recruitment and 

retention of students. 

Our faculty members continue to be 

assertive in pursuing external research 

funding in support of our three focus 

areas: i) Electrical Systems, ii) Biomedical 

Systems, and iii) Intelligent Information 

Systems. I am particularly pleased by the 

activities of the junior faculty members 

we have recruited to join the department 

over the last few years. For example, 

Mohammed Yeasin’s NSF Career Award 

for the co-analysis of signal and sense for 

understanding non-verbal communications 

is evidence that we are being successful 

in national competitions. Eddie Jacobs 

continues to receive research contracts 

from the Department of Defense and he is 

pursuing work to advance imaging sensors. 

his work is having a direct impact on our 

national defense and his work may also 

have implications for homeland security 

applications. Also, Chrysanthe Preza’s 

work in computational methods for optical 

imaging systems may enable biological 

applications not possible at this time. 

There has never been a more exciting 

time to pursue electrical or computer 

engineering at the university of Memphis, 

so we ask for your help in conveying to 

prospective students the vibrant career 

paths that such an education offers. We 

greatly appreciate the generous gifts we 

have received from our alumni and friends 

and remain hopeful that you will continue 

to include EECE in your support of the herff 

College of Engineering as we work diligently 

to continually improve the department to 

compete at the highest level. 

Deborah hochstein, Chair 


www.et.memphis.edu 

It is good to be back home again on the 

2nd floor after being displaced for the 

summer. The Engineering Technology 

building has been under renovation for a 

FALL 2008 19

DEPArTMENTAL NEWS 

new hvAC system. It required emptying 

the entire second floor including offices, 

laboratories, and classrooms. While it 

was a challenge to pack up everything, 

especially the equipment in the 

laboratories, the end result is great. We 

looked at this as an opportunity for a fresh 

start. Not only are the floors polished, 

walls painted, and the ceiling new, but 

space has been made available to improve 

the laboratories. The newest addition 

is the purchase of two industrial robots 

from Fanuc. These robots will be utilized 

primarily in the Automation and robotics 

course, and secondarily in class projects for 

industrial electronics. 

The “Applied Lean Leadership” Graduate 

Certificate Program is up and running. 

It follows the Society of Manufacturing 

Engineers’ “Lean Certification Body of 

Knowledge,” and a student completing the 

certificate program will be expected to be 

able to pass the Lean Certification Exam 

at the bronze level. Acceptance into this 

program does not require taking the GrE, 

and the certificate can be completed in 

one year by completing two courses per 

semester. If you find yourself working on 

projects that require knowledge of Lean 

principles and techniques, consider this 

certification. For more information contact 

Carl Williams or visit our department 

website @www.et.memphis.edu. 

The Department hosted a second annual 

summer camp program for high-school 

girls, “Girls in Manufacturing” (GiM). The 

program was funded for two weeks by 

the uTC Foundation (Carrier) and one 

week by Cargill. The young women 

learned about drafting in AutoCAD, solid 

modeling, and 3-D printing in unigraphics, 

welding, and milling, under rob hewitt’s 

guidance; production control, robotics, 

and engineering economics under Tom 

Banning’s guidance; and the production 

of biodiesel from cooking oil from John 

hochstein. There is funding to run the 

camp next summer for one week. We 

are currently looking for funding sources 

to run it an additional week and perhaps 

expand the target audience to include 

young men as well as young women. 

We would like to thank the alumni who 

supported this program by talking to these 

girls over the lunch period about their 

careers in engineering. One young woman 

who attended the first year of this camp 

is currently enrolled as an Engineering 

Technology major. We expect to attract 

more into the college as they graduate 

from high school. 

I would like to take this opportunity to 

thank all of you who have kept in touch 

with us, whether it was by responding to 

our survey, attending our College alumni 

mixers, or just sending us an email update 

about what is going on in your career. 

I would also like to thank those who 

continue to contribute to our departmental 

scholarships. The Weston Terry Brooks 

Memorial Scholarship is now endowed and 

provides an annual scholarship of $1,000 

per year. Although the hOPE scholarship 

is now available, we continue to have nontraditional 

students who graduated high 

school before it went into effect and who 

need our help. A gift to the scholarship 

fund is a “gift that keeps on giving.” 

John hochstein, Chair 


www.me.memphis.edu 

In only one year, generous contributions 

from alumni and from John ray’s family 

rapidly filled the endowment account 

so that an undergraduate has already 

been the first student to receive support 

from the John ray Memorial Scholarship. 

(Contributions are still possible, and 

sought, and will be appreciated.) 

Jiada Mo is working with local industry 

to spin up a sequence of courses at the 

4/6000 level in packaging that will be 

proposed as a certificate program. 

Almost a dozen students participated in 

the AIAA Southeastern region Student 

Conference last spring and did an 

outstanding job of representing our 

department. 

Srikant Gir and I received a grant from the 

TN Dept. of Environment and Conservation 

to build a biodiesel production unit to 

convert the used vegetable oil waste stream 

from the university cafeterias into fuel for 

the university’s Physical Plant. Fabrication is 

commencing as this is being written. 

Ed Perry is serving as the President of the 

Faculty Senate for the 2008-09 Academic 

Year. 

A course on applied computational fluid 

dynamics at the 4/6000-level developed 

20 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

y Jeff Marchetta is being offered for the 

second time during the 2008 Fall semester. 

It is in demand by our students and is 

expected to become a permanent edition 

to the course catalog. 

Gladius Lewis gave an invited presentation 

at the DePuy heritage Celebration at the 

2008 Annual Meeting of the American 

Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons: 

“Acrylic Bone Cement: Enhanced Fatigue 

Properties from high-Molecular Weight 

Polymers.” 

Mr. Zelazny is the second student from 

our department to take advantage of our 

exchange program with hochschule ulm 

in ulm, Germany. Their International 

Mechanical Engineering Program offers 

courses taught in English that are a very 

good match to the 7th semester of our 

BSME program, and he is there as this is 

being written. 

The Center for Biofuel Energy and 

Sustainable Technologies (BEST), with its 

home in our department, was recognized 

by the university as an Interdisciplinary 

Center. It was the primary organizer of 

the Inaugural Sustainable Technologies 

Awareness Day held on October 7, 2008. 

Gary Qi and Steve Wayne organized 

and hosted the 51st Acoustic Emission 

Working Group Meeting and International 

Symposium on Acoustic Emissions held 

on campus October 13-15, 2008. rajesh 

Muthireddy, a current MS student, won an 

honorable mention for his paper presented 

at this meeting. 

The SAE Student Club is building a car to 

enter in this year’s mini-Baja competition. 

As we move forward to meet today’s 

and tomorrow’s challenges, the “we” 

must be emphasized. “We” are the 

current students, the alumni, and the 

faculty of Our department. Together, our 

actions and our achievements define our 

department and build upon the legacy left 

to us. I hope that each of you has enjoyed 

a good year and that for each of you, next 

year is even better. 

FALL 2008 21

ThE ThOMAS S. FrY MEMOrIAL FuND 

Construction 

Kick-Off Celebration 

The Civil Engineering Department celebrated the Thomas S. 

Fry Memorial Fund Construction Kick-Off on April 17. Alumni 

and geotechnical business leaders toured the existing 

laboratory, met current students, and viewed renderings for 

the new soil mechanics laboratory. Special guests included 

President Shirley Raines, Dean Dick Warder, Dr. Gary 

Fry, Barbara Fry, Carol Fry, and Joyce Fry-Buswell (Dr. 

Fry’s children) and Joe Hall (Dr. Ken hall’s son). Over 

$225,000 has already been contributed to the Thomas S. 

Fry Memorial Fund. Contributions will be used to renovate 

the soil mechanics laboratory. Funds are still needed to 

purchase new equipment for the laboratory and to establish 

an endowment to provide for the laboratory’s ongoing 

maintenance. To make a gift to the Thomas S. Fry Fund, use 

the enclosed donation envelope or contact the College’s 

Director of Development, Carolyn Oldenburg, at (901) 678- 

1537 or coldenbu@memphis.edu. 

Your College. 

Your Gift. 

Your Legacy. 

For more information on making your planned gift 

to the University of Memphis, 

please call Carolyn Oldenburg 

at 901-678-1537 

or Dan Murrell at 901-678-2732. 

Thomas S. Fry Soil Mechanics Laboratory 

Engineering Science Suite 111 

Planned giving is a means of leaving a legacy. A 

gift can take the form of cash, stocks, and other 

investment instruments, life insurance, or other 

assets, and the gift can be made either during the 

donor’s lifetime or upon death. 

Planned gifts are vital to the financial health of the 

University of Memphis, as they represent financial 

investment the University can count on to carry out 

its mission in the future. Planned gifts provide you 

with numerous advantages: 

• They are a means for you to make a 

substantial gift to the College without 

depleting money set aside for your 

day-to-day or retirement needs. 

• They may let you receive a stream of 

income for life, or earn higher investment 

yields. 

• They often offer numerous and substantial 

tax savings. 

• They are a way for you to share in both 

the present and the future success of the 

University of Memphis. 

22 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

Scholarships Make a College 

Education Possible 

One of the highlights of the herff College of Engineering calendar 

is the annual Scholarship Luncheon, which brings together student 

scholarship recipients, the donors who provide the support, and the 

faculty and staff who are so instrumental in guiding and supporting 

these students. 

Pat and Carolyn Farley formed the Don G. Farley Memorial 

Scholarship in loving memory of their son Don, who was a civil 

engineering student. his parents want to honor his memory by 

helping future civil engineering students pursue their dream of 

a college education. recipient Nicklaus Khan, a senior in civil 

engineering, is working toward additional degrees in biology and 

chemistry at the university of Memphis. 

The Engineers’ Club of Memphis presented the College with 

a $15,000 donation to the Engineers’ Club Proutt Memorial 

Scholarship Fund. This scholarship provides assistance to 

engineering students who demonstrate academic potential, 

personal integrity, and a commitment to engineering. 

Engineers’ Club members celebrated with the 2006-2007 

Proutt Memorial Scholar, Sahar Siddiqui (mechanical engineering 

student), and the 2007-2008 recipient, Chris Dunbar (mechanical 

engineering student). 

Special guest speaker, Dr. Rick Smith (BSEE’79), spoke to 

students and donors about how receiving a scholarship impacted 

him and inspired him to give back. Dr. Smith established the rick 

A. Smith Electrical & Computer Engineering Endowment in 2003 

to assist the electrical and computer engineering department with 

its annual needs. This endowment provides scholarship and faculty 

recruitment assistance, as well as travel funds for electrical and 

computer engineering students to attend scholarly conferences. 

Did you know... 

The percentage of alumni who give back to their alma mater-not the 

amount of the gift-is a key criterion to the u.S. News and World report 

considers when ranking colleges and universities. The university 

needs your involvement to improve its ranking and to be recognized 

as the country’s premier metropolitan research university. 

Each and every gift makes a difference. 

Carolyn Farley, Nicklaus Khan, and Pat Farley 

Dean richard Warder, and Bob Sweeney, 

Engineer’s Club President 

Bob Sweeney, Mary Jane Cassandras, George Barnes, 

Sahar Siddiqui, Bert Merrill, and Chris Dunbar. 

Dr. rick Smith 

OThEr NEWS 

FALL 2008 23

GIvING BACK 

The herff College of Engineering gratefully acknowledges the many generous donors who supported the College this past year. Gifts from 

alumni, faculty, staff, parents, and friends make a significant impact on the College and every student. Your donations supported scholarships, 

professorships, and student co-curricular activities. Through your contributions, you assisted with faculty research and provided assistance for 

each department in the College. Thank you for your continued support. 

The following list reflects 

donations made to the 

Herff College of Engineering, 

July 1, 2007 – June 30, 2008 

President’s Society 

Fellows 

$10,000 and greater 

Donald O. Barber* 

Cargill, Inc. 

Cargill Corn Milling North America 

Carrier Corporation 

Dehart Group 

Engineers’ Club of Memphis, Inc. 

hall Blake & Associates, Inc. 

William “Bill” C. Miller Jr* 

Pickering Firm, Inc. 

Wind river 

Women’s Foundation 

for a Greater Memphis 


Benefactors 

$5,000 - $9,999 

Anonymous 

Askew hargraves harcourt & 

Associates, Inc. 

Burns Cooley Dennis, Inc. 

Construction Specifications Institute 

Laura Gunn* 

William O. hagerman* 

Smith & Nephew, Inc. 

rick A. Smith* 

Tennessee road Builders 

Association 

Thomas L. Wallace Sr* 

robert E. Wharton Jr* 

Laura S. Whitsitt* 

Edward F. Williams III 


Patrons 

$2,500 - $4,999 

John L. Conley* 

Eugene C. Eckstein** 

EnSafe 

Doug* & Sharon* haggett 

Stephen P. Liberto* 


Members 

$1,000 - $2,499 

robert E. Bailey* 

Stephen r. Barkley* 

George D. Barnes 

Buchart-horn, Inc. 

robert E. Clark* 

Eric Jerome Dickey* 

robert Dodds Jr* 

Ian C. Engstrom* 

Gary* & Marta* Foster 

Barbara S. Fry 

Carol J. Fry 

roger A. Gaines* 

randall W. Gentry* 

Samuel T. hall* 

Carruthers* & G. Jo* hays 

hill Brothers Construction & 

Engineering 

robert D. Jamison* 

Kenneth W. Jarrell* 

Bill* & Peggy* Kelley 

John W. Lewallen Jr* 

James r. Liles* 

Martin E. Lipinski** 

T. Wayne Mock* 

Larry W. Moore** 

Steven W. ray* 

Jean M. redfield* 

George C. richardson 

Laura rowland* 

Tom robison & Associates 

Incorporated 

Justin* & Lindsey* Waugh 

Tower Club 

$500 - $999 

Anderson Engineering 

Consultants, Inc. 

ASCE West Tennessee Branch 

Andrew G. Babian* 

E. Claire Barnett* 

Boeing Company 

Jon Bruns* 

Cara L. Martin* 

Stephen T. McClain* 

G. Michael Chipman* 

William S. Crawford* 

Mr. & Mrs. Pat Farley 

Glenn C. Goss* 

Warren O. haggard** 

henry D. hart* 

Jeffrey* & Gayla* hiss 

John** & Deborah** hochstein 

ravindranath Kanuri* 

Larry S. King* 

David M. Lagasse* 

Gladius Lewis** 

Becky A. Martin* 

Marshall W. Martin Jr* 

roger Meier** 

John E. Monroe III* 

russell Palmiter* 

Mark J. reimold* 

ralph D. richardson 

Joe royer* 

David A. Sabatini* 

Kenneth L. Shappley 

Calvin E. Shuster* 

Paul* & Janet* Simms 

ThyssenKrupp Elevator 

Manufacturing, Inc. 

Scholar’s Club 

$250 - $499 

Daniel F. Acciani Jr* 

Jerry L. Anderson** 

Thomas T. Beatty* 

Charles W. Bray** 

William r. Callahan III* 

Jinqiu Chen* 

James L. Clark* 

Joseph S. Clift Jr* 

Michael J. Cole* 

Jerry r. Collins Jr* 

rois F. DeShazo* 

James M. Evans Jr* 

Charles L. Gamble Jr* 

Global Impact 

Barry J. harrald* 

David E. harrison* 

Gerard L. harts* 

Benjamin P. hobday* 

Stephanie S. Ivey** 

Kevin D. Ledford* 

John M. Lowe* 

Jeffrey G. Marchetta** 

Terry G. McClure* 

John Lawrence McDaniel* 

Martin A. Newman* 

Carolyn M. Oldenburg** 

James E. Outlaw Jr* 

Edward h. Perry** 

Shahram Pezeshk** 

Paul J. reimold* 

robert h. rogers* 

David J. russomanno** 

SAIC 

David A. Schmidt* 

Donald W. Scobey* 

Smith Seckman reid, Inc. 

Gary A. Scruggs* 

Tennessee Society of Professional 

Engineers Memphis 

rufus L. Terrell* 

richard C. Thomas* 

Matt N. Thomson* 

TOC Engineering, Inc. 

roy Lucien vargas* 

Timothy M. Yeager* 

Century Club 

$100 - $249 

reidar S. Aamotsbakken* 

Donald A. Abbott* 

J. rodger Aitken* 

Kenneth r. Akers* 

Thomas G. Albers Jr* 

John E. Allen* 

Byron P. Anderson II* 

Donnecka L. Anderson* 

Camille M. Attieh* 

24 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

eginald K. Barner* 

Timothy M. Barratt* 

robert B. Bartlow* 

Lewie L. Bates III* 

Michael L. Beasley* 

William B. Berry* 

William E. Blank* 

Stacey Bradley* 

Donald L. Branson* 

Jeffrey S. Brooks* 

Steven D. Brown* 

Charles h. “Tweed” Bryant 

Joel D. Bumgardner** 

Kay K. Bures* 

ronnie Burrage* 

Kenneth S. Calicutt* 

robert L. Campbell Iv* 

howard S. Carman* 

r. David Cash* 

Jimmy C. Castellaw* 

S. Wayne Chamberlin 

Edward C. Charlton* 

Kenneth K. Chipley* 

Carl r. Clark* 

Charles E. Climer Jr* 

randy M. Cole* 

Construction & Maintenance 

Engineering 

Daniel L. Coury* 

James h. Couture* 

robert E. Craft* 

victor M. Cruz* 

Michael L. Daley** 

Charles B. Daniel* 

holley C. Dargie* 

Chinisha h. Dean* 

Steven L. Dishion* 

Marvin r. Dixon* 

Gene A. Dodson* 

ronald G. Driggers* 

Gill L. Duykers* 

Myron O. Eason* 

Fred D. Echols Jr* 

Augustine E. Egedegbe* 

Deaton P. Ellis Jr* 

John M. Emerson* 

Edwin “Skip”* & Susan* Erlbacher II 

Fabio E. Esguerra* 

Al F. Evans* 

Gregory Farris* 

John Paul Finerson* 

Jason M. Fisher* 

Terence W. Foshee* 

Pete A. Futris Jr* 

Patricia L. Garcia* 

David C. George* 

Peter T. Giannini* 

Billy G. Glasgow* 

robert A. Gould* 

Monique Graf-Castellaw* 

Kris h. Green* 

hakan J. hansson* 

Charles E. harden* 

Portia K. harvey* 

valerie P. hayes* 

W. Curt heaslet* 

Laura S. hendrix* 

Sarah M. hershberger* 

John D. hockaday* 

Charles C. holcomb* 

Edward A. hoppe Jr* 

Charles L. hopper III* 

Donald J. hudgins* 

Michael W. hutchinson* 

Stephen r. Ira* 

Michael J. Irish* 

Melanie James** 

roger D. James* 

James D. Jarrett* 

George E. Karalus Jr* 

Jim Kastner* 

Stacey Kersh-Johnson* 

Amy L. Key* 

J. Mark Kilby* 

Shobhan Koneru* 

Sidney W. Kornegay* 

Lisa A. Kraft* 

Gregory P. Ladd* 

William J. Lamkin* 

Douglas J. Lartz* 

J. B. Latimer* 

Gerald D. Lawson* 

Wilfred u. Leaks* 

Bernard A. Licari* 

roy K. Lim* 

John M. Limbaugh* 

hsiang h. Lin** 

Bobby J. Littlejohn* 

Leonard r. Lucas* 

Gholam r. Madjidi* 

rick W. Martin* 

Thomas E. Mason** 

robert A. Massa Jr* 

D. Wayne Max 

David r. Mayo Jr* 

Jason A. Mayo 

Wendell G. McAlexander* 

rick D. McIntosh* 

robert E. McIvor Jr* 

Michael D. McNeely* 

Donald Merritt* 

roger L. Merritt* 

John C. Mitchell* 

William r. Moore* 

Angelo J. Morgan* 

Tamesha Murphy* 

Nicholas E. Newman* 

Paul Nickell* 

Paul* & Jennifer* Nolte 

John A. Owens* 

J. Steven Palmer* 

M. Brad Parks* 

Jack E. Parr 

Karl D. Pfeifer* 

Jerry L. Pillow* 

Tony G. Pinson* 

Kevin M. Poe* 

Willard B. Powell III* 

Thomas C. Powers* 

reasons Construction Co. 

The reaves Firm 

Gene reddick* 

Frank r. redding* 

John M. reese* 

William reid* 

ralph G. rone Jr* 

Darren J. Sanders* 

Jeffrey S. Sanders* 

Keith T. Sanford* 

Lake B. Sedberry* 

William T. Segui** 

David B. Sims Jr* 

John A. Sims* 

Steven M. Slack** 

William L. Spencer* 

Norman E. Spires* 

Walter I. Stevens* 

robert L. Stewart* 

Thomas G. Stoll* 

J. Lynn Surratt* 

Michael A. Swindle* 

William L. Taylor* 

Lawrence r. Taylor* 

Tonya r. Thorne* 

William r. Toone* 

James G. Tribo* 

Dawn h. Trout* 

John A. vanlandingham* 

Srinivasulu r. vannappagari* 

Elisha Jenkins vego* 

James S. vinson* 

J. Michael Walls* 

GIvING BACK 

robert* & Maria* Walpole 

Bert J. Warbington Jr* 

Stephen Watson* 

vickie L. Watson* 

robert A. Wedaman* 

Edward W. Wheeler* 

Orville E. Wheeler** 

Paul D. Willett* 

Tina Williford* 

Mark S. Wilson* 

Daniel K. Wood* 

Brent A. Worley* 

Wyeth 

Long Yang* 

Kenneth W. Young* 

herbert D. Zeman 

Supporter’s Club 

$99 and under 

Abdeljalil K. Abdelhalim* 

Donald E. Adams Jr* 

Mark T. Allison* 

Granville E. Alpha* 

Charles J. Amster* 

ricky C. Anderson* 

rex W. Armstrong* 

robert C. Austin Jr* 

Carter Branham S. Bagley* 

Joe B. Baker* 

Sheridan E. Baker* 

Daniel A. Barnett* 

Smith B. Benson* 

howard M. Bernbaum* 

Janet C. Berry* 

Matthew W. Bingham* 

David K. Branch Jr* 

Stephanie L. Brannon* 

Gaylon C. Brown* 

Burges C. Budd* 

Calvin Burnett* 

robert M. Burns* 

Eric S. Burrage* 

Leon M. Burroughs* 

D. Brian Cagle* 

Tommy G. Campbell* 

William E. Capelle Jr* 

James D. Carroll* 

Michael L. Carter* 

Joseph J. Cernosek* 

Glenn E. Cheatham* 

Jiang Chen* 

Dennis J. Chomicki* 

Larry F. Churchwell Jr* 

FALL 2008 25

GIvING BACK 

Michael A. Clements Sr* 

William r. Coles* 

Larry D. Collomp* 

Carol B. Conover* 

Thomas r. Courtney* 

harry G. Craig* 

robert S. Crewshaw Jr* 

Ernest C. Crosby* 

William W. Dabbs* 

Drake E. Danley* 

Mark A. Darty 

Jeremy E. Daugherty* 

Gerald Deloach* 

David G. Dodd* 

Alice Joe Dong* 

Tunney A. Dong* 

rick G. Doran* 

Leon E. Drouin Jr* 

Glen W. Dytrt* 

robert A. Edlund* 

Christopher D. Egan* 

John M. Emerson* 

Gene Eng* 

robert S. Eramo* 

Carlos* & Dianne Figueroa 

Phillip M. Finder* 

richard M. Flake* 

John M. Ford* 

Eva B. Freer* 

Anthony J. Gardner III* 

Charles A. Garrett II* 

Emma M. Garrison* 

victor F. Giusti* 

Jerald J. Gnuschke* 

Paul E. Goetz* 

Eric S. Grantham* 

Byron M. Graves* 

rhonda r. Graves* 

Odis E. haggard Jr* 

Charles A. hall* 

Arthur B. harman* 

J. Greg harrison* 

Mike hartung-Schuster* 

robert E. harvey* 

Sharon L. hayes 

John D. heezen* 

James h. hepburn* 

Barry W. herold* 

Steven M. heye* 

Mark W. heyse* 

Gary D. hill* 

Karen h. hill* 

Bill r. hodges 

Shawn E. holladay* 

James P. holland* 

robert r. hollis* 

Kevin h. holmes* 

Jonathan A. honeycutt* 

Michael A. hopson* 

Turner J. howard* 

M. Dean hughes* 

Keith A. humphreys* 

Clyde E. hunt* 

Sigmund v. hurd* 

Joseph C. hurst* 

robert O. hussung* 

J. Patrick Ireland* 

Michael E. Jackson* 

houshang Javan** 

Johnny J. Jeffries* 

Thomas P. Jenkins* 

Gary D. Johnson* 

Ginevra A. Johnson* 

James E. Johnson Jr* 

Thomas B. Johnson* 

Jones Concrete Pumping Service 

Lisa G. Jones* 

vijaya Bhaskara Jonnala* 

Paula G. Kee* 

William Brittain Kennedy* 

Keith C. Key* 

Alan L. Kimberling* 

Linda C. Kurts* 

John C. Lancaster* 

John C. Lane Jr* 

Joseph A. Lawson* 

Steven M. Lawson* 

henry r. Leggette* 

Carol C. Lestourgeon* 

Edward C. Lindsey Jr* 

h. Thomas Lloyd* 

James W. Lloyd* 

Denise Loeblein* 

Lynn T. Loeffel* 

Charles F. Long* 

Clifton Madden* 

Keith A. Mahal* 

Andrew v. Mariano* 

Lawrence L. Mariano III 

Shannon Maris* 

ricky L. Marley* 

Arthur Marshall* 

Kenneth W. Martin Jr* 

Michael M. Martin* 

John L. McAlpin* 

Sylvia D. McGhee* 

richard h. Montgomery* 

Frank h. Moore* 

Joseph Morris* 

robert S. Moskal* 

Jimmie W. Mungle* 

Walter h. Murphy Jr* 

Alan L. Myers 

W. raymond Newman* 

Tuan Nguyen* 

Earlie Nickols II* 

J. Michael Northern* 

William L. O’Neal* 

Michael E. Oakes* 

Seibang Oh* 

Michael T. Old* 

Brian A. Olswing* 

Louis F. Pagel* 

Pradipkumar N. Patel* 

Jason W. Patterson* 

Joseph L. Pirani* 

Joseph r. Poplawski 

ronald L. Proctor* 

Stephen A. rehrig* 

Joanne F. rhodes* 

Michael E. rhodes 

Frank J. ricciuti Jr* 

A. Nicholas ring* 

Linda robert* 

Denver D. robinson* 

Julie A. robinson* 

robert A. Saigeon Jr* 

virasat A. Sajanlal* 

William C. Schadrack III* 

Keith Schnadelbach* 

Oscar Shefsky* 

Lloyd F. Shook* 

Isam A. Showli* 

ronald r. Slaughter* 

Judith r. Sliger* 

Carson G. Smith* 

David M. Smith* 

robert W. Smith Jr* 

robert T. Somerville* 

Sheryl T. Spence* 

Ted W. Spence* 

M. Chris Spinolo* 

robert M. Stein* 

Carol h. Stephens* 

Mary Stewart* 

heywood Sun* 

Gerald J. Taylor* 

Mark A. Taylor* 

Warner C. Taylor Jr* 

raymond Teague* 

Elbert L. Thomas Jr* 

Nancy B. Thompson* 

J. B. Threat* 

James h. Tucker* 

Lorie h. Tudor* 

Michael J. Twigg* 

rigo J. vannucci III* 

Stephen L. vaughan* 

J. Martin Wade* 

robert L. Waller* 

Nancy P. Watson* 

Michael G. Welch* 

C. William White III* 

James h. Whitehead* 

Daniel W. Williams* 

Dent Williams* 

Travis L. Williams* 

A. Todd Wilson* 

Belinda W. Winfield* 

Susan Winn* 

Michael D. Wood* 

Mark L. Woods* 

Long Yang* 

Irma W. Young* 

Shahriar Zekavati* 

Donald L. Zlotky* 

The preceding list represents 

gifts made to the herff College 

of Engineering and designated 

to the following: herff College 

of Engineering, Biomedical 

Engineering, Civil Engineering, 

Electrical & Computer Engineering, 

Engineering Technology, Ground 

Water Institute, Mechanical 

Engineering, engineering 

scholarship funds and the Thomas 

S. Fry Memorial Fund. Names 

with a "*" indicate an engineering 

alumni donor, and names with 

"**" indicate a faculty/staff donor. 

Although we make every effort 

to ensure the accuracy of this 

information, some names may 

have been inadvertently omitted. 

If your name does not appear or 

the information is incorrect, please 

contact us at (901) 678-1537. 

26 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

1960s 

William Crawford (BSET 

’63) was recognized by the 

Tennessee hospital Association 

for his leadership of the board as 

chairman. 

1970s 

Said Abujaber (BSCE ’73; MS 

’75) is the CEO for Consolidated 

Consultants in Amman, Jordan 

with locations in the Middle East, 

Africa, and CIS countries. he also 

established and is a member of 

the board of directors for Jordan 

Tourism Investment, a company 

specializing in Cultural and Eco 

Tourism. 

Jerry Collins (BSCE ’75; MS 

’76) was appointed president 

and CEO of Memphis Light, Gas 

and Water Division. he had been 

Memphis Public Works director 

for seven years. 

Robert H. Dodds, Jr. (BSCE 

’73) was recently elected 

to the National Academy of 

Engineering (NAE). he was 

cited, “for contributions in nonlinear 

fracture mechanics and 

applications to practice in nuclear 

power and space systems.” he 

is the M. T. Geoffrey Yeh Chair 

of Civil Engineering and head 

of the Department of Civil and 

Environmental Engineering at 

the university of Illinois-urbana. 

Jim Lloyd (BSCE ’75; MS ’76) 

was promoted to chief of the 

Project Management Branch 

of the u.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers, Memphis District. he 

manages projects that are in the 

study, design, and construction 

phases in the six-state district. 

he has worked for the Corps 

of Engineers for more than 27 

years in operations and project 

management positions. 

William Yearwood (BSET 

’76) is the assistant public 

works director for the city of 

Bartlett, Tennessee. 

1980s 

Barry Braslow (BSEE ’83) 

was recently named Chief 

Engineer for the 17th Test 

Squadron at Schriever AFB, 

Colorado. The squadron is 

responsible for performing 

operational tests and evaluation 

on existing Air Force Space 

Command space and missile 

warning systems. he is a 

civilian employee of the Air 

Force. 

Henry Leggette (MS 

’87) received the Lifetime 

Achievement Award from 

the Mississippi valley State 

university National Alumni 

Association. he is the director 

of the ArrL Delta Division. 

1990s 

Stanley Dobbs (BSEE ’91) 

recently received the Military 

Logistics Officer of the Year 

Award. As the Chief Business 

Officer for Naval Aviation, 

his teams have instituted 

programs over the past two 

years resulting in both cost 

savings and cost avoidances 

of nearly $1 billion utilizing 

Systems Engineer principles of 

Lean, Sic Sigma and Theory of 

Constraints. 

Troy D. Drewry (MS ’94) has 

been hired by Active Implants 

Corp., a maker of polymer 

medical devices, to handle 

its worldwide production and 

distribution operations, which 

are focused on Europe. 

Ken Finklea (BSEE ’92) has 

been promoted to director, 

Strategic Initiatives & Advanced 

Technologies, with DrS Test & 

Energy Management LLC. he 

will provide strategic planning, 

technology roadmapping, 

architecture development, 

and customer relationship 

management for the vehicle 

health Management systems, 

Common Electrical Solutions 

and Automated Test Systems 

lines of business. 

Matthew Hikade (MS ’99) 

has been designated a “Top 

40 under 40” in the Memphis 

Business Journal for 2007. he is 

employed by uWT Logistics LLC 

as a sales manager. 

Jason Needham (BSME ’94) 

has been named vice president 

at Allen & hoshall in Memphis, 

Tennessee. 

P. Russell Palmiter (BSME 

’97) received his M.S. degree 

in Engineering Science, 

specifically for Industrial 

Planning and Management, 

from rensselaer Polytechnic 

Institute in December 2007. 

he is currently a senior 

engineer in Pratt & Whitney’s 

Turbine Module Center in their 

validation and Industrial Lead 

area. This position is a recent 

change from working in the 

NGPF (Next Generation Product 

Family) group, still within the 

Turbine Module Center, as a 

project lead for hPT Technology 

development. 

Jeremy Westmoreland (BSCE 

’99) has joined Barge Waggoner 

Sumner & Cannon as a project 

engineer in the firm’s Nashville 

office. 

2000s 

Don Branson (BSET ’01) 

has been named Manager of 

reliability Improvement for 

converting operations at Orchids 

Paper Products Company. 

CLASS NOTES 

Amy Key (BSEE ’02) is a 

system engineer for TvA 

Transmission Operations and 

Maintenance in Murfreesboro, 

Tennessee. She graduated in 

May 2007 from TvA’s Engineer 

Graduate Progression Plan and 

was re-classified as a Senior 

System Engineer. 

Charles Martin (BSET ’04) 

is on the bioresorbable team 

at Smith & Nephew. he is 

part of a six-member team 

working on trauma research 

creating polymer-based trauma 

products like screws and plates 

that are ultimately absorbed by 

the body. 

Jacqui McLaughlin (MS ’02) 

is now in her fourth year as 

associate head coach for the 

women’s swimming and diving 

team and an assistant coach 

for the men’s team at North 

Carolina State university in 

Charlotte, North Carolina. She 

is also the primary coach for 

nine men and six women who 

make up the Wolfpack’s middle 

distance and distance group of 

swimmers. 

Hugo Rojas (MS ’04) has 

joined Askew hargraves 

harcourt & Associates, Inc. as a 

structural designer. 

Heather Sanders (BSCE ’05) 

has joined Askew hargraves 

harcourt & Associates, Inc. as a 

civil CAD technician. 

Matthew Singleton (BSME 

‘07) has been hired by 

Askew hargraves harcourt & 

Associates Inc. as a mechanical 

designer. he will be assisting 

the mechanical, plumbing 

and electrical engineering 

department with design and 

production drawings. 

FALL 2008 27

IN MEMOrIAM 

The herff College of Engineering community extends heartfelt 

sympathy to the family and friends of: 

Michael William Bush, of Memphis, Tennessee, died 

unexpectedly on August 1, 2008. he graduated in 1999 with a B.S. 

in mechanical engineering. 

Henry Murphy “Hank” Davis, of Memphis, Tennessee, died on 

May 1, 2007. he graduated in 1950 with a B.S. in industrial arts. 

Captain Alan Nay Graham, of Woodbridge, virginia, passed 

away on February 18, 2008. he graduated in 1977 with a B.S. in 

engineering technology. he spent the last 13 years of a 30 years 

teaching career teaching Technology Education at Beville Middle 

School in Dale City, retiring in 2007 for medical reasons. 

Clarence T. “Clank” Grosser, of Memphis, Tennessee, passed 

away March 6, 2008, at Methodist Central hospital, Memphis, 

Tennessee. he graduated in 1958 with a B.S. in industrial arts. he 

served in the Army during the Korean War, then returned to the 

Memphis area to coach football and teach at Whitehaven high 

School. Later he was assistant principal at Kingsbury high School 

and lastly he taught at hernando Junior high School. 

Thomas James Langston, of Cordova, Tennessee, died January 8, 

2008. he graduated in 1974 with a B.S. in mechanical engineering. 

TDavid E. Morrison, of Memphis, Tennessee, passed away 

February 17, 2008 at his home. he graduated in1986 with a B.S. 

in engineering technology. he was a retired CPO with the united 

States Navy and later was an instructor at State Tech and also 

retired from FedEx as a senior technical writer. 

Gerald D. Reese, Sr., of Fernandina Beach, Florida, died 

December 29, 2007. he graduated in 1962 with a B.S. in industrial 

arts. 

Charles “Charlie” H. White, of Eads, Tenn., died Sept. 8, 2008. 

he graduated in 1973 with a B.S. in civil engineering. Charlie was 

a tremendous supporter of the university of Memphis and the 

Thomas S. Fry Memorial Fund in particular. he was a founding 

member and president of the Engineering Alumni Board in 1977, 

and he loved Tiger football. Charlie was a member of Fisherville 

First Baptist Church, u.S. Navy vietnam veteran, owner and 

president of White Contracting, Inc., a 32nd Degree Mason, Scottish 

rite and a Shriner. Charlie was both a character and a man of 

character, and he will be deeply missed. 

Sam Zambelis, of Memphis, Tennessee, passed away on August 

26, 2008. he was the owner of the Bon Ton Café in downtown 

Memphis. Sam graduated in 1981 with a B.S. in construction 

technology and in 1985 with an M.S. in engineering technology. 

Gifts to the 


Make a Difference 

Support the 

2008-2009 Annual Fund 

Ensure that the best engineers of tomorrow 

continue to enjoy the same opportunities 

these students have. Please support the 

Herff College of Engineering Annual Fund. 

The Herff College of Engineering attracts talented 

engineering students who will be tomorrow’s leaders. 

Annual donations from alumni and corporate partners 

support our students in many ways. For example, gifts 

to the College last academic year funded: 

• Scholarships of 65 students 

• Travel allowances for students to attend 

scholarly conferences 

• Materials allowances for students to compete in the 

concrete canoe race, robotics competition 

and mini-Baja car competition. 

To make a gift, use the enclosed envelope, 

visit www.memphis.edu/give 

or contact the College’s Development Office at 

901-678-1537. 

28 hErFF hIGhLIGhTS

UPCOMING EVENTS 

An Up-close and Personal 

Look at Engineering 

Join the Herff College of Engineering students, faculty, and 

staff for a day of engineering exhibits and competitions for 

middle- and high-school students. This is your opportunity 

to influence the next generation of engineers. 

E-Day Annual Open House 

Friday, November 21, 2008 

9 a.m. until 5 p.m. 

201 Engineering Administration Building 


The University of Memphis 

201 Engineering Administration Building 

Memphis, TN 38152 

901.678.2000 www.memphis.edu 

The University of Memphis, a Tennessee Board of Regents institution, is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action University. 

It is committed to education of a non-racially identifiable student body. 

UOM081-FY0809/8M Mercury Printing Co., Inc., 4650 Shelby Air Dr., Memphis, TN 38118 

Join Us for the 2009 Mixer 

Join senior engineering students, alumni, and faculty for an 

evening of networking, food, and friends at the Third Annual 

Student & Alumni Mixer hosted by the Herff College of 

Engineering Alumni Association. Join us for the 2009 Mixer. 

Third Annual Student & Alumni Mixer 

Thursday, January 29, 2009 

6 p.m. until 8 p.m. 

Alumni Center • 635 Normal Avenue 

Non-Profit Organization 

U.S. Postage 

PAID 

Memphis, TN 

Permit No. 207

The Herff College - University of Memphis

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