Award recipients were:

Faculty Awards:

• James G. Dwyer Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching: Brad Benhart, building construction management. He was also honored as one of six recipients of the 2012 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Awards in Memory of Charles B. Murphy.
  Departmental nominees: Tom Carney (AT), Ray Hassan (CGT), Eric Matson (CIT), Dan Lybrook (TLI)
• Outstanding Discovery Award: Bedrich Benes, computer graphics technology
  Departmental nominees: Dave Stanley (AT), Kirk Alter (BCM), John Springer (CIT), Jeff Evans (ECET), Jenny Daugherty (TLI)
• Outstanding Engagement Award: Denver Lopp, aviation technology
  Departmental nominees: Brad Benhart (BCM), Eric Dietz (CIT), Gene Harding (ECET), Andy Schaffer (TLI)
• Outstanding Learning Award: Donald Petrin, aviation technology
  Departmental nominees: Bryan Hubbard (BCM), Pat Connolly (CGT), Dawn Laux (CIT), John Denton (ECET), Bill Krug (TLI)
• John P. Lisack Award for Early Career Engagement: Haiyan “Henry” Zhang, mechanical engineering technology

Staff Awards:

• Academic Advisor: Rose Delong-Bolyard, lead academic advisor, aviation technology
• Customer Service: Devona Gangwer, administrative assistant for the associate dean for academic affairs and diversity
• Leadership: Vanessa Buntin, manager of special events and alumni relations
• Statewide Excellence: Matthew Ferrell, learning systems coordinator, College of Technology at Indianapolis

Staff service anniversaries:

• 10 years: Beth Helton, administrative assistant for the Office of Advancement; Jill Kelley, secretary, College of Technology at Columbus; Valorie Moorman, student services coordinator, College of Technology at Greensburg; Kathy Reel, secretary, College of Technology at Kokomo
• 15 years: Matthew Ferrell, learning systems coordinator, College of Technology at Indianapolis ; Patti Keen, flight operations dispatcher, Department of Aviation Technology; T.R. O’neal, academic advisor, Department of Computer Graphics Technology; Mike Swain, student services coordinator, College of Technology at Richmond
• 25 years: Fred Campbell, electronics technician, College of Technology at Columbus; Mark Hopkins, director of quality control, Department of Aviation Technology; Matt Johnson, building deputy and AET technician, Department of Aviation Technology

Student Awards:

• Undergraduate: Benjamin Doll, CIT
• Graduate: Christopher Brock, AT

The ceremonies and their student speakers are:

• College of Technology at Richmond and Anderson: Friday, May 4, 6:30 p.m.; Danylle Harman, organizational leadership and supervision, student speaker
• College of Technology at Lafayette, Saturday, May 5, 2:00 p.m.; Michael Smith, organizational leadership and supervision, student speaker
• College of Technology at South Bend, Monday, May 7, 6:00 p.m.; Kevin Miller, engineering technology, student speaker
• College of Technology at Columbus and Greensburg, Tuesday, May 8, 6:00 p.m.; Jacob Rutan, computer and information technology, student speaker
• College of Technology at Kokomo, Wednesday, May 9, 6:00 p.m.; Tyler Imbierowicz, computer and information technology, student speaker
• College of Technology at Vincennes, Thursday, May 10, 11:30 a.m.; Vance Perry, industrial technology, student speaker
• College of Technology at New Albany, Thursday, May 10, 6:00 p.m.; Munkhtsetseg Nandigjav, computer graphics technology, student speaker
• College of Technology at West Lafayette and Indianapolis, Saturday, May 12, 9:30 a.m.; Ellen Zouras, building construction management, student speaker. A posthumous bachelor of science degree will be awarded to Timothy D. Patterson, a former student in the College of Technology.

AE Techron in Elkhart and Syscon International in South Bend, for example, have worked with the Purdue University College of Technology at South Bend this spring to identify projects for electrical engineering technology students to tackle.

Read the full story in the South Bend Tribune.

The event will be held from noon to 4 p.m. at the Purdue Technology Building on the Indiana University – South Bend campus, located at 1733 Northside Blvd. in South Bend. During this time, students will learn more about the facility and the degree programs offered.

Students and families will have the opportunity to tour the facility and talk with faculty members, current students, and staff about the programs offered at the location. Refreshments will be served.

The College of Technology at South Bend offers degree programs in engineering technology, electrical engineering technology, industrial technology, organizational leadership and supervision, and mechanical engineering technology.

For more information about the open house or College of Technology programs in South Bend, contact Lori Butchko or Shanna Ebert at 574-520-4180 or techsouthbend@purdue.edu.

His research and new Man to Machine (M2M) lab in the College of Technology are featured in the Spring 2012 edition of Innovation, the college’s alumni magazine. The issue is scheduled to be mailed in early May.

Other stories you’ll find include:

• A feature story on the college’s multidisciplinary approach to the changing face of the electric utility industry
• An examination of the college’s efforts to provide commercialization guidance and assistance to faculty and students
• Profiles of alumni Josh Hurst, mechanical engineering technology, and Candice Nash, organizational leadership and supervision
• Other issues that affect the education of Technology students

The print edition will be mailed in May to College of Technology alumni and donors. The online edition will appear at www.tech.purdue.edu/innovation in May as well.

Twenty-five area high school students will have the chance to work on both during the Purdue Research Park Entrepreneurship Academy at Purdue University’s College of Technology at South Bend on July 8 to 13.

The five-day residential experience will focus on the high-tech industry. The academy is designed for high school juniors and seniors who are strong in math, science and technology.

Read the full South Bend Tribune article.

Three of Purdue’s electrical engineering technology students were chosen to participate in the summer 2011 NDnano Undergraduate Research Fellowship (NURF) at Notre Dame. During the summer, they worked on research projects that could lead to more energy efficient computers and easier to use lithium ion batteries. After the fellowships were complete, they were asked to stay on to continue their work in the labs.

Dean Schaetzl, a junior from South Bend, has been assisting with the battery project.

“We are trying to build a better battery by using solid polymers as an electrolyte. By using solids, we can eliminate the casing; they shouldn’t be as toxic; they don’t leak, and they are flexible,” Schaetzl said. Current batteries need rigid casings to hold in the liquid and toxic electrolytes.

He is working with Susan Fullerton, research assistant professor in Notre Dame’s Department of Electrical Engineering, who has been impressed with Schaetzl’s enthusiasm and skills.

“Dean has a practical understanding of mechanics, engineering and electrical,” she said. “He works really well with his hands, too. That’s a skill set that is hard to find. The fact that we’ve invited the Purdue students to stay past their fellowships means they’ve made themselves really valuable and valued by the faculty.”

Schaetzl believes it also helps him and his classmates become better prepared for careers in this emerging field, especially as South Bend-area projects, such as Ignition Park, gain traction.

“Nanotechnology is what a lot of things are going toward: biomedical research, chemicals, drug therapy, transistors; everything is getting down to that size,” he said. “I want to work in the automotive industry, and this has helped because of the battery research,” he said. “Electric vehicles is a growth industry. It’s really what I want to do.”

Purdue College of Technology students in South Bend are able to take their first full course in nanotechnology courses this spring. A nanotechnology concentration will be added to Purdue’s engineering technology bachelor’s degree program as well. These enhancements, coupled with the partnership with NDNano, can only strengthen the area’s focus on molding a nanotechnology economy. That economy could include products influenced by research being performed at NDNano by Gyorgy Csaba and assisted by Purdue College of Technology students Ross Harnish, a senior from Elkhart, and Dan Cole, a junior from South Bend.

Harnish’s project findings could help develop computers that run on less power.

“I was helping to develop a simulation tool for nanomagnetic circuits,” he said. “They would be a new way to do logic instead of using transistors in computers. It is a very low-power solution.”

Cole worked on developing an electromagnet for precisely controlling the strength and direction of a magnetic field. The final product will be used to magnetize nanoscale magnetic samples.

Sarah Leach, an associate professor of mechanical engineering technology, has taught at Purdue’s College of Technology in South Bend for 12 years. She holds a master’s degree in materials science and engineering from the University of Notre Dame. She is on track to earn her doctorate in materials engineering from Purdue in 2013. Leach was employed by CTS Corporation in Elkhart for 15 years prior to joining Purdue. She is a registered professional engineer and a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

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On teaching: We need to get students to be self-directed learners. They need to learn how to learn and be problem solvers. I am trying more and more to do problem-based activities. I try to have students think about the learning process, how they can be proactively involved in their own learning. It’s important that we’re not just pass–dumping information into their heads. The advantage of my teaching so many classes is that students see me over and over again. I can make connections between content in various courses.

I will say that everyone who teaches should go back and take a class once in awhile to remember what it’s like to be on the receiving end of the syllabus.

On experiential learning: I am a field tester for a National Science Foundation-sponsored project with SUNY-Buffalo, ASU, Maricopa Community College, and several other partners. They develop activity modules and get people to test them. I get to pick and choose, so I’ve used the nanotechnology modules. In a separate program, we are able to work with Penn State to gain remote access to some of their analytical equipment. My students can ask questions and interact with professors and lab personnel there. On Purdue’s West Lafayette campus, we routinely access Knoy Hall’s solar panel system online. We did a course last year that included a team project between mechanical engineering technology and electrical engineering technology. We had an industry sponsor who had an equipment need, and our students were able to support local industry and learn in the process.

On her pre-teaching career: I think I have a pretty good idea of what is expected of our students once they graduate. I did most of that work with a bachelor’s degree. I was a front line technical problem solver. Because I worked in industry, I can give examples from the real-world on how we use the things we’re learning in class. I was fortunate to work for a small company, so I was able to do a number of roles in the company: product engineer, project engineer, team leader, and design and development. I had interactions with every part of the manufacturing process. It is really different working for Purdue. A company has competitors, so they don’t want t show you things. When you work for Purdue, you can call anybody and arrange a tour of their facility. People are generous with their time; they like to meet and encourage the students.

On the benefits of a field trip: The professors and students in the engineering technology programs at South Bend, Anderson and Richmond met at Red Gold’s Orestes factory for a tour last year. We tried to give students an idea of the various kinds of technology used in that type of operation. Afterward, we had them do process maps. The idea was to give them some sense of how a company prepares for the complexity. How do they get the job done? The coordination of the process is just amazing.  And the tour guides were so excited. It’s a good thing for the students to have a vision of where they’re going; to see people who are working hard but having fun.

Outside of a Purdue:  My husband and I live on a small farm outside of South Bend. I have a horse and enjoy horseback riding.

Responding to needs in the food production industry, Purdue University has partnered with Ivy Tech Community College to create a bachelor’s degree program concentration focused on food and foodstuff supply chain technology.

Funded by the National Science Foundation and led by Chad Laux, assistant professor in the College of Technology’s Department of Technology Leadership & Innovation, the new concentration will be part of the engineering technology degree program offered at the college’s Statewide Technology locations.

“The food and foodstuff industry can be divided into professionals and technical workers, and we can serve them both with this new concentration,” Laux said. “One of the most important things is food traceability and safety. Our students will need to know about quality management for a supply chain.”

Ivy Tech and Purdue are both accepting students in their respective engineering technology programs. Students who complete the Ivy Tech associate’s degree in ET will be able to seamlessly transfer to one of the Purdue Statewide Technology locations to complete their bachelor’s degree. Two new courses, offered through Purdue’s Department of Food Science, will be incorporated into the degree program.

Two other College of Technology faculty are involved with the program. Rick Homkes, associate professor of computer and information technology at the Kokomo location, will work on creating the plan of study for the new program. He also will assist with the creation of the transfer agreement between Ivy Tech and Purdue. Pat Connolly, professor of computer graphics technology, will lead efforts to create a virtual learning community that will connect students of the program and keep them engaged.

Laux said his experience teaching at the Statewide Technology location in Anderson was beneficial as he worked on this grant proposal.

“At Anderson, I learned about the characteristics of our students and how Statewide Technology operates. I appreciate how important the system is,” he said. “We are lucky to have the statewide system as an extension of our engagement and academic efforts. It’s a unique model.”

Read the full Purdue news release about the program.

The event includes discounted admission, an ice cream social, and time to watch an elephant get a bath.

Registration (by August 12) is required for the event. Find full details on the event’s web page.