2023 Alumni Award recipients

Donnie D. Haye has a fond appreciation of what she learned from her Engineering curriculum at Michigan State. The analytical, critical thinking, scientific and teamwork-approach have been instrumental throughout her career.

She is a global business leader with multiple IBM executive positions in operations, finance, service delivery, and transformation. She is a recognized leader in enhancing client services and business operations through the development and implementation of innovative analytics, AI solutions, and automation, with the accompanying process transformation. Highlights of her teams’ work are featured in the books Analytics Across the Enterprise and Supply Chain Metrics That Matter. She and colleagues were awarded a patent for Real-Time Analytics for Streaming Data.

She began her career with IBM as a product manager in Princeton, New Jersey. She held various marketing research positions before becoming a financial analyst. She was the first-ever woman manufacturing and development site controller for IBM. Later, she became the world-wide manufacturing controller for the entire global PC business.

She then was named the CFO for IBM’s $4B+ PC business in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, headquartered in Paris, France. Donnie was the global controller for the Server division followed by the position of vice president of operations for one of the server brands. Other vice president positions followed.

She was recruited by Supply Chain GM to form a new team focused on creating, deploying, and showcasing advanced analytics models through the operations processes of IBM. She later served as the vice president, Delivery - Financial Services, managing a portfolio of 50 financial services clients and a $200M P&L. Her skills led to the role of vice president, Process Transformation and Cognitive Solutions, Global Business Services.

At MSU, she was president of Alpha Phi sorority, named to the MSU Senior Class Council and Mortar Board National Honor Society, and selected for the 1980 Homecoming Court. She was a member of Tau Beta Pi, Phi Kappa Phi, and Golden Key International Honor Society.

She is a member of the Michigan State University Foundation Advisory Board, and she spent 10 years on the College of Engineering Advisory Board, including two as chair.

Geoff G. Gavrila is a retired independent consultant. He is the CEO at Strategic Planning International and has applied his technical and business expertise to the defense support industry. Prior to becoming self-employed, he had senior positions with Jacobs Technology in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, MacAulay-Brown, Inc. and MTC Technologies, Inc., both in Dayton, Ohio.

Mr. Gavrila completed a 20-year U.S. Air Force career with his final assignment to Headquarters Air Combat Command as an action officer for reconnaissance programs requirements. Specifically, he worked on the development and acquisition of manned and unmanned platforms, sensors, data links, and ground processing and exploitation systems.

His previous operational experience had been almost exclusively in the reconnaissance field, a Command Pilot with over 2,500 flight hours as an aircraft commander and instructor pilot in the RF-4C, reconnaissance variant of the venerable F-4 Phantom. A highlight of his career was being a Civil Engineering squadron commander, base commander, and civil authority for the United States Trust Territory of Wake Island.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Arts (now Applied Engineering Sciences) from MSU in 1974. He holds an extra class amateur radio certificate (WH9AAF) and is a life member of the Air Force Association. He also holds memberships in the American Radio Relay League, the American Legion/Legion Riders, and National Rifle Association. In addition, he is currently an active member and certified range safety officer of the Lafayette Gun Club, Yorktown, Virginia, and enjoys pistol and rifle target shooting.

The Applied Engineering Sciences Distinguished Alumni Award was established in 2004. Recipients must have a distinguished career, evidenced by significant accomplishments; possess high standards of integrity that positively reflect on the college and the university; be recognized for leadership in the community; and demonstrate support of the Applied Engineering Sciences program (formerly Engineering Arts), the College of Engineering, and/or MSU. The winner is selected by the Applied Engineering Sciences alumni advisory board.

Keith G. Tinsey facilitates production and customer supply for chipping potatoes for Black Gold Farms locations in Indiana, Michigan, and North Dakota. He has a broad background in applied engineering for farming and agricultural systems. He is recognized for his expertise in harvest, post-harvest handling, storing, shipping, transportation, and utilization of potatoes.

From humble beginnings in 4-H and FFA on the family dairy farm in Huron County, Michigan, to a national agricultural leader and the presidency of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE), Mr. Tinsey has excelled in his profession while developing diverse and cross cutting relationships in order to advance opportunities for students and others in agriculture.

His passion for operational excellence in farming extended and optimized potato storage that led to significant additional business and food waste reduction for Michigan based Walther Farms and North Dakota based Black Gold Farms.

He is driven to build talented teams and give back through ASABE and agricultural and biological engineering departments, where he mentors and recruits students. His skills in innovation led to a collaboration with Michigan Agri-Business Association to develop an AE50 award-winning agricultural GIS mapping tool

His leadership led to an extended potato storage season and brought more potato volume to Michigan for sale in May/June/July and away from southern states, like Florida. He was instrumental in helping Better Made Potato Chips in Detroit be able to source Michigan potatoes year around. He actively supports agricultural policy at state and national levels through the Potato Growers of Michigan and the National Potato Council and through the promotion of Michigan potatoes through the Michigan Potato Industry Commission and the National Potato Council.

Among his many connections to MSU, he is past director of the Michigan Agricultural Electric Council and directed outreach to improve farm-level electrical wiring and safety. He also advanced relationships between utility companies and the agricultural industry. He is a former engineering design instructor, where he taught an engineering design capstone course for graduating Spartan seniors.

Established in 2004, the BAE Distinguished Alumni Award is given to an alumnus or alumna who has distinguished himself/herself as a leader in the biological/agricultural engineering profession through professional contributions, public service, and personal accomplishments. Alumni who graduated at least 10 years ago with an undergraduate and/or graduate degree are considered.

John P. Kent is a technology executive who retired from full time work in 2022 following a 42-year career in the semiconductor industry.

After graduating from MSU, he joined IBM in Essex Junction, Vermont, where he worked with a team to introduce polyimide materials into the semiconductor insulation and etch processes for 16K-64K generation high performance memories. During the following 23 years, he was responsible for the development and engineering of memory and logic components spanning the areas of Deep-Ultraviolet Lithography, Electrical Characterization, Equipment Engineering, and Wafer Fabrication.

He and his family lived and worked in Paris, France, in the 1990s while IBM added a major memory process fab in Corbeil-Essonnes. He continued with Memory and Logic development at IBM until 2004.

Over the next 15+ years, he served in technology development and leadership roles at AMIS, a semiconductor company headquartered in Pocatello, Idaho, acquired by ONSEMI; and moved to the Silicon Valley with RAMBUS in Los Altos, California. He was then recruited to KLA, Milpitas, California, before moving east for technical management and design enablement at GlobalFoundries, Malta, New York, and as an executive vice president in technology at Skywater Technology, Bloomington, Minnesota. Through the years, Mr. Kent led technical and chip design teams in multiple sites in the U.S., Belgium, China, Germany, and India.

He owns and operates Garnet Peak Associates, LLC, a consulting presence focused on engineering risk management. He serves as chair of the Idaho State University Foundation. He is a member of the MSU College of Engineering Alumni Board and the Technical Advisory Board, Silvaco, an engineering design automation software company in Silicon Valley.

Mr. Kent is a senior member of the IEEE and AiChE. He attributes his diverse career to his interdisciplinary education and formative cooperative engineering assignments at MSU.

Initiated in 2000, the Red Cedar Circle Award recognizes MSU Chemical Engineering and Materials Science alumni for their distinguished service to the profession and outstanding commitment to the community. The Red Cedar River, which passes through the center of the MSU campus, is a favorite gathering place. This award is named in recognition of the importance of this landmark to MSU alumni.

Ronald T. Flinn has been a fixture on the MSU campus for more than half a century. He arrived as a student in 1957 and chose never to leave.

As a student, he was selected to work part-time in the physical plant. After earning his bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1960, he became a full-time employee, working in the heating, ventilating and air conditioning area. In 1966 he was asked to head up the Engineering Services Department in the renamed Physical Plant Division. In 1967, he became licensed as a Professional Engineer in Michigan and also earned a degree in business management from the LaSalle Extension University in Chicago.

With hard work and good humor, he was promoted to plant engineer, associate director, interim director of building services, university engineer, assistant vice president, and vice president.
He was one of the driving forces behind the development of MSU’s south campus. Under his watchful eye, the University added the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, the Veterinary Clinic, the Chemistry and Biochemistry buildings, and the T.B. Simon Power Plant. During his tenure, Mr. Flinn was involved in the design and construction of nearly 75 percent of the campus's buildings and infrastructure.

He shared his expertise over the years, serving on countless university committees and initiatives, including the development of the 2020 Master Plan. He has been nationally recognized for his contributions to MSU and his profession. He was awarded the Midwest APPA Award for Excellence in Facilities Management. He also served as president of the APPA/Association of Higher Education Facilities Officers.

In 2013, the MSU Board of Trustees honored his exceptional service as its vice president for strategic infrastructure planning and facilities. He retired in 2015. His lifelong journey is captured in his memoir, "A Rendezvous with MSU" (2016 MSU Press).

Recipients of the CEE Distinguished Alumni Award must be graduates of the department; national leaders in their profession; contributors to the department, the college, or the university in some meaningful way; and community leaders whose actions reflect favorably on MSU. Nominations are made by faculty, alumni, and other supporters of the department. The department’s professional advisory board selects the winner.

Brendan F. Klare is the co-founder, president, and chief scientist of Rank One Computing, a leading provider of facial recognition, computer vision, and machine learning algorithms to the U.S. Government, state and local law enforcement agencies, the financial sector, and other industries. Rank One is employee-owned and located in Denver, Colorado.

He received his Ph.D. in computer science from MSU in 2012, where he published dozens of peer-reviewed articles on the topic of automated face recognition and pattern recognition algorithms with his adviser, University Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Anil K. Jain.

Before founding Rank One, he served as a subject matter expert consultant on the use of automatic face recognition algorithms for the U.S. Department of State, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA).

Prior to his academic studies, Mr. Klare served as an infantryman in the 75th Ranger Regiment, U.S. Army. He received master’s and bachelor’s degrees in computer science from the University of South Florida.

Established in 2004, the CSE Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alumnus or alumna who has distinguished himself/herself as a leader in the computer science and engineering profession through professional contributions, public service, and personal accomplishments. Nominations are made by faculty, alumni, and other supporters of the department. The winner is selected by the department chairperson and advisory committee.

James (Jim) A. Wineman graduated with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from MSU in 1961 and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1966.
Following graduation from MSU, he began his career with General Electric in the Defense Systems Division in Syracuse, New York. Mr. Wineman accepted a position with General Motors in 1962 to relocate back to Michigan and be closer to family.

While at General Motors, he was influential in developing surface hardening of iron using high powered CO2 lasers within the manufacturing environment. The work culminated in Mr. Wineman receiving the Technical Achievement Award from Laser Focus magazine.

As he rose through the management ranks within GM, he continued his lifelong love of learning and teaching as an adjunct faculty member in the engineering department of a local university.
Mr. Wineman retired from GM after 36 years.

Upon retiring, he started a new company which he creatively named Wineman Technology, Inc. or WTI. After focusing on various technologies, he ultimately found a niche in the test machine build and data acquisition systems industry. Some of WTI’s projects included building novel test machine systems in the aerospace, military, and automotive sectors for Caterpillar, Boeing, Bombardier, and Space X, among others.

Following a second successful 29-year career, Mr. Wineman sold WTI in 2020. He can now be found enjoying his time watching MSU athletics, or golfing, sailing, taking long walks on the beach, and enjoying time with his family.

Established in 2004, this award commemorates the outstanding professional contributions of John D. Ryder, former dean of the College of Engineering and professor in the department. Nominations are made by alumni, faculty, and students. The department’s advisory committee selects the award winner in consultation with the chairperson. The award is given on the basis of contributions in furthering the mission of the department.

Aaron L. Copeland is vice president of engineering for Northrop Grumman’s Mission Systems sector. He has executive responsibility in leading the establishment of a scalable, model-based enterprise and partnering with business divisions in delivering engineering excellence.

While he has spent much of his career in the aerospace business, his experience over his 30+ year career has spanned automotive, space and aircraft products in engineering, manufacturing, product test & integration, business development, program / project management, global supply chain, finance, and human resources. He has also been a small business owner and is active in his community.
Prior to his current role, he was vice president of engineering for the Airborne Multifunction Sensors division and site engineering leader for Baltimore, Maryland, for the Mission Systems sector. He had executive responsibility for all aspects of engineering, sciences, analytics, and logistics supporting multiple businesses that provide C4I networked multi-function sensors and integrated mission systems for the U.S. Department of Defense and defense customers worldwide.

Mr. Copeland has served in a variety of leadership roles at Northrop Grumman, including chief technology advocate for Northrop Grumman’s Defense Systems sector, director of programs and engineering for Northrop Grumman Australia, director of advanced programs execution, engineering operations, and systems engineering for the Mission Systems Sector, and director of an operating unit for the E-2 Hawkeye international programs and program manager & business development for Homeland Security at the former Aerospace Systems sector.

He currently serves on the Aerospace Industries Association Technical Operations Council Executive Committee and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Northrop Grumman Foundation. He is a past recipient of the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) for Most Promising Engineer in Industry and the BEYA Modern Day Technology Award for career achievements. He has been an active member of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and is the executive sponsor for the Northrop Grumman African American Task Group.

Established in 2004, the ME Distinguished Alumni Award honors a graduate of MSU’s Department of Mechanical Engineering who has a minimum of 15 years of professional experience in an engineering or engineering-related field; provides leadership in engineering, engineering education, the related sciences, or technical management; contributes to the department, the college, or MSU; and is actively involved in the community. The winner is selected in consultation with the department’s advisory committee and board of visitors.

Jack Vogel is a retired high school physics teacher. He created a classroom culture that valued student interaction and feedback. His instruction focused on diagnosing and correcting student misconceptions.

After becoming concerned about student performance on final exams, he authored his own cumulative homework problem set to prepare his students for college coursework: individualized problems that helped students master important physics concepts over an extended time period.

The problem set positively impacted his classroom. Since students had different numerical values in their assignments, their discussions improved: students stopped asking about the numerical value of the answers and became focused on the concepts used to obtain the answers. Misconceptions became easier to identify and remediate.

“I wanted students to make mistakes and reveal their thinking, so that we could replace their misconceptions with new learning,” he said. “I always tried to get 5,000 pieces of feedback from each of my students over the course of the year - I never did, but the attempts improved student learning.”

Mr. Vogel also owned a company that helped students and school districts analyze mistakes and improve performance through instructional modules using the ACT and SAT examinations.
He graduated from MSU with a teaching degree in 1987 and taught for 31 years. His parents, Paul and Dona were both teachers. His wife Martha and daughters Sarah and Lisa all graduated from MSU. He has four grandchildren: Alexandra, Josie, Bennett, and Sydney.

Established in 2006 at the suggestion of College of Engineering Alumni Association board member Joseph M. Colucci (B.S. ’58 Mechanical Engineering), the Green Apple Teaching Award honors a K-12 teacher who has inspired students to study math, science, and engineering.