The College of Engineering Alumni Board
The College of Engineering was the first college at MSU to establish its own alumni organization. Today, dedicated, talented, and hard-working alumni continue to help guide the College of Engineering into the future by serving on our Alumni Board.
Meet Your Board Members
Executive Committee
- Bob Nuber, Chair
- Renee Collins, Vice Chair
- John Papapolymerou, Interim Dean (Ex-Officio Member)
- Kaleigh Jaeger-Hale, Executive Secretary (Ex-Officio Member)
Bob Nuber
B.S. Computer Science 1978
Bob Nuber retired in the Fall of 2021 after forty-three years in the computer industry, a delightful journey sparked by two first year introductions at MSU.
Bob was hooked with his first programming experience as a first-year, which led to more programming classes and a TA position the following year. That effort enabled him to qualify for his first "real" computing job, happily working odd hours for two years as a systems programmer in the MSU Computer Laboratory. To top that, through another first-year happenstance Bob met Betty Shanahan, a relationship that grew over four years from classmate to learning partner to best friend to life partner.
Married a week after graduation in June 1978, the couple moved to Massachusetts to launch parallel careers in the computer industry. After five years with a minicomputer company Bob joined an enterprise networking startup, broadening his skills as that business matured into a publicly traded company. During that period Bob continued his education with a master's degree in software engineering and an MBA in entrepreneurship. A relocation to Chicago in the mid 1990s allowed Bob to elevate his career as a technology leader in startups, a managed services consultancy, a national newspaper publisher and finally a global e-commerce leader.
Bob's active support of the MSU College of Engineering is driven by three core beliefs: First, 21st Century social and economic progress demand engineering innovations. Second, engineering innovations demand diverse teams, where limitations based on age, gender or color are counter-productive. Third, MSU is uniquely positioned to lead the way on the first two beliefs given its land-grant pedigree, its academic breadth and its role in the state of Michigan. Spartan Engineers Will.
Craig Rogerson
B.S. Chemical Engineering 1979
Craig Rogerson is Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer at Hexion Inc. Craig joined Hexion in July 2017. Prior to joining Hexion, Craig served as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Chemtura Corporation, a position he held from December 2008 until April 21, 2017. Craig also served as President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of Hercules Incorporated from December 2003 until November 2008.
Craig joined Hercules in 1979 and served in a number of management positions before leaving the company to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of Wacker Silicones Corporation in 1997. In May 2000, Craig rejoined Hercules and was named President of its BetzDearborn Division in August 2000. Prior to being named CEO of Hercules in December 2003, Craig held a variety of senior management positions with the company, including president of the FiberVisions and Pinova Divisions, vice president of Global Procurement, and Chief Operating Officer.
Craig serves on the boards of Ashland Global Holdings Inc., PPL Corporation, the American Chemistry Council, the Society of Chemical Industry, and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.
Molly Brennan
Molly Brennan is a Spartan with both academic and athletic legacies. She was the engineering group manager for the Truck and Bus Division of General Motors Corporation, where she won the first World Solar Challenge, setting four solar and electric land speed records in the Guinness Book of World Records. Beyond her illustrious career in engineering, however, she also made significant achievements as a track athlete, scholar and philanthropist.
A Farmington Hills, MI resident, Brennan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science (and a double major in Humanities) from the Michigan State University College of Engineering and Honors College in 1982. During her time at MSU, she was a two-time All-American in Women’s Track & Field, Captain of MSU’s first Big 10 women’s outdoor championship team, a member of the MSU World Record Sprint Medley Relay team, and was awarded MSU Sportswoman of the Year in 1982. Academically, Brennan was one of the top two students in her class and won a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University in England, where she earned an MPhil in philosophy, politics and economics.
After completing her studies, Brennan joined General Motors, where her dedication to innovation and interest in sustainability led her to play a pivotal role in GM's victory in the first World Solar Challenge as both engineer and driver on the GM Sunraycer solar car team. Brennan also became Tau Beta Pi’s first National Laureate recipient and has served in many professional and community organizations.
Aaron L. Copeland
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.
Prior to his current role, Copeland was vice president of engineering for the Airborne Multifunction Sensors division and site engineering leader for Baltimore, MD for the Mission Systems sector with 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. DoD and defense customers worldwide.
Prior to that, Copeland 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.
Copeland has more than 30 years of experience within the aerospace and defense industry, working a broad range of programs and functions encompassing manufacturing, engineering, program management and business development on C4I systems, space systems, aircraft systems and electronics.
Prior to joining Northrop Grumman in 2005, Copeland held various engineering, manufacturing, program management and functional leadership positions at The Boeing Company on a variety of space satellite programs - including NASA’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System, DirecTV, XM Satellite Radio; and at United Technologies on advanced helicopter programs – including the U. S. Army’s Comanche helicopter development program.
Copeland earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University, and a Master of Business Administration degree in Entrepreneurship and Finance from the University of Southern California. 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.
Dr. Lynn Frostman
Dr. Lynn Frostman is Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility at Syzygy Plasmonics, where she is developing and implementing Syzygy’s strategy on safety, sustainability, diversity equity and inclusion, organizational development, community engagement, and corporate governance. She previously served as Syzygy’s Vice President of Engineering, leading the team developing novel photocatalytic reactors that will electrify the manufacturing of chemicals, fuels, and fertilizers, thereby reducing both cost and emissions. She started her career at Baker Hughes and progressed through a variety of functional roles including leading technology teams on both the global & regional levels, running the P&L for several regional product lines, and developing strategies across multiple business units. She later transitioned to Newpark Fluids Systems, where she served as Senior Vice President – Research & Development, and was accountable for product commercialization, applied engineering, and digital initiatives.
Lynn received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from MSU in 1990 as a member of The Honors College. While at MSU, she spent 3 years as a Professorial Assistant doing undergraduate research with Prof. Dennis Miller. She was also active in the Tower Guard, Tau Beta Pi, and Mortar Board Honor Societies, as well as the MSU chapter of AIChe.
Lynn went on to complete her Ph.D. degree in Chemical Engineering at the University of Minnesota as a National Science Foundation Fellow. Following graduation, she completed a Post Doc at Rice University in the Environmental Science and Engineering department.
Lynn is an advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion and for developing women in STEM roles. She regularly volunteers her time as a mentor and speaker for community non-profits, professional organizations, and educational institutions.
Mark Kaczynski
Mark Kaczynski is regional senior vice president, Finance & Information Technology, for Nissan Americas. He was appointed to this position in April 2021. In this role, Kaczynski is responsible for leading strategy to drive financial optimization efforts, cutting-edge technology & systems and regional security activities in the Americas.
Previously, Kaczynski was vice president, Finance & Administration, Africa, Middle East, India & Oceania (AMIO). As the head of finance and administration, he led the finance and accounting teams as well as legal, internal audit, corporate services and customs and tax.
He joined Nissan in 2007 and served as president, Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp., responsible for financial services throughout the Americas region from 2012 to 2017. He also served as chief financial officer, INFINITI Motor Co., from 2017 to July 2020.
Kaczynski has a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University and a master's in business administration from The University of Chicago – Booth School of Business.
Kerri Miller
After starting as a civil engineer, Kerri has been instrumental to the growth and development of Fishbeck as one of ENR’s Top 400 Engineering and Design Firms in the nation. Kerri’s experience includes building site designs, utility master planning, stormwater planning, road and parking lot design, utility design, and sustainability planning. She has managed large site projects, major developments, and the infrastructure needs for numerous types of clients.
Becoming a Principal in 2014, Kerri leads the firm’s Business Development Committee, strategic direction, and market growth. In 2016, Kerri was named one of the 50 Most Influential Women in Grand Rapids by GRBJ and a Tribute Award winner by the YWCA West Central Michigan.
Karun D. Naga
Karun D. Naga is a Partner at The Foundry, a leading medical technology incubator, and CEO of Apreo Health, a Foundry portfolio company. As part of The Foundry's leadership, Karun has led the formation and incubation of several new ventures, including Foundry Therapeutics, a platform for localized, sustained drug delivery, Allay Therapeutics, a clinical stage company focused on durable, opioid-free pain control following major surgery, and Apreo Health, a VC-backed startup that is developing innovative, globally applicable treatments for pulmonary disease.
Prior to joining The Foundry, Karun was part of the executive team at Altura Medical, a venture funded startup that developed a breakthrough endograft for treating abdominal aortic aneurysm and was acquired by Lombard Medical. Prior to joining Altura Medical, Karun was Director of Corporate Development at Medtronic, where he had roles in business development, strategic partnering and corporate investment across Medtronic's cardiovascular portfolio. Karun joined Medtronic via its acquisition of Ardian, a Foundry portfolio company that pioneered a catheter-based treatment for hypertension, where he served on its executive management team. In a previous stint with The Foundry, Karun served on the founding team of Miramar Labs, a dermatology and aesthetics medicine company. Karun also previously worked at Mentor Corporation, as its first in-house intellectual property counsel, and Jones Day, a leading international law firm. Karun serves on the boards of directors of Foundry Therapeutics, Allay Therapeutics (observer), Apreo Health and Mavericks Endo and is also a patent attorney registered with the US Patent Office.
Karun holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Michigan State University, a JD from the University of Michigan Law School and an MBA from The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania.
Jack Wilkens
Jack Wilkens is CEO of Woundchek Laboratories (WCL) a company that specializes in developing and commercializing diagnostics for the wound care field of medicine. WCL is the first and only company to launch Point-of-Care diagnostics to assist caregivers in identifying why a wound may not heal. WCL was formerly part of Systagenix where Jack was VP of Diagnostics. Jack led the carve out of Systagenix’ s diagnostic business to become an independent company in 2014 by arranging private capital funding.
Prior to Systagenix, in Miami, Florida Jack was CEO of RevDia a privately funded company which developed and commercialized a point-of-care periodontal disease diagnostic.
From 2000 to 2005 he worked for Inverness Medical, (Alere), as Chief Operating Officer he was responsible for operations in the UK, Ireland, Denmark, China and the USA. He was Managing Director of Unipath in Bedford, UK where he led the project to develop the world’s first digital pregnancy test and was responsible for its manufacture at a new plant in Shanghai, China.
Jack received his B.S. Chemical Engineering at Michigan State University in 1969 and MBA from Western New England College in 1972.
Jason Wojack
Jason Wojack is the founder and managing director of Foundationally, a firm providing management, financial, and technical consulting. Concurrently Jason is also an Executive Advisor for Luminar Technologies.
Foundationally works with startups and midsized companies on business and technical strategy, product development, and financial positioning. Prior to Foundationally, Jason was the SVP of Product Development at Luminar Technologies.
At Luminar Technologies, Jason oversaw the creation and development of Luminar's products and product development organization from initial product concept through mass production. Jason drove the growth and development of Luminar Technologies from a concept, through its IPO, and into a Tier 1 automotive safety leader. He helped spearhead Luminar's introduction into vehicles from Volvo, SAIC, and Mercedes, as well as dozens of autonomous development platforms, including Toyota, Nissan, and Daimler Trucks.
Before driving automotive safety and autonomy forward, Jason was the VP of Product Architecture at Motorola – a Lenovo Company, Motorola – a Google Company, and Motorola Mobility. In this role, Jason developed the product architectures of mobile devices, including mobile phones, wearables, and advanced concepts across the company's portfolio. This included products such as the Droid Razr, which set the gold standard for size and battery life in a smartphone, the first shatterproof phone, and the first round smartwatch. During his tenure, Jason developed over 40 high-volume mobile devices and focused on innovations to push the industry forward.
While at Motorola, Jason became a statistical Black Belt, earned a certificate in Product Design and Development from Northwestern, and created over 20 patents.
Jason earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University in 1996 and also served on the Mechanical Engineering Board from 2008 to 2015.
Rachel Hutter
B.S. Electrical Engineering 1993
Rachel is a licensed Professional Engineer and Certified Safety Professional. Her early career included a wide diversity of roles such as: medical research with the Veteran’s Administration, Facilities and Construction Management at General Motors, Controls Engineering at General Mills and Technical Support for Allen-Bradley.
Rachel joined Walt Disney World in 1997. She has worked in many different roles including: being part of the team that built and then opened Disney’s Animal Kingdom; leading Technical Services for Walt Disney World; starting Attractions Engineering Services and Quality Assurance, leading a team focused on Maintenance Consistency for Disney theme parks worldwide, leading Engineering Services for Disney’s Animal Kingdom Region, leading the teams responsible for ensuring the safety, operability and maintainability of new Disney resorts around the world and leading safety and health efforts at Disney Parks and Resorts worldwide.
Rachel is currently the Senior Vice President of International Facilities and Operations Services, Worldwide Safety and Health, and Engineering. In addition to her global Safety and Health responsibilities, Rachel leads the facilities, project management, horticulture and distribution teams at Disneyland Resort Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Shanghai Disneyland. She also leads the engineering teams at those resorts as well as Walt Disney World and Disneyland. Rachel and her teams are responsible for the safety and health of the hundreds of thousands of Cast Members around the world and the millions of Guests who visit Disney each year. They are also responsible for the ride, attraction and show technology and structural, mechanical and architectural sustainment of the amazing Disney Parks and Resorts throughout the world.
Rachel holds US and European patents for a ride safety system she created in 2003.
Alexa Jones
B.S. Biosystems Engineering 2014
Alexa Jones is the Founder and CEO of TheraB Medical, a healthcare startup commercializing pediatric products. She is a graduate of the Honors College at Michigan State University with a degree in Biosystems Engineering. During her senior year at MSU, she and 2 other students invented “Snuglit”, a wearable treatment for infant jaundice that keeps baby in the arms of their mother. In 2016, Alexa became the full-time CEO of TheraB, focusing on finding venture capital backing, managing development and manufacturing, and regulatory oversight for SnugLit.
Alexa previously worked as an Analyst at Goldman Sachs in the Foreign Exchange and the Equities Short Sale businesses. She also spent time in R&D at DePuy Synthes in the Knee Replacement group, as well as orthopedic research experience at the University of Wisconsin's Biomechanics Lab. At Michigan State, Alexa was an active member of the Society of Women Engineers, acting as an Executive Board member for 4 years. She was also heavily involved within the College of Engineering in both recruiting and career services. Now, Alexa stays active in the community as a member of the Junior League of Lansing, and as an Alumni Board member for CORE, the residential program in Engineering at MSU. In her free time, she loves to travel and spend time with family and her beloved black lab, Harvey.
Tony Messina
Susan Evans
Renee Collins
B.S. Applied Engineering Sciences 1981
Renee Collins is retired Vice President Owner Sales for Johnson Controls. Johnson Controls is a global leader in delivering outcomes that make buildings smarter through systems, digital solutions and services. Smart buildings are safer, more comfortable, more efficient and more sustainable.
In her most recent role, Renee led the strategic direction and performance of North America service business, designed and facilitated sales management coaching practices and sales training to improve productivity, and drove complex transformation initiatives.
Renee began her 39-year career with JCI after graduating from MSU. After her initial role as a sales engineer, she progressed in various sales and general management roles. Most of her career was dedicated to leading business segments in safety, customer excellence, employee engagement and profitability and growth. These roles included Michigan Area General Manager and Central Region Vice President and General manager.
Renee is married and has four sons who all graduated from MSU. Two sons graduated from the College of Engineering (Mechanical Engineering and Applied Engineering Science) and two from the College of Social Science.
Deborah Kullman
B.S. Material Science and Engineering 1993, MBA Integrative Management 1997
Keith Sultana
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1992
Keith Sultana was appointed senior vice president of global operations and integrated supply chain and member of Ingersoll Rand’s enterprise leadership team in October 2015. Ingersoll Rand’s family of brands includes Club Car®, Ingersoll Rand®, Thermo King® and Trane®.
The global integrated supply chain (GISC) team under Keith’s leadership has responsibility for Operational Excellence; Global Sales, Inventory and Operations Planning (SIOP) and Materials Management; Global Procurement; Advanced Manufacturing Engineering (AME) & Quality; and Environmental, Health and Safety.
Keith began his Ingersoll Rand career in November 2008 as vice president, GISC for Industrial Technologies. His career progressed to include vice president, GISC for Climate Solutions, vice president, GISC for Trane North America and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), and vice president, Global Procurement.
Prior to Ingersoll Rand, Keith was with General Electric for 17 years where he held various operations and distribution leadership roles.
Elizabeth Unger
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1961
M.S. Mathematics 1963
Ph.D. Computer Science 1978, The University of Kansas
Charles Macon
B.S., M.S., Ph.D. Electrical Engineering 1993, 1998, 2001
Principle engineer with 27+ years of diverse engineering experience across industry, government and academia. Overseeing Air Force Research Laboratory portfolio and development technologies for improving U.S. warfighter survivability in current and future threat environments.
