Former Alumni Board Members
Dave Foulke
B.S. Applied Engineeering Sciences, 1988
Dave Foulke is the HES and Training Manager of Marketing & Transportation Engineering at Marathon Petroleum Company.
Dave graduated from Michigan State University in 1988 with a BS in Applied Engineering Science and accepted a position with Marathon Petroleum at the company’s Findlay, Ohio headquarters. Dave has served in a number of roles during his 26 years with the company, including assignments in environmental remediation, project financial analysis, project management, environmental permitting, facility management, and operations management. Dave earned an MBA from Bowling Green State University in 1995. In his current role, Dave manages the health, environmental & safety and technical training functions for Marathon’s transportation engineering group. His organization is responsible for personal and process safety associated with construction projects, and the technical, professional and safety leadership development for engineering department staff.
Dave and his wife Wendy have four children ranging in age from 7 to 21.
Louise Hemond-Wilson
B.S. Computer Science 1986
Louise Hemond-Wilson is an IBM Distinguished Engineer and the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for IBM Systems Group Lab Services, a global relationship-based services organization that helps accelerate client adoption of new technology. She has developed many consulting methodologies, including one for which she has filed a patent. In addition to her role as IBM Distinguished Engineer and CTO, Louise also serves as the Senior Location Executive for IBM in Mid-Michigan.
Louise has over 30 years of IT experience with applied skills in executive and IT consulting, competitive analysis, product marketing, product management, technical support, sales management and product development. Her executive consulting experience includes advising clients in numerous industries worldwide and is built on a foundation of experience in the banking and higher education industries prior to joining IBM. She holds a B.S. in Computer Science from Michigan State University (1986) and a Masters in Theology from Loyola University (2008).
Louise has been a guest lecturer for MSU first-year computer science courses for over a decade. She regularly serves as a judge for MSU’s College of Engineering Design Day and as adjudicator for graduate research poster competitions. She is a member of the computer science department’s Strategic Partner Council and regularly speaks to campus organizations such as the Society of Women Engineers and Women in Computing. She helped create the Michigan Celebration of Women in Computing conference and continues her involvement with this group.
Following Louise’s 2013 IT Strategy and Planning work with the government of Rwanda, Louise recruited MSU personnel to help her create and run a technology camp for Rwandan teachers and girls in 2014 and 2015. The camp became a collaborative effort across many organizations including IBM, MSU, the Peace Corps and the Rwanda government. Efforts are underway to expand and perpetuate the camp. Louise's extensive interaction with MSU's Computer Science and Engineering department, including the collaborative work in Rwanda, led to her being named that departments' 2015 Distinguished Alumni award recipient.
Based upon her work with the Peace Corps and girls in Rwanda, Louise was appointed to lead the first collaborative project in a new innovative public-private partnership between IBM and the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps and IBM Corporate Service Corps launched the public-private partnership to allow highly skilled corporate professionals to serve overseas in short-term, high-impact assignments through the Peace Corps Response program. Louise will lead a team of IBM Corporate Services Corps and Peace Corps volunteers in the first collaborative project in Ghana to support the Let Girls Learn initiative, launched by President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama earlier in 2015.
John Kent
B.S. Chemical Engineering 1980
John P. Kent, ChE 1980, has spent his career managing and leading teams in the design, development and manufacture of Semiconductors. He worked at IBM for 24 years in several locations (US and Europe) and subsequently held executive positions at AMI Semiconductor/ONSEMI; Rambus and KLA-Tencor. John received his original degree in Chemical Engineering from MSU and he subsequently studied Electrical Engineering at the University of Vermont. John received a Certificate in Management and Executive Leadership from the MIT Sloan School in 2012. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE, AiChe and is an associate member of the American Chemical Society. John has extensively traveled and worked in Europe, Asia and India over the years.
John founded the management consulting firm Garnet Peak Associates, LLC in 2015 and has opened headquarters in Bozeman, Montana near the campus of the “other” MSU – Montana State University. John is currently on the Foundation Board of Directors of Idahp State University and is Secretary of the ISU Intellectual Property Foundation. John’s company may be viewed at www.garnetpeakassociates.com
John is married to Susan Kent and has two grown daughters.
Joe Sopko
B.S., M.S., Ph.D.
Civil Engineering
1980, 1983, 1990
Dr. Sopko is the Director of Groundfreezing for Moretrench American Corporation and has over 35 years experience in geotechnical engineering, 30 that have been devoted almost entirely to ground freezing and groundwater control.
He received his B.S, M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. His doctoral research was based on developing new methods for the design of frozen earth structures.
He has been responsible for the design, construction and operation for ground freezing projects world wide for both the civil construction and mining industry.
He is a retired Lt. Col. from the U.S. Air Force where he served as a civil engineering officer in the Air National Guard and was activated for both Operation Desert Shield and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.
Dr. Sopko is member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Society of Mining Engineers, Chairman of ASTM Subcommittee D18.19 Testing of Frozen Soils and Rock and the Moles.
Jim Susan
B.S. Civil Engineering 1975, MS Sanitary Engineering 1977
Jim Susan is the President of Fishbeck, Thompson, Carr & Huber, Inc., a consulting engineering, architectural, and environmental firm. Jim has been with the firm for 24 years. Services include civil, municipal, and transportation engineering; water and wastewater treatment engineering; architectural design services; mechanical, electrical, and structural engineering; hazardous waste investigations and remediation, hydrogeological services, air permitting, and regulatory services; and construction management. Jim’s professional experience includes water treatment and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, and hazardous waste investigations/remediation. Jim has served on the MSU Department of Civil and Environmental Professional Advisory Board and was on the Board of Directors for the American Council of Engineering Companies of Michigan.
Jim is married to Lawren and resides in Grand Rapids. They have 2 grown daughters.
Cindy Westerhof
B.S. Civil Engineering 1979
Cindy Westerhof is a 36 year veteran of Consumers Energy. She joined the company’s energy management department in Kalamazoo, calling on large commercial and industrial customers after graduating from Michigan State University with a B.S. in civil engineering. Later she became the local economic development coordinator and department superintendent, while completing her MBA from Western Michigan University.
Cindy moved into a new corporate department called corporate performance analysis and worked on cost saving projects for senior management before joining the human resources department and becoming the company’s staffing director in 1990. She has held a variety of roles in human resources ranging from Director of Human Resources at CMS Enterprises to Executive Director of Human Resources for CMS Energy. She is now the Director of People Services & Talent Acquisition.
Cindy is a member of the Society of Women Engineers, served on the Corporate Advisory Board for Institutional Diversity at Michigan Technological University, sits on the Advisory Board of the CoRe Engineering Experience at Michigan State University and on the external advisory board at the University of Michigan’s Center for Engineering Diversity Outreach.
Beth Burns
B.S. Computer Science 1986
Beth A. Burns was born and raised in Detroit, MI. Beth’s career began in Engineering and then shifted to Sales. While in Sales, Beth obtained an MBA from the University of Chicago – Booth School of Business, with concentrations in Finance and Marketing. After obtaining her MBA, Beth’s career transitioned to the capital markets. She has held roles in mergers and acquisitions, investor relations, portfolio management and investment management. Beth is currently an Associate Partner with Aon, Corporation serving as Consultant on OCIO (Outsourced CIO) mandates. In 2012, Beth launched a business the (er) factor to fulfilling her personal passion of helping others. The mission of the (er) factor is to engage with women as a speaker and coach to reveal practical behaviors that can be incorporate into daily life to be happi(er) and more financially empow(er)ed. In 2017 Beth became an author with the release of her first book Inner Strength, Outer Success-Practical Strategies to being happi(er), healthi(er), strong(er) and wis(er). In 2018, Beth released her second book Inner Strength, Outer Success-A savvy gal’s guide to financial empow(er)ment. In this book, Beth highlights her financial successes and pitfalls to share with women strategies to be more financially empow(er)ed. Beth resides in Chicago, IL.Ivan J. LaHaie
B.S. Electrical Engineering 1976
Ivan J. LaHaie received his BS degree in electrical engineering from Michigan State University in 1976, and his MS and Ph. D. degrees, also in electrical engineering, from the University of Michigan in 1977 and 1981, respectively. He joined the Environmental Research Institute of Michigan (ERIM) in 1980 and worked there for 30 years during its various incarnations as ERIM International, Veridian Systems, and General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. He joined Integrity Applications Incorporated (IAI) in 2010, where he is currently a Principal Scientist in the Sensors and Analysis Sector. Dr. LaHaie’s interests lie in the application of electromagnetics, inverse scattering, and signal processing techniques to problems in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems and phenomenology, unconventional RF and optical imaging, and radar cross-section (RCS) modeling, analysis, and measurements. He is a nationally-recognized authority in the development of techniques for RCS measurement error mitigation, near field-to-far field RCS transformations, LO signature diagnostics, and RCS uncertainty analysis, and has participated in several government advisory and technical evaluation panels.
Dr. LaHaie is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Antenna Measurement Techniques Association (AMTA) and a member of the Optical Society of America (OSA). In 1991, he received the IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society Radar Systems Panel Award for his contributions to synthetic aperture systems and electromagnetic modeling. The award is given annually to the nation’s leading radar engineer under 40 years of age. He received the AMTA Distinguished Achievement award in 2004 for his pioneering work in the development of automated radar signature imaging technology, radar cross-section (RCS) measurement technology and standards, the design and evaluation of electromagnetic interference and error source mitigation techniques, and for his contributions to the field of radar signature target support interaction modeling.
Contact Info:
Integrity Applications Inc. (IAI)
900 Victors Way Suite 220
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Email: ijlahaie@ieee.org
Eva Reiter
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 2009,
M.S. Management, Strategy, and Leadership 2016
Martin Toomajian
Chemical Engineering 1991
Monte Falcoff
Engineering Arts 1986
Mr. Falcoff's is a principal and registered patent attorney at the law firm of Harness Dickey in Troy, Michigan. Mr. Falcoff’s primary areas of practice include intellectual property portfolio management, client counseling and opinion preparation, preparation and prosecution of patent applications, trademark prosecution, intellectual property litigation, and licensing. He is also an adjunct professor of various IP law classes at the Michigan State University College of Law.
Prior to joining Harness Dickey, Mr. Falcoff was a manager of marketing program development with United Technologies Automotive, where he was responsible for developing, selling, and licensing new technology. As part of this job, he was the patent and trademark coordinator for the business unit. Furthermore, he worked as a systems engineer at United Technologies Automotive for the modular headliner programs from which he had ten U.S. Patents issued. Mr. Falcoff also worked at Modern Engineering Service Co. as a senior project engineer, prior to employment at United Technologies Automotive.
Mr. Falcoff graduated from MSU with an Applied Engineering Sciences (fka Engineering Arts) degree in 1986. Additionally, he was in the Spartan Marching Band for five years and earned his varsity letter on the Fencing team, as a student. Mr. Falcoff has continuously had MSU season football tickets since he graduated and proudly attended the Rose Bowl in 2014.
Steven Kiefer
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1986
Steve Kiefer is senior vice president, GM Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, a position he has held since November 2014. Kiefer is a member of the GM Executive Leadership Team.
Kiefer is responsible for the strategic direction of GM’s worldwide purchasing, supply chain and logistics operations. Drawing on extensive technical expertise and first-hand experience as a supplier, he is focused on collaborating with suppliers to deliver exceptional vehicle quality, innovation and value to GM customers.
Kiefer returned to GM in September 2013 as Vice President, Global Powertrain, after more than a decade of senior leadership roles with the automotive supplier Delphi.
He began his career in 1983 as a college cooperative student with GM North American Car Group. He has held various leadership roles within GM and Delphi throughout his career, including Senior Vice President of Delphi and president of Delphi Powertrain Systems.
Robert Thomas
B.S. Civil Engineering 1959
Mr. Thomas has over fifty years of extensive domestic and international experience in the areas of water resources, water pollution control, resource recovery and environmental engineering, with emphasis in areas of water treatment, water pollution and industrial wastewater control and treatment.
Since 1972, as President of Innovative Consultants Incorporated, Mr. Thomas has been involved in significant industrial water treatment and water pollution control investigations and projects for many of the nation's largest corporations and industries. Innovative Consultants Incorporated works exclusively for the private sector of the economy. Work in this area includes monitoring and evaluation of discharges to receiving waters, local POTWs and sanitary facilities; industrial wastewater investigations and source control evaluations; permitting of new and existing process discharges; upstream waste characterization and minimization of wastewater discharges; wastewater neutralization, pH control and pretreatment of discharges to the POTW; investigation for organizations having compliance or regulation difficulties; process development and resource recovery from waste products; and design of wastewater treatment, water reclamation and water reuse facilities. Many of the projects undertaken by Innovative Consultants Incorporated have resulted in an integrated solution with a by-product recovered or developed from the wastewater treatment and water reuse processes. Mr. Thomas has developed proprietary resource recovery, water treatment and wastewater reuse processes for which patents have been granted and/or patents are pending.
Mr. Thomas is a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers, American Society of Civil Engineers (Life), American Water Works Association (Life), and Water Environment Federation (Life).
Martha L. Gray
B.S. Computer Science 1978
Director, Madrid–MIT M+Visión Consortium J. W. Kieckhefer Professor of Medical and Electrical Engineering, HST, EECS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Martha Gray, PhD, Director of the Madrid-MIT M+Vision Consortium has led a multifaceted career in which she has conducted research to better understand and prevent osteoarthritis, led a preeminent academic unit, and served the profession through work with organizations and institutions. Her research has centered over the past 15 years on ways to nondestructively visualize cartilage macromolecules in vivo and in vitro. Many in industry and academia are now using the MR method developed by her group, known as dGEMRIC.
Dr. Gray is the J.W. Kieckhefer Professor and former director of the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST). During and since her 13 year tenure as head of HST, she shepherded its vigorous growth so that now it boasts a community of over 400 students, 65 faculty and nearly 200 affiliated faculty who create a multi- disciplinary and multi-professional environment in classrooms, hospitals and laboratories and seek to advance human health. Most recently her efforts have focused on advising other institutions and governments as they pursue similar efforts.
Dr. Gray was the first woman to lead a science or engineering department at MIT. She is an elected fellow of the AAAS, the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers (AIMBE). Sheis associate editor of the Annual Reviews of Biomedical Engineering.
Her training includes a B.S. in computer sciences from Michigan State University, an MS in electrical engineering from MIT and a PhD in medical engineering from HST, and completed her postdoctoral work at Tufts University and the State University of New York Stony Brook.
Donnie Haye
Applied Engineering Sciences 1981
Donnie Haye is the Vice President, Client and Channel Enablement, Integrated Supply Chain for IBM. She held many leadership positions in finance, operations, and marketing in multiple IBM businesses, throughout the US, Europe and Asia. She has received numerous IBM awards and has a patent pending.
Donnie also received an MBA in 1983 from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University, with concentrations in policy, finance and marketing. She was an FC Austin Scholar while at Northwestern.
Steven R. Klemm
Chemical Engineering 1979
Technical executive with 30 years of experience developing and commercializing innovative controlled release, combination product and process technologies. Managed the successful development and start up of more than 1,000 new products in 7 countries using innovative new technology options and developing strong management teams. With 7 patents issued and 9 pending, these technologies have provided sustainable competitive advantages and created successful new business opportunities in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and consumer product areas. These programs involved creating low capital virtual organizations for start up firms as well as complex development and supply agreements with Fortune 500 companies.
Roy Link
Mechanical Engineering 1967
Chairman and CEO of Link Engineering Company and Link Testing Laboratories Designer and manufacturer of test systems to simulate actual in-service performance of vehicle components in the laboratory including Brakes, Transmissions, Wheels, Tires, Clutches, Axles, Bearings, etc.
Headquartered in Plymouth, Michigan, with offices located throughout the U.S. including Detroit, Dearborn, Plymouth, Indian River, Ohio, Arizona, and California. International offices located in Germany, France, China, Korea, Japan, India and Brazil to support our international equipment sales and support and execution of both Vehicle and Laboratory testing services.
Link Test Systems are utilized in a wide array of industries including automotive, aerospace, railway, electric motor, and others. Link systems are a recognized worldwide standard for a variety of international test procedures as well as reproducing actual in-service conditions. Link is continually involved with the latest technologies to more closely replicate in-service conditions and monitor test results.
Link systems and testing services are utilized by the principal OEM vehicle manufacturers throughout the world and by their supply base.
Patrick Miller
B.S. Math 1957, MS 1960 and PhD Mechanics 1966
Dr. Patrick M. Miller, President
MGA Research Corporation
Education: B.S. (’57), MS (’60) and PhD (’66) all from Michigan State University
After receiving the PhD, Patrick worked at Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory (now Calspan Corporation) in Buffalo, New York. There he was responsible for basic research related to crashworthiness of automotive structures. Much of this work was widely recognized as a result of an article on Automobile Structural Crashworthiness that he published in the February 1973 issue of the Scientific American. Today, structural crashworthiness design is fundamental to the development of all motor vehicles.
In 1977, he, with two other engineers, founded MGA Research Corporation. From an initial capital investment of $1000, this company has grown to be the premier North American automotive safety testing organization. Testing facilities are located in seven states and Canada. Although well past normal retirement age, he continues to lead the company. His greatest satisfaction, as a result of establishing the company, is the opportunity to work with young people as they begin their pursuit of a successful career.
Having received three degrees and the Distinguished Alumni Award from MSU, he will always believe the best thing that happened to him there was meeting and falling in love with his wife, Dee. These two Spartans have a family of 4 children, 9 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren. For almost 60 years, they have always supported each other in their pursuit of successful, professional careers.
Asif Naseem
M.S. and Ph.D. Electrical Engineering 1980, 1984
Dr. Asif Naseem currently serves as the Executive Operating Partner at Mason Wells, a Private Equity firm. Dr. Naseem most recently served as Vice President, Communications Global Business Unit at Oracle. Prior to that, he was President and Chief Operating Officer of GoAhead Software, a telecommunications software platform company that was recently acquired by Oracle Corporation. Dr. Naseem’s prior experience includes executive management roles at ATandT, Motorola and Iospan Wireless. In addition to operational experience, Dr. Naseem has successfully led several MandA activities nationally and internationally. Within the Mason Wells portfolio of companies, Dr. Naseem is focusing on optimizing technological resources and aligning human resources to create more customer value, and strengthen the competitive position of each business. Dr. Naseem is an Adjunct Professor of ECE, Michigan State University. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Dedicated Computing, Inc., a Mason Wells portfolio company.
Gary Hockstra
Chemical Engineering 1980
Gary Hockstra is the Vice President of Operations, Supply Chain and Discrete Manufacturing, and is a member of the Operations Leadership Team.
Hockstra joined Dow in 1980 in Midland working in RandD in several different areas. In 1983 he moved to pharmaceuticals manufacturing, and in early 1985 moved to Italy to design, build, and run a new pharmaceutical plant on the Garessio site. He returned to Midland in 1989 working in the Pharmaceutical Tech Center. He moved to Global Process Control in 1991 as the Project Manager of the Dow Mod 5 Operator Work Station Project. In 1993 he moved to Terneuzen, The Netherlands, where he worked in the Styron/Tyril plant consolidating the control rooms with the Operator Station system. In 1994 he moved to LHC 1 as the cracker production leader. In 1996 he moved to Texas as the LHC Technology Leader. In 2000 he assumed the additional responsibility of LHC RandD director. Late 2002 he was named Manufacturing Director of Engineering Plastics, and in 2004 he assumed the role of Manufacturing Director for Engineering Polymers (Engineering Plastics plus Polystyrene). In 2007 he was named Vice President and Site Director - Texas Operations in Freeport. Hockstra was named Vice President of Manufacturing and Engineering for Advanced Materials in September 2011. In October 2012 Hockstra was named Vice President of Operations, Supply Chain, and Discrete Manufacturing.
Gary is married to Ruth. They have two children, Nicholas and Cristina.
Keith Landau
Computer Science 1982
Keith Landau is the Chief Product Officer for GENBAND, and is responsible for the Product vision and execution for the company. The functions include Product Management (business), Technology / RandD (product development) and corporate quality.
Betty Shanahan
B.S. Electrical Engineering 1978
Betty Shanahan was the executive director and CEO for the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) from 2002 through 2013. Prior to joining SWE, Betty spent 24 years in development, engineering management, and marketing for the electronics and software industries.
Betty has earned a B.S. in electrical engineering from Michigan State University, a Master of Software Engineering from the Wang Institute of Graduate Studies, and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
Betty has served in several forums that advance diversity in the STEM pipeline and engineering profession, including the National Academy of Engineering Project on Changing the Conversation, National Academy of Engineering Workshop on Life-Long Learning, and the Clemson University College of Engineering and Science Advisory Board. In 2012 she was elected president of the Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives. Betty was the first woman to receive the Claud R. Erickson Distinguished Alumni Award from MSU’s College of Engineering. In 2012 she was named one of STEMConnector’s “100 Women Leaders in STEM and in 2013 she received an honorary Doctor of Science from the University of Connecticut.
Betty is a fellow life member of SWE, a Certified Association Executive, and a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the Association Forum, and the American Society of Association Executives. She is married to fellow Spartan Engineer Bob Nuber.
Pandeli "Lee" Durbetaki
Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering 1964
Professor Emeritus
The George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia 30332‑0405
Pandeli "Lee" Durbetaki received a B.S.M.E. from Robert College Engineering School, Istanbul, Turkey in 1951, his M.S.(ME) from the University of Rochester in 1954 and his Ph.D.(ME) from Michigan State University in 1964. He served on the faculty of both the University of Rochester (1954 1960) and Michigan State University (1960 1964) before joining the faculty at Georgia Institute of Technology. He is currently Professor Emeritus in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech.
Professor Durbetaki has taught courses both at the graduate and the undergraduate level. These courses ranged from the basic subjects of thermodynamics (classical, statistical and irreversible) and transport phenomena to combustion, internal combustion engines, jet engines, rockets and experimental engineering. Professor Durbetaki has conducted research primarily in the fields of stratified charge operation of spark ignition engines, irreversible thermodynamics, combustion and homogeneous and heterogeneous ignition of fuels. He has consulted on problems related to the flammability of carpets, injury from tar explosion, fire hazard criteria for noise control products in underground coal mines, manufacture of roofing material and design and testing of traction type transmission.
As research and faculty advisor he has directed the research of fifty four M.S. and Ph.D. students. He has authored and co authored more than one-hundred journal publications, conference papers and research reports. Dr. Durbetaki was a member of the team at Georgia Tech that engineered the 1996 Olympic relay torch.
Professor Durbetaki was awarded two National Science Foundation Science Faculty Fellowships and received the Monie A. Ferst Memorial Sigma Xi Research Award as Master's Degree Graduate Student Thesis Advisor. Selected as one of the Top Ten Profs at Georgia Tech. Professor Durbetaki was also awarded the ASEE / ATandT Foundation Award for excellence in instruction of engineering students and the SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award. He was named Engineer of the Year in Education by Metro Atlanta Engineers' Week. Received the Dedicated Service Award from ASME, the Distinguished Alumni Award from MSU Mechanical Engineering and the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Rochester Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He is Life Fellow of ASME (The American Society of Mechanical Engineers).
His affiliation with Michigan State University has been three-fold: (1) Doctoral Student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering (1960-1964), Instructor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering (1960-1964), and (3) Member of the Board of Visitors in Mechanical Engineering.
Fritz Klingler
B.S., MS Civil Engineering 1988
Fritz Klingler graduated from Michigan State University, with B.S. and M.S. Degrees in Civil Engineering, and an emphasis in Geotechnical Engineering. Mr. Klingler has authored numerous technical papers and articles on deep foundations, tunnels, and shafts, and was recently named "Engineer of the Year" by the Michigan Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He is a Past President of the Detroit Metro Chapter of Michigan Society of Professional Engineers (MSPE), past Vice President of MSPE in charge of the Southeastern Region, past President of the Southeastern Michigan Branch of ASCE, past chairman of the Michigan State University College of Civil Engineering Professional Advisory Board, and current President of the Professional Engineers in Private Practice (PEPP) division of MSPE. He is also currently chairman of the fundraising effort to establish a permanent scholarship endowment for the MSU chapter of Chi Epsilon, the Civil Engineering Honor Society. Mr. Klingler lives in Troy, Michigan, and is married with four children in elementary school.
Matthew Ply
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1997
Matthew Ply has worked for General Motors since graduating B.S.ME in 1997. He has held positions in Vehicle Engineering, Noise and Vibration, Product Development and Cost Reduction. After launching the 2010 Cadillac SRX, he started his current assignment as Exterior Lighting Quality Lead. He is also the Product Development Functional Recruiting Leader for Michigan State University. He received his MBA from the University of Michigan in 2001. Mr. Ply is also a registered DFSS Green Belt and has a patent registered with the US Patent office.
Phil Fioravante
Applied Engineering Sciences 1984
Phil Fioravante is currently employed by Walsh College (Troy, MI) as an Associate Professor - Marketing as well as an Operating Executive at Industrial Opportunity Partners, a private equity firm with specialization in industrial manufacturing and distribution companies. In addition, he is the Senior Managing Partner at both Strategy Development Group, LLC (a business advisory firm) and GreenRock Capital (a private equity micro-fund). He is currently an active member in SAE, a Fellow at the Chartered Institute - Marketing (London, UK) and also sits on several privately-owned company Board of Directors. Dr. Fioravante received his Ph.D from Capella University.
Bellandra Foster
B.S. Civil and Environmental Engineering 1983, PhD 1999
Bellandra Foster is president and principal engineer of BBF Engineering Services, PC, specializing in road- and bridge-related construction engineering, traffic and transportation engineering, utility and permit coordination and project management. BBF was profiled in Black Enterprise magazine and in Essence magazine and has been highlighted in Michigan Contractor and Builder magazine, Jet magazine and the Detroit Free Press. Dr. Foster has delivered commencement addresses at the engineering schools of the University of Notre Dame and Wayne State University. She has also authored a book titled, "For Love and Money: Seven Guidelines for Achieving Success in Your Home and Business."
Brian Green
B.S. Mechanical Engineering 1999
Brian R. Green is a 1999 graduate of the Mechanical Engineering program at Michigan State University and holds a Masters and Doctorate degree from The Ohio State University. He has been working at GE Aviation – Aircraft Engines in Cincinnati, Ohio for 15 years in various positions ranging from aeromechanics to mechanical design to filed service and currently is back in aeromechanics working on advanced engine concepts for the next generation of aviation gas turbine engines. Brian is still actively engaged in recruiting efforts with Michigan State University loves the opportunity to return to East Lansing where is engineering career started.
Vandy Johnson
Computer Science 1982
Vandy Johnson was named Vice President, Global IT Infrastructure in January 2007. He has responsibility for leading the development, implementation and support of a global IT infrastructure that will help support and sustain Medtronic's business strategy. Mr. Johnson is also a member of Medtronic's Global Technology Council. Mr. Johnson joined Medtronic from General Mills, Inc. where he held numerous roles of increasing responsibility in IT, most recently as the Senior Director, Information Systems Operations.
Brian Kent
Electrical Engineering 1980
Dr. Brian M. Kent is a Consultant in Aerospace, Science, and Technology, and an adjunct professor of Electrical Engineering with Michigan State University's Department of Electrical Engineering.
Previously he was the Chief Technology Officer of Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, where he served as AFRL’s principal scientific and technical expert for a 6,500 person organization while overseeing a $2.2B+ research portfolio. He is an internationally recognized scientific expert, and provides technical advice to AFRL management and the professional staff. He has significant experience in engineering education, radar, radar signature, and other radio frequency technologies.
Dr. Kent received a NSF Fellowship while simultaneously working at the Air Force Wright Aeronautical Laboratories and the Ohio State University Electroscience Laboratory until completing his doctorate. Dr. Kent made pioneering contributions to the areas of signature measurement technology, and successfully established international standards for performing radar signature testing. He was a member of the Technical Staff of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, where he provided expert public testimony about an orbital debris source that separated from Columbia in orbit, which was later shown to be directly related to accident root cause. He remained assigned to NASA for 4 additional years where he lead an AFRL-NASA team to develop the NASA “Ascent Debris Radar System”, which was used for all remaining 22 Shuttle missions to the ISS and the final Hubble Telescope repair mission. He personally was on the NASA debris radar console for STS Missions 114, 116, 121, and 115.
Dr. Kent is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and an international distinguished lecturer for the Antenna and Propagation Society. He is also a Fellow of the Antenna Measurement Techniques Association and of the Air Force Research Laboratory.
Steven H. Noll
Electrical Engineering 1974
Steven Noll is a partner in the Chicago firm of Schiff Hardin LLP. Noll counsels clients in all areas of intellectual property focusing primarily on patents. He is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the Sixth Circuit, the Seventh Circuit, the Eighth Circuit and the Eleventh Circuit, as well as the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, including the Trial Bar. Noll is also admitted to practice before the U.S. Claims Court and the U.S. International Trade Commission. Noll is also registered to practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Louis H. Johnson, Jr.
Applied Engineering Sciences 1996
Louis Johnson graduated from Michigan State with a degree in Applied Engineering Sciences (then Engineering Arts) in 1996. His term on the Alumni Board is from 2006 to 2009.
Kabe VanderBaan
Computer Science 2000
Kabe VanderBaan graduated from Michigan State University with a B.S. degree in Computer Science in 2000, and began working for Motorola Inc. in February 2001. Kabe is now a distinguished member of the technical staff, managing team performance of technical research into new software technologies and applying them to current and future Motorola Products.
Kabe has also been a client of the Michigan State University Computer Science and Engineering department Capstone course for the past 13 semesters, and a member of the CSE Department Strategic Partners Council and the MATRIX advisory board since 2004. He has also been a client for a software engineering design course (CSE491) with Dr. Betty Cheng, and involved with multiple CSE research proposals with Drs. Betty Cheng and Phil McKinley.
As many of the CSE faculty and staff can attest, Kabe has spent countless hours mentoring students through the Capstone course, tracking down real world use cases for doctoral students, and finding collaborations between Motorola and MSU.
Deepak M. Advani
Computer Science 1986
Deepak Advani is the Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Lenovo, and was Vice President, Marketing and Strategy of IBM's Personal Computing Division. He was responsible for running the High End Intel Server business for IBM and was also a member of the Senior Leadership Team which is comprised of the top 300 worldwide executives within IBM. Previously, Mr. Advani was the Director of the Scalable Parallel (SP) system software development organization.
Joseph M. Colucci
Mechanical Engineering 1958
Joseph Colucci is President of Automotive Fuels Consulting, Inc., providing consulting services related to automotive fuels. He was Executive Director, Materials Research at GM RandD. Prior to that he had been Department Head, Fuels and Lubricants leading GM's efforts to improve commercial fuel and lubricant quality for better vehicle performance and reduced vehicle emissions. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and a recipient of the College of Engineering's Claud R. Erickson Award.
Joseph F. Gentile
Chemical Engineering 1964, 1966
Joseph Gentile retired in 2000 after a 34 year career in information technology with Amoco Corporation in Chicago, and with Diamond Shamrock Corporation in Cleveland and Dallas. He is chair of the Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Department Alumni Advisory Board and a proud three-time "graduate" of Grandparents University. He resides in Plainwell, Michigan.
Brian R. Green
Mechanical Engineering 1999
Brian Green is working on advanced military inlet and exhaust systems. He also serves as the campus recruit leader for MSU at GE, completed the Edison Engineering Development Program in 2002, and worked as an Aeromechanics Engineer before moving to Aircraft Engines. Brian is currently enrolled in the mechanical engineering doctoral program at The Ohio State University.
John F. Nathan
Electrical Engineering 1992
John Nathan is currently employed with Lear Corporation, a fortune 500 company that provides Automotive OEMs world wide with total interior solutions. He has been in the automotive industry for the past 12 years and employed with Lear Corporation for the past 11 years. John has been awarded or is pending award of approximately 22 plus patents for new innovations. In addition, John enjoys supporting the Southfield High School Students each year during the annual First Robotics National Competition.