THE BIG IDEA - The University of Akron

Increasing Diversity in Engineering Academics (IDEAs) Program Newsletter
THE BIG IDEA
Inside this issue:
2009-2010 Graduation
Bulletin
IDEAs Workshop —
Guest Speakers
IDEAs Stars —
Undergraduate Students
IDEAs Starts — Tutors 3
Student Spotlight 4
Contact Information 4
Mr. Glen Stephens, President, and Mr. Marki Johnson, Vice President
of G. Stephens Inc., shared their experiences and insights with the IDEAs
participants on November 4, 2009. Both Mr. Stephens and Mr. Johnson are UA
alumni and have been committed to student success in the greater Akron com-
munity. At the workshop, Mr. Stephens offered three summer internship op-
portunities to Mario Garcia (Sophomore, CE), Anny Gao (Junior, CE) and
Gene Onabiyi (Sophomore, CE). The G. Stephens Scholarship was awarded to
Curtis Minter (Sophomore, CE).
Left to Right: Michael Kayagaba, Andrew Chandler, Terry
Bowe, Pierre Hall and Antonio Samuel.
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1
2
2009 2009-2010 2009 2009 2010 Graduation Bulletin Bulletin
Uchechukwu Anozie Chemical Engineering Graduate School, The University of Akron
IDEAs IDEAs Workshop Workshop Series Series—Guest Series Guest Speakers
Speakers
Mr. Terry Bowe, Human Re-
sources at The Lincoln electric
Company, gave a talk on professional development to all IDEAs program partici-
pants in May, 2010. Mr. Bowe also met a small group of students from the Depart-
ment of Electrical Engineering. He encouraged the students to enhance academic
and professional development in college, develop communication and leadership
skills, and become role models for young African-American students.
Fall 2010
Issue 5
Osama Elbuluk Mechanical Engineering Medical School, University of California LA
Amaris Parker Civil Engineering Chicago
Antonio Samuel Electrical Engineering The Timken Company
Ernest Williams Electrical Engineering Target
Ben McDonald Engineering Lockheed Martin
Hsin-Ju Chen Electrical Engineering Graduate School, University of Pittsburgh
Moussa Sane Biomedical Engineering Gyrus ACMI, Olympus
Left to Right: Marrio Garcia, Marki Johnson, Anny Gao, Glen
Stephens, Curtis Minter and Gene Onabiyi.
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THE BIG IDEA
IDEAs IDEAs Stars Stars—Undergraduate Stars Undergraduate Students
Students
In this issue, we would like to introduce two IDEAs stars, who both major in Biomedical Engineering and enjoy their journey in
pursuing engineering degrees.
Jorge Sylvester gave a presentation at a
conference in summer, 2010.
By Jorge Sylvester. I am a senior student majoring in Biomedical Engineering-Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering
Track with a GPA of 3.94. I also have a minor in Chemistry. I am currently in the medical school application
process. My journey here at The University of Akron has been extremely rewarding because of all of the
opportunities that it provided me.
The most rewarding experiences in my college career have been in research because I gained extremely useful
experience and acquired vast amounts of invaluable knowledge. My first research was under Dr. Weiping
Zheng’s advising, working on a novel anti-cancer drug target in his biochemistry lab. The results of that research
will be published soon.
This past summer I was awarded a Summa Summer Research Fellowship at Summa Health Systems. I conducted
research on a novel method for the prevention of post-surgical adhesions. At the conclusion of the Fellowship I
presented a poster at Akron City Hospital. I continue on this project as my Honors Research Project in addition
to my Biomedical Engineering Senior Design Project. This Fellowship was my most rewarding experience
because of so many wonderful opportunities it provided me besides doing research. I was able to observe multiple
surgeries and I learned how to insert catheters through the jugular vein with the aid of ultrasound and how
to intubate patients in the Virtual Simulations Lab. I also was able to shadow doctors while they saw patients
and to participate in a surgical boot-camp for resident doctors.
I have received the honor of being the first student recognized at the Board of Trustees meeting for exceptional achievement at The University of
Akron. I have been the recipient of multiple merit-based scholarships, including IDEAs scholarship, the Merit and Recognition scholarships of the
Honors College, Crisp Arts & Sciences scholarship, Dr. & Mrs. William Loughry scholarship, COFSP-STEM Scholar scholarship, and the Cunningham-Cramblette
scholarship. I have tutored for the IDEAs program and for Project Grad Akron at Buchtel High School. I also volunteer for Make
A Difference Day and in the Intensive Care Unit at Akron City Hospital. I participate in intramural football and soccer and I also enjoy playing Brazilian
musical instruments and playing soccer.
One of the reasons I have been able to accomplish so much is because I did not wait for these opportunities to come to me, I chased after them. I
not only applied to scholarships and research opportunities, but also apply myself to school. Much of my success can be attributed to my interest
in school. In order to excel in anything, one has to be passionate about it. I take great interest in my classes and I learn actively, which means that I
read the material and do practice problems until I understand it, and not just so I can mark it off of my “To-do List”. Additionally, my family and
the wonderful professors and advisors here at the University have helped me throughout this journey in order to help me reach my fullest potential.
By Mauricio Uribe. Originally from Mérida, Yucatán in Mexico, I came to the United States with my family
in 1990, when I was three years old. Growing up in a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, I first attended Kent State
University in 2005 to study biological sciences. After two years, however, I realized that I wanted to play a
more active role in the lives of patients with medical needs. Therefore, in the fall of 2007 I transferred to the
University of Akron to study engineering.
I am currently a senior studying Biomedical Engineering (Biomechanics) with a minor in Applied Mathematics. I
chose The University of Akron because it was a strong, accredited engineering school and a research leader in
science and technology. Biomedical Engineering interested me because the field is currently on the forefront of
huge expansion and growth, and because it offers a great sense of accomplishment. As part of the engineering
curriculum I had the unique opportunity last year to co-op at Zimmer, Inc. in the development of hips.
My co-op experience at Zimmer, Inc. has provided me with a solid basis of several fundamental principles and
practices in the areas of development and post-market engineering. Through my research and organizational
efforts in post-market engineering, our team was able to efficiently condense the product complaint review
process to help save over 1100 man-hours in the long run. Most recently, I served as project leader in the de-
Mauricio Uribe at Zimmer.
velopment of a new surgical instrument design. During the process, I had the chance to participate in several
multi-disciplinary teams to determine customer needs, design inputs/outputs, and associated risks. The end goal consisted of building a functioning
instrument prototype and then testing the product in a cadaver trial with several visiting surgeons from around the world. Through my co-op I
have also become proficient in a number of areas involved in the design process, such as functional relationship analyses, geometric dimensioning
and tolerances, failure-based root cause analyses, and I have attained some CAD skills with Unigraphics NX4.
(Continued Page 4)
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By Neel Chandrasekaran. I came to the University of Akron in 2005, pursuing my
PhD in Polymer Engineering. Since I was a teacher before coming to the US, I was interested
in continuing my penchant for teaching. The IDEAs Tutoring Program was a perfect
opportunity to satiate my quest. The best part of being a tutor at the IDEAs program
is the environment, which is filled with young students with versatile abilities.
Therefore there is never a dull moment during tutoring sessions. As an international
student, who has come to the US for graduate studies, I was interested to know the
methodology of undergraduate education in the US, which again was fulfilled by the tutoring
stint.
Fall 2010
Issue 5
The students were very welcoming and most importantly they let me be a part of their
group which was very important for me. The tutor-student interaction was very unique
and it was beyond tutoring. I have enjoyed mentoring students, who had questions about
their careers. I was so happy to share my graduate study experience — the suggestions
and comments were always welcomed by the students. I will always miss the fun that I
had during my four years as an IDEAs tutor, especially with the current group of stu-
Tutor Neel (Center) at the Farewell Party .
dents, who have really injected a lot of life into that room. I am privileged to have had of
the company of such wonderful people. I wish that many such generation of students keep enriching the IDEAs tradition. I am extremely happy and
proud to call SHN 353 as my home away from home. Thanks to each of you for making such unimaginable transformation of reality.
By Sneha Swaminathan. I graduated in August, 2010 with a PhD
in Chemical Engineering and I am currently working as a scientist at
Hollingsworth & Vose Company in Massachusetts. I was a part of
IDEAs since fall 2007 and tutoring has been truly a rewarding experience.
I chose to tutor because I always had a desire to teach and I
wanted to help students understand and enjoy their school experience.
Tutoring helped me learn and share my ideas, experience and knowledge.
The experience also helped in getting a job after my PhD as it
helped me improve my communication skills and strengthen my fundamentals.
Teaching has always been considered a noble profession and
the three years that I was a part of IDEAs has been a very satisfying
and fulfilling experience.
In the IDEAs program, I had the opportunity to interact with lots of
students from different backgrounds and cultures — it is a perfect example
of unity in diversity. I
learned that every student
is different and no two
students react in the same
way. It is our task as tutors
to find what motivates each
student and encourage
them in that direction. This
will create a positive and
right attitude in the student’s
mind. I also encouraged
the students to look
ahead and consider advanced
degrees in the fu-
IDEAs IDEAs Stars Stars — Tutor
Tutor
Tutors contribute to the IDEAs Tutoring Program not only as tutors, but also as mentors and role models for all engineering stu-
dents. We sincerely appreciate the values the IDEAs tutors add to undergraduate education in the College of Engineering. We expect
more and more engineering students, who care about others and have a positive outlook of our college, to join our tutor
team. Together, we will achieve the inclusive excellence in the fields of engineering!
ture. Another important aspect is to be a good friend and mentor to
the students. This will create a comfort zone for both the tutor and the
student and make the teaching and learning process easier. If we can do
this, we can go a long way towards a more effective classroom and
learning experience. I miss everyone in the IDEAS family and would like
to thank everyone for all the love and cooperation. Last but not least I
want to thank my advisor Dr. Chase and Dr. Hariharan for encouraging
me and inspiring me to be a good teacher.
By Tony Li. In my experience as a tutor in the IDEAs program, I can
definitely say that it is one of the most enjoyable jobs that a graduate
student, like me, can have, because tutoring is not about providing direct
answers to students but about
being a wonderful and great contributor
to student success. The
major subjects that the students
needed my tutoring with are happened
to my favorites, which made
the tutoring so enjoyable for both
tutees and me. In my opinion, academic
success is what drives students
to talk to a tutor and ask for
assistance because of their need to
succeed. My tutoring experience has
been merely the devotion to student
success. In addition, building up the
connection and communication with
students is quiet enjoyable.
Tutor Sneha (Left) at the IDEAs Workshop. Tutor Tony (Left) in the tutoring center.
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The College of Engineering
For more information:
Dr. Julie Zhao
Director, IDEAs Program
Schrank Hall North 360
College of Engineering
The University of Akron
Akron, OH 44325-3901
zhao1@uakron.edu
Phone: 330- 972-2823
Fax: 330- 972-5162
http://www.uakron.edu/
engineering/beyond-theclassroom/ideas-program/
index.dot
Department Chairs:
Dr. Daniel Sheffer
Biomedical Engineering
dsheffer@uakron.edu
330-972-6977
Dr. Lu-Kwang Ju
Chemical and Bimolecular
Engineering
lukeju@uakron.edu
330-972-5760
Dr. Wieslaw Binienda
Civil Engineering
wieslaw@uakron.edu
330-972-6693
Dr. J. Alexis De Abreu Garcia
Electrical and Computer
Engineering
alexis4@uakron.edu
330-972-6709
Dr. Celal Batur
Mechanical Engineering
batur@uakron.edu
330-972-7367
.
Student Student Spotlight
Spotlight
THE BIG IDEA
In the 2009-2010 school year, the IDEAs program had 23 students who were placed on the
Dean’s List (in the College of Engineering, University College and Honors College) and 31 students
who received the IDEAs Scholarships with the total amount of $45,950. Congratulations
from the IDEAs program! We recognize your achievements and hope that you continue to strive
toward excellence.
Dean’s List
Eileen Boyd KiAsia Chambers Andrew Chandler Briand Djoko Osama Elbuluk
Clive Ennin Nicole Fano Miyoshi Gibson Nicole Gobble Pierre Hall
Darrell Hammett Cystal James Theodore Johnson-Kanu
Michael Lemono
Robert Medina Curtis Minter Tanya Miracle Jeff Ngeufack Calvin Oldham
Jorge Sylyester Mauricio Uribe Abraham Zabay Austin Zickler
IDEAs Scholarship Recipients
Jeff Ngeufack Jorge Sylyester Osama Elbuluk Tanya Miracle
Robert Median Briand Djoko Andrew Chandler Pierre Hall
Athena Payton Moussa Sane Niem Tran Anny Gao
Henriettie Deny Nicole Gobble India Kaczmarek Eileen Boyd
Mario Garcia Luis Cabrera Uchechukwu Anozie Lonnie Atkinson
Lateefah Muhammad Mauricio Uribe Theodore Johnson-Kanu William Soehaili
Michael Lemono Calvin Oldham Nicole Fano Mikhail Kimbel
Phil Steele Ryan Croston Nadrea Miller
The The IDEAs IDEAs Stars Stars (Cont.)
(Cont.)
By Mauricio Uribe. I have served as community service/philanthropy chair and Director of Programming for
Phi Delta Theta, corresponding secretary for Tau Beta Pi, and have been actively involved in founding the chapter
of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE). Moreover, I have tutored in math and science for
the UA Student Academic Success Office, the IDEAs Program, and for Project GRAD Akron at Buchtel High
School. I have been the recipient of several merit-based and academic scholarships, including the Phi Delta Theta
Perry Demming and Paul Martin Scholarships, the George Mathews Scholarship, the Rhodes Endowed Scholarship
and the IDEA’s Minority Engineering Scholarship. After graduation, I hope to become a Physician Assistant.
Engineering is one of the hardest disciplines, and rightly so, because of the amount of responsibility that it entails.
However, in order to succeed one must be determined and resilient, even when you may be at your lowest
point. I have found great comfort in the support provided by my family and friends. The greatest resource to the
engineering student is not the calculator or the textbook, but rather, the relationships that you build with your
teachers and classmates. Keep your eye on the prize and soon enough you will succeed in reaching your own
academic goals.
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