January 18, 2022

When Valerie Battista found out that University students could learn to play the carillon atop Rush Rhees Library, she couldn’t resist. Previous piano lessons helped her get the hang of it, because the layout of the keys is similar. “The biggest adjustment is that you are playing notes with your feet and your hands at the same time,” Valerie says. “It’s a lot of fun.”

Dear members of the Hajim School community,

Electrical engineering alumnus Kevin Klem ’80, a participant in the Meliora Collective Mentorship Program, is an example of the wonderful mentors who draw on their own experiences to provide our Hajim students with invaluable career advice. Just ask Charles Pan ’22 of mechanical engineering and Rose McDonogh ’21 of electrical and computer engineering, now pursuing her master’s degree here. Both have benefited from Kevin’s insights.

Kevin has more than 40 years of industry experience, working for Hughes Aircraft, Raytheon, and most recently Ball Aerospace and Technologies. He has worked on a team that engineered sensors and electronics for missiles as well as infrared sensor systems for A-6 fighter planes and on satellite ground station hardware and software for NASA’s Earth Observing System.

Kevin vividly remembers how people at Hughes Aircraft Company mentored him in his early years. Because of this, he wanted to play the same kind of role for the next generation of engineers. Hence his help in recruiting University students to Raytheon and Ball Aerospace for jobs and internships and serving as a mentor for Meliora Collective.

I urge alumni and parents interested in serving as mentors–and students interested in being mentored–to please register by January 27 for the next three-month cycle. Learn more here.

Questions? Contact program manager Michelle Cavalcanti at michelle.cavalcanti@rochester.edu.

Thanks so much to Kevin and our other outstanding mentors who help prepare our students for productive careers.

OUTSTANDING STUDENT

“I’ve loved music for as long as I can remember,” says Valerie Battista ’23. And thanks to our University’s open curriculum, Valerie has also been able to pursue not only a major in computer science, but also her passion for music to the fullest. In addition to singing with the University Chamber Singers and the Treble Chorus, Valerie started taking carillon lessons the spring semester of her first year. Despite interruptions due to COVID, she’s been playing the carillon ever since. “I came in hoping to minor in music, but now I am going to be able to double major in it, because the flexibility of the program here has allowed me to take enough classes,” she says.

Valerie was selected as a recipient of the Suzanne J. O’Brien Book Award, which recognizes students who excel academically and in leadership roles in their first year at the College. It is often a good predictor of students who will make the most of their opportunities here. This past summer, Valerie interned with T. Rowe Price, the global investment management firm, doing web development. “I gained my first real experience developing software for a company, and I can definitely see myself doing this kind of work as a career,” she says. The company has invited her to return next summer. Learn more.

CONGRATULATIONS TO . . .

Mandar Juvekar ’22, a dual computer science and mathematics major, who has been selected for Honorable Mention for the Computing Research Association’s (CRA) Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Award for 2022. Mandar’s research experience as an undergraduate has been extensive, including:

a project in structural complexity theory with Lane Hemaspaandra, professor of computer science.
a project in natural language processing with Len Schubert, professor of computer science.
a math project at Caltech with Nets Katz, the IBM Professor of Mathematics, as part of the SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowships) program.
ongoing research in combinatorics and other topics with Alex Iosevich, professor of mathematics. This included being both a participant and workshop leader in the Tripods REU.

Well done, Mandar!

REMEMBERING BRUCE ARDEN

When Bruce Arden arrived as our fourth Dean of Engineering in 1986, he had undertaken a remarkable journey from Navy radar technician, to pioneer in the use of computers, and ultimately to an outstanding researcher and academic leader in the field. During his tenure here, engineering and science undertook important initiatives, including creation of the Center for Electronic Imaging Systems, now the Center for Emerging and Innovative Science, and creation of the Center for Optoelectronics and Imaging at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics. Bruce, who passed away last month in Livonia, Michigan, also served as William F. May Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering. We honor his many contributions, and extend condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. Learn more.

GRAND CHALLENGES SCHOLARS

Our Grand Challenges Scholars Program is funding a 10-week research position for one student during the summer of 2022 in the lab of Marc Porosoff, assistant professor of chemical engineering. The research is part of the lab’s work in direct air capture of CO2 and is relevant to the Grand Challenge to “Develop Carbon Sequestration Methods.” The intern will synthesize and characterize dual functional materials for reactive separations of CO2.

Applications will go out this month. Students from any engineering major can apply, but you must be enrolled in GCSP to qualify. Contact Emma Derisi for more information about joining the GCSP; contact Marc Porosoff to learn more about the research position.

Have a great week!

Your dean,
Wendi Heinzelman