Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, Vol. 99, No. 2, Summer 2023

When Gail Panarello Smith, ChE 1978, attended Georgia Tech in the 1970s, she and the other female students made the most of their opportunities. “We joined clubs, participated in intramural sports, and held positions on campus. Several of us joined the Reck Club,” said Smith. They pursued their education with similar determination. She added, “All of those women have done extremely well in life.”

Smith went on to lead an accomplished career spanning four decades and held multiple positions in global leadership with Procter & Gamble. Recently, Smith and her husband, David, a retired banking executive, made estate provisions which will ensure that female graduate students and faculty in the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering have ample opportunities to achieve their dreams.

The Gail J. Panarello Smith and David C.T. Smith Family Fellowship Endowment will support female Ph.D. candidates, with a preference for U.S. citizens. “We want to help the U.S. grow and stay strong in both technical fields and technology,” Smith shared.

The Gail J. Panarello Smith and David C.T. Smith Family Faculty Endowment will fund appointments for female faculty, including director’s chairs, faculty chairs, and professorships. These endowments will provide a more inclusive experience for women in chemical engineering at Georgia Tech.

For the Smiths, Georgia Tech is a family tradition, and their daughter Christine N. Russell, CHBE 2014, and son-in-law Daniel D. Russell, EE 2015, join Smith in preserving the family legacy on North Avenue. Steadfast in their support of education, the couple has directed their philanthropy to schools and universities, including Transylvania University, where their son David C.T. Smith II attended. Smith said, “We believe a rigorous education can provide skills and tools to enrich people’s lives and careers.”

— Gail Panarello Smith, ChE 1978, and David C.T. Smith

“Georgia Tech is doing wonderful things, and we want to do whatever we can to keep that energy moving in the right direction.”

Georgia Tech is excited to introduce a new campaign that will build a foundation to support our students, advance our research and innovation, enhance our campus and our community, and expand our impact at home and around the world.

Learn more about our goals at transformingtomorrow.gatech.edu

DRIVEN BY GOODWILL

WWHEN I WAS in my second year at Georgia Tech, my car’s transmission died. I had recently lost the on-campus housing lottery, and my apartment was just far enough away that not having transportation was an issue. The hefty price tag of fixing a transmission would be a financial burden for anyone, let alone a college student.

The stress of my car troubles compounded an already heavy class load. It might sound insignificant, but at that moment, the number of issues I was juggling felt impossible.

boost to succeed.

I’ve written before about “word” and how Yellow Jackets are always ready to help one another. It’s ingrained in our culture through our motto of “Progress and Service” and our mission. As Georgia Tech students, we learned how to achieve the impossible, but we also learned we weren’t invincible. Through school and after graduation, we understand how important it is to help others. The culture at Tech taught me how much kindness can make an impact.

When you live your life in a way that helps others and prioritizes compassion, you create happy moments and inspire others to do the same. As you will read in the stories that follow, being of service to others is a part of our traditions. It is a theme that runs throughout everything we do as we work to “improve the human condition.”

This magazine is one of my favorite aspects of the Alumni Association. Sharing stories about Tech spirit, game-changers, and alumni who are doing good around the world gives me immense pride in our alma mater.

GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE

VOL. 99 | NO. 2

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER

Dene Sheheane, Mgt 91

VP STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS

Lindsay Vaughn

EDITOR

Jennifer Herseim

ART DIRECTOR

Steve Hedberg

COPYWRITER

Matt Sowell

COPY EDITOR

Barbara McIntosh Webb

STUDENT ASSISTANTS

Riddhi Bhattacharya and Sadie Mothershed

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Chair

Betsy Bulat, IAML 04

Past Chair/Vice Chair of Finance

Magd Riad, IE 01

Chair Elect, Vice Chair/Roll Call

Tommy Herrington, IM 82

Vice Chair

Rita Breen, Psy 90, MS IE 92

Member at Large

Jason Byars, ME 96

Member at Large

Amy Rich, MBA 12

Member at Large

James “Jim” Sanders, IE 88

Member at Large

Anu Parvatiyar, BME 08

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Jennifer Abrams, PP 17; Latanza Adjei, IE 98; Thomas Antonino, BA 15, MSA 22; Sybrina Atwaters, EE 94, MS HSTS 09, PhD HSTS 14; Donald Beamer, Econ 05; Michael Bogachek, IE 00; Alexia

A few weeks later, my grandparents visited. Over a meal at Piccadilly Cafeteria, my granddaddy slid me a check for enough to cover the maintenance. It was a sacrifice for them, but they did what they could to help ease my burdens.

I’ll never forget their help or the lesson they taught me about how lightening the load in even a small way can be enough to give people the

As we celebrate the centennial of the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine this year, we are resharing some of these incredible stories from our archives (pg. 92).

Go Jackets!

DENE SHEHEANE, MGT 91 PRESIDENT GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Borden, IE 01; Jasmine Burton, ID 14; Jacky Cheng, IE 17; Catherine Cooper, IE 90; Aurélien Cottet, MS AE 03; Cynthia Culbreath, IE 93, MS IE 95; Elizabeth Serafine Donnelly, IA 08; Matthew Dubnik, Mgt 03; Adam Fuller, Mgt 93; Robyn Gatens, ChE 85; John Gattuso, ME 15; Joy Jordan, ChE 92; Olivia Langevine, IAML 13; Meghan Green LaRue, Mgt 13; Antonio Llanos, CS 95; Matthew Mason, IE 01; Randolph McDow, IE 95, MS PP 03; Meredith Moot, Mgt 08; Kyle Porter, Mgt 04; Jacquelyn Renée Schneider, BC 06, MBA 18; Rene Simon, MBA 18; Chad Sims, BA 15; Greg Sitkiewicz, IE 00; Courtney Robinson Smith, Mgt 00; Mary Lynn Smith, EE 88; Miya Smith, IE 03; Russell Smith, Cls 98; John R. Spriggle, ME 02; Kenji Takeuchi, ME 94; Maurice Trebuchon, IE 86

ADVERTISING

Justin Estes (404) 683-9599

justin.estes@alumni.gatech.edu

GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE (ISSN: 1061-9747) is published quarterly by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313. Periodical postage paid in Atlanta and additional mailing offices.

© 2023 Georgia Tech Alumni Association

POSTMASTER Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313 editor@alumni.gatech.edu (404) 894-2391

Helping those in need is at the core of the Institute’s motto of “Progress and Service.”

EVERYTHING YOU NEED

Students receive this plant as a reminder that everything they need to grow and flourish is available at Georgia Tech, says STAR Services Director Steve Fazenbaker. STAR, or Students’ Temporary Assistance and Resources, is a network of programs that provide supports for students.

FEATURES

42

ACTS OF KINDNESS

Although we often celebrate the grand achievements, there are many ways that Ramblin’ Wrecks are making the world a better place.

COMMUNITY-MINDED TECH

An anchor institution, Georgia Tech is uniquely positioned to help communities in Atlanta and across Georgia thrive.

November 1959, Vol. 38, No. 3

CELEBRATING 100

First published in 1923, the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine continues to tell the stories of Georgia Tech and its people, connecting alumni with one another and the Institute. Look back at stories from the magazine’s archives on page 92.

TECH HISTORY

PROUD LEGACY OF 70 YEARS OF WOMEN AT TECH

I WANTED TO make sure that all of the women of Tech are recognized for an amazing achievement. Not all alumni can be famous, but they are still important to the history of Tech. When I graduated in 1975, I ended up entering a male-dominated corporate world without any trailblazing woman to guide me. I like to think that my time at Tech helped to prepare me for the brick walls and glass ceilings. I may not have had a newsworthy career, but it is one that I am truly proud of because it started at Georgia Tech.

–JANYCE DAWSON, AM 75

GUESS WHO

WHEN ART VOGAN, AE 59, MS IM 70, opened our email newsletter, guess who was staring back at him from this photo of Georgia Tech students in class from the 1950s? Himself! The picture from our history archives shows several students and one of Tech’s early women in class. “Can’t believe I was ever that young!” Vogan says.

Now, who can identify the rest of the students in the photo? Email editor@alumni.gatech.edu

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

65 YEARS LATER: EARLY COEDS REUNITE

MARY (O’KON) STIMMEL (top left) and her 1957 freshman classmate Rosemarie May Mazor (top right) were two of the 11 women who matriculated along with 1,600 men in September of 1957. They reunited this spring for the first time in 65 years for lunch in Darien, Ga. The two were good friends while at Tech but had lost touch until recently, when they found each other with the help of a fellow classmate and another one of the 11, Dale (Waldon) Whitesides, IE 61. “We were pioneers for sure; we were not permitted to major in anything available at other state colleges in Georgia, such as math or industrial management. I transferred to the University of Georgia after my second year and got a degree in journalism. Rosemarie got her degree in hearing sciences at NYU. We’ve both had successful careers and are blessed with wonderful families. Proud of our heritage being among the first women students at Georgia Tech!” Stimmel writes.

VINTAGE TEES & CLAIMS TO FAME

IN THE SPRING 2023 ISSUE, VOL. 99, NO. 1, WE ASKED FOR YOUR TECH CLUB JERSEYS OR YOUR “CLAIMS TO FAME,” AND YOU DIDN’T DISAPPOINT. READ A FEW OF THE RESPONSES BELOW:

Band jacket from the early 1980s.

“We didn’t have T-shirts or jerseys in the Motorcycle Club, but “jackets” were optional. Our “claim to fame” (during my time) occurred when the road bikes took a trip from just north of campus to Helen, Georgia. Aside from the issue of most of us being underdressed in lightweight attire and jeans (we weren’t prepared for the drop in temperature in the north Georgia mountains in spring), we ran into traffic entering Helen. While our small convoy was waiting in line, an elderly couple walked by. The wife turned to the husband and said, “Do you suppose those are Hells Angels?!” Dressed in our preppy clothes, it brought a smile, and we retold the story many times.

I also competed in an auto rally through the greater Atlanta area as the sole motorcycle entry (myself and fellow alum, Don Briner, ME 78). If my memory is correct, we came in seventh out of more than 30 entries. Not bad for two 6’+ tall males on a Honda 500. –DAVID TURK, IE 77

JADE SMITH, PSY 13, RECENTLY WORE HER VINTAGE GEORGIA TECH LETTER JACKET TO CHEER ON THE WHITE & GOLD.

–REID SAMUEL, PP 08

I still have my bandana from Humans vs. Zombies, finale stickers included!

–JACOB MORGAN, CS 15

CALLING ALL GEAR HEADS

Do you know a Tech grad driving innovation in transportation? Let us know for our next issue at editor@alumni.gatech.edu

NOT SUPER OLD, BUT I’LL HOLD ON TO THIS ONE.

–JACK C. BORNSTEIN, IM 86

AROUND CAMPUS

ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES

More than 100 students, faculty, and staff volunteers participated in Tech Beautification Day on April 1. The day of service is a student-led event where volunteers can take part in multiple beautification projects across campus.

GEORGIA TECH AGAIN TOPS LIST OF NATION’S BEST GRADUATE SCHOOLS

BY AYANA ISLES

GEORGIA TECH’S graduate programs continue to be among the best in the nation according to the  U.S. News & World Report ’s 2023–24 graduate school rankings. In the

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

latest list, released April 25, the College of Computing ranked No. 8 overall, the College of Engineering remained in the top 10, the College of Sciences made the top 20 in chemistry

The College of Engineering continues to excel, moving from No. 7 to No. 5. Each of its 11 programs was ranked eighth or better, and both industrial and systems engineering and biomedical engineering were ranked No. 1:

SCHELLER COLLEGE OF BUSINESS

The Scheller College of Business climbed two spots and was ranked 26th in the nation for its full-time Master of Business Administration (MBA) program and moved six places to No. 11 for its part-time MBA. The business analytics program was ranked No. 3, and the rankings for other Scheller programs include:

and mathematics, and the Scheller College of Business came in at No. 26. (Not all disciplines are evaluated annually.)

Check out the rankings below.

IVAN ALLEN COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS

The Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts made the top 40, coming in at 39th for public policy, and saw increases in two of the three ranked programs:

COLLEGE OF COMPUTING

The College of Computing ranked eighth overall. Other ranked programs include:

COLLEGE OF SCIENCES

The College of Sciences was in the top 20 in four chemistry specialty graduate programs, with the college ranking 20th overall for chemistry.

Additionally, mathematics moved up to No. 20, with three specialty rankings also in the top 20:

Discrete

Mathematics and Combinatorics Applied Math

Analysis

Georgia Tech Ranks No. 1 Public School for Best Value

The Princeton Review placed Georgia Tech at the top of its list of the best public universities for value and return on investment. The Institute is ranked No. 1 in three categories: Best Value Colleges, Best Value Colleges for Career Placement, and Best Value Colleges for Students with No Demonstrated Need. The annual list, released April 25, also names Georgia Tech in the top 10 for Alumni Networks, which came in at No. 7 among the nation’s public schools. The ranking is based on student ratings of alumni activity and visibility on campus.

NO. 1 MASCOT IN THE COUNTRY

AT THE 2023 NCA AND NDA COLLEGIATE NATIONAL CHEER AND DANCE CHAMPIONSHIP IN DAYTONA BEACH, THE JUDGES CONFIRMED WHAT THE GEORGIA TECH COMMUNITY

ALREADY KNEW: BUZZ IS THE TOP MASCOT IN THE COUNTRY.

BY STEVEN GAGLIANO

Competing in the 2023 National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) and NDA Collegiate National Cheer and Dance Championship, the famous Yellow Jacket was awarded first place in the mascot category, edging out Texas Tech’s Raider Red and Missouri’s Truman the Tiger. Perhaps inspired by the weekend release of The Super Mario Bros. Movie , Buzz worked the crowd into a frenzy, dancing his way through a level of the classic video game and earning an

overall score of 53.7 out of 60.

“I didn’t come this far just to come this far,” the notoriously energetic mascot tweeted following the victory.

Buzz soaked in the moment after winning the title by grabbing the trophy and running straight into the Atlantic Ocean.

For Buzz, the hard work doesn’t start on stage. As Head Cheerleading Coach Shana Spann points out, the work that goes on behind the scenes made this championship possible, including raising money to travel.

“Buzz is the 2023 NCA College Mascot National Champion, and

we could not be prouder! The Buzz team is comprised of a select group of student-athletes who work tirelessly building all of their props by hand, creating their own skits, and doing countless appearances on and off campus each week. They are truly a team and work together on every aspect of Buzz, from character development to prop building in Freshman Gym,” Spann says. “They are the hardest-working group of kids on campus, and it was a joy to coach them this year and take them to the championship.”

Next time you see Buzz, make sure to congratulate the national champion.

Tech’s White squad competed at the NCAs as well in the large coed D1A intermediate division, finishing 8th in the country, while the Gold squad competed at the UCA College Nationals in January.

AN IDEA that originated in a residence hall won big at the 2023 Georgia Tech InVenture Prize. Jeff Mao (picture above left) and Tyler Ma (right), both second-year computer science students, have developed a web-based platform that could help millions of online sellers save time and money.

Team SellRaze’s idea won a $20,000 check and earned Mao and Ma a coveted spot in Tech’s Startup Launch program, which will give them access to coaching from experienced entrepreneurs, access to venture capital possibilities, and a path to fasttrack their idea into a viable startup.

During the presentation, the pair

demonstrated the process of taking a single product listing on Amazon and adding it to eBay, which took 11 minutes and multiple steps. With SellRaze, Mao and Ma say sellers can accomplish the same task in seconds and a couple of clicks.

“List once, sell everywhere,” Mao explained.

One InVenture Prize judge, a board director of Intercontinental Hotels Group and Intercontinental Exchange, asked the team how they planned to make money.

Mao said they would offer a “freemium” model, giving users some free listings and the option to pay for increasing tiers of multiple listings. He

also explained that their web platform offered a wealth of data about which products sell the best and the times and locations they are in highest demand—data that sellers and retailers

With the prize, SellRaze will also receive a free U.S. patent filing from Tech’s Office of Technology Licensing. Well worth the hard work they have put into developing the platform, Mao and Ma say half the code was written between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m.

Second place and $10,000 went to Team SpoilerALERT, three biomedical engineering students who invented an antibody test for insulin degradation, allowing diabetic patients to evaluate the effectiveness of the drugs they take daily.

“We believe all people with diabetes deserve to trust their medication,” says Grady Lee, team member and a former Georgia Tech football player.

The $5,000 People’s Choice Award, selected by the television viewing audience, went to Julia Pina. Her Novela Lamp allows children to tell stories using wooden cutouts of shapes, characters, and scenes.

Pina, an industrial design major, has already been in talks with toy retailers. She says her lamp promotes imaginative play and communication skills through creative expression and helps children and families reduce screen time.

After taking first place in the 15th edition of the InVenture Prize, Team SellRaze hoisted the trophy and thanked the fans in the Ferst Center. “It’s a major milestone in our journey as entrepreneurs.”

—STEVEN NORRIS

ROOMMATES WIN 2023 INVENTURE PRIZE TWO SECOND-YEAR COMPUTER SCIENCE STUDENTS DEVELOPED A STARTUP IDEA TO HELP MILLIONS OF ONLINE SELLERS.

THREE FACULTY MEMBERS ELECTED TO AAAS

THREE GEORGIA TECH FACULTY MEMBERS have been elected to the 2023 class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, joining the ranks of distinguished artists, thinkers, and scientists in the Academy:

Rafael L. Bras, professor and K. Harrison Brown Family Chair in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is an expert on Earth’s water cycle and has led hydrology projects around the world.

Marilyn Brown, Regents’ Professor and Brook Byers Professor of Sustainable Systems in the School of Public

Policy, is a national leader in climate change mitigation studies. She researches sustainable energy technologies.

Susan Margulies, professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, leads the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Engineering. She’s a research leader in pediatric traumatic brain injury and lung injury associated with mechanical ventilators.

—KRISTEN BAILEY

ELLEN ZEGURA HONORED WITH TECH’S HIGHEST TEACHING AWARD

ELLEN ZEGURA , Fleming Chair and professor in the School of Computer Science, has received the Class of 1934 Distinguished Professor Award. Zegura’s passion for new challenges and dedication to her role as a teacher have become hallmarks of her career at Georgia Tech. The award, which was created in 1984 by the Class of 1934 in obser vance of its 50th reunion, is the highest honor given to a Georgia Tech profes sor. It includes a stipend of $25,000.

Zegura joined Tech in 1993, just three years af ter the founding of the College of Computing. She later stepped in as interim dean, took on the role of associate dean, and oversaw space planning during a transformative period in the college. Zegura was the first chair of the School of Computer Science, serving until 2012. During her time as chair, the Computing for Good collective was launched and Zegura, Santosh Vempala, and Michael Best created a computing course with a focus on issues of social justice. Zegura then moved to other methods for involving students in social-good projects, including an internship program called Civic Data Science, and most recently, establishing a Vertically Integrated Projects team called Bits of Good.

When the Quality Enhancement Plan for the Institute opened the call for topic proposals in 2014, Zegura, collaborating with other faculty members, put together a concept paper for what would ultimately

become the Serve-Learn-Sustain program. Working closely with program co-creator Beril Toktay, professor of operations management and the Brady Family Chairholder in the Scheller College of Business, Serve-Learn-Sustain proposed a path for students to learn to create sustainable communities through engagement with content and

(L-R) Bras, Brown, Margulies

SEEN ON CAMPUS

7th Annual Sibs Day

More than 700 brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, and family friends of Yellow Jackets got a taste of campus life during the 7th annual “Sibs Day,” hosted February 18 by Parent and Family Programs in the Division of Student Engagement and Well-Being.

Tech Green (and Blue and Yellow)

On March 11, students threw colored dyes at one another in celebration of Holi, a Hindu festival. The event was sponsored by the Georgia Tech India Club.

25th Guthman Musical Instrument Competition

Keith Baxter won the 25th Guthman Musical Instrument Competition, which featured nine finalists from six countries. Similar to how a theremin is controlled by a musician’s hands waving near the instrument, Baxter’s Zen Flute matches the pressure and shape of a performer’s mouth to the pitch output. The flute competed against one-of-a-kind instruments, such as The Floors, a pressure-sensitive floor that a musician plays by redistributing their body weight across the surface, and an Abacusynth, a combination of a synthesizer and an abacus.

COURTESY OF RAFTERMAN

ALLISON CARTER

TYRONE DAVIS

THE NOBEL WHISPERER

M.G. FINN ON CLICK CHEMISTRY AND COLLABORATION

BY CATHERINE BARZLER

OON DEC. 10, 2022 , Georgia Tech chemist M.G. Finn found himself in the Stockholm Concert Hall wearing a tuxedo. It was a big night—the 126th anniversary of Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel’s death—but the mood was anything but somber.

Finn attended the Nobel Prize awards ceremony with K. Barry Sharpless, his longtime close collaborator, former advisor, friend, and winner of the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the creation of “click” chemistry. Sharpless shared the prize

with Carolyn Bertozzi, professor of chemistry at Stanford University, and Morten Meldal, professor of chemistry at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

Six weeks earlier, Finn was in Atlanta wearing a navy suit, giving a special seminar on the 2022 Nobel Prize in Chemistry at the Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB) at Georgia Tech. He had accepted the delicate task of explaining his contributions to the Nobel-winning science of click chemistry to a room full of collaborators and admirers who knew of his enormous impact.

“It feels like I’m at my own wake, this is great,” Finn joked after expressing

gratitude for the invitation.

Far from a wake, it was a celebration of one of the world’s top scientists at one of the many peaks of his career. Finn’s students and his closest faculty collaborators watched him with a mixture of excitement and pride, knowing that the true pinnacle of Finn’s career may well be yet to come.

“Chemistry is an architectural endeavor,” Finn began. “To a chemist, to an architect of molecules, the effort that goes into creating these structures is an exercise of both beauty and great skill.”

Finn said some chemists make molecular structures so beautiful they take his breath away. “But that’s not

what click chemistry is about. The whole point of click chemistry is to democratize chemistry.”

Click chemistry, simply stated, is a set of chemical reactions that provide reliable ways to make bonds. The idea is that if any two molecular structures, no matter what type, have the right connectors on them, they can “click” into place, producing new molecules of greater variety and complexity.

Today, click chemistry is used in thousands of labs worldwide. Its applications have been wide-ranging, transforming entire areas of materials science, surfaces, biology, and medicine, among others. But it all started in the mid-1990s, when, according to Finn, “drug development was in the toilet.”

DEMOCRATIZING CHEMISTRY

Progress in drug discovery had dwindled, and there was a lot of talk about why there weren’t more new drugs. At that time, Finn worked at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California. He and Sharpless would sometimes leave their labs and pound down the sea cliffs, taking walks on the beach while talking about science. On one walk, Sharpless talked to Finn about an idea that would become click chemistry. It took Finn about half an hour to get on board.

“It was quite brave of Barry to go out there and say, ‘Number one, we’re

going to do something nobody’s ever done before,’” Finn said. “‘And number two, we’re going to do something that most of you think is stupid.’”

While Finn gives Sharpless all the credit for having courage, Finn was right there beside him, having just signed up to help make click chemistry a reality.

THE ULTIMATE COLLABORATOR

In 2001, Finn, Sharpless, and Hartmuth C. Kolb published the paper that introduced click chemistry to the world. In chemistry circles, it is fondly known as the “Click Chemistry Manifesto.” This was one of the papers cited for the 2022 Nobel Prize.

As for Finn’s contributions, he articulated the concept and illustrated the utility of click chemistry early on. He and his co-workers figured out how the copper reaction underlying click

reactions worked. His lab was among the first to implement click chemistry reactions, showing how to make connections to biological molecules and other materials. But Finn attributes all of that to being in the right place at the right time.

“I had the great fortune to be there, which was incredibly lucky,” Finn says. “Because of the people we had and the environment we were in, we were in a position to make rapid progress with this chemistry.”

Finn joined Tech in 2013, seeking to expand click chemistry into the realms of materials science and immunology, bringing with him a spirit of collaboration for which he quickly became known.

“I think M.G. is the most collaborative person I’ve ever met,” says  Susan Thomas, Woodruff Associate Professor in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering and IBB. In 2013, soon after Thomas started at Tech, she gave a seminar. Finn approached her after the talk. “I’m a fresh, brand-new assistant professor, and this esteemed, world-famous chemist comes up to me, introduces himself, says, ‘Susan, I really enjoyed your talk,’ and offers to start a collaboration.” Thomas describes her ongoing, 10-year collaboration with Finn as one of the most fulfilling and satisfying scientific journeys of her career.

“Georgia Tech is known for its engineers, but it’s amazing to have a chemist at Tech who is so widely appreciated and truly at the pinnacle of science,” Thomas says. “And there’s something about M.G., that he doesn’t feel threatened by other people’s success. I think he just feels the world is better for it.”

“IT’S AMAZING TO HAVE A CHEMIST AT TECH WHO IS SO WIDELY APPRECIATED AND TRULY AT THE PINNACLE OF SCIENCE,” SAYS SUSAN THOMAS.

M.G. Finn with collaborators Barry Sharpless and Hartmuth C. Kolb at the 2022 Nobel Awards ceremony.

‘HAPPY AND INDEPENDENT’

HOW GEORGIA TECH’S EXCEL PROGRAM HELPS INDIVIDUALS WITH INTELLECTUAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES CREATE THEIR OWN SUCCESS.

BY SHELLEY WUNDER-SMITH

DURING THE WEEK , Maggie

Guillaume drives herself to her full-time job at UPS Capital, where she is an employee experience admin. Guillaume delivers mail, restocks the breakrooms, helps set up for employee activities and lunches, and takes photos at company events. As she goes about her work, Guillaume and her colleagues smile and greet each other by name.

“I like my job,” Guillaume says.

As she was finishing high school and considering her next steps, she knew she wanted to enroll in a fouryear educational program that would prepare her for a professional vocation. Guillaume, who is from the metro Atlanta area, also wanted to be able to live on campus—but not too far from home.

Georgia Tech’s EXCEL Program checked those boxes.

Founded in 2014 by Terry Blum, faculty director of the Institute for Leadership and Social Impact, and Cyrus Aidun, professor of mechanical engineering, EXCEL is designed to provide a college experience for

students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/D). Participants can earn two certificates in subjects covering academics, social skills and self-awareness, and career readiness. They must also demonstrate competency in health and wellness, navigating transportation and housing, and basic financial literacy.

One of EXCEL’s primary goals is to prepare students for meaningful, successful work after they graduate. The program’s career development coordinators work with more than 100

employers to provide internships for participants. By the time they graduate, participants will have at least seven hands-on learning experiences for their resume; students frequently have more.

Guillaume’s internships included two on Tech’s campus, as well as teaching assistantships at the Frazier Center and the Howard School in Atlanta, and the Cottage School in Roswell, Ga.

“Because EXCEL is at Georgia Tech, and Tech is itself in the heart of Atlanta, our students benefit from improved access and opportunities at local companies. And that applies to internships specifically,” says Nathan Heald, EXCEL Program assistant director and lecturer.

In addition to her internships, Guillaume took classes in art history, psychology, and human development. One particularly memorable class, she

In

each of the employee breakrooms, Guillaume fills the refrigerator with soft drinks, replenishes the coffee machine with beans, and tops off the snack dispensers with cereals, chocolate-covered raisins, and pretzels.

Guillaume at the Swag Store, where twice a week she distributes items such as bobble-heads, tumblers, or much-coveted models of the classic UPS delivery trucks to employees who have earned “swag bucks” to spend.

says, was an industrial design class on the history of chairs that she enrolled in “just because it sounded interesting.”

She also actively participated in Omega Phi Alpha, a national service sorority, along with another friend from the EXCEL Program.

“I was struggling with my mental health at the time, and when my friend told me about it, I decided to join, because I hoped focusing on others would make me feel better,” Guillaume says. “I loved doing community service. I am a people person; I love helping people out.

“And helping others helped me out,” she adds.

completed her fourth year of school virtually, planning for her postEXCEL transition.

“We have two courses that help the students develop a plan for support for when they leave college, and we also work with their families,” explains EXCEL Founding Director Ken Surdin. “Our focus isn’t just their education but what comes after it: If you come in with a disability, then you’re leaving with a disability, and all of the challenges that exist for people with disabilities are still out there. Those haven’t disappeared.

staff, and degree-seeking students who support us and our students.”

When asked what she’d like to do next career-wise, Guillaume says that she’d like to visit UPS offices in other states, and that if given the opportunity, she would enjoy taking photographs at UPS conferences. (Guillaume has three personal Instagram accounts—dedicated to her dog, her coffee shop explorations, and her social life—that keep her busy snapping pictures in her down time.)

And what’s next for the EXCEL Program, now that it’s nearly a decade old?

As part of the sorority’s mentalhealth project, Guillaume assisted children receiving equine therapy; the sorority members painted rocks with positive messages and placed them around Tech’s campus for their university community project. She also served as the sorority’s district officer and helped plan the organization’s district meeting with chapters from other colleges and universities.

Because the Covid-19 pandemic closed Georgia Tech’s campus, Guillaume—who graduated in 2021—

“Coming to a program like EXCEL hopefully has helped you learn to navigate those challenges better—has helped you understand what support to ask for and what accommodations you need to be successful. And that also benefits employers, who might not otherwise understand how to support someone with a disability or even what they would be capable of.”

Exact unemployment statistics for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities are hard to find, but only around 34% of working-age adults (aged 21 to 64) with ID/D are employed. In contrast, 93% of EXCEL graduates are employed.

“Our outcomes—especially our employment outcomes—are phenomenal,” Surdin notes. “And that’s because Georgia Tech believes in the EXCEL Program. Its success is directly linked to the president and provost, faculty,

Surdin is working with ThinkCollege.net, a center dedicated to expanding postsecondary options for individuals with ID/D, to create an accreditation body for programs like EXCEL. He also wants to improve EXCEL’s financial accessibility through grants, gifts, and scholarships. One year of tuition costs $19,640.

The Georgia General Assembly’s approval of SB 246 at the end of the 2022–’23 session, represents progress in this area. SB 246 authorized a nearly $1 million, five-year pilot program—modeled after the HOPE scholarship—that allows funds to pay tuition costs for the EXCEL program and others like it around the state. “This will be tremendously helpful,” Surdin says. “We have one of the best programs in the country, focused on helping our students prepare for life after college and continuing to improve those outcomes so they’re successful after they leave.”

Guillaume is one of those EXCEL Program success stories. “I feel happy and independent,” she says with a smile. There are plenty more sure to come.

93 % of EXCEL graduates are employed.

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ON THE FIELD

GOLDEN STRIDE

Georgia Tech Track and Field opened the 2023 outdoor season with the Yellow Jacket Invitational. Anna Witherspoon competes in the 400m hurdles during the second day of competition on March 18.

NAME, IMAGE, LIKENESS, AND YELLOW JACKETS

GEORGIA TECH APPROACHES COLLEGE ATHLETICS’ NIL WITH THE TECH WAY.

BY DANIEL P. SMITH

such as autograph signings, social media promotions, camps and clinics, special appearances, and commercials.

The Tech Way’s organizers, many of whom are among Tech’s most ardent supporters, evaluated peer institutions’ NIL approaches before considering how to create an entity befitting Tech’s student-athletes, fans, and institutional ethos. Board members serve as volunteers and none benefit financially from the endeavor.

THE TECH WAY has arrived— and it’s here to boost Georgia Tech Athletics and the experience of Tech’s student-athletes.

When the NCAA modified its rules in June 2021 to allow college athletes to benefit from name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities, the decision reverberated throughout the college athletics landscape, compelling schools, student-athletes, and fans

alike to confront a new era and craft relevant solutions.

“The reality is that robust NIL is part of modern collegiate athletics,” says Simit Shah, CmpE 99, an associate athletic director at Georgia Tech. “Recognizing this, a number of passionate Tech fans came together to create opportunities that are important to our student-athletes.”

Launched in late 2022, The Tech Way is a not-for-profit corporation created to work with Tech’s studentathletes and facilitate NIL activations,

“There were many stacking hands that cooperated here and put forth the most thoughtful and competitive effort possible,” says Joe Evans, IM 71, a past board chair of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association and Georgia Tech Foundation. “In the end, we wanted one coordinated NIL effort to serve the Yellow Jacket community.”

Often called collectives, NIL entities have blossomed around many major universities to help studentathletes maximize opportunities in the NIL space. Like numerous others, The Tech Way holds the same basic premise: to support student-athletes’ NIL efforts. It functions like an agency,

The Tech Way acts like an agent for student-athletes, handling marketing, legal, and accounting behind the scenes.

organizing and coordinating various activities with businesses or individuals while handling marketing, legal, and accounting behind the scenes.

Yellow Jacket fans and businesses have multiple options for customizing their NIL activations, including through monthly membership levels and one-time contributions. Contributions can also be designated to a specific sport where funds are distributed equally to participating team members.

Currently, student-athletes from four Georgia Tech programs—football, men’s and women’s basketball, and men’s golf—have NIL deals with The Tech Way, which has brokered more than 100 services contract deals for student-athletes. After the Yellow Jackets spring football game on April 15, for example, The Tech Way hosted an autograph session for fans and offered every football player a chance to participate.

“The money student-athletes earn is often used to help them pay school-related expenses, fund travel for family to games, or personal training to improve skill level,” Shah says. “I think our fans would be encouraged by the type of impact NIL is making for our student-athletes.”

However, The Tech Way aims to transcend the transaction with its emphasis on relationships and supporting student-athletes beyond their playing careers. To that point, iFOLIO, an Atlanta-based tech company founded by Jean Marie Richardson, Mgt 02, signed NIL deals with four Tech women’s basketball athletes earlier this year. Each student-athlete received $5,000 in combined payment and athlete website services to facilitate personal

branding in their sports and business career. In return, the student-athletes promote iFOLIO on social media.

“The Tech Way is creating opportunity and exposure for our student-athletes, so they have a positive experience and the ability to further themselves in different ways,” Shah says. “There are things student-athletes are learning along the way—personal branding, money management, and financial literacy among them—that are simply good life skills.”

While enhancing the experience for current student-athletes is The Tech Way’s foremost goal, Shah says the NIL entity’s presence also elevates Georgia Tech’s stature as an open and appealing option for prospective student-athletes as well.

“We believe our total package—our academics, athletics, alumni network, presence in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and Atlanta location— are all part of the equation and NIL is yet another way to enhance the student-athlete experience at Tech,” Shah says.

The Tech Way confirms Georgia Tech leadership’s competitive drive with athletics. Tech President Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95, has expressed his desire that Georgia Tech Athletics matches the Institute’s premier standing as a research and academic institution, and that sentiment has been embraced by first-year Athletic Director J Batt, coaches, and fans, including The Tech Way’s organizers.

“We’re all moving in the same direction,” Shah says. “The Tech Way demonstrates our efforts to compete at the highest level in every way possible.”

NIL EXPLAINED

What is it?

NIL, or Name, Image, and Likeness, allows college athletes to profit from endorsement deals or social media partnerships. Before the NCAA changed its rule, college athletes were not permitted to earn compensation for the use of their name, image, or likeness.

When did the rule change?

The NCAA’s interim NIL policy took effect on July 1, 2021.

What’s an NIL collective?

A collective acts like an agent for student-athletes by managing partnerships with individuals and businesses. Typically, student-athletes sign a services contract that outlines the number and type of NIL activities they must carry out.

What’s an example of an NIL activation?

A company pays a studentathlete to mention their product in a series of sponsored social media posts.

What’s not allowed?

College athletes cannot receive compensation without performing NIL activities or for athletic participation or performance. Colleges also can’t guarantee NIL compensation upon enrollment to a prospective student or provide compensation in exchange for the use of the student-athlete’s name, image, or likeness. State law might include other restrictions.

CHANGES TO GAME-DAY EXPERIENCE ON THE FLATS

PRE-GAME FESTIVITIES ARE MOVING TO A PEDESTRIANFRIENDLY AREA SURROUNDING NORTH AVENUE AT THE SOUTH END OF BOBBY DODD STADIUM.

BY JENNIFER HERSEIM

YYELLOW JACKET FANS can expect tailgating, music, food, family activities, and more as part of an enhanced plan that moves pre-game activities from Callaway Plaza to North Avenue this fall. A portion of North Avenue from Techwood Drive to Tech Parkway will be closed to vehicle traffic before kick-off on football game days to allow for a pedestrianfriendly zone known as Helluva Block Party.

Two game-day traditions—Wreckfest and Yellow Jacket Alley—will also move from Callaway Plaza to Helluva Block Party on the south end of the stadium. The relocation would have become necessary in future seasons to avoid construction of the Student-Athlete Performance Center.

In calling North Avenue the “front porch” to Bobby Dodd Stadium and campus on football game days, Georgia Tech Athletic Director J Batt says

FOR MORE INFORMATION

about Alumni Association game-day experiences, visit gtalumni.org. For the latest information about North Avenue changes, visit ramblinwreck.com

these changes will allow Georgia Tech Athletics to take advantage of one of the most visible and vibrant areas of campus, just south of the stadium.

“The area is also surrounded by some of Georgia Tech’s most iconic locations, including the Tech Tower lawn, which allows us to merge the great traditions of our campus with the enhanced atmosphere that we plan to bring to the area surrounding Bobby Dodd Stadium on game days,” Batt wrote in a letter to fans this spring.

YOU’RE INVITED

Located directly across from the stadium on North Avenue, the Georgia

Tech Alumni Association will host pre-game festivities outside the Alumni House in the Basil Garden. Stop by to take pictures with the Alumni Association’s Wreck, score swag, and meet fellow alumni on game day.

In recognition of leadership support to Roll Call, Leadership Circle donors will be hosted at an invite-only North Avenue Leadership Social at the Alumni House on game days. Leadership Circle members can connect before the game and enjoy snacks, swag, and more at an exclusive event in the Griffin Ballroom before joining the new pre-game experience on North Avenue.

GOLF FINISHES RUNNER-UP IN NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

AFTER AN IMPRESSIVE SEASON, THE YELLOW JACKETS FOUGHT FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP AGAINST FLORIDA.

BY GEORGIA TECH ATHLETICS

GGEORGIA TECH GOLF finished as the NCAA Championship runner-up after battling No. 2–seeded Florida in the final match on May 31, falling 3-1, at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Florida won the first pairing of the match before the Yellow Jackets gained momentum, taking the lead in the four remaining matches. But the Gators grinded it out down the stretch to pull away. Georgia Tech, which entered the championship as the No. 11 seed and finished fifth in the stroke-play portion, came up just short of the first title in program history.

The Yellow Jackets were led by Coach Bruce Heppler, who is in his 28th year at the helm of the program.

“There is not a better group of

student-athletes in college, and I know that for sure. They did a lot of good stuff, and we’ll just keep coming back again,” says Heppler, who was named an Honorary Alumnus in 2018 by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association.

TECH’S NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

Georgia Tech has reached the NCAA Championship finals 32 times since 1985 (33 times in program history). The Yellow Jackets have qualified for match play five times since the advent of the stroke-play/match-play format in 2009, previously finishing third in 2010, second in 2011 and 2013, and fifth in 2014.

Before this year, Tech lost in the quarterfinals each time, except for 2013, when the Jackets lost in the semifinals. Tech has been the runner-up in the NCAA Championship five times (1993, 2000, 2002, and 2005, before the introduction of match play, and now

2023). The Yellow Jackets have finished in the top eight of stroke play 16 times.

ACC CHAMPIONS

In April, Georgia Tech won its 19th title at the Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Golf Championship at the Country Club of North Carolina.

Senior anchor Ross Steelman secured the ACC title for the Yellow Jackets by sinking a bending, downhill 27-foot birdie putt on No. 16 for a match-clinching win over the Demon Deacons’ Andrew McLauchlan. The win, which came 24 hours after Georgia Tech ran away with the stroke-play competition by 16 shots, gave the Yellow Jackets 11 ACC men’s golf titles over the past 17 seasons and 19 overall—tying Wake Forest for the most in league history.

The Yellow Jackets earned automatic qualification into the NCAA Tournament with the championship.

ALUMNUS ANNOUNCES FALCONS’ NFL DRAFT PICK

DID YOU RECOGNIZE THIS YELLOW JACKET ON STAGE?

BY CHRIS QUIRK

CHRIS MOORE, EE 06 , and his young mentee, 16-yearold Shane Gifford, took the stage on the first day of the NFL draft with Commissioner Roger Goodell. With more than 60,000 fans in attendance at historic Union Station in Kansas City, and millions more watching the broadcast, Gifford was tasked with revealing the eighth overall pick. After being introduced by Goodell, with Moore at his side pumping up the crowd, Gifford stepped up to the podium—and hesitated. Moore gave him a hand signal to take a breath. In front of the boisterous crowd, Gifford quickly gathered himself and announced that the Atlanta Falcons had selected running back Bijan Robinson from the University of Texas. A delighted Robinson joined the trio on stage and shared hugs with Goodell, Moore, and a beaming Gifford. A job well done.

Moore is a volunteer with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kansas City, and the invitation to take part in the marquee draft event was part of the NFL’s Inspire Change initiative.

Moore has been mentoring Gifford since the boy’s father died of brain cancer six years ago. Moore himself lost his mother to brain cancer at around the same age the boy was when his father passed, and it was one reason among many that made Moore feel

that he was a natural choice to mentor Gifford. “Given what he’s been through, I thought it would take some effort to get through to him, but it was the complete opposite,” Moore says. “He ran to the door when I got there, and we met, and he started rattling off questions. We hit the ground running for sure.”

Some might imagine being a Big Brother or Big Sister would be a formidable commitment, but Moore doesn’t see it that way. “These kids just want someone to be with, someone to throw a football with, or pick up that other video game controller,” he says. “It’s not so much that you are dedicating more time to your little [brother], it’s that you are just finding ways to integrate him into your existing activity. So if you were going to a ball game or movie, you now just have a built-in plus-one.”

When Moore moved to Kansas City in 2009, he soon befriended other

alumni. “Chris is the kind of guy that lights up the room,” says Michael Van Epp, CE 03. Together with Moore and other alumni, they established a Kansas City Alumni Network. They host send-offs for new students and created a grant for Tech students entering STEM fields.

“[Moore] has philanthropy in his heart, and was volunteering for Wayside Waifs, an animal shelter, and the SPCA, before becoming a Big Brother,” Van Epp adds.

When asked why he became a Big Brother, Moore pauses. “It’s not an intentional, top-of-mind thing for me,” he says. “I always feel the need to give back, but I’m the baby of three boys, and I felt that throughout my lifetime I was given a lot, and not having younger siblings, I couldn’t be on the other side of that. I was the first in my immediate family to graduate from college, and I’ve been given so many blessings, I felt I had to do something.”

DDAMON STOUDAMIRE , wellknown throughout the basketball world for his success as a player and coach at the collegiate and professional levels, has been named the 15th head coach in Georgia Tech men’s basketball history.

Stoudamire comes to Georgia Tech after most recently serving as an assistant coach of the Boston Celtics, who currently sit atop the NBA’s Atlantic Division standings. He was with the Celtics for most of two seasons, after a successful five-season stint as the head coach at the University of the Pacific, where he was named West Coast Conference Coach of the Year in 2020. He was also the recipient of the Ben Jobe Award, given to the nation’s top

STOUDAMIRE NAMED MEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH

FORMER NBA STAR DAMON STOUDAMIRE JOINS THE YELLOW JACKETS FROM THE BOSTON CELTICS’ COACHING TEAM.

BY GEORGIA TECH ATHLETICS

minority men’s basketball head coach.

Stoudamire established himself as one of his generation’s premier players when he was a three-time allconference performer, the 1995 Pac 10 co-Player of the Year, and a consensus first-team All-American at Arizona, where he played for four seasons from

1991 to 1995. He helped lead the Wildcats to the Final Four as a junior in 1994 and was a finalist for the 1995 Wooden Award for the national player of the year. His amateur career also included helping lead the U.S. to the gold medal in the 1993 World University Games and the bronze at the 1994

GETTING TO KNOW DAMON STOUDAMIRE

Hometown: Portland, Ore.

Alma Mater: Univ. of Arizona

Playing Experience:

1991–95: Univ. of Arizona

1995–98: Toronto Raptors

1998–2005: Portland Trail Blazers

2005–08: Memphis Grizzlies

2008: San Antonio Spurs

Coaching Experience:

2008–09: Rice Univ. (director of player development)

2009–11: Memphis Grizzlies (assistant coach)

2011–13: Univ. of Memphis (assistant coach)

2013–15: Univ. of Arizona (assistant coach)

2015–16: Univ. of Memphis (assistant coach)

2016–21: Pacific Univ. (head coach)

2021–23: Boston Celtics (assistant coach)

Coaching Awards: Ben Jobe Award; West Coast Conference Coach of the Year (2020)

Goodwill Games.

His impressive professional career included stints with the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trail Blazers, Memphis Grizzlies, and San Antonio Spurs. Following the conclusion of his NBA

playing career in 2008, Stoudamire immediately embarked on his coaching career, beginning as director of player development at Rice University .

After helping lead Memphis and

Arizona to four conference championships and four NCAA Tournament berths (including back-to-back Elite Eight appearances at Arizona) in six seasons, Stoudamire was hired as the head coach at Pacific University in 2016.

“I am humbled and honored to be the head coach at Georgia Tech,” Stoudamire says. “It is an incredible honor to be entrusted with leading such a tradition-rich program. I am excited to get to work with the goal of consistently having our team compete at the championship level that we all know we can and should compete at. I’m proud to represent Georgia Tech and can’t wait to walk out of the tunnel and onto the floor at the Thrillerdome in front of our fans. Go Jackets!”

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Stoudamire was most recently assistant coach of the Boston Celtics.

IN THE WORLD

RACING FOR EACH DAY

Andrea Lytle Peet was diagnosed with ALS in 2014 and told that the average life span of people with the disease is a few years. She’s defied all odds and become the first person with ALS to complete a marathon in all 50 states.

DIAGNOSED WITH ALS, ANDREA LYTLE PEET WENT FROM COMPETING IN TRIATHLONS TO WALKING WITH A CANE WITHIN A FEW MONTHS. HER MEMOIR SHARES HER INCREDIBLE JOURNEY TO BECOME THE FIRST PERSON WITH ALS TO COMPLETE 50 MARATHONS IN 50 STATES.

ANDREA LYTLE PEET, M CRP 09 , had a crazy goal. Diagnosed in 2014 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig’s disease, she struggled to accept that three years is the average life span of people with this progressive disease that attacks nerve cells. Since then, she has managed to complete 50 marathons in 50 states by pedaling a recumbent trike and has raised $1 million for ALS research.

Go On, Be Brave , a feature documentary about her life, is playing at film festivals, and her memoir, Hope Fights Back (Pegasus Books), comes out this fall. We caught up with Peet at her home in Raleigh, N.C., where she swims, does Pilates, bikes, and plans future races.

BY GEORGE SPENCER

Q: Swallow bird tattoos are a symbol of hope in the ALS community. Before your diagnosis, would you have ever gotten a tattoo?

I was a goody-goody two shoes. I didn’t take a drink until I was 21. When I reached my second anniversary of living with ALS, I wanted to make a mark literally to remember that milestone. Soon I will get my ninth blue swallow.

Q: What did Tech teach you about life?

Georgia Tech taught me that cities are a million different decisions made by humans. And it taught me that what we should all strive for is not what is in this moment— instead we should look down the road and do things to benefit generations to come.

Q: Your master’s at Tech is in City and Regional Planning?

That’s what I was working in when I started getting symptoms. My love of exploring cities comes from my Tech education. In a marathon you explore them from the ground level, so I loved getting to see New Orleans, Oakland, Brooklyn, and Atlanta.

When we went back to Atlanta, 10 years had passed since I’d been there. Pedaling around and seeing how much the city changed reminded me why I went into city planning in the first place.

Q: Was writing the book a marathon experience? It was a sprint. I loved revisiting my time doing marathons, because when you’re hopping from race to race, you don’t have time to reflect. Writing the book really helped me appreciate what I accomplished.

Q: Tell me about your husband, David. He allows me to do what I do. He’s always sacrificing for me, and I try to do what I can to make it a true partnership. We’ve been together 20 years and married for almost 14. We have fully grown up with this disease. It derailed his life as well. All you can do is do the best with the time you have.

Q: Before your diagnosis, were there things you took for granted?

The ability to walk, the ability to talk. I never understood how magnificent the human body was until I learned about motor neurons and how they connect your brain to your muscles. You lift your arm, and you think it’s automatic, but

a magnificent set of processes happen spontaneously to make that possible, and when that got taken away, I realized how precious health is.

Q: What else have you learned these past few years?

Your life priorities come into focus really quickly when you’re given the news you’re going to die soon. As a city planner, I always wanted to leave the world a better place. When I got my diagnosis and realized there aren’t effective treatments, it made me want to leave the ALS world a much better place than when I found it. That’s why we’re raising money for ALS research.

At first, I struggled at times, because it’s such a fastprogressing disease. In four months, I went from doing a half Ironman triathlon to walking with a cane, so I’m glad I’m still alive and still doing marathons. It changes your perspective on how precious life is and how quickly your life can change.

Q: You’ve done more with your life than most people. How has that changed your outlook? The longer I live, the more I get back into the day-to-daylife problems everyone worries about, and then I have to stop myself and remember that I’m not even supposed to be here.

“YOUR LIFE PRIORITIES COME INTO FOCUS REALLY QUICKLY WHEN YOU’RE GIVEN THE NEWS YOU’RE GOING TO DIE SOON.”

Andrea Lytle Peet and husband, David, in 2011 before her diagnosis.

Completing her 50th marathon in Alaska on May 28, 2022.

CALLED TO SERVE AND SHARE

JIM BROWN, BIO 74, M.D., PASSES DOWN HIS SIGNIFICANT SURGICAL EXPERTISE TO THE NEXT GENERATION OF AFRICAN SURGEONS.

BY KRISTIN BAIRD RATTINI

Dr. Jim Brown has dedicated his life to improving access to surgical care around the world.

AS PART OF the Hippocratic Oath, doctors swear to “gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.” Surgeon James “Jim” Brown, Bio 74, exemplifies that vow.

During his 14 years in Cameroon as program director and chief of surgery for the Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons (PAACS), Brown persevered through a violent civil conflict, considerable gaps in resources and cross-cultural challenges to train the next generation of African Christian surgeons. The 21 general surgeons and three head-and-neck surgeons who graduated from the five-year residency program during Brown’s tenure now practice in nine African countries—in some cases, as the only specialist in a region of millions.

“Even though we’re a global world now and there are a lot of connections, billions of people don’t have access to basic medical and surgical care,” Brown says. “My dedication to training surgeons in Africa was about trying to make a difference in that significant problem.”

Brown found his calling during his sophomore year at Georgia Tech. Through his participation in the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, he embraced his faith and the spirit of serving others. “My desire to study medicine came out of my interest in wanting to serve people,” he says.

His 20-year surgical career with the U.S. Navy took him on multiple deployments, from the Arabian Sea to Japan to Bosnia and Herzegovina. “I worked in some austere environments,” he says. “I learned a lot about

leadership, working with a team, and focusing on the mission. All of those became very valuable later for me.”

Upon retirement from the Navy in August 1998, Brown joined a private surgical practice in Danville, Virginia, a poor, rural area with a high percentage of unemployed and uninsured residents. He also started participating in medical mission trips across Latin America, Asia, and Africa. A 2003 trip to Cameroon, an ethnically and geographically diverse country of 28 million people in West Africa, opened Brown’s eyes to the human

toll resulting from the lack of surgical care there. “I had never seen such suffering and deprivation,” he says. He operated on mangled extremities, head injuries, kidney and bowel obstructions, and other critical cases. “I was overwhelmed by the number of patients needing urgent surgery, and I was unprepared for many of the cases,” he says. Brown connected with the non-denominational service organization PAACS and moved to Cameroon with his wife, Carolyn, in 2008. “I was drawn by PAACS’ vision for training African doctors who stay in Africa,”

“BILLIONS OF PEOPLE DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO BASIC MEDICAL AND SURGICAL CARE,” BROWN SAYS.

Mbingo Baptist Hospital is in Bamenda, in northwestern Cameroon.

he says. “It multiplied my service 100fold, because I was not only treating patients but training surgeons who were nationals treating patients.”

PAACS residents agree to remain in Africa for five years, a period equal to their training. PAACS’ 150-plus graduates across 17 training sites have all stayed. “That’s a remarkable legacy,” Brown says.

By its peak in 2017, Brown had greatly expanded the surgical residency program at Mbingo Baptist Hospital in Bamenda. The clinic had grown from a single room with a curtain between two stretchers to seven private exam rooms. In 10 modern operating rooms, surgeons treated more than 10,000 cases annually, resulting in tremendous improvements in patient outcomes. Several dozen international physicians visited each year. Brown started collaborating with Stanford University and Johns

Hopkins University on research projects. He’d secured accreditation for the program. And he saw a transformation in his students’ approach, from the rote memorization of their prior training to an empowered, proactive mindset.

“We taught them not just surgery but a whole new way of creative thinking,” Brown says. “I saw them grow and learn. That moment when the light bulb goes on, when you’ve taken them through something they’ve never done before and they get it and it’s now theirs, that is really rewarding.”

After an armed conflict broke out in Bamenda, Brown was forced to suspend the residency program from November 2018 until January 2020. The hospital was declared a neutral zone, and for months Brown was the only general surgeon on site, treating gunshot victims from both sides of

the conflict. “I worked under difficult circumstances that make you think, ‘How do you go on?’” he says. “But my faith is absolutely foundational to that. I couldn’t do it on my own strength.”

In June 2022, Brown retired at age 70 from his PAACS post and relocated back to the States. Brown still assists remotely and travels back and forth to Cameroon and other PAACS sites to share his considerable expertise.

In October 2022, the American College of Surgeons honored Brown with its Academic Global Surgeon Award, which recognizes those committed to making significant contributions to surgical education and care in regions of inequities. “My identity is so tied to this idea of bringing quality surgery to the world’s poor,” he says. “To be recognized for that is very gratifying.”

Clockwise from left: Mbingo Baptist Hospital; Brown and his wife, Carolyn; Brown, wearing his GT surgical cap, in surgery with two PAACS residents.

A belt, a pin, a painted rock, a sticky note. Every day, acts of kindness slip by us unnoticed. If you look closely, though, the stories of compassion and goodwill in the Georgia Tech community are as abundant as pennies left on Sideways’ grave come finals week. Like the pennies, these objects were all found on campus—a belt donated to Campus Closet, a pin from a sorority that became a student’s support group, a painted rock left outside Skiles Classroom Building offering hope, and a note pinned to a board in the Van Leer Building.

Although we often celebrate the grand achievements of Georgia Tech and its alumni, there are many ways that Ramblin’ Wrecks are making the world a better place.

On the next pages, we showcase those acts of kindness—both big and small—that demonstrate how alumni and others in the Georgia Tech community are living out the Institute’s motto of “Progress and Service” by showing kindness and compassion to those in need.

fraternities and soror

raise $400,000 annually Omega, the sorority that

SMILE, or Spreadin g Messages In Lo & to buildin g a happier Georgia Tech.

messages of hop e to recognize Sexual Assault

Encouragement, is a student organization dedicated This April, the group painted teal rocks with Awareness month.

During finals, students leave notes

This anonymous note was posted of encouragement throughout campus in the Van Leer Buildin g .

This belt was donated clothing to Tech’s to students through

with other items of STAR Services.

several resources available Campus Closet, one of

CHANCE ENCOUNTER SHOWS THE

Two Yellow Jackets might meet for the first time, but do they ever meet as strang ers? Through a mutual friend named George P. Burdell and the correct response to What’s the Good Word?, alumni enjoy ready-made camaraderie wherever their paths might cross. That could be why it was natural for Martin Teem, IM 69, and his wife, Faith, to strike up a conversation in the Hartsfield-Jackson Airport with a man at their gate whose outfit told them he was undoubtedly, unequivocally, a Yellow Jacket to the core.

“Georgia Tech hat, scarf, pants, shirt, shoes—if they had it available, he had it on,” Teem remembers. “I looked at him and said, ‘I’ve got to meet this guy.’”

The day before, Teem and his family were in the stands at Bobby Dodd Stadium for the game against the Citadel Bulldogs. Teem’s Tech spirit runs deep. “If they open Grant Field, I’m there.” His seven-person crew, which includes three sons—the oldest of whom also went to Georgia Tech—attend every home game they can. Teem has even traveled so far as Dublin, Ireland, or incredibly, Athens, Georgia, to cheer on the White and Gold.

So it was a special occasion for him to spot a Yellow Jacket decked out in more Tech regalia than he was. The traveler was Oscar Esquibel, who got out in 1981 with a degree in building construction. As a student, Esquibel arrived on campus in the late ’70s a day before his residence hall opened. Undeterred, he found an unlocked door in the MathesonPerry Residence Hall and spent the night in a vacant room. The next morning, he discovered he had the right room number but the wrong dorm. He was supposed to be in the

Perry dorm. The mistake didn’t change how he felt about Tech. “You know the feeling you get when you first meet someone and you know if it’s going to go well or not? I felt right at home at Tech,” Esquibel says.

He became a die-hard Yellow Jacket fan, even flying across the globe during his early career to attend home games on The Flats. He would fly from London on the weekends and be back in the office before most of his coworkers arrived Monday morning.

At the airport, Teem introduced himself and the two quickly dove into a conversation about football and Georgia Tech. Esquibel was heading to Houston after attending the same football game the day before. As an estimating director for KBR (Kellogg Brown & Root), Esquibel is based in Edmonton, Alberta, but also works in Houston. He was at the gate that September in 2019 hoping to find an earlier flight back to Texas.

For his part, Teem was heading to Houston’s M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. Not long before, he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. His doctor in Atlanta, hoping to soften the news with the high survival rates, had told him, “something else will probably kill you first.”

“At the time, we were expecting our first grandchild,

Oscar Esquibel (left) and Martin Teem ride in the Ramblin’ Wreck Parade.

so that response was not an affirmative enough solution,” Teem says. He did his research, consulted friends who had been diagnosed with cancer, and made an appointment at the renowned cancer center for a second opinion on his treatment.

About 15 minutes into their conversation at the airport, Teem told Esquibel why he was heading to Houston. What came next completely surprised him. Esquibel turned to Teem and his wife and said, “I have a condo in Houston, but I’m currently working in Edmonton, so if you find you need to spend any significant amount of time in Houston, you’re welcome to stay there.”

“KINDNESS OUT OF A CLEAR BLUE SKY”

Teem says he was taken aback by the generous offer from someone he had met only moments before. He thanked him and the two exchanged numbers before parting ways.

During the trip, Teem learned that he would need to return to Houston to undergo several weeks of radiation treatment.

He called Esquibel.

“You know, you don’t have to do this, but if you were serious about us staying there, it looks like we’ll be there for a period of time,” he remembers saying.

Esquibel said he’d fire up the cable on the T.V. Teem and his wife stayed for 10 weeks during his radiation treatment.

“The kindness Oscar showed us just out of a clear blue sky was astounding,” Teem says. “It’s an incredible example of Georgia Tech brotherhood.”

Teem is now cancer-free, and last year he saw his grandchild attend her first Georgia Tech football game.

FROM STRANGERS TO CO-PILOTS

Since the chance encounter at the airport, the two Ramblin’ Wrecks have become friends, calling once or twice a month to catch up on their plans, their families, and of course, football.

During Homecoming Weekend last year, their families enjoyed dinner together and Teem, a collector of classic cars, asked Esquibel to be his co-pilot in the Ramblin’ Wreck Parade.

Before the game, the two made their way down Ferst Avenue, waving to the crowd from a 1967 gold Lincoln Continental convertible.

Esquibel says there was no hesitation in his mind that day in the airport about offering a fellow Tech grad a place to stay.

“As a Georgia Tech grad, you’re well aware of what that other person has gone through—the good, the bad, and the ugly. And it’s hard to explain, but there are certain characteristics that all Tech grads have,” Esquibel says. “We got through it and we’re all so much better for it.”

–Jennifer Herseim

outout to suppo r t groups. They are neces sary f o r s u r v i v al at GT

–Anne (Co x) Lancaster, M 80 Mine was my sorority (Al p h a C h i O mega) . ”

Alpha Chi Omega, Blueprint

In the summer of 2021, Lauren Rice, Mgt 11, then age 33, perched beside her parents and twin brother in their beach condo, the sloshing waves and soft white sands of St. Augustine in the distance, as older sister Kristen spilled the news. Her kidneys were failing, Kristen told them. And she

Lauren immediately pulled out her phone and did what most of us do when we don’t know where to begin: go down an internet rabbit hole. The first step to donating a kidney, she learned, was to make sure she was a match. That night, Lauren submitted her first donor application.

The process involved months of blood tests, urine tests, medical scans, EKGs, X-rays, even psychological exams.

“Let’s just say our mom was a wreck,” Lauren says. “But the only part I was nervous about was being told I wasn’t a match.” Spoiler alert: She was a match.

The Georgia Tech alumna has always looked up to her self-sufficient older sister who’s five years her elder, she says.

Now a lawyer and mother living in Florida, Kristen remains an independent soul. She’s the kind of person who never wants anyone to worry about her, the kind of person who always steps up when someone needs help.

It was Kristen and her love of viola that inspired Lauren to pick up the violin as a kid. And without a childhood devoted to orchestra, Lauren would have never met her high school sweetheart-turned-husband.

“I just knew it had to be me,” Lauren says, of being an organ donor.

During the months of testing and waiting in between appointments for results, Lauren and Kristen spent more time together in Florida, and a previously private Kristen began to open up more, to be vulnerable with her sister in ways she might not have otherwise.

“The entire process added a new dimension to our relationship,” Lauren says.

But becoming a donor and going through several rounds of testing, not to mention the anxiety of potential for the

“I just knew it had to be me,” says Lauren Rice, Mgt 11 (right), of becoming an organ donor for her sister.

surgery to fail—it can be an isolating experience, she adds.

She found solace in Facebook groups like Kidney Donor Athletes, members of whom got together for 5Ks, marathons, and climbing adventures. Another small local group of Georgia donors gathered for Braves games and other social events. Connecting with fellow donors, Lauren says, really helped soothe the uneasiness.

The night before the transplant in December 2021, both sisters lay in their hospital beds texting each other from their respective rooms. The rest of the family had driven down to Orlando for the procedure and spent the night at the Bartch Transplant House for families of transplant patients.

Around 2 a.m., Kristen snuck into her baby sister’s room like they were kids again.

“Neither of us could fall asleep,” Lauren says. “And I think she just wanted to check on me.”

The surgeries were successful, and today, both sisters remain healthy and closer than ever. They wear matching “Kidney Buddies For Life” T-shirts with pride and send each other Taylor Swift lyrics over text.

One lyric in particular from Swift’s Evermore—“Long story short, I survived”—has become especially meaningful to Kristen, who recently attended Swift’s Tampa concert with her daughter.

When asked if she would consider her kidney donation an act of kindness, Lauren immediately says no.

“I just see it as something I could do to help my sister, to give back to her for being there through the ups and downs. If anything, it just feels surreal,” Lauren says. “I mean, I shared a womb with my brother—and now a kidney with my sister.” –Fiza

Pirani

“In the early ’80s, D r. Gus Giebelhaus, a legend at Tech who taught history, would occasionally have an actor dres sed as someone from history roam into clas s and speak to us to make the history les son come alive. He alway s went the extra mile for his students. A g reat profes sor! ” – Bill Blackstock, EE 86

“Tommy Klemis of Junior’s G rill. His kindnes s and food were ‘Chicken Soup For the Soul.’ ”

–Kurt William Kraft, M 84

When Yellow Jackets look back at their days on campus, their most meaningful memories might revolve around Bobby Dodd Stadium, Junior’s, or the student center. But for Linda Griffith, ChE 82, the campus infirmary will always be near and dear to her heart as a place of tremendous kindness and caring.

Starting in her early teens, Griffith suffered from extremely painful and heavy periods. At the time, she didn’t know their cause: endometriosis, a disorder in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus migrates elsewhere in the reproductive system and abdomen. But Griffith knew the debilitating symptoms all too well.

“The pain was astronomical,” she says. “I would be screaming and crying. I would feel nauseated and often throw up and faint.”

She vividly recalls feeling so sick during a morning class in the Chemistry Building that she left to return to her dorm. She didn’t make it there. “I passed out on the path,” she says. “When I woke up, I had no idea where I was.” The classmate who found her drove her to the infirmary.

“The infirmary was this haven for me,” she says. “The

nurses were extremely happy to care for women students. They were very sympathetic; they understood what I was going through.” There were no effective over-thecounter pain remedies available at that time, so the nurses would give Griffith a shot of Demerol, a powerful narcotic. She would sometimes have to stay overnight or a couple of days until the pain and the medicine’s side effects passed.

Griffith returned to the infirmary numerous times during her years at Tech. “I would feel like I was at the end of my rope, and the nurses would be so welcoming and caring,” she says. “There were not many places at Georgia Tech where it was OK just to be a girl and have this ‘girl thing’ going on. The nurses understood. They were amazing.”

As Griffith’s pioneering career in tissue engineering at MIT and the severity of her endometriosis advanced in tandem (leading to a hysterectomy in 2001), she found that the compassion and comprehension she’d experienced at the infirmary were sorely lacking elsewhere. She was outraged when a female physician accused her niece of making up her severe symptoms. And she was frustrated that funding for endometriosis research was scarce, despite the fact that 10 percent of women of reproductive age worldwide suffer from the disorder.

“The infirmary was this haven for me,” says Linda Griffith, ChE 82.

DUNCAN O’BOYLE

After winning the MacArthur Fellowship in 2006 for “shaping the frontiers of tissue engineering and synthetic regenerative technologies,” Griffith started pivoting the focus of her own cutting-edge research toward endometriosis. In 2009, she founded the MIT Center for Gynepathology Research to accelerate earlier diagnosis and more successful treatment of endometriosis.

“We’ve changed the conversation about the nature of the disease,” she says. She has created complex tissue models of patients’ lesions to test potential treatments. She has called for a “moonshot in menstruation science” to close the funding gap and advance the “FemTech” that offers better solutions for women’s health needs. She has championed a molecular classification for endometriosis, similar to that used for breast cancer. And she has succeeded in persuading specialists to stop using the word “benign” to describe a condition that has caused her and millions of other women pain, infertility, and hardship.

“I have a unique position,” she says. “I come as a patient who has had endometriosis and breast cancer, so I am very familiar with the biology of these processes. But I’m also a well-respected scientific engineer. And so the clinicians I interact with are excited because I can come at them with questions informed not only by my own experiences but that of other patients.” –Kristin

Baird Rattini

“The staff in the Civil Engineering office who looked the other way when I was making copies for my master’s thesis on the day it was due. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to turn it in that day with 15 minutes to s pare. ”

–Jonathan Mus ser, C E 8 7, MS C E 89

The student g roup sMILE places hearts on campus at the

Russell Fraser, CE 65, was finishing his first year when he decided to give the School of Architecture a try. “That lasted for three quarters, and I dragged my tail back over to Bobby Dodd Way to the Civil Engineering building and begged Dr. Schutz (Director of the School in the 1960s) to readmit me, which he did!” Bill Schutz’s kindness didn’t end there. Two years later, Fraser was called into the director’s office with no explanation given. “With bated breath, I trembled in the waiting room waiting for the bad news (Navy ROTC disqualified? Available for draft? 60-hour catalog no longer sufficient?) I was invited to sit down with him at his conference table where I could see my entire course history laid out. Dr. Schutz looked me in the eye and said, ‘Well young man, I think you have suffered enough. How would you like to graduate this month?’ I have since darkened the halls of several more academic institutions and can say that Dr. Schutz was in a class of his own when it came to looking out for all students, especially for those who needed a little help.”

In 1970, William Bulpitt, ME 70, MS ME 72, became captain of the mechanical engineering team involved in the Clean Air Car Race. Sam Shelton was faculty advisor. “That summer, I had been to the Air Force ROTC summer camp in Charleston and took my final pre-commissioning flight physical,” Bulpitt remembers. “I found out I couldn’t go to pilot school as my left eye had dimmed during my senior year. That limited the possible assignments I could have in the Air Force. The ones I did want required advanced degrees. I talked with Dr. Shelton, and he immediately suggested I go to graduate school and he could help me get a full-ride fellowship. He did it, and I was able to get an educational delay from the U.S. Air Force. I did my thesis on automobile air pollution that involved the construction of a new emissions lab for the ME School. That ended up being one of the more satisfying accomplishments of my career, and certainly one of my biggest achievements at Tech. When I went on active duty at Eglin AFB in Florida, Dr. Shelton had me connect with one of his old colleagues from the Jet Propulsion Lab, and I was able to have a much more meaningful job than I would have had otherwise. These acts of mentoring certainly changed the course of my life and career, in a good way.”

Georgia Tech’s Deans of Students might be best-known for showing kindness and compassion, but there are plenty of stories of faculty members helping students in need.

Sa Shelton (center) with Georgia Tech’s 1970 Clean Air Car Race entry

“I wish I could remember the name of the professor I had for CVE mechanics of materials class. He was tough— exam problems had to be all the way right, no partial credit, because ‘the bridge could fall down.’ Quizzes could help you get up to a C, prior to the final. On the final, there were six problems. If you got six right, you got an A. Five right, you got a B, and so on. You could stay as long as you wanted. I needed to get a good grade to keep my GPA up for my scholarship. I brought him my exam in the lobby, and he graded it on the spot. Somehow, I had made a small error on one of the problems, which was going to keep me from getting the higher grade, but he had mercy and motioned for me to sit down at the table next to him and fix my small mistake. Luckily, I was an ME major, so I don’t design bridges now…” –Valerie

Maier-Speredelozzi, ME 98

“Tom Michaels taught electromagnetics (a.k.a. ECE 3025 under the old curriculum). He saw that I was struggling and reached out. Myself and a few other students would go to his office to discuss and practice the material after lecture. I still remember he was raising a puppy that was all over us when we were writing on the whiteboard. One class, he told us students that he had had a recent heart attack and was on blood-thinning medication. I remember he had his left hand bandaged from a nick, and I could see blood through it, but he was giving the lecture and writing with his good hand. I greatly admired that with everything he was going through, he was still helping and looking after his students. Later, when I completed and turned in my final exam, he looked me in the eye, shook my hand, and quietly said, ‘I’m glad you made it.’ I found out that he passed in May of 2018. A professor speaking at a different memorial (unrelated to his) posed the question, ‘What is the time constant (in reference to an electrical engineering term) of a person in ECE? When you leave the scene, how long will it be until absolutely no one walking the halls even knows who you were?’ The memories of outstanding instructors and mentors stay with you, and Tom Michaels was one of them for me.” –Blake Carris, EE 14

y s the dog was a friend to all.

Before tests, students leave pennies on her g ravestone for good luck.

Community-Minded

BY KELLEY FREUND

AAs one of the largest public research universities in the country, Georgia Tech has a ton of intellectual capital to help solve problems around the world. But what about problems that arise in Tech’s own backyard?

When speaking to the local community about the Institute, Chris Burke, who serves as Tech’s executive director of Community Relations, likes to say, “I work for you.”

“We are a public university, and public universities at their core are public good,” he explains.

“With that ethos in mind, we should do what

we can to serve the public. And how about we start with our neighbors?”

Those neighbors include some of the most disadvantaged and divested communities in Atlanta. The city is one of the worst in terms of income inequality, and perhaps these disparities are most evident along the Northside Drive border of campus, where Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the Georgia World Congress Center, and Science Square lie on the east side of the road, and vacant lots and boarded-up buildings can be seen on the west.

In recent years, Burke and his colleagues have

Georgia Tech is uniquely positioned to help communities in Atlanta and across Georgia thrive.

been working to further develop Tech as an “anchor institution.” Anchor institutions, such as hospitals or universities, leverage their economic power as well as intellectual resources to improve the long-term welfare of their local communities. By creating more community impact–related programs, such as those that give assistance to local businesses, provide

K-12 students greater access to Tech, or offer mentorship, the Institute aims to support those underserved neighborhoods of Atlanta. And as the next generation’s leaders, Georgia Tech students will play a large role in this. “We want to make sure our students understand how to be good neighbors and how to be civically minded so they can carry these lessons into their careers,” Burke says. Here, we take a look at some of the Tech organizations and people who are helping communities in Atlanta and across Georgia.

PROJECT ENGAGES

TTaylor Woods, a student at D.M. Therrell High School in Atlanta, says she always had a passion for STEM but was unsure what steps she should take to prepare for a future in the industry. Woods is not alone in this. A lack of racially and ethnically diverse mentors, limited access to advanced science courses, and socioeconomic factors affect the number of minority students who pursue a career in STEM. But a Georgia Tech program is hoping to change that narrative. When Woods heard about the Institute’s Project ENGAGES, she thought it would be the best way to pursue her interests.

Project ENGAGES (Engaging New Generations at Georgia Tech through Engineering & Science) provides high schoolers in underserved communities of Atlanta the opportunity to work for a year in a Tech research lab where they can earn real-world, handson experience in STEM fields. The program was launched in 2013 by the late Bob Nerem and Manu Platt, PhD BME 06, who wanted students who live in these communities to see themselves as future researchers at an institute like Georgia Tech.

“We want students to graduate from ENGAGES knowing that they are good enough to be absolutely anything they want to be in the field of science,” says Lakeita Servance, who serves as the program’s project manager. “We want them to know they do look like researchers.”

ENGAGES works with seven schools in Atlanta: Coretta Scott King Young Women’s Leadership Academy, B.E.S.T. Academy, South Atlanta High School, Benjamin E. Mays High School, D.M. Therrell High School, Booker T. Washington High

School, and Charles R. Drew Charter School. Interested juniors and seniors go through an application and interview process before beginning the program in the summer. During their time with ENGAGES, each student works on a unique research project in areas ranging from robotics and coding to biotechnology and aerospace engineering. Graduate students, who are also selected through an application process, serve as mentors and oversee the projects. Students also gain additional exposure to new research and medical technology through industry visits. Businesses such as Axion Biosystems, C.R. Bard, and Dendreon have provided tours to participants and educated them on their industry and employment opportunities.

Scholars participate in ENGAGES for an entire year, and Servance says the length of the program is one of the things that sets it apart.

“With an eight-week summer program, there’s just not enough time for these students to conduct research, have exposure to different opportunities, such as attending conferences, or receive mentoring,” she says. “A year-long program allows them to experience all of that.”

Five ENGAGES graduates present their research findings during a graduation ceremony this spring.

Another unique trait of the program is that students are paid for their research work. Servance says many of the students in the program come from socioeconomically challenged households, and those students often have jobs that help support their families. “We didn’t want students to have to choose between a job or pursuing their goals academically,” she says.

As an ENGAGES scholar, Woods worked on research to identify Cathepsin K, a potent human protease (meaning it breaks down proteins at a fast rate), as the main cause of elastin and collagen degradation in sickle cell–diseased arteries. Woods and other ENGAGES participants were also able to attend the Emerging Researchers National Conference in STEM, held in Washington, D.C. Servance says these conferences provide students with the opportunity to see more diversity in STEM fields, which they might not be able to witness in their local communities.

“I enjoyed getting the chance to speak with many different people from different backgrounds,” Woods says. “I also enjoyed the fact that no one treated me like a child. I was looked at as if I was an adult and had a say. These experiences continue to push me forward.”

Woods says she is considering attending Tech because of the connections she has made and because of her familiarity with the campus and lab spaces. She’s unsure of what field she wants to go into but thinks biology will allow her to keep her options open.

Since its launch, over 150 students have participated in ENGAGES. This coming year, thanks to support from the program’s partners like The Co ca-Cola Foundation, the program is able to offer double the number of spots. Servance says that’s a huge deal for a program that changes the trajecto ry for so many of its participants, some of whom go on to be first-generation college graduates. (Some are also first-generation high school graduates.)

Earlier this year, Georgia Tech received a grant from Johnson & Johnson that will provide even more opportu nities to high schoolers interested in STEM. As part of the grant, ENGAGES will

serve as the coordinating site entity for Johnson & Johnson’s Bridge to Employment (BTE) program, which will mentor and support 35 to 50 high school students who are too young to apply for ENGAGES. Servance says her hope is that BTE participants will become excited about STEM and want to apply to be an ENGAGES scholar when they become eligible.

“I think it’s important for Georgia Tech to show we are invested in pouring back into our local communities,” Servance says. “We want to retain the talent that is in our own backyard. We want these local students to see Georgia Tech as a real option. And the way to do that is to open our doors and welcome them early so that we can break down those barriers, those myths,

“We want students to graduate from ENGAGES knowing that they are good enough to be absolutely anything they want to be in the field of science. We want them to know they do look like researchers,” says Servance.

FLOURISHING COMMUNITIES COLLABORATIVE

IIn the fall of 2022, Spencer McMains and a group of fellow students in Georgia Tech’s School of Architecture came up with an interesting solution to create an affordable community space in the English Avenue neighborhood of Atlanta: use shipping containers.

This unique design project was created by the school’s Flourishing Communities Collaborative (FC2), an academic lab founded by Associate Professor Julie Ju-Youn Kim in 2017. Through the collaborative, students work in partnership with faculty and professionals to offer design solutions to neighborhoods that are traditionally disadvantaged. People in these communities often lack access to affordable housing, jobs, educational opportunities, and other quality of life factors. But according to Kim, architecture is a great way to address these critical issues.

“An act of design is an act of optimism and hopefulness,” Kim says. “How can we change this existing condition to a more desired one? Through architecture, we can strengthen our communities and promote equity, diversity, and inclusion. All of that is wrapped up in FC2.”

In the case of the community space in English Avenue, McMains and other students set out to help stabilize a historically vibrant but shrinking

neighborhood by designing a space consisting of shipping containers that could house coffee and food vendors and an art gallery, and provide a place for people to relax. The project is currently in the hands of neighborhood leaders to raise funds.

McMains says the experience taught him that architecture is not just about making pretty buildings, but having a positive impact on the community.

“The strength of a city lies in addressing the needs of its most vulnerable members,” he says. “By actively making a difference in the lives of those who often go unnoticed, we have the opportunity to produce a more sustainable and inclusive environment that benefits every resident, regardless of their circumstances.”

Associate Professor Julie Ju-Youn Kim (right) leads FC2, which offers design solutions to disadvantaged communities in and around Atlanta.

As with the shipping container project, FC2 has focused much of its work on the Westside neighborhood in recent years. Ranjitha Jayasimharao, another FC2 participant, believes it’s important for institutions like Georgia Tech to help these disadvantaged communities.

“A university is a place where there is immense opportunity for research and innovation,” she says. “I think it’s our responsibility to make an impact on immediate challenges through action and outreach. I strongly believe that through collaboration and leadership, we can create meaningful change.”

In the summer of 2022, Jayasimharao served as FC2’s building performance analyst to help the collaborative create an affordable housing prototype that would use less energy than a conventional home. But through the project, students realized some homeowners weren’t always aware of the ways they could manage their own energy consumption. For example, some didn’t know the difference between LED and incandescent bulbs.

Jayasimharao says that the group decided that an educational approach would play a bigger role in addressing environmental inequities within the existing homes. So the group created a website, Smart Old Home, to provide the community with simple and useful information on weatherization that would reduce utility burdens.

In the coming year, FC2 participants will focus their efforts on a Sustainable Mobile Learning Lab that will provide hands-on demonstrations and programming

throughout the Westside community. Kim says the lab will be deployed in spring 2024, and imagines it could also be used as a place to receive free flu shots, as a popup farmer’s market, or a place where the community can come and learn how to grow their own tomatoes.

Although the mobile lab is a simple structure, Kim says the mission behind it is important.

“I hope students see a range of ways that they can engage in this discipline we call architecture,” she says. “I hope they see how they can contribute to building more equitable environments and empower communities through design, and then implement similar kinds of strategies in their own practices.”

“The strength of a city lies in addressing the needs of its most vulnerable members,” McMains says.

Designs for The Medium in Atlanta’s English Avenue community use shipping containers to create an art and food park.

Georgia Tech students Nicole Bridges, Shaina Lofton, Cullen Whelan, and Amelia Quek worked on the FC2 project.

COMMON GOOD ATLANTA

FFormer Georgia Tech Brittain Fellow Sarah Higinbotham spent her college career studying literature, so by the time she entered Georgia State University to earn her PhD, she recognized the humanities had the power to transform people. She decided to focus her doctoral work on that concept. Higinbotham had once heard about programs that provided incarcerated people with access to higher education opportunities by connecting local college professors with prison classrooms, but discovered there was no such thing in Georgia. So she set out to see if she could teach on her own, without the backing of an official program.

After writing to 17 wardens, she began teaching at Phillips State Prison in 2008. One semester turned into two. Two semesters turned into two years. Then, along with grad school friend Bill Taft, Higinbotham officially turned their education work into a nonprofit: Common Good Atlanta.

Since their inaugural class in Phillips State Prison, Common Good Atlanta has expanded into several other prison facilities, including Metro Reentry, Whitworth Women’s, and Burruss Correctional. Over 60 professors from seven Georgia universities have taught thousands of hours of college-level courses, including Shakespeare, writing, U.S. history, art history, philosophy, neuroscience, and algebra.

“Historically, there have been gatekeepers around some of these subjects,” Higinbotham says. “In our

culture we’ve told some people they are Shakespeare material and others that they are not. These students are coming from our most vulnerable communities, in terms of things like education, healthcare, and housing, and they’ve been told by our system that they are not college material. But then they read Plato and Shakespeare, and they think, ‘Wait, I totally get this.’ They are gifted and deeply intellectual individuals.”

Eric Schumacher, a professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Psychology, first heard about Higinbotham’s work on a radio program over 10 years ago, before there was an official Common Good Atlanta. He had been doing volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity, but jokes that he wasn’t particularly handy and thought it would be a good idea to use the skills he actually had. So he reached out to the radio

“In our culture we’ve told some people they are Shakespeare material and others that they are not.”

– Sarah Higinbotham, cofounder of Common Good Atlanta

station, which put him in touch with Higinbotham. Since then, he’s taught courses in prison facilities surrounding topics of psychology, neuroscience, and stress disorders.

Schumacher says teaching in a prison classroom is a little different than teaching at a college.

“In this environment, there isn’t really that ‘sage on the stage’ dynamic, where I’m up there lecturing,” he says. “These students are very interested in the topic, and when I come to the classroom, they are ready with their questions and not inhibited about engaging in discussion. Professors don’t always get that in our typical college classes. It’s very rewarding, and also it’s a lot of fun when your students are really interested in the coursework.”

Georgia Tech’s connections with Common Good Atlanta run deep. Former Academic Director Jonathan Shelley is a former Brittain Fellow, as is the organization’s current Academic Director, Eric Lewis. Not only is Ruth Yow a former Brittain Fellow, but she currently works with Tech’s Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain and has also taught in the prison facilities. Sai Nakirikanti, Neur 20, is now a second-year medical student at Emory University and the founder of Emory Medical

“When I come into the classroom, they are ready with their questions and not inhibited about engaging in discussion. Professors don’t always get that in typical college classes.”

– Eric Schumacher, Professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Psychology and Common Good Atlanta volunteer

Common Good Atlanta volunteer Eric Schumacher with one of his former students, Tariq Baiyina.

Students for Justice. Through that organization he has inspired medical students to go into prisons through Common Good Atlanta and educate incarcerated people about health.

Current Georgia Tech students also have opportunities to be part of Common Good Atlanta. In 2016, in celebration of Shakespeare’s birthday, a group of students from the Institute visited Phillips State Prison for a combined discussion with incarcerated students on Much Ado About Nothing.

“We often rely on flattened narratives about who people are and what they’re capable of,” says Higinbotham. “So what a paradigm shift it was for these students to go from a media perception of people in prison to actually sitting in a room with them and discussing Shakespeare. The more we have proximity to people unlike ourselves, the more we begin to understand that our differences are the most valuable thing we have.”

BY THE NUMBERS

COMMON GOOD ATLANTA

8

Volunteers are professors from Georgia Tech

Al Brown and his elite team are devoted to one simple goal: matching people with properties.

35 + 4,000

College courses are taught in Georgia prison classrooms

More than

hours of college-level courses have been taught since the program began in 2008

The value of 51 years of experience and $1.65 billion in career sales...

ALUMNI HOUSE

GOING OUT WITH A BANG

Recent graduates enjoyed fireworks at Bobby Dodd Stadium as the 2023 Ramblin’ On celebration concluded. Ramblin’ On is an Alumni Association tradition that welcomes new alumni into a network like no other.

Congrats, Class of 2023!

THE BUZZ ON YOUR NEW BOARD

MEET THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND THE NEWEST MEMBERS OF THE GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES.

JOIN US in extending a warm welcome to the Georgia Tech Alumni Association’s Executive Committee and its newest trustees for fiscal year 2024. These leaders round out the 45-member governing board, with alumni spanning all six Georgia Tech colleges and representing various geographical communities, industries, and graduation eras.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

CHAIR

Betsy Bulat, IAML 04, is chair of the Alumni Association for fiscal year 2024. Bulat is a partner for Martenson Hasbrouck & Simon LLP, where she primarily practices labor and employment litigation. In addition to her degree in International Affairs and Modern Languages from Georgia Tech, Bulat earned her J.D. at Georgia State University. While a student at Tech, Bulat was a member of the Tech cross-country and track teams as well as the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority. She’s remained active since graduating, including as a mentor for current students. In 2017, she was recognized at the Gold & White Honors Gala as an Outstanding Young Alumna. Bulat lives in Atlanta.

CHAIR-ELECT, VICE CHAIR OF ROLL CALL

Tommy Herrington, IM 82, is chair-elect and vice chair of Roll Call. Herrington will become chair in fiscal year 2025. He’s a project executive at Gay Construction Company, where he has over three decades of experience working on prominent construction projects throughout Atlanta. A longtime supporter of Tech and the Alumni Association, Herrington is also a member of the School of Building Construction Advisory Board. Herrington was a student trainer while at Tech and was inducted into Tech’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1996. He lives in Conyers, Ga.

VICE CHAIR

Rita Breen, Psy 90, MS IE 92, joins as vice chair. She will become chair of the Alumni Association in fiscal year 2026. Breen is executive director of charitable giving for Georgia Power Company. She is an active Yellow Jacket, serving on the Gold & White Honors Gala sponsorship committee for several years, mentoring students through Dinner Jackets, and serving on the advisory board of the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering. Breen lives in Marietta, Ga.

PAST

CHAIR, VICE CHAIR OF FINANCE

Magd Riad, IE 01, becomes past chair and vice chair of finance. Riad is president of Marmi Stone. In addition to leading the Alumni Association Board of Trustees, Riad has served on the board of trustees for the Georgia Tech Foundation and on the steering committee for Transforming Tomorrow, the campaign for Georgia Tech. Riad lives in Atlanta.

AT-LARGE MEMBERS

Jason Byars, ME 96, will serve the second year of his two-year term through fiscal year 2024. Byars is managing director of Terreva Renewables, LLC, and lives in Atlanta.

NEW ASSOCIATION TRUSTEES

Thomas “Tommy” Antonino, BA 15, MSA 22, is a student in the JD-MBA program at the University of Chicago. He lives in Chicago.

Donald “Donnie” Beamer, Econ 05, is senior technology advisor for the city of Atlanta and lives in Atlanta.

Amy Rich, MBA 12, will serve the second year of her two-year term through fiscal year 2024. Rich is an area director with Chick-fil-A and lives in Fayetteville, Ga.

Alexia Borden, IE 01, is senior vice president of Customer and Community Engagement for Alabama Power Company and lives in Mountain Brook, Ala.

Jacky Cheng, IE 17, is a senior associate at Bridge Logistics Properties and lives in Atlanta.

Catherine Cooper, IE 90, is president of World Connections and lives in Atlanta.

Anu Parvatiyar, BME 08, will join the Executive Committee for a two-year term as an At-Large member. Parvatiyar is cofounder & CEO of Ananya Health and lives in San Francisco, Calif.

Cynthia Culbreath, IE 93, MS IE 95, is CEO of A Wonderful Change and lives in Newnan, Ga.

Adam Fuller, Mgt 93, is a principal at Homrich Berg and lives in Atlanta.

Olivia Langevine, IAML 13, is associate vice president for Institute Relations at Georgia Tech and lives in Tucker, Ga.

Kyle Porter, Mgt 04, is founder and board chair of Salesloft and lives in Atlanta.

Jim Sanders, IE 88, will join the Executive Committee for a two-year term as an At-Large member. Sanders is retired as vice president at The CocaCola Company and lives on St. Simons Island, Ga.

Greg Sitkiewicz, IE 00, is SVP, Patient Monitoring, North America at Philips Healthcare and lives in Midlothian, Va.

Miya Smith, IE 03, is a senior consultant at SEI and lives in Atlanta.

Russell Smith, Cls 98, is president of RTS Associates and lives in Braselton, Ga.

1,

3.1415926… GO!

ON SATURDAY, APRIL 22 , as the sun rose over Atlanta, 837 Yellow Jackets braved the hills of campus at the annual Dean George C. Griffin Pi Mile 5K Road Race. Georgia Tech alumni gathered with friends, family, and furry companions to participate in one of Tech’s most beloved traditions. This year’s race winners were:

Student Men’s: Tyler Talik

Student Women’s: Caitlinn Ellis

Faculty/Staff Men’s: Victor Breedveld

Faculty/Staff Women’s: Caitlin Kelly

Alumni Men’s: Masato Kan, ME 09

Alumni Women’s: Nicole Fegans, BA 22

In addition to the on-campus event, 15 Alumni Networks held satellite races in their areas. The Pi Mile 5K Road Race

is a tradition that has thrilled the Yellow Jacket community for over 50 years. Named in honor of former Georgia Tech track and cross-country coach and dean of students, Dean George C. Griffin, the first race was founded by L. McTier “Mac” Anderson, IM 67, in 1973. Originally three miles, the route expanded to 3.14 miles after 1975 and later to 5 kilometers. The current course includes a section of the Tyler Brown Pi Mile Trail, which honors 1st Lt. Tyler Brown, Mgt 01, HTS 01, who was killed on active duty in Iraq in 2004. Brown, who was president of the Student Government Association while at Tech, was an avid runner.

$450,000 RAISED FOR STUDENTS ALUMNI AND FRIENDS SHOWED THEIR SUPPORT FOR STUDENT PROGRAMS AT THE 2023 GOLD & WHITE HONORS GALA.

The event would not have been possible without the help of student volunteers and the Gold & White Honors Gala Host Committee, led by Jacquelyn Renée Schneider, BC 06, MBA 18. Before the gala, student hosts worked closely with the eight honorees, learning about each individual and their accomplishments before presenting the honoree’s story live at the event.

THIS SPRING , the Georgia Tech Alumni Association hosted the annual Gold & White Honors Gala, which recognized eight outstanding alumni and friends of Tech and raised $450,000. The funds will sponsor the next generation of Yellow Jackets by supporting the Alumni Association’s three student programs: the Student Ambassadors, the Student Alumni Association, and the Georgia Tech Student Foundation.

One of the most exciting parts of the evening was the auction, where attendees bid on one-of-a-kind Georgia Tech memorabilia, luxurious experiences, and unique art. This year, some of the high-selling auction items included a premium-quality vintage Georgia Tech letterman jacket, an Italian getaway at a private villa for eight, and a private Indian cooking class with Atlanta chef Shan Singh. Another highlight was an oak table crafted by Ronny Just from a historic white oak tree that stood along the steps of Tech Tower from 1888 to 2022.

2,

THE 51 ST PI MILE 5K ROAD RACE INCLUDED RUNNERS, WALKERS, AND STROLLERS FROM ACROSS THE TECH COMMUNITY.

‘THE VALUE OF TECH GOES BEYOND THE DEGREE’

TWO MENTOR JACKETS REFLECT ON THE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM.

BY MATT SOWELL

“I THINK that you can’t really pay back what people ahead of you have done for you. But you can always pay it forward. That’s the great thing about the program,” says Anya Skomorokhova, EE 13, MS CS 20. She’s reflecting on Mentor Jackets, a unique program of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association that pairs current students with graduates in their field. For Skomorokhova, Mentor Jackets has been a cornerstone of her professional experience. She explains that she was a part of the program while a student and quickly began mentoring once she graduated.

Interested in mentoring?

Learn more about Mentor Jackets on GT Connect at connect.

management,” says Jacob. “I wanted to learn more and was able to find a mentor who actually did that and was quite a few years ahead of me. ... I was able to get super tactical.” And while the two initially bonded over their career trajectories, the type of advice Skomorokhova provides, as well as the relationship between the two, has evolved as Jacob navigates his career.

gtalumni.org

That’s how she met George Jacob, MS ECE 20, who has studied under Skomorokhova since he was a graduate student at Tech. The pair are one of the many success stories from Mentor Jackets. They have remained friends for five years since they were paired. Skomorokhova attributes the relationship to their niche field—individuals with electrical engineering backgrounds who have transitioned into product management.

“I was evaluating a lot of career tracks during my master’s and was lucky to find this career called product

Jacob recalls a moment close to graduation when he was scheduled to interview with a big tech company. The interview, which would require prep work, was in 48 hours. The tight turnaround was stressful, which is why he reached out to Skomorokhova. “She was like ‘Hey, I can help you with a mock interview, let’s do it today,’” Jacob recalls. This type of guidance continued when it came time to negotiate a salary. “She gave me a five-step process to follow and the resources I needed,” he says.

Skomorokhova believes this type of guidance comes with being a Yellow Jacket. She says the value of Tech goes

beyond the degree. “It’s the network,” she explains, “this active community that enables everybody to win. By mentoring you’re paying it forward, which elevates the game and the community.”

Jacob agrees and is now in his second year of being a mentor himself. “If you don’t understand what your [career] options are, you can never truly make the best decision. ... I think mentorship really helps with that,” he says. “You’re talking with someone who has gone through so many things and can see things you can’t.”

Skomorokhova adds that mentoring is never a one-way street. “These folks ask you questions you haven’t asked yourself in a long time. There’s a quote about teaching as the best way to learn. So, explaining a topic to someone else actually clarifies your own thinking and refines your approach as well,” she says.

1. How do you feel about this edition?

I’m right on track for the middle-ofthe-issue panic to set in. It feels like juggling while completing a puzzle. There are a bunch of balls in the air, but you’re also critically thinking about how to put everything together. There’s always a point in the issue where I feel like all the balls are going to come falling down. But we always manage to get it done.

10 QUESTIONS FOR 100 YEARS

MEET THE GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE EDITOR.

BY MATT SOWELL

JENNIFER HERSEIM knows Georgia Tech. In her three-and-a-half years as editor of the Alumni Magazine, she has immersed herself in a culture with 138 years of history, traditions, and stories. This year, Herseim was recognized as the Alumni Association’s Golden Teammate for living out the Association’s values. As we celebrate the centennial of the magazine, it is the perfect opportunity to ask her to step away from the editor’s desk and into the (staff) spotlight.

2. What’s the most challenging part of your job?

Saying no. We can’t pursue every story. Ninety-nine percent of the time, we have to say no. We try to save stories for a future issue, particularly when we have one that would work well with an upcoming theme.

3. How do you come up with the themes?

It’s a combination of things. We listen for universal concepts about being a Georgia Tech grad that rise to the surface during interviews, and we

hear about stories and topics that interest alumni. When we get enough stories on a particular topic, that’s usually a good indication that we should plan an issue around that theme.

4. What’s your favorite issue of the magazine?

It’s a tie between the “Ethics and Tech” issue from spring 2021 and the “Failure” issue that we just put out this past winter.

5. What are some memorable moments from behind the scenes of the magazine?

Without fail, there’s some little fire that happens with every issue. Most recently, for our last cover, the photographer went out on the Chattahoochee River with the crew team. The boat he was in sank. Everyone was okay, and he was able to dry off and get back out there and take that amazing cover shot that we got.

6. What’s one thing about the magazine you wish all alumni knew?

The magazine doesn’t work as a oneway conversation. We need you to share your stories. I was recently reading the very first issue of the magazine as we mark the centennial this year. The first editor in 1923 wrote a line at the beginning of the issue that I think put it best: “The only way we can make the Georgia Tech Alumnus a real paper is for every alumnus to cooperate.” It’s still true.

7. How can alumni get in touch with you?

They can email editor@alumni. gatech.edu, keep us updated on their life events at gtalumni.org/ life, and follow us on social media.

8. What’s the best quote you’ve heard during an interview?

There are several. One was from former astronaut Richard Truly, who was recognized in 2021 with a Gold & White Honor. During our interview, as he described floating over Earth from space, he said, “I remember the colors of the Earth, the green land and the blue seas and the white clouds. And I remember flying over the Himalayas, which were already snow-covered in November. I remember floating over them.” Just hearing him describe that experience was wonderful.

9. Where do you hope the magazine will be 100 years from now?

I hope it will continue to be a place where Georgia Tech alumni can

connect with the Institute and one another. I hope it stays in step with alumni and continues to tell their incredible stories.

10. How does it feel to be the editor of a magazine that has been around for 100 years?

It’s an honor. I believe everyone has a story to tell and Georgia Tech is overflowing with great ones. I never imagined being an editor of a publication with such a variety of stories. Even in this particular issue, we have a story about an alumnus who extracts snake venom for antivenoms and then we have a story about an alumna who became the first person with ALS to complete a marathon in 50 states. Georgia Tech alumni never cease to amaze me.

“THE MAGAZINE DOESN’T WORK AS A ONE-WAY CONVERSATION,” SAYS HERSEIM.

AN EVENING TO CELEBRATE

THIS YEAR’S PRESIDENT’S DINNER: CELEBRATING ROLL CALL INTRODUCED GUESTS TO SOME OF GEORGIA TECH’S NEWEST SPACES.

ON MAY 13 , Leadership Circle donors celebrated the impact of Georgia Tech’s Roll Call at the 2023 President’s Dinner. Starting at the John Lewis Student Center, guests were treated to a tour of the brand-new Ramblin’ Reck Garage. The celebration continued to Georgia Tech’s Exhibition Hall for an evening of live music, dancing, and Tech spirit. Go Jackets!

ALUMNI HOUSE

CELEBRATE THE SPIRIT OF TECH

Leadership Circle donors of Roll Call, Georgia Tech’s Fund for Excellence, have established the tone for the future of Georgia Tech. It is the spirit of philanthropy that has sustained the Institute since its founding. And, through this spirit, Leadership Circle donors have provided the resources necessary to make the di erence between an experience of average quality and one that is extraordinary for every student and faculty member at the Institute. Give now to demonstrate your commitment to excellence and celebrate the spirit of philanthropy at Tech.

Give to Roll Call today: GTalumni.org/GiveToday

Gi

RAMBLIN’ ROLL

CLASS NOTES & ALUMNI UPDATES

PREPARED TO SURVIVE

AEROSPACE engineering student Carson Garrett appeared on the 44th season of the long-running reality television show Survivor , where contestants must survive 26

days on an island while competing in challenges against each other. At age 20 (he’s since turned 21 after filming finished), Garrett was the youngest castaway this season.

WANT TO SHARE YOUR NEWS?

You can submit your personal news, birth and wedding announcements (with photos!), and out-and-about snapshots online at gtalumni.org/life.

CLASS NOTES

MARIO BALL, BME 07, was promoted to U.S. director of sales for Cardiac Diagnostics & Commercial Execution at Boston Scientific.

ALEXIA BORDEN, IE 01, was elected to the board of directors of Coca-Cola UNITED. Borden is senior vice president of customer and community engagement for Alabama Power.

MICHAEL GOOTMAN, ME 03, was elected partner at McKinsey & Company.

JARED HASTY, MBA 16 (RIGHT), and SEAN SANDERS, MGT 06 (LEFT), both accomplished veterans in the aviation industry, have joined forces to launch Piedmont Jets, a private aircraft brokerage firm headquartered in Atlanta. By leveraging their extensive sales and piloting experience, the duo aims to provide clients with expert guidance throughout the complex process of aircraft transactions.

KAMILLAH KASSAM, BCH 17, was nominated to the Cook Society by the Graduate School at Duke University for “unapologetically defending the ideal of belonging” as the director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Graduate and Professional Student Government. Its mission is to recognize, celebrate, and affirm the presence of African American students, faculty, and staff at Duke.

BRANDON KENNEY, MBA 15, has been appointed the assistant commissioner of Operations for the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.

LOWE APPOINTED TO PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL

GEORGIA TECH track and field alumna and four-time Olympian Chaunté Lowe, Econ 08 , has been tapped for the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition. President Joe Biden announced on March 24 his intent to appoint 27 individuals, including Lowe, to the council, a federal advisory committee that aims to promote healthy, accessible eating and physical activity for all Americans, regardless of background or ability.

One of Georgia Tech’s most decorated student-athletes, Lowe earned 13 all-ACC honors, six All-America accolades, and three NCAA Championships, and she was inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. Lowe went on to become a four-time Olympian,

2008 Olympic high jump bronze medalist, American record holder, three-time World Champion, eighttime national outdoor champion, and 12-time U.S. National Champion. In 2019, Lowe was diagnosed with Stage 1 triple-negative breast cancer while training for her fifth Olympic team. She continued her training regime while undergoing chemotherapy, all while using her platform to advocate for breast cancer awareness. Through her journey, Lowe was awarded the 2021 NCAA Inspiration Award. Now a retired professional athlete, Lowe continues to inspire audiences with her story through professional speaking, advocating for health and wellness and the fight against breast cancer. –Georgia Tech Athletics

RAMBLIN’ ROLL

ONETRUST’S FOUNDER, CEO NAMED TO HENRY CROWN FELLOWSHIP

KABIR BARDAY, CS 09 , OneTrust founder and CEO, has been named to The Aspen Institute’s 2023 Class of Henry Crown Fellows. Barday joins an esteemed group of leaders chosen to apply their talents and skill sets to tackling the world’s most intractable problems and building a better society. After being nominated and

selected, Henry Crown Fellows spend four weeks over the course of two years in structured retreats, honing their leadership skills, their core values, and their vision for a good society, and looking toward the broader role they might take on in their communities and globally. Barday joins 20 other individuals in the 2023 class.

VOYLES BECOMES VIRGINIA’S SECRETARY OF NATURAL AND HISTORIC RESOURCES

TRAVIS VOYLES, M CRP 13 , was appointed Virginia’s Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources. He most recently served as oversight counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works under Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. Prior to working in the Senate, he served in multiple appointed roles at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. As secretary, Voyles will oversee five agencies that protect and restore Virginia’s natural and historic resources and advise the state’s governor on natural resource issues.

TWO GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI were among five inductees into the National Retail Federation’s list of People Shaping Retail’s Future for 2023. Erin Porter Izen, IE 01 , is the senior director of Workforce Programs for The Home Depot, building innovative solutions for business problems and

labor issues that also support underserved communities. Aman Advani, IE 07 , is the CEO and cofounder of Ministry of Supply, which leverages science to engineer more comfortable and sustainable clothing lines. Izen and Advani were honored at a gala in New York City on January 15.

PEYTON FULFORD

TECH GRADS HONORED BY NRF FOUNDATION

CLASS NOTES

BRIAN MARTZ, MBA 09, has been named the COO of Vision RNG. The U.S.–based company develops sustainable renewable natural gas from landfill gas for electricity generation.

DANNY PROVENZANO, IE 05, was promoted to vice president of West Region Industrial Engineering at United Parcel Service. He’s been with UPS for more than 17 years.

RICARDO SALDÍVAR, MS IE 77,

was named chairman of the board of directors and governance committee of Tec de Monterrey for an initial period of five years. Tec de Monterrey is a private, nonprofit committed to the quality of higher education in Mexico.

BRITTANY SCOTT, EE 12, has been promoted to assistant manager of the chemistry section at the GBI Crime Lab. In this role, Scott will be responsible for supporting the chemistry section manager in overseeing the daily operations of the section and managing the chemistry personnel.

INGRID REDMON, CHE 99, has been named as one of the honorees for the 2023 Women MAKE Awards by the Manufacturing Institute. This prestigious award is a recognition of women at all levels of the manufacturing industry who have exhibited outstanding performance and leadership.

Former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired Four-Star Navy Admiral JAMES “SANDY”

WINNEFELD, AE 78, was appointed chair of the Federal Advisory Board for Acalvio Technologies, a cyber defense technology company.

VILLARREAL APPOINTED ARTEMIS II LANDING RECOVERY LEAD

LILIANA VILLARREAL, AE 96, MS AE 97 , has been appointed as the Artemis II Landing Recovery Lead at NASA. In this role, Villarreal will be responsible for leading teams that will rehearse all the steps and procedures necessary to ensure a successful crewed flight. This will involve overseeing several underway recovery tests, in which NASA

and U.S. Navy teams will practice retrieving astronauts from a representative version of Orion at sea, before safely returning them—and Orion—back to the ship. Additionally, Villarreal’s teams will conduct tests at Kennedy Space Center to ensure they are fully prepared for a successful landing and recovery of the Artemis II crew.

LEE TAPPED FOR DEFENSE NUCLEAR FACILITIES SAFETY BOARD

PATRICIA L. LEE, MS HPHYS 92, PHD NE 98 , has been tapped for the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. In February, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Lee to the board, which oversees the nuclear weapons complex administered by the U.S. Department of Energy. Lee has over 30 years of experience in radiation protection and nuclear safety, having served 23 years at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and nearly a decade

at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She currently serves as the portfolio manager for the SRNL Digital Enterprise. In addition, Lee has served on a variety of technical, non-technical, and community-affiliated boards, including election to the Board of Directors of the Health Physics Society and appointment to the Department of Health and Human Services Citizens Advisory Committee on Public Health Service Activities and Research at DOE sites.

NASA/KIM SHIFLETT]

ALUMNUS AT IBM WINS EMMY FOR AI SPORTS TECHNOLOGY

AARON BAUGHMAN, CS 02 , won a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award with IBM on April 16. Baughman and his team were recognized for their use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in sports entertainment.

One example of their work was on display during the Masters Tournament, where users of the tournament’s app could employ AI to create personalized highlight reels of their favorite golfers.

Accepting the award at the National Association of Broadcasters convention, Baughman said, “Not only have we changed the world with sports entertainment, but we’ve changed the world and the way in which everyone consumes all these AI highlights…the future is bright.”

Baughman, a distinguished engineer and master inventor with IBM, has been with the company for 19 years and is lead of AI and Hybrid Cloud.

M c INTOSH RECEIVES BEYA PRESIDENT’S AWARD

TECH GRAD SELECTED FOR NASA’S FIRST ANALOG MARS MISSION

NASA HAS SELECTED Ross Brockwell, CE 99, as a crew member of the agency’s first one-year analog Mars mission. Brockwell, a structural engineer and public works administrator from Virginia Beach, Va., will live and work with three other crewmates in a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot habitat designed to simulate living on Mars. The mission is the first of three planned one-year analog simulations, which will allow NASA to collect data on crew health and well-being to plan for a successful crewed mission to Mars.

CHAUNCEY M c INTOSH, EE 99 , was recognized with the Black Engineer of the Year (BEYA) President’s Award at the 2023 BEYA Gala. The award recognizes exceptional career gains in government and industry, lifetime achievements, and pioneering feats.

McIntosh, who is vice president and general manager for training and logistics solutions at Lockheed Martin,

was recognized for his work leading diverse teams that produce advanced technologies for U.S. military service members. Previously, he served as vice president and general manager of Lockheed’s integrated warfare systems and sensors line of business. In accepting his award, McIntosh thanked his wife, Tamara, and daughter, Hannah. He said his success was a reflection of his faith and a result of his mother giving him the gift of curiosity that ultimately led to his passion for engineering.

He also thanked his late father, saying: “He taught me the value of helping others and [to] never stop reaching for my biggest dreams.”

“It’s been interesting trying to organize and manage the logistics of a year fully removed from normal life for a long-duration mission like the one we are undertaking,” Brockwell says. He will be the flight engineer for the analog mission, which is expected to start this summer. During the mission, the four crew members will live in the isolated habitat and will conduct simulated spacewalks. The crew will encounter environmental stressors such as resource limitations, isolation, and equipment failure. “I’m eager to see the challenges we’ll be faced with, and I’m hoping I can help uncover some effective strategies to meet them as well as ways to advance the design of the systems,” Brockwell says.

Aaron Baughman, CS 02 (center) with IBM’s Technology & Engineering Emmy.

COLLEGE OF DESIGN ALUMNA RETURNS HOME

JACQUELYN RENÉE SCHNEIDER, BC 06, MBA 18 , has joined the Georgia Tech College of Design’s Development team.

“Today is the ultimate homecoming,” she wrote, announcing her new role as a trusted advisor with the team. “I have immense gratitude when I think about my years as a student and alumna. When this opportunity presented itself again, I knew it was time to serve in this new way and make this level of commitment to our community,” she added.

It’s been 20 years since Schneider

received her acceptance letter to Tech and started her first classes in the School of Building Construction.

Since graduating, Schneider has remained an active Yellow Jacket, serving as a trustee of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association, launching

WRECKS AT WORK

an annual Scheller MBA International Women’s Day Brunch, and serving on Scheller’s Advisory Board.

In 2022, she received the Outstanding Young Alumni distinction at the Alumni Association’s Gold & White Honors Gala.

WRECKS AT WORK

DAVID SHELDON, ME 93:

“I’ll never let a Mardi Gras go by at work without properly celebrating—This is recently during the last stretch of qualifying a brand-new piece of manufacturing equipment for GE Appliances!”

#WrecksAtWork

The Alumni Association is celebrating the amazing work of our alumni. Send us your on-the-job selfies featuring cool views at gtalumni.org/wrecksatwork.

3.

MGT 07, and CHARLIE WÄRENDH, IE 07, welcomed their son, Hugo Jack Wärendh, on Sept. 1, 2022. He joins his big sister Penny as a future GT fan! Proud grandpa  HUBERT WARD LANG III, ARCH 74, and uncle ANTON WÄRENDH, EIA 13, are also Tech alumni.

WEDDINGS

LAURA ELIZABETH POWELL, PP 13, and Damon Ripley Porter were married on March 31 at the Atlanta History Center Swan House. Laura & Damon met in Washington, D.C., where they live and work as attorneys. Damon, a University of Chicago graduate, knew how much Georgia Tech meant to Laura and her family and suggested an exit with the Ramblin’ Wreck. Laura was a cheerleader at Tech and a fourth-generation Tech graduate, with both parents, multiple aunts and uncles, and a great uncle and grandfather having graduated from the Institute. One of the couple’s favorite memories was when Laura introduced Damon to Dr. Richard Barke, her favorite Tech professor, and then got to celebrate with him at their wedding!

1. AUSTIN HOPE, PSY 14, and his wife, Shari, welcomed their second son, August Charles Hope, on March 12. August joins his big brother AJ (Austin II) on the list of future Yellow Jackets.

2. KATHERINE (MALONE) LEHMANN, MGT 07, and Brad Lehmann welcomed their son, Andrew Thomas, on Sept. 14, 2022. Andrew joins big sister Clare Irene (6) and big brother Patrick James (4) as a future Georgia Tech helluva engineer!

MOLLY LANG WÄRENDH,

4. Nick White, NRE 11, and Sally White, Mgt 11, welcomed the birth of their first born, Olivia White, on Aug. 6, 2022.

OUT & ABOUT

1. SIEMENS WELCOMES GEORGIA TECH

On March 15, Siemens hosted students from Georgia Tech at its global R&D hub in Peachtree Corners. Students had an opportunity to get a hands-on experience exploring the latest EV charging technology while meeting with the company’s leaders. Siemens and Georgia Tech have enjoyed a close relationship for decades, with Siemens leaders working with professors like Professor Mike Tinskey to shape curriculum and provide subject matter

experts and with many Yellow Jackets having found their careers at the German tech company. Some of those proud Ramblin’ Wrecks at Siemens were onsite to speak with students, including John DeBoer, MS ME 04, head of Future Grid & Siemens eMobility in North America, and Barry Powell, ME 89, MS ME 91, head of Siemens Electrical Products in North America and an advisory board member of the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.

2. RUNNING FOR A CAUSE

Michael O’Neill, MSE 21, ran the Boston Marathon April 17 to raise funds for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the largest suicide prevention organization in the United States. O’Neill ran in honor of Andrew Collins, a former Georgia Tech student who tragically lost his battle with depression in 2020.

3. ON TOP OF THE WORLD

VICTOR HEAULME, AE 17, recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with his father and brother. After postponing the trip so his father, who was diagnosed with cancer, could heal from his treatment, the group decided to embark on their journey in February 2023 and dedicate it to supporting the fight against childhood cancer. They surpassed their original goal— £5,895 ($7,216) to represent every meter of Mount Kilimanjaro—and raised over £6K ($7,344).

IN MEMORIAM

WE REMEMBER & HONOR THE FOLLOWING

JOHN A. CADDELL: BUILDER & PHILANTHROPIST

1940

DEXTER C. DAVIDSON, ME 45, of Dallas, Texas, on Feb. 4.

EDWARD W. DEJON, IM 42, of La Porte, Texas, on Jan. 1.

JAMES E. “JIM” HUNGERPILLER, ME 48, of Savannah, Ga., on Jan. 3.

JOHN H. KASTANAKIS SR., EE 49, of Huntsville, Ala., on Jan. 12.

WILLIAM M. McCUTCHEON JR., ME 48, of Lakeland, Fla., on Oct. 24, 2022.

CHARLES C. RICHMOND, CLS 45, of Peterborough, N.H., on Dec. 31, 2022.

1950

JOHN W. “BILL” ADAMS, EE 59, of Cumming, Ga., on Jan. 22.

ROBERT D. “BOB” ADAMS JR., IE 56, of Matthews, N.C., on Jan. 10.

ALLAN K. ANDREWS, IM 57, of Atco, N.J., on Jan. 21.

RICHARD S. AUGUST, IM 53, MS IM 57, of Marietta, Ga., on Feb. 7.

GEORGE C. BAIRD JR., CE 54, of Atlanta, on Jan. 5.

MONROE D. BARBER, TE 57, of Mountain Brook, Ala., on Dec. 19, 2022.

ORVILLE R. BEVEL, IM 54, of Chandler, Texas, on Jan. 4.

JOHN A. CADDELL, ARCH 52, OF MONTGOMERY,

ALA.,

ON

MARCH

27. Caddell was founder of the Caddell Construction Co. and a lifelong humanitarian and philanthropist. Coming from humble beginnings sanding floors for his father’s refinishing business, Caddell’s impressive career in construction made him a major industry star on the international stage.

After graduating in 1952, he joined Blount Construction, where he soon rose through the ranks to become president and CEO, leading the company through its greatest period of growth and prosperity. In 1983, he founded Caddell Construction, which has become a multi-billion-dollar company with commercial, government, civil, and industrial building projects across the world. Caddell’s devotion to family was reflected in his company with his late wife Joyce and all his children participating in key roles in the company’s success. Caddell’s son Kirby Caddell led the company as president and CEO for many years, and grandson Mac recently stepped into this role. Caddell received numerous industry awards and recognitions, including being inducted into the Hall of Fame by both the ABC and AGC construction industry organizations.

In addition to his business success, he was devoted to his community

EDITOR’S NOTE

and giving back. John and Joyce Caddell, personally and through their foundation, donated to a wide range of educational, humanitarian, cultural, and civic organizations. John Caddell was a proud alumnus of Georgia Tech, even owning a replica of the Ramblin’ Wreck, which was a gift from his family for his 91st birthday. He was a longtime supporter of his alma mater. The John and Joyce Caddell Building, which houses the Georgia Tech School of Building Construction offices, is named after the Caddells, whose generous gift made possible the building’s renovation.

Caddell was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Joyce, with whom he had five children and celebrated a 66-year marriage that the couple often characterized as “a great and enduring love story.” He is survived by his five children: Cathy Caddell (Charlie Warnke), Michael Caddell (Cynthia Chapman), Kirby Caddell (Robin), Jeff Caddell (Ellen), and Chris Caddell (Kori); grandchildren Mac, Chad, Christine, Matthew, Andrew, Chapman, and Clea; and seven great-grandchildren.

For the In Memoriam section of the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, we will include an abbreviated version of each obituary in print. Full obituaries can be found online under Alumni Updates at gtalumni.org/magazine. To report a death, please email bioupdate@gtalumni.org.

HOOPER GORDON “PAT” PATTILLO: ESTEEMED BUSINESS LEADER

HOOPER GORDON “PAT” PATTILLO, ARCH 49, OF DECATUR, GA., ON FEBRUARY

18.

Pattillo leaves behind a legacy of principled leadership. Born to humble beginnings in 1926 in Klondike, Ga., he learned that hard work, dedication, and creativity, when supported by opportunity, can lift one far beyond one’s circumstances. That insight influenced his cofounding of Leadership Georgia, a training program for young leaders, in 1972 with J.W. Fanning. Pattillo served on the boards of educational institutions, including the University System of Georgia’s Board of Regents from 1965 to 1970, as chairman and trustee of Berry College from 1970 to 2000, and as a trustee of Agnes Scott College.

During and at the end of WWII, Pattillo served briefly with the Army Air Corps, the predecessor to the U.S. Air Force. With the help of the G.I. Bill, Pattillo attended Georgia Tech, where he was a Tau Beta Pi.

Pattillo’s father, H.A. Pattillo, and his brother, Dan, founded Pattillo Construction Company in 1952. The company soon became an industry leader and within 11 years broke ground on the Stone Mountain Industrial District, which helped boost DeKalb County and other Georgia economies. Pattillo served on multiple boards of companies: Georgia Power Company, The Southern Company, Cutler-Hammer, Inc., and Eaton

Corporation, to name a few. From 1974 to 1997, he served as chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and on the board of directors of several banks.

He was active in civic life, serving as president of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce in 1971, board member of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, president of the Decatur Rotary Club in 1963, and president of the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce.

When he retired as chairman of Pattillo Construction in 1986, he turned his attention to Guanacaste, Costa Rica, where he broke ground on the beach resort community Hacienda Pinilla in 1996. Mindful of Guanacaste’s needs, Pattillo nurtured the region’s school system with capital projects and educational resources and facilitated the development of Habitat for Humanity homes. Two of his great loves were walking the job sites with the superintendents and riding horses. Despite the demands of his work, Pattillo regularly forwarded books and articles he thought others would find helpful, often with a short personal note.

He was preceded in death by his parents, H.A. and Floree Pattillo; wife, Elizabeth “Betty” McClure; brother Daniel B. Pattillo; and eldest daughter Beth Parker. He is survived by his children Wylci Fables, Bob Pattillo, and Lynn Pattillo Cohen; eight grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.

JOSEPH D. CLEM JR., MS ME 55, of Friendswood, Texas, on Dec. 22, 2022.

JAMES R. “JIM” DELLINGER JR., IM 53, of Cartersville, Ga., on Jan. 27.

HARRY N. EDMONDSON, ME 52, of Marietta, Ga., on Dec. 31, 2022.

JESSE C. EMBRY JR., IM 54, of Dalton, Ga., on Jan. 20.

WILLIAM W. EMMETT, CE 59, MS CE 61, of Littleton, Colo., on Jan. 4.

HARLEIGH P. EWELL, ME 59, of Chevy Chase, Md., on Sept. 27, 2022.

GERALD B. “JERRY” FECHTER, EE 56, of North Charleston, S.C., on March 1.

CURTIS W. FOWLER, ME 54, of Hot Springs, Ark., on Dec. 20, 2022.

ROBERT C. FREEMAN, TE 52, of Acworth, Ga., on Dec. 18, 2022.

JOHN H. GASSLER, EE 55, of Dade City, Fla., on Dec. 22, 2022.

TEDDY GILMER, ME 57, of Trussville, Ala., on April 1, 2022.

BENJAMIN F. “BEN” GIVENS JR., IM 55, of Douglasville, Ga., on Feb. 18.

DAVID A. HADDOCK, TE 55, of Gulf Breeze, Fla., on Jan. 17.

BOBBY JOE ANDERSON: DEVOTED YELLOW JACKET & FORMER ALUMNI ASSOCIATION CHAIR

BOBBY JOE ANDERSON, IM 50, OF ATLANTA, ON MARCH 30.

Anderson, a lifelong Yellow Jackets fan, did not miss a Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate game for 76 consecutive years.

After graduating from Statesboro High School in 1945, Anderson followed in the footsteps of his father, Arnold Bremen Anderson, to attend Georgia Tech. Anderson later took great pride in seeing his own son and grandchildren become students at Tech. A four-year letterwinner in track, Anderson was a member of the Tech track team that became Southeastern Conference champions in 1949. He was also a member of ANAK, the Ramblin’ Reck Club, and Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. He was commissioned in ROTC at Georgia Tech as an officer in the Corps

of Engineers and remained on active reserve for 14 years. After graduating from Tech in 1950, Anderson joined Elliott Business Machine Company, where he worked for 13 years. He then joined Puritan/ Churchill Chemical Company where he rose through the ranks over a 28-year career with the company, becoming president in 1978 and retiring as chief executive officer and chairman in 1990.

Anderson’s love and dedication for Georgia Tech continued throughout his life. He served as president of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association Board of Trustees from 1988 to 1989, the year that the Association received recognition as the best Alumni Association in the country. He was a member of the Georgia Tech Foundation from 1991 to 1999, becoming an honorary

emeritus member of the board. In 2003, he received the Joseph Mayo Pettit Distinguished Service Award from the Alumni Association.

Anderson was a lifelong member of Second Ponce de Leon Baptist Church, where he served many years as deacon, as a member of several pastoral search committees, as chairman of the Board of Deacons, and as a Sunday school teacher.

Anderson is preceded in death by his parents, Arnold Bremen Anderson and Rubye Akins Anderson, his wife of 50 years, Louise Stanley Anderson, and his brother, Arnold B. Anderson. He is survived by his four children, Stanley E. Anderson of Atlanta, Susan Anderson Still (Phil) of Dunwoody, Ga., Virginia Anderson Mosis (Dirk) of Boerne, Texas, and Nancy Anderson Downs (Bryan) of Decatur, Ga.; nine grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and many beloved nieces and nephews.

DONALD F. HALL JR., IM 58, of Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Jan. 23.

WILLIAM H. HARRELL JR., AE 58, of Stuarts Draft, Va., on Feb. 28.

BYRON Y. HILL, CHE 59, of Sugar Hill, Ga., on Jan. 11.

JAMES O. “JIMMY” HINES, IM 59, of Bainbridge, Ga., on Jan. 5.

GEORGE H. HUNNICUTT, CHE 59, of Hacienda Heights, Calif., on Feb. 26, 2010.

JAMES C. “JIM” IVEY JR., IM 57, of Leesburg, Ga., on Feb. 13.

JOHN L. “JACK” JOHNSON III, CLS 53, of Atlanta, on Jan. 16.

FRED H. JOSEY JR., IE 59, of Cape Carteret, N.C., on Jan. 24.

EDWARD P. KADINGO, IE 58, of Atlanta, on March 1.

CRAIG K. KELLOGG, CHEM 59, PHD CHEM 63, of Statesboro, Ga., on Jan. 14.

ROBERT K. “BOB” KING, CE 59, of Amelia, Ohio, on Jan. 11.

RAY W. KNIPPLE, GE 50, of Port Charlotte, Fla., on

DARRYLE

BERNARD

Dec. 29, 2022.

L. KOUNS, CLS 58, of Savannah, Ga., on March 3.

“BERNIE” KROLL, ARCH 57, of Fountain Inn, S.C., on Feb. 20.

ROBERT E. “BOB” LEE, ARCH 54, of Wilton, Conn., on Feb. 26.

MICHAEL E. MAIJALA, CLS 57, of Lilburn, Ga., on Jan. 5.

WILLIAM R. MARTIN, IM 59, of Fair Play, S.C., on Feb. 9.

RICHARD C. “DICK” MATTISON, CHE 57, of Brookhaven, Ga., on Jan. 14.

ROY L. McCLURE, IE 59, of Kennesaw, Ga., on Oct. 19, 2022.

JERRY M. McKENZIE, IE 59, of Winston-Salem, N.C., on March 1.

JOHNNY V. MENGER, IM 59, of Columbia, S.C., on Jan. 10.

BEN L. MOORE, IM 57, of Barnesville, Ga., on Feb. 14.

BENJAMIN S. PERSONS, CE 50, of Atlanta, on Jan. 14.

STEPHEN G. “PETE” PETERSON JR., IE 52, of Raleigh, N.C., on Feb. 7.

EDWARD L. PILKINGTON, AE 58, of O’Fallon, Mo., on March 20.

JOSEPH H. POWELL, IE 50, of Huntsville, Ala., on Jan. 14.

BENJAMIN F. “FRANK” REAMES JR., IM 50, of Columbus, Ga., on Jan. 26.

WILLIAM L. RICHARDSON, CLS 50, of Atlanta, on Dec. 21, 2022.

JOHN W. ROURK JR., IM 56, of Melbourne, Fla., on March 2.

GRATTAN W. ROWLAND JR., IE 59, of Dunwoody, Ga., on Jan. 15.

MARVIN S. SCHERL, IE 59, of Germanton, N.C., on Dec. 15, 2022.

RUBLE L. SMITH, IM 56, of Knoxville, Tenn., on Jan. 21.

MELVIN W. SORROW, IE 59, of Jonesboro, Ga., on Sept. 23, 2022.

SAMUEL A. “SAM” TATUM, PHYS 59, of Newport News, Va., on Dec. 18, 2022.

GORDON W. THOMPSON, CLS 52, of Acworth, Ga., on Jan. 28.

JIMMY W. USRY, AE 59, of Newport News, Va., on Jan. 26.

WALTER B. “BRUCE” WARREN JR., EE 53, MS EE 55, of Marietta, Ga., on Feb. 17.

THOMAS W. WILKINSON, IE 54, AE 58, of Nelsonville, Ohio, on Jan. 16.

1960

THOMAS W. “TOM” AKRIDGE, AE 66, of Rome, Ga., on Dec. 27, 2022.

ARNIE BASS, MS IS 69, of Colorado Springs, Colo., on Feb. 27.

ROBERT “BOB” BENNETT JR., IM 63, of Georgetown, S.C., on Dec. 31, 2022.

JAMES P. BOLIN, MS EE 64, of Powder Springs, Ga., on Jan. 21.

HAROLD D. BOLTON, IE 65, of Dahlonega, Ga., on Jan. 19.

KENNETH R. COLEY, ID 64, of Fairfield, Conn., on Feb. 8.

BASIL P. COOPER JR, AE 65, MS AE 67, PHD AE 75, of Huntsville, Ala., on March 13.

CHARLES H. DANNER, ME 63, of Canton, Ohio, on Feb. 25.

MARCEL F. DASTUGUE III, IM 61, of Cypress, Texas, on Dec. 21, 2022.

WINGFIELD A. “WINK” DAVIS JR., IM 62, of Atlanta, on Jan. 29.

SAMUEL T. DING, MS EE 62, of Colorado Springs, Colo., on Dec. 9, 2022.

LYNN A. DOWNEY, IE 61, of Marietta, Ga., on Dec. 14, 2021.

KINLOCH F. DUNLAP III, IM 61, of Toccoa, Ga., on Dec. 2, 2020.

ROBERT A. ERICKSON, MS IE 66, of McLean, Va., on Dec. 15, 2022.

MIGUEL A. “MIKE” FERNANDEZ, CHE 62, MS CHE 63, of Greenville, S.C., on Feb. 1.

DARRYL L. GETMAN, ME 62, of Mount Dora, Fla., on Dec. 31, 2022.

CHARLES S. GIGGINS JR., CERE 61, MS MET 64, of Simsbury, Conn., on June 2, 2022.

DAVID K. CRAPPS: ENGINEER, BELOVED FRATERNITY BROTHER

DAVID K. CRAPPS, CE 63, MS SANE 64, OF GAINESVILLE, FLA., IN JANUARY 2023.

Crapps graduated from Suwannee High School in 1957, where he was active in the Future Farmers of America and later became president of the student council. While a student at Georgia Tech, he was a member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity. He was chairman of the fraternity’s “Wreck” Committee for two years, and his creation won the prestigious Ramblin’ Wreck Parade while he was a student.

Crapps was also a member of the Co-op Club and was elected to several honorary engineering societies at Tech, including Phi Beta Kappa, Tau Beta Pi, Sigma Xi, and Chi Epsilon. He was president of Chi Epsilon his senior year.

Crapps served two years in the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service from 1963 to 1965. He then worked in heavy construction for several years and became executive vice president and

director of the Florida Road Builders. He used his veteran’s benefits for his PhD studies in geotechnical engineering at the University of Florida from 1973 to 1977. During the rest of his career, Crapps provided consulting services to a number of clients, including the Florida Department of Transportation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

He worked on many major bridge projects, including the Sunshine Skyway Bridge across Tampa Bay, which was a world-record span for concrete-segmental-cable-stayed bridges at the time it was constructed. He played a key consulting role in a number of NASA projects at Kennedy Space Center, including several projects to improve the Crawlerways, the pathways supporting rockets moving from the assembly building to launch pads.

Crapps enjoyed every aspect of engineering, from the intellectual satisfaction of solving complex problems and equations to the beautiful transformational solution resulting therefrom to the ultimate landmark enjoyed by the community. He loved his work, colleagues, mentors, protégés, universities, and the science and art of engineering. He especially loved his family and was dutiful in all aspects of being a loving husband, father, grandfather, brother, son, and grandson. He was at home in Florida, Maine, and, of course, flying his plane to work and to see family.

He was preceded in death by his father, Porter Claude Crapps, Jr.; his birth mother, Mary Elizabeth Parker Crapps; his adoptive mother, Virginia Birchfield Crapps; brothers James, George, and Claude; and his adoring wife, Lee.

JAMES C. GREEN, CE 60, of Johnson City, Tenn., on Jan. 6.

DEWEY C. “CARL” GRIFFIN, EE 67, of Rock Spring, Ga., on Dec. 20, 2022.

HARVEY O. HAACK, CE 60, of State College, Pa., on Dec. 31, 2022.

DANNY U. HARMON, ARCH 68, of Columbia, Tenn., on Feb. 12.

CHARLES T. “TOM” HUBER, CHEM 63, of Catonsville, Md., on Jan. 15.

JAMES B. “JIM” JACKSON SR., CE 66, MS CE 68, of Kingwood, Texas, on Jan. 15.

ALLEN P. JONES, IM 65, of Savannah, Ga., on Dec. 22, 2022.

CHARLES R. JORDAN, IM 67, of West Chester, Pa., on March 13.

JOSEPH T. LAEMMLE, MS CHEM 68, PHD CHEM 71, of Delmont, Pa., on Jan. 10.

ROGER C. LANDERS, EE 67, of Marietta, Ga., on Jan. 12.

DENNIS G. LEE, IE 63, of Thomasville, Ga., on Dec. 30, 2022.

RICHARD M. “RICH” LEE, IM 64, of Richardson, Texas, on Jan. 23.

JERRY D. LEITMAN, ME 65, MS ME 67, of Hoover, Ala., on Feb. 12.

EARL G. LINDSEY, IM 61, of Rome, Ga., on Jan. 28.

ROBERT D. “BOB” McPHAIL, IM 61, of Arlington, Texas, on Feb. 11.

HUGH M. “MAYO” MILLS, IE 64, of Jacksonville, Fla., on Jan. 2.

ALAN R. MITCHELL, ME 62, of Savannah, Ga., on Nov. 15, 2022.

CHARLES H. MORRIS, EE 63, of Shoreview, Minn., on Feb. 24.

TRENHOLM M. “TRENT” NINESTEIN, IM 69, of Greenville, S.C., on Jan. 22.

ROBERT J. “BOB” POPP, IM 63, of Bethel, Conn., on Feb. 26.

JOHN F. PRESTON, CERE 68, of Oak Ridge, Tenn., on Feb. 9.

WILLIAM L. RAY, IM 68, MS IM 69, of The Villages, Fla., on Dec. 30, 2022.

JERRY A. RAZMUS, EE 62, of Ellicott City, Md., on Feb. 21.

EUGENE E. REID JR., IM 60, of Palmetto, Fla., on Jan. 1.

JOSEPH I. “JOE” RIPKIN, ME 65, MS IM 70, of Boerne, Texas, on Feb. 23.

JOHN R. SLEDGE, AE 63, of Ty Ty, Ga., on Jan. 1.

MEL S. SPIEL, MS PHYS 65, of Humble, Texas, on March 1.

DONALD R. STALLINGS, IE 60, of Bainbridge, Ga., on Feb. 2.

BOBBY J. STUDDARD, IM 61, of Cashiers, N.C., on Feb. 4.

WILLIAM H. “BILL” TERRY III, EE 66, of Macon, Ga., on March 10.

RUSSELL G. “GENE” VINSON, CE 67, of Waycross, Ga., on Dec. 28, 2022.

JAMES A. WALSH, MS CE 68, of Framingham, Mass., on March 8.

CAROLYN W. WHITE, PSY 69, of Big Canoe, Ga., on Jan. 2.

LEIF A. ZARS, NS 63, of Shavano Park, Texas, on Jan. 19.

1970

WILLIAM E. BURNS, ME 70, of Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 25.

MICHAEL T. “MIKE” DEBUSSCHERE, CHE 70, of Louisville, Ky., on Feb. 25.

MICHAEL H. DIFFLEY, ME 73, of Sarasota, Fla., on Dec. 21, 2022.

THOMAS J. “TOM” DIX, MS IM 70, of Dover, Del., on Dec. 5, 2022.

MICHAEL J. “MIKE” FAUGHNAN, EE 76, MS EE 77, of Acworth, Ga., on Dec. 19, 2022.

PATRICK M. “MIKE” FOWLER JR., IM 71, of Marietta, Ga., on Feb. 14.

ROSS A. GAGLIANO, MS ICS 73, PHD ICS 76, of Allen, Texas, on Dec. 23, 2022.

HARRIET J. “HATTIE” (JONES) GEESEY, IM 77, of Laramie, Wyo., on Jan. 14.

CURTIS R. “RAY” HART, CHE 76, of Lawrenceville, Ga., on Jan. 25.

STEPHEN R. HERROLD, MS PHYS 70, MS NE 72, of Port Trevorton, Pa., on Feb. 26.

JAMES S. HOLMES III, CLS 77, of Traphill, N.C., on Jan. 29.

JAMES W. “JIM” JENKINS JR, IM 72, of Stockbridge, Ga., on March 17.

RONALD E. “RON” MARTIN, AE 74, of Reading, Pa., on Dec. 24, 2022.

ROBERT H. “BOB” McCLESKEY, IM 78, of Leesville, S.C., on Jan. 13.

DAVID J. MOORHOUSE, MS AE 71, of Bellbrook, Ohio, on Sept. 10, 2022.

WALTER G. MOSELEY JR., ARCH 75, of Atlanta, on Dec. 22, 2022.

THOMAS S. “STEVEN” PARKER, IM 71, of Warner Robins, Ga., on Nov. 17, 2022.

CHESTER A. PARVER, IE 72, of Roswell, Ga., on Feb. 9.

BRUCE C. PETZOLD, ARCH 71, of Houston, Texas, on Jan. 13.

MARK W. SHROPSHIRE, MATH 75, of Peachtree Corners, Ga., on Aug. 1, 2022.

ALLAN D. STACKHOUSE, IE 71, of Williamsburg, Va., on Jan. 25.

ALAN M. THOMAS, IM 70, of Belleair, Fla., on Jan. 17.

RANDALL C. THOMPSON, CE 72, of Dallas, Ga., on Feb. 13.

ROBERT C. TREMOR, CE 79, of Rockville, Md., on Jan. 21.

WAYNE P. WEBB, CHE 70, of St. Petersburg, Fla., on Nov. 29, 2022.

EUGENE M. WELLS, AE 72, of Huntsville, Ala., on Jan. 10.

STEVEN J. “STEVE” WOLFE, MGT 73, of Stone Mountain, Ga., on Aug. 22, 2022.

MARVIN M. WYATT JR., CE 70, of Braselton, Ga., on Jan. 1.

1980

SCOTT J. AMOS, MS EE 85, of Ogden, Utah, on Feb. 1.

DAVID J. “DAVE” ATHEY, CE 82, of Newark, Md., on Jan. 27.

JANICE M. HIGHTOWER, MS IM 80, of San Antonio, Texas, on Dec. 24, 2022.

RICHARD R. “RICH” HOUSE JR., ECON 85, of Boca Raton, Fla., on March 17.

BENJAMIN B. KNIGHT, ARCH 83, of Cumming, Ga., on Feb. 24.

ALBERT V. PALLONE, EE 80, of Emerson, Ga., on Dec. 10, 2022.

KEITH D. PRICE, ARCH 86, M ARCH 88, of Smyrna, Ga., on Dec. 19, 2022.

JULIAN ALEXANDER WILSON JR.: HOBBYIST & ELECTRICAL ENGINEER

JULIAN ALEXANDER WILSON, JR., EE 64, OF CHATTANOOGA, TENN., ON MARCH 17.

Born in Fort Benning, Ga., in 1941, Wilson lived all over the world with his family in the military. He graduated from Tech, where he played the trumpet and tenor sax in the band and was a cheerleader.

After graduation, he joined the U.S. Army Signal Corps. and served in Germany and Vietnam. At the time of his honorable discharge in 1969, he held the rank of captain. After earning an MBA from Georgia State and a master’s in electrical engineering from Clemson University, he taught electrical engineering for over 34 years at DeVry and Southern Polytechnic State University. He was always interested in alternative energy sources. He designed and built an earth-sheltered home in Marietta, Ga., in the 1980s. A wide range of hobbies kept Wilson entertained throughout his life, including model trains, scuba diving,

building a rideable trolley, garden railroads, music and pipe organs, his investment club, and most recently, flying radio-controlled airplanes. He and his wife, Carol, enjoyed their early retirement years living on Lookout Mountain and going on several international trips with the Georgia Tech Travel Program. Wilson adored his beloved wife of more than 50 years, Carol. Being father to Shannon and Cynthia was his honor and joy, and later in life, he loved his role as “Papa” to his three precious grandchildren.

Wilson was preceded in death by his parents, Julian Wilson, Sr., and Nancy Wilson, sister Nancy Love Wilson, brother Patrick Wilson, and nephew Ross Drummond. Surviving Wilson are his wife, Carol Wilson, daughters Shannon Dorn (Matthew) and Cynthia Sudderth (Geoffrey), grandchildren Aleah, Luke, and Ashlyn Dorn, sister Valerie Wilson, and brother Mick Wilson.

JOHNNY B. STAMPER, AE 88, MS AE 90, of Marietta, Ga., on Aug. 28, 2020.

1990

JAIRO E. CARDOZO, IE 97, of Arlington, Texas, on Jan. 15.

TONY C. CHAPMAN, ARCH 92, of Newberry, S.C., on Jan. 18.

KENT T. CHURCHILL, MS MGT 96, of Cumming, Ga., on Dec. 22, 2022.

ROBERT L. HALL III, MGT 92, of Leesburg, Ga., on Feb. 17.

JON R. LEWIS, AE 92, of Buford, Ga., on Dec. 18, 2022.

ROBERT C. LOONEY, ME 95, of North Charleston, S.C., on Jan. 8.

KEVIN A. MILLER, EE 96, of Savannah, Ga., on Jan. 15.

ERIC A. MYRACLE, ME 92, of Decatur, Ga., on March 2.

2000

ELIZABETH A. BUCHEN, AE 09, of Canton, Ga., on Jan. 26.

JEFF Q. LA, ID 06, of Acworth, Ga., on Feb. 11.

KIRK A. POUCHER, EE 07, of Greensboro, Ga., on Feb. 2.

2010

TAYLOR A. MARSHALL, CLS 13, of Watkinsville, Ga., on Jan. 13.

2020

AIDAN J. WORSWICK, MSA 21, of Ottawa, Ontario, on Dec. 20, 2022.

FRIENDS

JIM BALLOUN, of Atlanta, on Feb. 25.

JUDY CHANCE, of Broomfield, Colo., on Feb. 12.

EUGENE E. “GENE” COMISKEY, of Brookhaven, Ga., on Jan. 6.

RICHARD FOLGER, of Lilburn, Ga., on March 6.

FLORENCE LETITIA MERO, of Columbus, Ga., on March 19.

DARREN NOWELL, of Atlanta, on Feb. 21.

BARBARA B. ROSE, of Atlanta, on Feb. 9.

HARRY P. “PAUL” SCHRANK JR., of Columbus, Ohio, on Dec. 22, 2022.

For the Love of Data

After a successful career in both aerospace and software engineering, Double Jacket Patrick Kriengsiri unexpectedly discovered his true love, data, and found his OMS Analytics degree becoming the springboard that pivoted his life. Now in pursuit of becoming a Triple Jacket with a second master’s from OMS Cybersecurity, Patrick shares how his decision to earn his OMS Analytics degree changed his life.

QYou were well-entrenched in your career at Siemens as a principal software engineer when you decided to pursue a Master of Science in Analytics. What drove you to pursue an advanced degree?

At the time, I had championed a project to collect telemetry data from our product. I wanted to do more than just get a better understanding of product use; I wanted to figure out a way to apply what we were learning to new features and functionalities.

I went down the path of trying to implement off-the-shelf machine learning solutions, but quickly realized that in order to be really effective at it, I needed a better fundamental understanding of how the technologies worked – that’s where OMS Analytics came into my life.

And then you discovered you didn’t want to stop there?

As I went through the program and applied what I learned, I realized I was really enjoying that aspect of my job and wanted to make it the focus of my career moving forward. So, while I started OMS Analytics with the intention of it supplementing my current career, it ended up being a springboard to allow me to pivot into the next.

Where did your pivot take you once you completed the OMS Analytics program?

Online Master of Science in Analytics

• Top-5 nationally ranked program

• 100% online and self-paced

• Complete in 24-72 months

• Same faculty and curriculum as on-campus program

• 3 specialized tracks:

- Analytical Tools

- Business Analytics

I was fortunate that I was in the position and had the time and flexibility to decide what was right for me, so I decided to take a sabbatical. However, like many Yellow Jackets, I found I had a hard time sitting still. So, when the opportunity came up to continue my affiliation with Georgia Tech in a teaching capacity, it seemed like a no-brainer. And I’m also using what I learned in OMS Analytics as a data and analytics consultant, which is giving me exposure to industries and corporations I never would have had in the past.

A

A Q A Q Q A

Where are you headed now?

After finishing my masters in OMS Analytics, I decided I wasn’t done and I’m now working on my master’s in computer science, so this Double Jacket will hopefully become a Triple Jacket in the near future.

- Computational Data

• Total tuition under $10,000

• No GRE/GMAT required

Cox is a dedicated group of people all focused on a single goal: building a better future for the next generation. How do we do that? By disrupting industries. By treating our employees as our most important resource. And by improving the quality of life in our communities.

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100 YEARS: THE GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE

TThe first issue of the Georgia Tech Alumnus, which was later renamed the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, was published in March 1923. Albert H. Staton, the first editor, wasted no time in issuing a pertinent disclaimer to readers. On the front page in bold, Staton wrote: “The only way we can make The Georgia Tech Alumnus a real paper is for every alumnus to cooperate. Send us suggestions as to subject matter. Ask questions you want answered. Request information you wish us to print.”

Much has changed in the last 100 years since that first issue went to print. Today, the magazine is a 100-page quarterly that reaches more than 167,000 Yellow Jackets around the world. In comparison, the first issue was a 29-page paper with a circulation of 4,500. Staton, ME 1922, left a few months after the first issue and was temporarily replaced by Dean George Griffin, CE 1922, MS IM 57. R.J. “Jack” Thieson, EE 1910, then took on the position of executive secretary and full-time magazine editor until his retirement in 1951.

In the early 1920s, the Alumni Association was still in the midst of a restructuring. W.H. Glenn, ME 1891,

BY JENNIFER HERSEIM

had led a complete reorganization in 1919 and was beginning to host regular meetings. When the magazine launched a few years later, it became the primary method of communication for the Alumni Association to reach alumni and the primary means for alumni to stay informed about the school and stay connected with each other. Back when the association required membership dues, the paper also served as a not-so-subtle reminder to pay up, and it tasked each reader with tracking down those who had lost touch with “Ma Tech.”

The Alumni Association later dropped its dues requirement. Today, all alumni receive two issues and our Roll Call donors receive four issues of the magazine. Each issue includes a theme as well as alumni profiles and recurring sections covering campus, athletics, Alumni Association news, and Tech history. As the Institute has grown over the years, the magazine has also grown to reflect an increasingly diverse population of Georgia Tech alumni and students.

While much has changed since 1923, there is one important similarity between that very first edition of the Georgia Tech Alumnus and today’s publication. Staton’s call to action remains true, even a century later. This paper—whether you’re holding it in print or on a screen—is still in your hands. These stories are your stories. And we couldn’t do it without you.

RAMBLIN’ THROUGH TIME

Class notes, job changes, and birth and wedding announcements (such as these from 1924) are a beloved mainstay of the magazine.

SOARING SPACES

Two “twin” staircases appear in the magazine more than 60 years apart. The first is a winding staircase in the Administration Building from the1959 Alumnus. The more recent version shows the world’s tallest spiral staircase, unveiled in 2019 inside the CODA building in Tech Square.

1974: THE MISSING YEAR

Summer 1973 was supposed to be the end. In a letter titled “It’s 30 for the Alumnus,” referring to an old journalism term indicating the end of copy, then-editor Ben Moon announced that the executive committee had voted to end the magazine. If readers cared, they should take action to revive the publication, Moon wrote. Alumni answered his plea, and the magazine returned in 1975 under a new name and with renewed support.

TOUGH TO ‘GET IN’ OR OUT

“A speculator sold 18 mules for $2,148.84, thereby making a profit of 26 percent. What did the mules cost apiece?” This was one of the arithmetic questions on Tech’s first entrance exam. The exam was republished in 1985 in celebration of Georgia Tech’s centennial. Well, can you pass it?

GOLD-STANDARD RESEARCH

Project A-372—“the exact title was a mouthful” —was one of hundreds of active projects at the Georgia Tech Engineering Experiment Station in the 1950s, and one of thousands conducted at Georgia Tech over the years. Project A-372, a joint project between MIT and Georgia Tech, was featured in the magazine in1958.

WRECKS & MORE

The Ramblin’ Wreck Parade originated from the Old Ford Race, but Yellow Jackets were familiar parade-goers before then. This Yellow Jacket float made of gold and white flowers with automatic flapping wings appeared in an issue of the Alumnus from 1929.

Contraptions took the spotlight at the Wreck Parade from this 1960 special issue on Homecoming.

A Coca-Cola Company advertisement from the back page of the1943 Alumnus

This photo from the 1999 magazine shows kicker Brad Chambers receiving a big hug from holder Brett Basquin after the Jackets defeated the University of Georgia.

HISTORY THROUGH A TECH LENS

The Alumni Magazine has chronicled a century of history, reflecting current events at Georgia Tech and in the wider world.

During WWII, the magazine regularly reported on the war effort and listed Tech alumni in the military.

A “Missing in Action” section of the class notes section from 1942.

Alumni were strongly encouraged to return home for Homecoming in this flyer and editorial appearing in the magazine in1924.

As the Great Depression continued, a notice in 1932 next to a list of Roll Call donors includes a note about unemployed alumni.

After violence at a different university, the March 1961 issue included a transcript of a meeting between Tech students and President Harrison discussing integration at the Institute. Later that year, Ford C. Greene, Ralph A. Long Jr., and Lawrence Williams became the first Black students to enroll at Tech.

Georgia Tech students rarely demonstrated in the ‘60s, except in 1969 on “Wonderful Ed Day” to celebrate Tech President Ed Harrison.

magazine.

“coeds” were still novel many years later.

Fred Lanoue’s famous drownproofing technique was the main feature in this 1957 edition.

A photo of President Franklin Roosevelt meeting with Tech’s President Marion Brittain appeared in the 1933 edition of the

Astronaut and alumnus John Young was pictured training for Apollo 16 in this 1973 feature.

The 1973 cover is an image of the earth viewed by the first camera telescope on the moon from the Apollo 16 mission, where Young became the ninth person to walk on the moon.

Nobel Laureate and alumnus Dr. Kary Banks Mullis was the main feature in this1994 issue.

The magazine included regular stories on the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

Researchers take the spotlight in the spring 1988 issue of the magazine.

Magazine features in the 2010s highlight Georgia Tech’s reach in Atlanta and beyond.

A campus ceremony recognized victims of Sept. 11, 2001.

The 50th anniversary of the first women students at Tech includes a cover photomosaic that blended 1,700 images of Tech women to replicate Tech Tower.

In 2020, the magazine featured Georgia Tech’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and alumni on the front lines of the fight against the virus.

“I want to be able to say I’ve done research that helped solve world problems,” says Thomas Tornabene.

ONE LAWYER’S SLITHERING SIDE HUSTLE

SNAKE VENOM CAN BE USED TO MAKE LIFESAVING MEDICINES. MEET THE BRAVE TECH GRAD WHO EXTRACTS IT.

GEORGIA TECH CAN PREPARE its students for almost any profession they choose. Ken Darnell, Chem 67, is no exception. Darnell has enjoyed a dual career: one as a successful patent lawyer and another extracting venom from snakes.

“Being a chemistry major, I could understand the chemical constitution of the venom that came from the snakes and what they could be used for. I had a fair amount of input into some of the work that researchers were doing around venom, and I’ve even handled obtaining patents for some of them,” says Darnell, who has been a venom seller for close to 50 years.

Darnell is part of a niche industry. Once the scientists have the venom that he has extracted, they make a synthetic version for the intended purpose. “There are only three venom producers in the country right now,

and none of them are making a fortune,” he says.

Snake venom is used for a plethora of purposes, from antivenoms to lifesaving medicines for issues like blood clots. The extraction process is about as specific as the job itself. Darnell’s snakes, mostly rattlesnakes indigenous to southeast Alabama, live in a structure near his home. Every couple of weeks, he takes about 200 snakes from their enclosures. One by one, he picks them up and guides them to bite a funnel. The venom trickles from their fangs into an ice bath. “Venoms are an organic compound,” he explains. “You don’t want them sitting around at room temperature.”

Once the venom is extracted, the batch is placed in a centrifuge. Any material that comes off the venom is removed. The centrifuged venom is then put in a freeze-dryer. “After a day or two, you have this dry powder,

BY MATT SOWELL

which is the form that you sell it in to the world.”

When speaking with Darnell, it’s clear how much he cares about the snakes he keeps. And while the idea of holding a snake may cause some people to cringe, Darnell says there is no need to fear these animals. “They are not going to chase you and try to bite you; they are going to get away from you as fast as they can,” he says.

Darnell credits Georgia Tech for equipping him with the skills to juggle two demanding careers. “Tech doesn’t let you sit around twiddling your thumbs. If you went to Tech, you realize you can carry a full load. It prepares you for the hard work you will do when you’re out in the world.”

As for the hard work of snake venom extraction, Darnell is prepared to keep working. “This is something I want to do until I leave this world. It’s easy,” he says.

What does Roll Call mean to you?

Thousands of alumni make a gi to Roll Call every year – each for a reason that is important to them:

Some give to help students achieve their fullest potential as engineers and leaders.

Students like Maria Rain Jennings, MS ChBE 21, PhD ChBE 24, who has not only benefited from a Roll Call funded Georgia Tech President’s Fellowship, but also learned so much about mentorship and professional networking as an active member and mentor in the Roll Call supported Georgia Tech Women in Engineering (WIE) program.

Some give to help make the best-in-class student experience possible for the next generation of leaders and problem solvers.

For leaders like Zach McGee, CS 22, who benefited from many life-changing opportunities and learned invaluable lessons outside the classroom about leadership and team building thanks to programs that connected him with alumni mentors and like-minded students.

And others give to help ensure the future excellence of Georgia Tech.

Being the best means providing unmatched experiences for students, like the internship in the United States Senate that Kyle J. Smith, PP 22, experienced through Tech’s Roll Call supported Federal Jackets Fellowship.

No ma er the reason, when you support Roll Call, you are supporting superlative students just like Maria, Zach, and Kyle. Whether it helps fund the next generation of engineers, provides unmatched opportunities, or helps bring the very best to Tech, a gi to Roll Call preserves and enhances Georgia Tech’s legacy of excellence.

Scan to see a special video message about what Roll Call means to Georgia Tech

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